Field Sobriety Tests

October 29, 2009

New Jersey Police Blotter: Numerous Essex and Morris County DWI Arrests in the News

Montclair

A resident of Wayne, NJ, was stopped by police just after 12am on September 21 for allegedly running three stop signs. As a drunk driving defense lawyer with offices throughout New Jersey, I know that this kind of behavior is difficult to explain simply. However, my firm has represented many individuals arrested for DWI under similar circumstances, which is not uncommon.

According to police reports, the 44-year-old man was driving a 2006 Honda CR-V when he was pulled over by law enforcement officers at Valley Road and Church Street. Officers reportedly could smell alcohol on the man, who also exhibited other signs of possible intoxication, police said. When asked, the suspect explained that he had consumed two beers at a local bar earlier that evening.

September 30, 2009

Atlantic County Man with 0.00 Percent BAC Sues over Northfield Drunk Driving Charge

by Jonathan F. Marshall

A man initially arrested for DWI at a sobriety checkpoint in November 2008, the charges for which were dropped four months later, has sued for wrongful arrest. As a New Jersey DWI defense attorney, I have represented clients over the years who have faced similar circumstances. In the case of Tyrone Foxworth’s drunk driving arrest, the claimant says that Officer Kristina Ramsi falsely arrested the Somers Point man and caused him to be prosecuted in a malicious fashion, thus violating his rights under both the Fourth and Fourteenth amendments of the United States Constitution.

According to reports, this individual was still charged with drunk driving even after Foxworth’s blood alcohol content (BAC) registered a reading of 0.00 percent via a Breathalyzer test at the Northfield police station just 15 minutes following his arrest at the checkpoint. Police records show that no blood or urine was taken for a drug test at time, because there was no drug-recognition expert available that evening.

Based on news accounts, Foxworth was driving with two friends when his vehicle was flagged down at a multi-jurisdictional DWI checkpoint along Shore Road around 3am on Thanksgiving morning. As per standard procedures, every fifth vehicle was being flagged and pulled over, according to police. The complaint states that Foxworth was instructed to pull into a secondary check area by Absecon Officer James Laughlin.

September 18, 2009

New Jersey DWI News: Hanover, Jefferson and Morris Township Police Blotter

by Jonathan F. Marshall

As we slowly transition to fall there is still a great deal of sunshine and warm evenings to enjoy. The persistence of weekend parties and late-night gatherings will likely result in numerous drunk driving arrests throughout the Garden State by local and state law enforcement officers. As a New Jersey DWI attorney, I make it a habit to warn friends and associates to drink responsibly and utilize the services of a designated driver whenever necessary.

Morris County communities were recently in the news regarding police reports of intoxicated drivers stopped for driving under the influence of alcohol and prescription drugs, sometimes even illegal drugs. The following are some examples.

Hanover Township
A recent drunk driving checkpoint netted several drivers charged with DWI by the Hanover police between Thursday, September 3, and the following Friday. News reports describe a 47-year-old man from out of state who was arrested and charged with possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, as well as being issued a motor vehicle summons for possession of drugs in a motor vehicle. A second driver, as 37-year-old Wharton resident was stopped and charged with DWI and driving with a suspended license. Finally, a 61-year-old driver from North Caldwell, NJ, was arrested for drunk driving, as well as reckless driving.

An East Hanover resident was arrested for DWI in the early morning hours after she was pulled over for making an illegal turn on Route 10. According to reports, the 27-year-old woman was arrested after failing several sobriety tests, after which she was taken to police headquarters for a breath test. She was released to a friend after receiving summonses for DWI and making an improper turn.

Jefferson Township
A 24-year-old Wantage resident was stopped by police after the woman’s car struck a guardrail on September 10. She was arrested by police and charged with driving while intoxicated, as well as receiving numerous motor vehicle summonses. Police reports show that the woman was taken to St. Clare’s-Dover Hospital to be treated for minor injuries and was released, pending a municipal court appearance.

A 20-yeal-old local resident was charged with DWI and underage drinking during a motor vehicle stop on Espanong Road on September 7. According to police, the young man was cited and released, pending a court appearance.
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September 13, 2009

New Jersey Drunk Driving News: Hillsborough Township DWI Police Blotter

by Jonathan F. Marshall

It’s not unusual for New Jersey drivers to be stopped for drunk driving if they exhibit signs of intoxicated driving. Some of these signs include failure to stay in one’s lane, excessive speed, driving markedly below the posted speed limit, careless driving, erratic vehicle operation, etc. Of course, many of these can also be attributed to other situations not involving drinking and driving. For this reason alone, as a New Jersey drunk driving and drug DUI defense attorney, I can say that not every traffic stop results in a DWI summons.

