Reader’s Question:

How many years does a DUI or DWI remain on your driving record in Irvington, New Jersey?

Beth

Irvington, NJ

The New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) states that a person with a BAC of 0.08% or greater who drives a motor vehicle or a boat is considered to be driving under the influence (DUI).

Being convicted of a DUI is a serious violation, with heavy penalties including:

• Fines, fees and surcharges
• Jail time
• Community service

The mandatory fines and penalties associated with a drunk driving for a BAC .10% or greater are:

• loss of license for 7 months to 1 year
• up to 30 days imprisonment
• 12 - 48 hrs IDRC - Intoxicated Driver Resource Center
• $300 - $500 fine
• $100 to drunk driving fund
• $230 IDRC fee
• $100 to AERF - Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Fund
• $1,000/year (for 3 years) surcharge
• $75 to Neighborhood Services Fund

A DUI with a BAC of greater than .08% but less than .10% comes with penalties of:

• license lost for 3 months
• up to 30 days imprisonment
• 12 - 48 hrs IDRC - Intoxicated Driver Resource Center
• $250 - $400 fine
• $230 IDRC fee
• $100 to drunk driving fund
• $100 to AERF - Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Fund
• $1,000/year (for 3 years) surcharge
• $75 to Neighborhood Services Fund

As for how long the DUI offense stays on your Irvington, New Jersey driving record, according to the New Jersey MVC in New Jersey a DUI conviction will stay a permanent part of your New Jersey driver record.

Tags: DUI, DWI insurance, traffic violation

Reader’s Question:

Is it true that hospital blood test in a DUI case has different problems? We want to know if we could be able to use that as a defense in my sister’s DWI case here in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Hiram

Jersey City, NJ

A hospital blood test has a legion of problems so the results could not be reliable as well. So definitely, Hiram, your sister could use that as a defense in her DWI case Jersey City, New Jersey. Rather than the rule, blood tests are the exception in DWI cases. It would be suffice to say that the emergency room blood test of a hospital is designed to produce a “quick and dirty” result to give the doctors an idea of what they are dealing with, not a result the precise, technical and demanding arena of the courtroom.

The good news about this is that the blood sample drawn from your sister during the DWI investigation is saved and could be retested by the defense for accuracy, unlike the breath sample which is literally blown out of a hole in the breath machine. Blood tests do require more steps and more time so a qualified personnel should draw the sample in sanitary conditions. Your sister’s DWI lawyer could definitely investigate the condition of the hospital when she was tested and if an authorized person was the one who drew blood from her.

Tags: blood alcohol test, DWI, DWI lawyer

Reader’s Question:

I often wonder how police officers in Edison, New Jersey determine that a driver is intoxicated when they conduct field sobriety tests such as the walk and turn. What hints are these officers looking for when they ask someone to take the walk and turn test?

Elbert

Edison, NJ

The walk and turn test is a standardized field sobriety test (SFST) that is considered a divided attention test. In doing this test, the person suspected of DWI takes 9 heel-to-toe steps, turns in a prescribed manner, take 9 heel-to-toe steps back, while counting the steps out loud. The steps in this test are taken down a straight line but if an actual line is not present, the person is instructed to walk down an imaginary line. The walking phase divides the individual’s attention between keeping his/her balance, taking the proper number of steps, counting out loud and turning in the prescribed manner while keeping the arms at his/her side.

Police officers in Edison, New Jersey are looking for eight specific hints that a driver is intoxicated when they administer the walk and turn test. These hints include the driver could not balance during instructions, starts too soon, stops while walking, doesn’t touch heel-to-toe, steps off line, uses arms for balance, loses balance on turn or turns incorrectly and takes the wrong number of steps. According to original research, the driver is intoxicated if two or more hints are present and this test has shown to be accurate 68% of the time.

Tags: DWI, DWI lawyer, field sobriety tests

Reader’s Question:

I haven’t been arrested for DWI so I don’t know what happens in a DWI arrest. Could you please describe to me how the law works in Union, New Jersey and tell me what happens in a DWI arrest?

