Driving under the influence refers not only to alcohol-related DWI but also to drug-related DUI. Whether a motorist is charged with drunk driving or drug-impaired driving, the penalties following a conviction can be stiff. As a New Jersey drunk driving defense lawyer, I have represented hundreds of motorists whose livelihoods hung in the balance following an arrest for driving while intoxicated.
A recent news story shows what can happen to someone arrested for drug-related impaired driving. According to reports, Hamburg police answered a 911 call on the afternoon of October 31, 2009, where they found the aftermath of a two-car collision at the intersection of
Quarry Road and Route 23.
Upon arriving on the scene, police determined that a vehicle driven by Stefanie A. Eruhow — a 23-year-old from Vernon, NJ — had struck the rear of another vehicle driven by a 46-year-old Hamburg resident. According to police, Christa K. Piper’s car had been hit due to Eruhow’s impaired condition at the time.
Police conducted a roadside investigation and subsequently arrested Eruhow for alleged drug-impaired DWI. Officers ordered her vehicle to be impounded, based on the provisions of “John’s Law,” which states that a vehicle belonging to a person arrested for DWI should be impounded to prevent any continued danger to the road-going public. Based on police reports, after Eruhow was arrested, police allegedly found her to also be in possession of heroin and drug paraphernalia.
In the end, Eruhow was charged with drug-impaired DWI, possession of a controlled dangerous substance in a motor vehicle, failure to produce a driver’s license, reckless driving, careless driving, being under the influence of a controlled dangerous substance, possession of heroin, possession of drug paraphernalia, hindering apprehension, and obstruction of governmental function. She was released from custody pending an appearance in the Hamburg Municipal Court.
Aim Vernon: Police Blotter, NorthJersey.com, December 4, 2009