ARRESTED FOR DUI, DWI, DRUNK DRIVING?
WE CAN HELP!
If you've received a Traffic Ticket, a DWI-DUI or arrested for Drunk Driving in Bergen County or anywhere in New Jersey, you are facing fines, surcharges, loss of license, jail…
To keep you safe, you need the most experienced DUI-DWI-Drunk Driving Lawyer you can find!!!
FORMER MUNICIPAL COURT JUDGE*,Robert Avery, Esq., has over 35 years of experience in the analysis and defense of DUI-DWI and Drunk Driving Matters, as well as all other Traffic Related Tickets and Summonses.
Mr. Avery regularly defends DUI-DWI and Drunk Driving Matters, as well as all other Traffic Related Tickets and Summonses in all Municipal Courts in the Northern New Jersey region, including those in Bergen County, Hudson County, Passaic County and Morris County, as well as those in the Central Municipal Court of Bergen County in Hackensack, and the Palisades Interstate Parkway Police Court.
You are invited to call the offices of Avery & Avery, Esq., at 201-943-2445, or to contact us through our contact page, to schedule a free initial consultation, to see how we can help you with your DUI-DWI and Drunk Driving Matters, as well as all other Traffic Related tickets and Summonses in the Central Municipal Court of Bergen County.
We know you have questions. The following is a description of the potential pentalties you may be facing, taken from the New Jersey Statute which governs the trial of DUI-DWI and Drunk Driving Violations, and which govern all Municipal Courts in Bergen County New Jersey, including Central Municipal Court of Bergen County. Following the penalty section are some frequently asked questions, and answers.
Again, should you have further questions, you are invited to call us at 201-943-2445, or to contact us through our contact page, to schedule a free initial consultation.
IN TIMES OF TROUBLE, EXPERIENCE MAKES THE DIFFERENCE!
DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving Penalties:
Court Imposed Fines and Penalties in Bergen County Central Municipal Court
Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol or Drugs (DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving)
A person who operates a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08% or above is considered to be driving under the influence. A person may also be found to be driving under the influence through officer observation or other evidence.
First Offense - BAC 0.08% but less than 0.10%
• 3 months driving privilege suspension
• $250-$400 fine
• 12-48 hours at intoxicated driver resource center (IDRC) • Maximum 30 days imprisonment
First Offense - BAC 0.10% or higher
• 7 months to 1 year driving privilege suspension • $300-$500 fine • 12-48 hours IDRC
• 30 days maximum imprisonment*
Second Offense
• 2 years driving privilege suspension • $500-$1,000 fine
• 30 days community service
• 12-48 hours IDRC
• 48 hours - 90 days imprisonment*
Third Offense
• 10 years driving privilege suspension
• $1,000 fine
• 90 days maximum community service
• 12-48 hours IDRC • 180 days imprisonment*
DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving in School Zone or School Crossing
First Offense
• 12-24 months driving privilege suspension • $500-$800 fine • 60 days imprisonment
Second Offense
• 48 months minimum driving privilege suspension • $1,000-$2,000 fine
• 60 days community service
• 96 hours-180 days imprisonment*
Third Offense
• 20 years driving privilege suspension
• $2,000 fine • 180 days imprisonment
Refusing the Chemical Test
First Offense
• 7 months to 1 year driving privilege suspension • $300-$500 fine • 12 hours minimum IDRC
Second Offense
• 2 years driving privilege suspension •$500-$1,000fine •12hoursminimumIDRC Third and Subsequent Offenses
• 10 years driving privilege suspension
• $1,000 fine • 12 hours minimum IDRC
Refusing Chemical Test in School Zone or Crossing
First Offense
• 1 to 2 years driving privilege suspension •$600-$1,000fine •12hoursminimumIDRC
Second Offense
• 4 years driving privilege suspension • $1,000-$2,000 fine • 12 hours minimum IDRC
Third and Subsequent Offenses
• 20 years driving privilege suspension
• $2,000 fine • 12 hours minimum IDRC
Underage
For persons under 21 (the legal age in NJ to purchase an alcoholic beverage) who consume an alcoholic beverage, then drive a vehicle when their BAC is 0.01% or more, but less than 0.08%, the penalties are:
Minimum
• 30-90 day driving privilege suspension if currently licensed; or • 30-90 day prohibition from becoming a licensed driver at age 17 years; and,
• 15-30 days mandatory community service; and
participation in an IDRC or other alcohol education; and completion of a highway safety program or
• a combination of the minimum sentences above and DUI sentences (see schedule)
Maximum
• DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving sentences (see schedule). If the BAC is 0.08% or higher, underage persons will receive DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving sentences as noted.
