Make no mistake, at this time of year there are many New Jersey motorists who get picked up for drunken driving day after day as the holiday season progresses through to the New Year. It matters little if someone is an upstanding person in his or her neighborhood or well-respected individual in the local business community, being arrested for DWI or drug DUI can and does happen; the results of which can be costly and embarrassing.
It’s no laughing matter when a driver is pulled over after having a few drinks. While the initial traffic stop must be for a moving violation, exhibiting any outward signs of possible intoxication will likely pique an officer’s interest to the point that a field sobriety test will be requested. I f failed, the patrolman may decide to arrest the driver and take him or her in to have a breathalyzer test performed (via Alcotest or other such device), which could possibly lead to a charge of drinking and driving.
We see this kind of scenario play out week after week all across the Garden State. Consider the following bits and pieces culled from local news sources:
Ocean County DUI Arrest
A simple wrong turn resulted in a couple charges of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of a controlled dangerous substance (CDS), as well as drug DUI and possession of drug paraphernalia. According to the news report, Stafford Township police officers responded to an anonymous report after the unnamed caller reportedly saw a passenger car being driven in a reckless fashion along a stretch of Rte 9.
Arriving on the scene, officers found a pair of individuals in a black VW Jetta — a 38-year-old male from Bayville and a 21-year-old female from Toms River. When questioned, the couple told police that they had missed a turn in Waretown and ended up in Wawa. Police apparently obtained signed consent by the vehicle’s owner, located elsewhere, to search the car. In the process the officers uncovered a number of items including six hypodermic needles and some prescription medicine.
The driver was arrested and charged with possession of a controlled dangerous substance in a motor vehicle, as well as one count of possessing drug paraphernalia, not to mention DUI. The vehicle’s owner received a summons for DUI simply because she allowed the man to operate her vehicle while knowing that he was under the influence of a CDS.
Police Arrest Driver in Morris County
A local motorist who was stopped for speeding along a stretch of Main Street in Madison a little after midnight ended up being charged with DWI after police officers determined the 52-year-old man with driving while intoxicated. As part of the police stop, the driver was taken to police headquarters, charged with DWI and then issued a summons for speeding. The motorist was processed and subsequently released to a relative pending a court appearance.
Driver Arrested for Out-of-State DWI Warrant in Hunterdon County
Readington, NJ, police arrested a 24-year-old South Bound Brook resident on a Pennsylvania driving while intoxicated charge after officers pulled his vehicle over for a burned-out headlamp. According to news reports, the incident occurred around three o’clock in the morning when a Jeep Cherokee was observed driving with one of its headlights inoperable. Pulling the vehicle over, officers apparently realized that the driver was wanted in Pennsylvania on a DUI charge. He was arrested and held in the Hunterdon County Jail as authorities arranged extradition.
Police charge Madison driver with DUI on Main Street, NJ.com, October 03, 2012
Readington police arrest man on Pennsylvania DUI charge, NJ.com, October 01, 2012
“Wrong Turn” Leads Pair to DUI Charges in Stafford Township, TomsRivernjOnline.com, September 25th, 2012