DWI Injury Accident

August 31, 2013

Considering Drunk Driving Charges Based on Breath Samples vs. Blood Samples

When looking at the process of charging a motorist with operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, establishing proof of intoxication is a primary concern for the arresting officer as well as the local prosecutor who will eventually try the DWI case. There is no question of whether or not driving while intoxicated is a serious offense; it certainly carries severe penalties entailing stiff monetary fines as well as suspension of one’s driver’s license and potential jail time.

As New Jersey DWI-DUI defense attorneys, I and my colleagues know that just because a driver is stopped and charged with a drunken driving offense, it does not necessarily mean that there is no recourse for that individual. The law provides everyone an opportunity to defend himself in a court of law, and lawyers such as those at my firm are ready to represent people accused of DWI or drug DUI against accusations of impaired motor vehicle operation.

Currently, the state of New Jersey typically uses the Alcotest 7110 breath testing device, which has been ruled a legitimate piece of equipment for determining the blood-alcohol content (BAC) of a suspect via a breath sample. Manufactured by Draeger Industries and initially put into service in 2003, the Alcotest machine conducts two separate internal BAC tests; one that uses infrared radiation and another that employs and electrochemical process.
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August 18, 2013

New Jersey Motorist Charged with Drunken Driving following Multiple-injury Accident on GSP

by Jonathan F. Marshall

On numerous occasions every week in this state it is not uncommon to see a motorist accused of DWI walk into a courtroom with either insufficient representation or none at all. When it comes to drunk driving charges, any accused individual should carefully weigh his or her options as they face the potentially costly consequences of a DWI or drug DUI conviction.

As drunk driving trial attorneys, the legal experts at the Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall have many decades of cumulative courtroom experience defending individuals accused of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated by alcohol or impaired by some kind of controlled substance. Whether the DWI-DUI charges stem from alcohol, prescription medication or illegal drug use, having a qualified drunk driving lawyer at one’s side is always preferable to entering a courtroom alone and ill-prepared.

Accused individuals may feel that their good name or driving record is sufficient to get them out of hot water; however, without the assistance of a skilled attorney the positive outcome of a drunk driving case is far from assured. Preparation and a detailed understanding of New Jersey drunk driving law are important aspects of any good DWI defense. At the very least, we highly recommend consulting with a drunken driving attorney prior to stepping foot in a courtroom.
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August 16, 2013

Middletown, NJ, Drunk Driving News: Police Suspect Drinking and Driving in Collision on Leonardville Road

by Jonathan F. Marshall

It’s a no-brainer, as they say, to understand that being charged with drunken driving in connection with a traffic accident is usually a more serious situation than being stopped, say, at a sobriety checkpoint and blowing a 0.08 on a breathalyzer. This can be said for the very reason that DWI (or drug DUI) is already one of the more weighty driving offenses that a motorist can be hit with following a routine traffic stop here in the Garden State.

Adding a vehicle collision that entails property damage or physical injury to charges of driving while intoxicated or impaired due to prescription drugs or illicit substances (sometimes referred to as controlled dangerous substances, or CDS) and most any trial attorney is likely to tell you that the court doesn’t usually take such a combination of offenses lightly. In situations like this, it is all the more important to retain the services of a qualified drunk driving defense lawyer to help handle one’s case in a courtroom.

Worse yet, and certainly beyond the potentially negative consequences surrounding a “normal” DWI-DUI traffic stop, would be those circumstances involving a fatality-related DUI traffic accident. As New Jersey DWI defense attorneys, I and my colleagues understand how quickly one’s fortune can change following a fatal or injury-related car or truck crash. Forget the embarrassment and socially awkward situations following an arrest or potential conviction, a person’s personal and private life can be turned upside down after a serious drunk driving accident.
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July 30, 2013

Garden State DWI Defense Update: Most Anyone Can Be Arrested for Driving Under the Influence

by Jonathan F. Marshall

No matter who you are or what your station in life, few if any people have immunity from a drunken driving arrest in this state. The apparent danger of drinking and driving long ago pushed intoxicated operation of an automobile, truck or motorcycle beyond that of a moving violation to one of the most serious traffic offenses in the Garden State.