Ignition Interlock Device Requirements
The courts will require DUI/Dwi/Drunk Driving and refusal offenders to install an ignition interlock device based on the number of past offenses. To operate the vehicle, the driver must blow into the device and also submit to random rolling tests while in operation. The vehicle will not start if the driver’s BAC level exceeds 0.05%.
First Offense, DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving w/BAC level below 0.15%, Court may impose
• 6 months – 1 year installation of interlock device after restoration of driving privileges
First Offense, DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving w/BAC level 0.15% or above and 1st refusal convictions, Court shall impose
• installation of interlock device required during the term of suspension and
• 6 months - 1 year installation of interlock device after restoration of driving privileges
Second, Third & Subsequent Offenses for DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving and refusal convictions, Court shall impose
• installation of interlock device required during the term of suspension and
• 1 - 3 years installation of interlock device after restoration of driving privileges
Offenses that occurred after Jan 15, 2010 are no longer subject to suspension of registration privileges in lieu of interlock installation.
Failure to have an interlock device installed when ordered by a judge could result in an additional one year driving privileges suspension.
Surcharges - Alcohol Violations
In addition to the court imposed fines and penalties, anyone convicted of DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving or chemical test refusal is subject to:
• an insurance surcharge of $1,000 a year for three years ($3,000) for the first and second conviction within a three- year period.
• an insurance surcharge of $1,500 a year for three years ($4,500) for a third offense within a three-year period.
• a single $100 DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving enforcement surcharge that must be paid to the court with the required fine upon conviction.
The surcharges will be imposed on a New Jersey or an out- of-state conviction. Failure to pay the surcharge will result in indefinite suspension of all driving privileges and the filing of a judgment against any personal property.
Surcharges - Point Violations/Other
Motorists who incur six or more motor vehicle points are also subject to an insurance surcharge of $150 for six points and $25 for each additional point. The point surcharge will remain in effect as long as a motorist has six or more points on their record for the immediate three-year period. MVC will suspend all driving privileges indefinitely and take judgment action if the surcharge is not paid. Other violations subject to a surcharge are:
• driving while unlicensed $100
• driving while suspended $250/Court or MVC imposed • failing to insure a MOPED $100
• operating an uninsured vehicle $250
Igntion interlock
If your license was suspended for a DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving offense, the court may require you to get an ignition interlock device to prevent a vehicle from starting if your BAC exceeds 0.05%.
Igntion interlock device requirements
First DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving offense: Installation of interlock device for six months to one year upon restoration (judge's discretion); BAC 0.15% or greater requires mandatory installation of ignition interlock device during license suspension and for 6 months to 1 year following restoration
Second DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving offense: Mandatory installation of interlock device during license suspension and for 1 to 3 years following restoration
Third DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving offense: Mandatory installation of interlock device during license suspension and for 1 to 3 years following restoration
If the court sentences you to get an interlock device, you will receive a notice of suspension from MVC with instructions on how to obtain the device. Failure to have an ignition interlock installed when ordered by a judge could result in an additional one year driving privilege suspension.
Can I be prosecuted for DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving in the Bergen County Central Municipal Court if the Alcotest results fail or are inadmissible due to technical or other reasons?
The answer in the Cental Municipal Court of Bergen County is a clear yes. This is called an observation case as it will be based solely on the observations and opinions of the arresting officers. What few defendants know is that most DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving arrests occur with a video running and that all of their movements, statements and actions are being recorded. The video is generally located on the dashboard of the police car that responds to the scene and can be aimed at the DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving suspect, whether he or she is on a sidewalk performing preliminary physical tests, or sitting in the back seat of the patrol car after an arrest. This video becomes part of a prosecutors arsenal in an observation case in the Central Municipal Court of Bergen County.
The general observations of the arresting officer in a DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving arrest will also be an important part of the prosecution. These observations will include a DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving defendant’s ability to walk (whether unable to, falling, swaying, sagging or staggering); ability to stand (whether unable to, swaying, leaning for balance, etc.); speech (shouting, rambling, slobbering, incoherent, etc.); demeanor in general (including fighting, excited, hysterical, sleepy, crying, etc.); condition of eyes (including bloodshot, watery, drooping lids, etc.); condition of clothing (including mussed, dirty, vomited on, etc.); appearance of face (whether flushed or pale); and whether there is an odor of an alcoholic beverage on the DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving suspect’s breath.
For a SAMPLE OBSERVATION CHECKLIST used by NJ Police Departments in DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving arrests, see the attached link.
Do I have the right to refuse to take a DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving BREATH TEST, and what happens if I do refuse?
