New Jersey Criminal Lawyers Blog

Contact a Seaside Heights Criminal Defense Attorney if you need help.
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.

Continue reading "Police In Ocean and Monmouth County Can Scan Your License Plate in a Second With New Technology" »

If you need a criminal lawyer contact the Villani & DeLuca Law Firm Now for a free consultation.
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!" »

In a recent news article, Wall Township Police claim to have written two drunk driving charges within 15 minutes of each other during an early Sunday morning around 2:00 am in July. To those who are familiar with Wall Township and the surrounding towns, this is no surprise. Wall Township is nearby the summer hot spots of Point Pleasant Beach, Belmar, Brielle, Manasquan, and Sea Girt. All of these beachfront towns attract late night crowds to various bars and nightclubs during the weekends of the summer. In addition, the busy roads of Route 138, Route 35, Route 34, Route 18, and portions of the Garden State Parkway and I-195 dissect Wall Township making it nearly impossible to not travel through Wall after a night of drinking. Recent Wall drunk driving related stops have been reported on Route 34 just outside the Garden State Parkway entrance, and on Route 138 (the entrance of I-195).

DWI and DUI are serious offenses in Wall Township and all throughout New Jersey. In 2010, there were an estimated 350 DWIs in Wall. In order to be convicted of a per se DWI/DUI in Wall Township and all of New Jersey, your BAC must be 0.08% or over. For a first offense drunk driving in New Jersey, depending on your BAC level from the new Alcotest® 7110 breath testing device (0.08%-0.15% or above) you face very serious penalties.

Penalties for a first offense DWI in New Jersey include: (1) loss of your driver's license for up to a year; (2) a fine of up to $500.00 plus other fees and administrative costs; (3) up to 30 days in jail; (4) completion of a program at an Intoxicated Driver Resource Center; and (5) you may have to install an ignition interlock device into your vehicle.

Refusal in Wall Township is also a common charge. Refusal charges can be written when the alleged intoxicated motorist refuses to submit to a breath test or a blood test to determine their Blood Alcohol Content (BAC). There is a process that all Wall Township Police Officers must follow which is contained on the Division of Motor Vehicles Standard Statement. The officer must read you your rights and the law contained thereon, and ask if you will submit to a BAC test. If you refuse, the officer is then required to read an additional legal warning and ask once more. If you refuse the second time, you will be charged with a refusal. If convicted of the refusal, you may face similar penalties to those of an actual DWI. One major difference is that if convicted of refusal, you will be ordered to install an Ignition Interlock Device in your motor vehicle even if it is a first refusal. These devices will not allow you to turn on your automobile unless the device determines that there is no alcohol in your system.

Continue reading "DWI In Wall Township: Call an Experienced Wall Township DWI Attorney" »

Sea Girt is a small waterside borough in Monmouth County with a population hovering right around two thousand. It is accessible through both Route 35 and Route 71 and is well known for its beautifully kept sandy white beaches and well maintained boardwalk. Summertime recreation offered in Sea Girt includes boating, kayaking, and a number of beach orientated activities. Sea Girt also boasts a nice selection of restaurants and pubs, including Fratello's, Harrigan's Pub, Rod's Olde Irish Tavern and The Parker House.

Not surprisingly, Sea Girt's population drastically increases as the warm weather approaches and vacationers flock towards the beautifully kept beaches and boardwalk. Along with this predictable yearly population spike comes a crackdown by local law enforcement wishing to maintain the peaceful small town atmosphere that Sea Girt is so well known for. This crackdown normally results in an increased number of disorderly persons offenses, motor vehicle moving violations, and DUI, DWI, and Refusal charges. Last year alone, Sea Girt witnessed 41 disorderly persons offenses, with some of the most common being disorderly conduct (N.J.S 2C: 33-2), underage drinking (N.J.S. 2C: 33-15), use or possession of a fake ID (N.J.S. 2C:21-2.1), assault (N.J.S. 2C: 12-1), possession of illegal drugs or drug paraphernalia (N.J.S. 2C: 35:10 and N.J.S. 2C: 36-2), criminal mischief (N.J.S. 2C: 17-3), and resisting arrest (N.J.S. 2C: 29-2). If convicted of one of these offenses, punishments can range anywhere from severe monetary fines to jail time or participation in community service.

Moving violations including traffic violations, failure to maintain lanes, failure to yield to a pedestrian etc., are not normally viewed by offenders as major offenses. However, being convicted of one of these seemingly trivial charges can lead to the assessment of motor vehicle points on your driver's license, increases to insurance costs, monetary fines, the suspension of one's license, and even jail time.

Being convicted of an alcohol related drunk driving violation such as DWI, DUI, or Refusal will result in even more severe punishments. First time offenders are likely to face monetary fines approaching $500.00, other significant monetary fines, loss of license for up to a year, jail time, detainment, enrollment into an Intoxicated Driver Resource Center program, and the installation of an ignition interlock device into their vehicle. Last year alone, Sea Girt witnessed 197 moving violations and 33 DWIs.

Continue reading "Sea Girt Criminal Lawyer: Sea Girt Municipal Court" »