As experienced New Jersey DWI defense attorneys and skilled trial lawyers, my legal team understands the law as it specifically applies to drunken driving, as well as the penalties associated with a conviction for drunken driving or operating a motor vehicle while impaired by prescription medication or illegal substances (such as marijuana or cocaine). As knowledgeable DWI attorneys, we also understand how the stigma of a drunken driving arrest and/or conviction can impact a person’s life, both public and private.

Frankly, it’s not that uncommon here in New Jersey to read of a sports hero, entertainer, state official or even a police officer who has been slapped with a DWI or DUI charge while driving his or her vehicle on public roads. From time to time we will run across news stories that detail the events leading up to the arrest and conviction of a well-known personality for drinking and driving or being impaired by drugs.
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July 16, 2013

Why Complicate Matters by Tying a New Jersey DWI Tied to an Auto Injury Accident?

by Jonathan F. Marshall

For those drivers accused of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or impaired by prescription drugs, we as drunken driving defense attorneys understand how difficult this kind of charge may be on these individuals and their families. But there is one important distinction for those who are pulled over on the side of the road, or waved into a sobriety roadblock, only to be arrested and charged with DWI or drug DUI: you did not injure or kill somebody else as a result of being in an allegedly impaired state.

We have said it here numerous times in the past, but being accused with causing bodily injury or killing another individual while also allegedly being drunk behind the wheel is a far more serious situation than being picked up for a minor traffic violation and then being slapped with a drunk driving summons.

As New Jersey DWI-DUI defense lawyers, I and my colleagues are well prepared to represent those motorists who find themselves accused of drunken driving, drug DUI or even impairment due to a controlled dangerous substance (CDS), such as cocaine or marijuana. But adding a car, truck or motorcycle crash to the list of related charges can be a game-changer.
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July 2, 2013

Hudson County DWI News: Bayonne Fire Department Captain Suspended after Multiple DWI-related Collisions

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Not long ago we addressed the pitfalls and potentially life-changing consequences for professional drivers who are facing a possible conviction for drunken driving. As many readers will recall, my law firm understands how the threat of losing one’s commercial driver’s license (CDL) due to a drinking and driving charge can be more than overwhelming. Losing one’s ability to make a living due a suspended or revoked CDL can have an economic impact on an individual and his families far beyond that of the average office worker.

As New Jersey DWI defense lawyers, I and my legal team know that any loss of driving privileges can be disrupting to one’s daily life. It is understandable that anyone who uses a motor vehicle to get to and from work would be highly inconvenienced by a license suspension due to DWI, but generally that suspension would not affect most individuals’ livelihood in the way that a similar suspension would a affect a professional driver.

Semi tractor-trailer drivers, cabbies, delivery truck operators and tradesmen rely on their ability to use a company vehicle to directly generate an income. But here in the Garden State, when a person is convicted of a drunk driving offense, the possible loss of private driver’s license has a direct effect on that person’s CDL. And, we might add, when it comes to the rules and regulations surrounding possession of a CDL, federal law has much a lower limit on what is considered drunk driving.
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June 28, 2013

New Jersey Resident Charged with DWI after Alleged Out-of-State Drunk Driving Accident

by Jonathan F. Marshall

As with many drunk driving scenarios, the beginning of the ordeal for any motorist is usually when he notices a police car behind him with lights on and siren blasting. Unnerving as that initial moment may be for most, for those individuals who may have had a drink or two prior to the police stop the worst is yet to come. Never mind the embarrassment, the fear of being found guilty of drunken driving can result in a very awkward experience on the roadside.