There are cases where the police will stop a driver based on observations of the person’s vehicle, then submit the individual to a field sobriety test if the officer believes that driver is intoxicated. Everyone deserves the opportunity to have their day in court. Retaining an experienced DWI attorney is the first step toward contesting a drunk driving summons or breath test refusal. The following are several examples of recent DWI and drug DUI arrests in the local area.

A 46-year-old man from Matawan was pulled over for straddling the dashed white line and driving in both eastbound lanes on Amwell Road in the early morning hours of August 16. Police reportedly charged the man with driving while intoxicated and failure to maintain the lane. After being taken into custody, the man failed several field sobriety tests. Officers took him to police headquarters where he was found to have a blood alcohol level of 0.20 percent — nearly three times the legal limit in New Jersey.

Following a call by a local resident who reported being woken up by a crash in front of his house, police responded to an alleged hit-and-run accident in Deer Path. According to reports, the caller told police that he heard the sound of a vehicle driving across the yard. The car belonging to a 20-year-old Deer Path man reportedly had jumped the curb and struck a tree in a neighbor’s yard, before traveling across the driveway and grass. The driver was later found in his vehicle parked in his garage, along with evidence that the car had recently been in an accident. Police took the man into custody after he failed several field sobriety tests. At police headquarters, he was found to have a blood alcohol level of 0.11 percent. He was charged with DWI, failure to keep right, reckless driving, leaving the scene of an accident, failure to report an accident and underage consumption of alcohol.
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September 9, 2009

Bridgewater Municipal Judge Charged with Drunk Driving in Ocean County, NJ

by Jonathan F. Marshall

I’ve said it here before, but I’ll say it again. As a former municipal prosecutor I find it hypocritical for anyone in law enforcement or the judiciary to act in a manner that suggests they believe themselves to be above the very laws to which they hold the rest of society. Being a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, I work with municipal judges everyday when representing clients who have been charged with driving under the influence of alcohol.

Any police officer, prosecutor or judge who doesn’t live up to the same standards he or she sets for the rest of us doesn’t deserve our respect. This all came to mind upon reading a news report covering the recent arrest of a Bridgewater municipal court judge on drunk driving charges in Lavalette, NJ.

Police reports indicate that the car Rizzolo was driving was observed swerving on Route 35. Officers from the Lavallette Police Department pulled Rizzolo over, after which he explained his actions were caused by a ringing cell phone. The patrolman advised the judge that he was going to administer several field sobriety tests, including a balance test, which Rizzolo refused to take due to a bad back and injured ankle.

August 28, 2009

Labor Day DWI Report: Drunk Driving Sobriety Checkpoint in Mercer County this Friday

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Drivers traveling near Lawrence Township in Mercer County this Friday evening should be aware that a drunk driving sobriety roadblock will be operating along Brunswick Pike until the early morning hours of Saturday, August 29. This DWI checkpoint is part of a state and nationwide campaign to identify and arrest individuals operating motor vehicles while under the influence of alcohol.

The initiative, known as “Over the Limit, Under Arrest,” is targeting the roadways of New Jersey in an effort to pick up motorists driving with an illegal amount of alcohol in their system. The entire nationwide campaign is running from August 21 to September 7, through the Labor Day holiday.

As part of this campaign, the Lawrence Township Police Department has received funding through the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety. Law enforcement officers will be setting up a checkpoint on Brunswick Pike just south of Franklin Corner Road starting around 9:30 p.m. on Friday, August 28. The DWI roadblock will be in operation until 4 a.m. Saturday.

August 19, 2009

DWI News: Drunk Driving Patrols, Sobriety Checkpoints Scheduled across New Jersey for Next Couple Weeks

by Jonathan F. Marshall

Drivers in Monmouth and Essex Counties, along with many other parts of New Jersey, will see numerous Drunk driving patrols over the coming weeks. DWI sobriety checkpoints throughout the Garden State will also be evident during the days leading up to the coming Labor Day holiday weekend. These checkpoints, also known as sobriety roadblocks, are commonly used by law enforcement as one way to decrease the number of alcohol-related auto accidents and deaths on the state’s highways and surface streets.

As a New Jersey DWI defense lawyer, my office alerts motorists to these checkpoints due to the number of driving while intoxicated arrests in these areas. By law, state, county and municipal arms of law enforcement can only set up checkpoints in locations that have a statistically high incidence of people driving under the influence of alcohol.

Standard procedure at these checkpoints includes police giving field sobriety tests to drivers that appear to be intoxicated. If the officer is satisfied that an individual operating a vehicle is possibly drunk, a breath test will usually be administered to determine the blood alcohol content (BAC) of that driver.

