We’ve discussed in prior postings the factors that lead to, and possibly precipitate, a drunken driving traffic stop. In actuality, the phrase DWI police stop is somewhat of a misnomer since a patrolman cannot, by law, base a traffic stop solely on a hunch or assumption that a motorist is…
With the legalization of medicinal marijuana already a reality in the Garden State, the use of pot to treat certain medical conditions opened up renewed concerns among law enforcement and traffic safety advocates. A great deal of the apprehension on the part of anti-marijuana advocates is the potential for an…
Last week, the Hackensack Municipal prosecutor’s office dropped two key summonses previously lodged against a River Vale resident who was initially under suspicion of impaired driving after her vehicle struck and killed a well-known local business man last fall. According to news articles, the prosecution essentially cleared 63-year-old Kathleen Gehm…
Here in the Garden State, cases involving motorists who have been charged with DWI can be prosecuted in several ways. One of the more common approaches used by municipal prosecutors includes charges of driving under the influence based on a blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 percent or more. This type…
Many hundreds of Garden State drivers are pulled over every month by police officers, during which a certain percentage of those individuals are accused of driving while under the influence of alcohol. Although a fair number of motorists are routinely convicted of DWI or drug DUI, there are many defendants…
Most motorists, when charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, usually experience trepidation when facing an upcoming hearing to decide their guilt or innocence. Entering a courtroom without a firm knowledge of the law pertaining to DWI or drug DUI can be a misstep for many people, which can…
Many police arrests that are made each week across the Garden State involve drivers suspected of DWI or drug-impaired driving. Whether a motorist is accused of an alcohol-related offense behind the wheel or charged with operating their car or truck while impaired by some type of controlled dangerous substance (CDS),…
It has been fairly well established that a patrolman’s actions when stopping a motorist on the highway are within the definitions laid out in the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which pertain to the meaning of “seizure.” Keeping this in mind, it is interesting that for…
Being arrested and charged with drunken driving or drug-impaired vehicle operation are serious events, neither of which anyone would want to experience. But as serious as these kinds of charges may be, it is important to understand that being charged with such an offense is worlds away from being convicted…
Although it may seem to be an obvious point to make, it would seem that a small number of people still don’t understand that confronting the police in whatever circumstance is highly inadvisable these days. Especially under such circumstances as a simple traffic infraction, there is little advantage to calling…