DWI Law and Legislation

March 4, 2012

NJ Drunk Driving Update: Before a DWI Conviction, Prosecutors Must Prove Guilt — Part 1

As stated previously in this forum, drunken driving is a serious offense with severe penalties for those convicted of DWI, breath test refusal or driving under the influence of a controlled dangerous substance (CDS); however, no conviction and no sentencing for driving while intoxicated can even take place until the prosecution has proven to the court that a driver was responsible for operating a motor vehicle while drunk on alcohol, or otherwise impaired by prescription medications or illicit drugs (also known as drug DUI).

In the Garden State, drivers who have never been arrested for driving while under the influence of alcohol might not know all the finer point of the law. As New Jersey DWI defense lawyers, I and my colleagues not only understand state law as it pertains to drunk drivers, but we also have a detailed understanding of the circumstances in which individuals find themselves facing a charge of DWI or breath test refusal.

Of course, it goes without saying that an arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs can lead to harsh monetary penalties and even license suspension. (As an aside, most people might not even consider the implications of losing their driver’s license, and essentially their driving privileges for even several months, but this alone can be devastating to someone who drives to work, or more seriously, drives for a living.)
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February 2, 2012

Bergen County DWI Update: Drunken Driving Conviction Can Lead to Revoked NJ Driver’s License

by Jonathan F. Marshall

If there is one thing that most people need to live and work in our modern age, outside of food and lodging, it might be a valid driver’s license. From the day we receive our learner’s permit — and later a full-fledged license — we begin to value the freedom of movement that driving a car or truck provides. However, for many people, the state can revoke, suspend or otherwise withhold a motorist’s driving privileges for certain convicted offenses.

Whether one lives in Monmouth, Ocean or Sussex County, for those caught up in a drunken driving arrest it is not so far flung of a statement to suggest that a temporary, and sometimes long-term, loss of their New Jersey driver’s license could be in the offing depending on the nature of the charges and the driver’s history of DWI, drug DUI, or other impaired driving offenses.

Considering the freedom and independence that a license imparts to an individual, it’s hardly worth tempting fate with a drunk driving arrest, much less a potential conviction. Still, circumstances can arise leaving a driver in the unenviable position of losing his or her driver’s license based on a local court’s ruling following a guilty verdict or guilty plea regarding charges of driving while intoxicated, or operating a motor vehicle while impaired by prescription medication.
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January 28, 2012

New Jersey Drunken Driving Defense Update: Driver’s License Suspension Possible following DWI or DUI Conviction

by Jonathan F. Marshall

It’s not surprising, with all the anti-drunken driving campaigns that target potentially impaired Garden State motorists every year, that New Jersey law enforcement agencies and our court system hold little love for drivers convicted of DWI or drug DUI. While use of illicit drugs, such as cocaine and marijuana, by some drivers is seen by police officers on a weekly basis, impaired driving as a result of alcohol consumption is likely much more common by the average citizen.

As New Jersey DWI defense lawyers, I and my staff of experienced drunken driving attorneys understand how quickly a driver can find him or herself on the receiving end of a DWI or DUI summons. When that day comes, it’s a good idea to consult with a qualified DWI attorney to better understand one’s options.

Naturally, it’s a given that being convicted of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated or otherwise impaired by alcohol, prescription drugs or other illegal substances (also know as controlled dangerous substances (CDS), will likely include some serious sanctions — namely heavy fines and other monetary penalties. But in addition to these financially costly penalties, the courts also have the ability, in many cases, to include a license suspension as part of the list of penalties the defendant will have to bear.

From the standpoint of fees, in general, anyone who is convicted of drunken driving in New Jersey can face fines upward of $1,000 for a single instance and penalties (including surcharges to a driver’s insurance premiums) of possibly $4,000 to $5,000 or more over the course of three years. This includes numerous fees for the DWI Enforcement Fund, MVC Restoration Charge, potential out-patient counseling, Safe Neighborhood Fund, Violent Crime Compensation Board Fund, not to mention court costs.
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January 25, 2012

Middlesex County DWI Update: A Look at Penalties following a New Jersey Drunken Driving Conviction

by Jonathan F. Marshall

We recently discussed the seriousness of a teenager’s conviction for underage DWI. While every parent faced with this type of situation should be rightly concerned, there are other areas of drunken driving defense law that one should also be cognizant of, such as the penalties and fines that adults can face following an arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol or prescription drugs (drug DUI).