The answer in New Jersey is NO, you have no right to refuse to take the breath test. Whether you know it or not, New Jersey law provides that any person who operates a motor vehicle on any public road, street or highway or quasi-public area in this State is deemed to have given his consent to the taking of samples of his breath for an Alcotest or Breathalyzer test. Refusing the breath test carries serious penalties which generally parallel and are in addition to the penalties for DUI DWI Drunk Driving. Refusing or refusal of the breath test is a serious complication to a DUI DWI Drunk Driving arrest as the refusal can seriously increase the level of penalty. Even so, there are defenses in Refusing and Refusal cases in which the lawyers at Avery & Avery, Esqs., are highly experienced, enabling them to be of considerable help those charged with Refusing or Refusal of the Breath Test, and in minimizing the penalties for refusal. To see the statutory penalties for Refusing or Refusal of the Breath Test, click the link to open our REFUSING / REFUSAL PENALTY PAGE.
Additional Resources and Frequently Asked Questions, All Municipal Courts of Bergen County:
What is ingition interlock and where can I get it installed? See:
www.state.nj.us/mvc/Violations/dui_Ignition.htm
What are the most frequently asked questions about Ignition Interlock? See:
www.state.nj.us/mvc/pdf/Violations/interlock-faq.pdf
What are the penalties if I'm unlicensed and under the age of 17 when arrested? See:
www.state.nj.us/mvc/Violations/dui_Underage.htm
How do I get my license restored? See:
www.state.nj.us/mvc/Violations/suspension.htm
What are 'Surcharges'? See:
www.state.nj.us/mvc/Violations/Surcharges.htm
Does the State have an 'easy to read' description of DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving Penalties? See:
http://www.state.nj.us/mvc/pdf/Violations/DI-258.PDF
Can I reduce my points by attending a driver improvement program? See:
http://www.state.nj.us/mvc/Violations/driverimprovement.htm
Information on Bergen County, New Jersey:
Does Bergen County have a website?
A short history of Bergen County, New Jersey:
At the time of first European contact, Bergen County was inhabited by Native American people, particularly the Lenape nation, whose sub-groups included the Tappan, Hackensack and Rumachenanck (later called the Haverstraw), as named by the Dutch colonists.[6] Some of their descendants are included among the Ramapough Mountain Indians, recognized as a tribe by the state in 1980.[7] Their ancestors had moved into the mountains to escape encroachment by Dutch and English colonists. They reside mostly in the northwest of the county, in nearby Passaic County and in Rockland County, New York. They trace their Lenape ancestry to speakers of the Munsee language, one of three major dialects of their language.[8] Over the years, they absorbed other ethnicities by intermarriage.[9]
In the 17th century, the Dutch considered the area comprising today's Bergen and Hudson counties as part of New Netherland, their colonial province of the Dutch Republic. The Dutch claimed it after Henry Hudson (sailing for the Dutch East India Company) explored Newark Bay and anchored his ship at Weehawken Cove in 1609.[10] From an early date, the Dutch began to import African slaves to fill their labor needs. Bergen County eventually was the largest slaveholding county in the state.[11]The Africans were used for labor at the ports to support shipping, as well as for domestic servants, trades and farm labor. TheDutch West Indies Company plantation was in Bergen County.[citation needed]
Early settlement attempts by the Dutch included Pavonia (1633), Vriessendael (1640) and Achter Col (1642) but the Native Americans repelled these settlements in Kieft's War (1643–1645) and the Peach Tree War (1655–1660).[12][13] European settlers returned to the western shores of the Hudson in the 1660 formation of Bergen, which would become the first permanent European settlement in the territory of present-day New Jersey.[14][15]
During the Second Anglo-Dutch War, on August 27, 1664, New Amsterdam's governor Peter Stuyvesant surrendered to theEnglish Navy.[16] The English organized the Province of New Jersey in 1665, later splitting the territory into East Jersey andWest Jersey in 1674. On November 30, 1675, the settlement Bergen and surrounding plantations and settlements were calledBergen County in an act passed by the province's General Assembly.[17] In 1683, Bergen (along with the three other original counties of East Jersey) was officially recognized as an independent county by the Provincial Assembly.[18][19]
The origin of the name of Bergen County is a matter of debate. It is believed that the County is named for one of the earliest settlements, Bergen, in modern-day Hudson County. However, the origin of the township's name is debated. Several sources attribute the name to Bergen, Norway, while others attribute it to Bergen op Zoom in the Netherlands. Still others attribute it to the Dutch word meaning "hill" or "place of safety".[20] Some sources say that the name is derived from one of the earliest settlers of New Amsterdam (now New York City), Hans Hansen Bergen, a native of Norway, who arrived in New Netherlands in 1633.[21][22]
(Certain of the above text used under open license from Wikipedia, authorship is attributed at the links)
Note: As used herein, the terms DUI/DWI/Drunk Driving are used interchangeably, as the terms are all interchangeably used to describe violations under N.J.S.A. 39:4-50, et. seq..
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