August 15, 2009

Plainfield Man Arrested for Drunk Driving in Middlesex County, Charged with Child Endangerment

by Jonathan F. Marshall

If there is one thing I remind people arrested for DWI and other drunk driving violations, don’t make things worse by pulling another person in on your mistake. Of course, an adult is fully capable of deciding if he wants to ride with someone who is obviously intoxicated, but a child, well that’s a different story. As a New Jersey drunk driving lawyer, I and my staff of experienced DWI attorneys have represented clients charged with a wide range of offenses in addition to driving under the influence of alcohol, or prescription or illegal drug DUI.

A recent news article is an example of the trouble that a driver can get into when not considering the safety of his or her passengers. Apparently a 22-year-old Plainfield man was arrested for driving while intoxicated after crashing his vehicle in the driveway of a Dunellen home late in the evening of August 3.

According to police, Stanley Brown of 127 Prospect Avenue was arrested by borough police after he allegedly crashed a 1994 Nissan Maxima along the driveway as he was trying to leave the locale around 11 p.m. Officers were called to the scene by concerned neighbors, who told officers that the man had fled the vehicle and was in the backyard of the house.

According to reports, the police found a five-year-old boy sitting on the back seat of the car, but not in a child-restraint seat. The child was identified as the son of Brown’s girlfriend. Officers then searched and found the man in the backyard, where they also detected the odor of alcohol on his breath.

After having the man take a series of field sobriety tests, which he allegedly failed, police administered a breathalyzer test and found the man’s blood alcohol content (BAC) to be 0.19 percent — double the legal limit in New Jersey. Brown was then arrested and transported to the Middlesex County Adult Correction Center in North Brunswick.

Police said that child’s condition was evaluated by the Dunellen First Aid Squad and was determined to be unhurt. The boy was returned to the custody of his mother, and Brown was also charged with child endangerment.
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August 14, 2009

Drunk Driving Arrest News: New Jersey Police Blotter

by Jonathan F. Marshall

South Orange — An Essex County, New Jersey, resident was stopped by police around 1:30 a.m. on August 7 when and officer saw a car apparently speeding on Sloan Street, after which it poorly negotiated a left turn onto South Orange Avenue. After making the traffic stop, other officers arrived at the scene where they detected the scent of alcohol on the driver’s breath indicating that the man was probably drunk. A passenger in the front seat also appeared to be intoxicated. Police administered a field sobriety test to the 43-year-old Maplewood resident, which he failed. The man became upset following the test. Police arrested him for DWI, took him into custody and impounded his vehicle.

South Orange — On August 8, in the early morning hours, a patrolman noticed a vehicle parked in front of 67 South Orange Avenue with the motor running, headlights burning and right-front tire completely flat. On closer inspection, the officer could see that the 28-year-old Greenbrook, NJ, resident appeared to be sleeping. The officer attempted to awaken the man, who became somewhat responsive after several minutes. Interviewing the conscious driver, the police officer could detect the odor of alcohol on the man’s breath. Other officers were called to the scene and the man was removed from the vehicle and given several field sobriety tests, all of which he failed. Police arrested the man and transported him to headquarters where a test for blood alcohol content (BAC) showed a reading of 0.13 percent.

Madison — A 49-year-old Irvington resident was stopped for careless driving by local police officers late in the evening of July 31. During the traffic stop, officers noticed that she was inebriated, after which she was charged with drunk driving and later released to a family member.

July 31, 2009

Breaking DWI News: Monmouth County, NJ, Sobriety Checkpoint

by Jonathan F. Marshall

A new sobriety roadblock will be set up in Monmouth County, New Jersey, beginning tonight (11pm on July 31) and remaining in effect until 3am on Saturday, August 1, 2009, in an attempt to catch drunk drivers in the Allenhurst, NJ, area. According to the Monmouth Co. DWI Task Force, which will be working in concert with the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety, the sobriety checkpoint will be screening drivers to detect those individuals operating their vehicles under the influence of alcohol and/or illicit or prescription drugs.

This latest drunk driving roadblock will be located along the northbound lanes of Main Street near Elberon Avenue, where drivers will be routed to determine their level of inebriation, if any. During the DWI stops, the task force members and officers from the Allenhurst Police Department will use standardized field sobriety testing as established by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

In the state of New Jersey, sobriety checkpoints are typically employed by local police and other law enforcement agencies to help decrease the occurrence of alcohol-related auto accidents and fatalities across the state’s rural and urban roads, as well as on the highways and other high-traffic roadways.