As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, I can say that a conviction for operating a motor vehicle while under the influence — either by controlled dangerous substances (CDS) or alcohol — can carry with it some rather severe penalties. Anyone who is arrested for, charged with or accused of a DWI or drug DUI offense should seriously consider seeking the counsel of a qualified legal expert in the area of drunk driving law. An aggressive defense is important to pursue considering the harsh penalties and fines that New Jersey courts tend to levy on those convicted of drunken driving.

For individuals who are convicted of, or who plead guilty to, DWI or drug DUI charges, depending on the particular circumstances a defendant can face jail time, heavy fines, loss of their driver’s license, and the addition of future premium surcharges on their car insurance policy. Of course, penalties following a drunk driving or DUI conviction are dependant on whether that particular conviction is the individual’s first, second or subsequent DWI-DUI offense.
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January 16, 2012

Monmouth, NJ, Drunk Driving Update: New Jersey Marijuana Use or Possession Charges can be Serious

by Jonathan F. Marshall

For anyone who has ever been stopped by police here in the Garden State for drunken driving, impaired driving due to prescription medication (aka drug DUI), or operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of a controlled dangerous substance (CDS), you know that the potential consequences could be harsh and have long lasting effects.

Of course, alcohol use is one of the most common “legal” pastimes in Bergen, Middlesex, Ocean and Hudson counties, however other illegal substances, such as cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana, are also being used by drivers on public roads. Of those illicit drugs, marijuana is without a doubt one of the more common illegal substances encountered by state and local police across New Jersey.

Arrests of drivers from all walks of life by New Jersey law enforcement officers for marijuana-related offenses are commonplace, which is not surprising in the least considering that an estimated 35 billion dollars’ worth of marijuana is cultivated in the United States each year. In fact, with medicinal marijuana becoming more prevalent, there is a good chance that more people than ever before probably know someone who uses marijuana legally or illegally from time to time.

Even so, persons who are arrested for marijuana use or possession in Monmouth, Sussex, Passaic or Atlantic counties should take very seriously any charges levied by police. Even though marijuana may be considered to be a rather low-level drug in the grand scheme of things, the New Jersey court system treats this CDS drug no differently than any other violation of state law.
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January 13, 2012

In-car Cellphone Use…the Newest Version of Driving While Intoxicated in New Jersey?

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Back in the early- to mid-20th Century, drinking and driving was at best looked at as a potential for embarrassing run-ins with the police; or something to laugh at in a motion picture comedy. At worst, it could land a person in the “drunk tank” for a day or two so that one could sober up. Of course, no one was saying that DWI wasn’t a real problem — and many times a deadly one, at that, but it wasn’t as stigmatized as it had become in the ’80s and ’90s, and especially these days. Who knows for certain; maybe society was more accepting of the happy-go-lucky drunk, and even husbands or fathers who came come home plastered were more than likely given a pass due to the “pressures” of their work-a-day lives.

Fast forward to the 21st Century, and we have a different situation. People still drink, just as they have in the past, but tolerance for drinking and driving has more or less evaporated — at least from the standpoint of police agencies and the judicial system. Coming home to one’s family at 4am drunk is also on the outs as more and more people treat achoholism as a failing instead of a disease one cannot control.

But drunken driving isn’t the issue here, today. What we are wondering, as New Jeresy DWI defense attorneys, is how soon might we see legislation that rasies driving while distracted (DWD) at chargeable offense. Of course, that’s already happening in many states with passage of anti-texting and hand-free phone laws. Truly, with all the efforts afoot to make driving while intoxicated a thing of the past, is DWD legislation not far behind? Maybe yes, maybe no; but certainly, a possibility.

According to the news outlets around the country, driving while distracted will be a hot topic in the coming years. Just as DWI and drug DUI, many traffic safety advocates and law makers are looking very carefully at the impact that cellphones have had and will have on the frequency and severity of automobile accidents.
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January 8, 2012

Mercer County Legal Defense News: NJ Appeals Court Rules Probable Cause Not Required for Sobriety Testing

by Jonathan F. Marshall

As many people already understand, when it comes to being arrested for drunken driving in the Garden State, an officer typically will have stopped the accused on the basis of a moving violation or some other traffic or motor vehicle offense. As New Jersey DWI defense attorneys, we get questions all of the time from potential clients regarding what is or isn’t a legitimate drunken driving stop. Technically, there really aren’t (or shouldn’t be) traffic stops based solely on an officer’s suspicion that a driver is intoxicated behind the wheel.

