2nd Offense DWI & Refusal Dismissed
DWI Charges
Our New Jersey DWI atttorneys recently defended a client was charged with a second offense DWI and second offense Refusal to Submit where he was facing a 2 year suspension on each for a total of 4 years of drivers license suspension as well as 1 – 3 years of an interlock device for each.
Our client had gotten into an accident on the New Jersey Turnpike and state police soon arrived to investigate. Upon interacting with our client, they determined that there was probable cause to arrest for drunk driving. The troopers noted that he swayed while walking and had his feet wide apart for balance. As they spoke with him, the police noticed that there was a strong smell of alcohol on his breath, his speech was slurred and slow. Moreover, they noted that his eyes were bloodshot and droopy. Based on these observations, our client was placed under arrest and read his Miranda rights. Once back at the station, the client refused to take the breathalyzer, called the Alcotest which resulted in another charge.
As experienced Jersey City DWI lawyers we looked to challenge the evidence against our client. First we filed a motion to dismiss the Refusal charge based on the fact that the state trooper wrote the wrong statute for the charge. Next we challenged the State’s case by arguing that they could not prove the DWI beyond a reasonable doubt based on the officer’s observations alone because the police failed to conduct the proper field sobriety tests at the time of the arrest. In the end, we were successful on getting the entire case thrown out and our client avoided a four year suspension and thousands in fines.
State v. S.C. decided July 18, 2016 in Jersey City Municipal Court