As New Jersey trial lawyers experienced in defending motorists accused of intoxicated driving or drug DUI from taking some kind of prescription medication, we understand the trepidation that most anyone would feel after being called out by a New Jersey State trooper or municipal patrolman. We also know that if a person does not actively seek legal assistance to fight a drunk driving charge, the potential penalties for losing one’s case can be costly.

The skilled attorneys at our Monmouth County law firm are dedicated to providing a vigorous defense on behalf of our clients. In general, when considering whether or not one might retain counsel for a DWI-DUI or breath test refusal charge, it is important to ask a few questions. Top among these would be whether or not a prosecutor can prove you, as the driver, were intoxicated.
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May 28, 2013

Ocean County DWI Police Blotter: Local Drivers Arrested for DWI and Alcohol-related Auto Accidents

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Each week there are always more motorists who become acquainted with local and state police officers in ways they likely never expected. As drunk driving trial attorneys, the experienced attorneys at the law offices of Jonathan F. Marshall understand how unexpected and traumatizing being arrested for intoxicated driving can be to many people. For this reason alone, not to mention the legal aspects of many DWI-DUI cases, the accused may want to discuss their situation with a qualified legal professional.

Since my staff has been involved in more courtroom hearings in a week than the average person might experience in their entire lifetime, it’s never a bad idea to take the time to consult with a specialist in the area of drunk driving law. Surprisingly, many DWI and drug DUI arrests start out in a relatively innocent manner; by a driver failing to signal a lane change or having a lapsed vehicle registration. But by the end of the traffic stop, many drivers may find that themselves sitting at police headquarters and blowing into a breathalyzer machine, such as the Alcotest device.
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April 30, 2013

Driver Charged with DUI, Reckless Driving after Car Reportedly Rams Police Cruiser in Middlesex County

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Being charged with drunken driving is no laughing matter, but heaping other offenses on top of a DWI really not desirable. Quite frankly, it is in most people’s best interests to take their fight to a court of law, rather than express anger — physically or verbally — toward the arresting officer. Of course, nobody is perfect and human nature can get the best of anyone during a tense and stressful situation such as a drunk driving arrest.

As New Jersey DWI defense attorneys, I and my staff understand the that tempers can run high during a traffic stop, especially if the accused motorist believes he was in the right. Having had a glass of wine or a beer prior to the police stop can lead to a possible arrest for driving while intoxicated, so it is best to try and keep one’s head during such instances. But there are even worse situations in which a driver might find himself.

We were reminded of this by a news article a while back in which a driver was accused of multiple traffic offenses, driving under the influence being one of them. But in this particular case, the motorist also allegedly hit an officer’s patrol car prior to the arrest. Now, we don’t have to tell most people that being involved in a traffic accident while allegedly drunk behind the wheel is not the world’s best scenario when it comes to defending a DWI charge.
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April 5, 2013

Police Log Multiple DWI Incidents in Union County; DWI Accidents, Sobriety Checkpoint Arrests and Others

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Ever known someone who was arrested for driving while intoxicated? Yes, well join the club. No? Just give it a little time. Here in the Garden State, drunken driving seems to be a common activity, as is being arrested for same. One thing is certain; wait a few days and you’re bound to hear about yet another person charged with DWI, or driving while impaired by prescription drugs or illegal substances.

The list of possible charges is not particularly long, but the reasons why motorists get stopped for a seemingly insignificant moving violation or traffic infraction and then go on to be taken into custody by police — then charged with an alcohol or drug-related offense — are many and varied. As a former municipal prosecutor-turned-defense-attorney, I began this law firm to help fight for people who have been accused of DWI-DUI.

One only has to look at the news each day to see the numerous instances of New Jersey motorists being slapped with single and even multiple charges of driving while intoxicated, breath test refusal, impaired driving, possession of illegal drugs or drug paraphernalia and other serious traffic-related offenses. The following are just a sampling of incidents that took place in Union County not too long ago:
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