Instead, New Jersey law requires that a police officer must have a valid reason for pulling a motorist over to the side of the road and initiating a traffic stop. But here things might seem to get a little murky. While an officer is not allowed to stop someone just on suspicion of impaired driving — a hunch, one might call it — that same officer can stop the very same driver for not maintaining his or her lane, making an illegal turn or perhaps observing that the motorist’s vehicle has a burnt-out tail lamp.

Once stopped for a legitimate traffic offense, the door is opened to other potential charges after the officer has a chance to observe the driver, passengers and vehicle interior up close. After that, it’s now the patrolman’s task to decide of the driver made those errors because of inattention, negligent action or impaired mental and physical capabilities, among other possible causes.
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January 1, 2012

NJ Legal Defense News: Penn. State Supreme Court Overturns Challenge to Ignition Interlock Law

by Jonathan F. Marshall

In many states, the Garden State included, ignition interlocks can be ordered installed in vehicles used by convicted drunken driving offenders as a way of keeping intoxicated drivers off the road. While some people oppose these types of laws, traffic safety and anti-drunk driving supporters maintain that mandatory ignition interlocks are a good thing.

As New Jersey DWI defense lawyers, my staff is well aware of the fines and penalties associated with a drunk driving conviction. In addition to court fees and punitive fines, motorists charged with driving while intoxicated by alcohol or prescription drugs (drug DUI) can also end up paying inflated car insurance premiums and even face jail time for multiple offenses.

One of the legal judgments that can come down from the bench following a DWI conviction is the mandatory installation of an ignition interlock onto a convicted drunk driver’s vehicle. The types of devices are designed to prevent the starting of a vehicle if the operator has a blood-alcohol content (BAC) exceeding a certain value. Akin to a mini breathalyzer, an ignition interlock device will disable a car or truck’s starting system if the unit detects alcohol on the driver’s breath.

A short time ago, Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court overturned a ruling that resulted from a legal challenge to that state’s law regarding the use of ignition interlock devices. Based on news reports, the ruling not only closed a loophole in state law, it also clarified the application of ignition interlocks in DWI cases.
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December 28, 2011

No DWI Charges Yet for New Jersey Man Involved in Fatal Ocean County Traffic Accident

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Being caught driving drunk here in the Garden State can get many a motorist in hot water legally and financially; and it’s no secret that police departments in Monmouth, Bergen, Sussex and Atlantic counties have virtually no tolerance for drivers who get behind the wheel in any state of inebriation. Frankly, with all the hype about anti-drinking and driving enforcement during the holidays, it’s difficult to imagine that individuals still drive while potentially intoxicated, but apparenlty this happens with extreme regularity.

As New Jersey DWI defense attorneys, I and my colleagues are constantly reading about individuals who may or may not believe that they were intoxicated at the time of their arrest. Regardless of where one is picked up for operating a vehicle while impaired — be that by alcohol, prescription medication (drug DUI) or illicit drugs like cocaine or marijuana — the penalties can be severe and costly.

As drivers ourselves, we understand the reasons for anti-drunken driving laws, however the methods and evidence used against motorists can sometimes be questionable, to the point that a DWI case may have little chance of standing up in court. One thing, however, that can make a so-called “routine” drunk driving arrest stand out is when it coupled with a traffic accident. Property damage, injuries and certainly fatalities tied to an alleged drunk driving episode is nothing to sneeze at.
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November 30, 2011

Warren County DWI News: Is Smelling for Alcohol on a New Jersey Motorist a “Police Interrogation”?

by Jonathan F. Marshall

As anyone who has ever been arrested or even convicted of driving while intoxicated will likely know that many times a police officer will testify he detected the odor of alcohol on the motorist’s breath prior to a drunk driving arrest. While this statement is usually not enough to convict a driver of DWI, it can be sufficient to prompt the officer to ask the driver to exit his or her vehicle and perform several field sobriety tests — and from that a drunken driving arrest could be forthcoming.

As New Jersey drunk driving and drug DUI defense lawyers, I and my staff have represented numerous individuals accused of driving under the influence of alcohol, prescription medication, and even illegal substances like marijuana. Many of these people believed that they were not impaired at the time of their arrest. Still, when a patrolman states under oath that a driver smelled of beer, wine or hard liquor, it can seem as if the prosecution has a solid case against the defendant.

Earlier this fall, the Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey overturned a lower court ruling that was apparenlty pinned on the argument that a police officer who sniffed the breath of an underage teen at a party in Independence, NJ, provided sufficient notice that the individual had certain rights. The rights that were allegedly implied by the officer’s “sniff test” were the young man’s Miranda Rights; the lower court that rendered the guilty verdict said the act of sniffing for the odor of alcohol was akin to announcing that the suspect had the “right to remain silent.”
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