New Jersey Criminal Lawyers Blog

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Police officers throughout Ocean and Monmouth County are now using a new device that can scan passersby vehicle license plate numbers in a second and instantly provide the status of your vehicle and information about its owner. With 6 cameras mounted on the roof of the "reader car", information is instantly sent to the dashboard computer screen. If a vehicle warrants stopping, such as a outstanding warrant for arrest, an alert beeps and the officer can initiate a motor vehicle stop. The legality of the instruments usage has already been approved in a recent case, State v. Donis, that held that a police officer may randomly check the status of a vehicle registration or driver's license and whether the vehicle or its plates are stolen. According to one source, there are approximately 1.5 million unregistered or unlicensed vehicles in the State of New Jersey.
The scanners have powerful uses for crimes other then motor vehicle violations enforcement. Each scanner saves the data of license plate numbers it has read. If for example, bank robbers are casing a place for several hours beforehand their plates may be picked up by a police camera. Police are able to fetch this data many days later if need be as evidence to help establish probable cause and other elements of the crime.

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The everyday traffic stop by a police officer has recently taken a drastic new turn. Implementation of tiny personal cameras pinned onto every police officer in Sea Girt Jersey is sure to create vibrations that will be felt for decades to come throughout New Jersey courtrooms. Created by Axon System the mini cameras are mounted on a headband, eyeglasses, or clipped to the collar of police and are able to record up to six hours of an officer at work. When video is recorded, it is wirelessly uploaded to a website, evidence.com, where it is available for retrieval by an officer with the proper authority. This groundbreaking implementation of technology, already used in Western States, is hoped to lead to better overall law enforcement procedure. In today's highly litigious society where even a simple traffic stop may end up in municipal court, this new upgrade will have untold effects.

The new technology will cost the Sea Girt Police Department about $2,000 per system and $1,200 in annual cost for data storage per unit. Sea Girt, with only 11 police officers, is the first of New Jersey's 566 municipalities to implement the mini cameras but already officials in Morristown and Cape May County have indicated their intent to have them soon. This new technology is possibly a response to the current trend of motor vehicle drivers recording snippets of their traffic stop with a cell phone. Rather than having only 10 seconds of recording, the longer videos will provide greater insight into the specifics of what happened.

Continue reading ""Big Brother" Police in New Jersey Are Watching You!" »

Manalapan Township is a medium sized town in western Monmouth County comprised of 30 square miles of land. The latest census data notates a population of nearly 40,000 year-round residents. Manalapan Township can be accessed by Route 9 and Route 33 as well as County Routes 522, 527, and 537. Manalapan residents enjoy a rich history due to the fact that historic Monmouth Battlefield lies within its borders along with numerous other landmarks. Located just 45 miles away from New York City and 15 minutes from the shore, Manalapan provides a great suburban landscape that provides easy access to many surrounding towns and the hustle and bustle of New York City.

Due to Manalapan's location, it does see its share of disorderly persons offenses. In fact, Manalapan Police Officers wrote 91 disorderly persons offenses in 2010. A disorderly persons offense is a general category of offenses that can result in fines, jail-time, community service, and in certain circumstances payments of restitution. Some commonly written disorderly persons offenses include: disorderly conduct (N.J.S. 2C:33-2), trespass (N.J.S. 2C: 18-3(b)), criminal mischief (N.J.S. 2C: 17-3), simple assault (N.J.S. 2C: 12-1), fake ID (N.J.S. 2C: 28-7), underage drinking (N.J.S. 2C: 33-15), possession of CDS (N.J.S. 2C: 35-10), and resisting arrest (N.J.S. 2C:29-2).

In addition to disorderly persons offenses, Manalapan saw 1582 motor vehicle violations written in 2010 as well as 54 DWI, DUI, and refusal offenses. A conviction for a motor vehicle violation can result in fines, points, and in some cases license suspension. Commonly written motor vehicle offenses include: speeding (N.J.S. 39:4-98 and N.J.S. 39:4-99), failure to yield to a traffic sign (N.J.S. 39:4-81), reckless driving (N.J.S. 39:4-96), and careless driving (N.J.S. 39:4-97). Drunk driving and driving while intoxicated related charges can carry severe penalties including loss of license, heavy fines, jail-time, participation in an Intoxicated Driver Resource Center program, and at the courts discretion, the installation of an ignition interlock device.

Continue reading "Manalapan Criminal Lawyer: Manalapan Municipal Court" »