Damarion

Union, NJ

In a DWI arrest in Union, New Jersey, the police officer would determine that there is a reasonable suspicion for an initial traffic stop of a driver. After a contact with the person is initiated, the officer develops probable cause to arrest the person for DWI. More specifically, a set of field sobriety tests could be administered if the officer has reason to believe that the person is impaired. The driver will be arrested for DWI if he/she performs poorly and will then be transported to the police station.

At the police station, the driver will be asked to submit to a chemical test to determine his/her blood alcohol concentration (BAC). Chemical tests are usually being conducted through blood, breath or urine test. A person is often asked to take a breath test but the police officer could request a blood specimen. If the person refuses to provide a specimen, or provides a specimen with a BAC level above the legal limit of .08%, the officer will serve the driver with a Notice of Suspension and confiscates the driver’s license.

Tags: advice, DWI, DWI arrest, DWI lawyer

Reader’s Question:

My driver’s license was suspended because of a DUI charge. I wonder what will happen if I will be caught driving with a suspended license here in Trenton New Jersey? What are the consequences? Would there be any penalties?

Alvin

Trenton, NJ

If you will be caught driving in New Jersey while on a suspended driver’s license because of a DUI charge, it can have serious and inconvenient consequences. These would include a fine of $500 for the first offense. You will have a fine of $750 and jail time of up to five days for the second offense. For the third and subsequent offense, there would be a fine of $1,000 and jail time of 10 days. You will have an additional fine of $3,000 if you had unpaid surcharges. You are also facing an additional $500 fine if you don’t have an insurance, an additional license suspension of up to 2 years and jail time up to 90 days. You will have an additional jail time of 45 days if someone was injured in an accident.

For all of these offenses, you can lose your license for up to six months. After your current suspension has been served, the suspension is served consecutively.

Make sure you don’t get caught driving with a suspended license in New Jersey. Better yet, don’t drive at all with a suspended driver’s license because unfortunately, New Jersey does not issue hardship licenses or conditional licenses for drivers who have had their licenses suspended.

Reader’s Question:

My boyfriend was charged with DWI here in New Jersey. This is his first offense. I used to live in New York and my brother has been convicted there before with DWI and spent months in prison and paid $500 and penalty assessments. Are the penalties the same in each state? I need to know these things so that we know the consequences if my boyfriend will be convicted.

Eliza

Elizabeth, NJ

Driving While Intoxicated in the State of New Jersey means a bunch of penalties that include fees, charges and surcharges, imprisonment or mandatory counseling. There is no difference between DUI (Driving Under the Influence) and DWI in New Jersey.

If this is his first DWI offense in New Jersey, expect a fine of $250 to $400, a jail time not exceeding 30 days and suspension of his license for three months. Moreover, there would be a New Jersey Motor Vehicles Commission (NJMVC) surcharge of $1,000 per year for three years and payments of $200 to the DWI Enforcement Fund, $50 to the Violent Crimes Compensation Fund, $75 to the Safe Neighborhood Fund, and $200 for license restoration. He would also have to undergo counseling for 12 to 48 hours at an Intoxicated Driver Resource Center (IDRC) in which may cost $150, and extra payment if outpatient counseling is stipulated by the IDRC.

If he will be convicted with DWI, this would become a permanent part of his driving record in New Jersey. The premium could be higher for a person with a DWI tag since many insurance companies look into the driving history for three years.

I guess when, after a night out, you get behind the wheel of your car even if you feel a little woozy, you aren’t thinking of the possible consequences of your actions. Maybe it crosses your mind a time or two that, if caught driving under the influence, you could pay a fine, lose your license, and spend a night in jail. All of these things are pretty frightening, but ultimately little more than a spanking. What you probably aren’t thinking of are the very real, and very large numbers that the New Jersey DUI attorney cost and other costs concerning your DUI could add up to–it isn’t pretty.

Just being suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs could cost you $20,000.

This doesn’t all settle into one easy bill. In fact, it spreads out across areas and across years as well. Part of it comes from your New Jersey DUI attorney cost, while some it refers to your bail and your court fines and fees, and even more will add up over the three year period that you have to pay extra for high risk SR22 driver insurance.

In fact, there could be even worse implications behind a DUI–many people are fired from their jobs because of these, which makes the big bill much harder to be. Something to think about.