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Being charged with a DUI is a serious matter. Drunk driving is an issue that law enforcement and courts feel strongly about and are proactive in fighting. The only scientific way to establish the amount of alcohol in a person’s system is through the assessment of one’s blood alcohol content (BAC). For both states, the legal limit of alcohol is 0.08% BAC. If you have been charged with a DUI in New Jersey, you need a firm that can develop a comprehensive defense strategy to fight these accusations. If you need our help, contact The Vigilante Law Firm for a consultation with an experienced Gloucester County DWI lawyer.
Being charged with a first-offense DWI can be scary, overwhelming, and stressful. This is especially true for individuals who have never been arrested before and don’t know what to expect. The Vigilante Law Firm is here to guide you through each step of the DWI process and wants to ensure you know what to expect in the event that you are charged.
A first offense conviction of a DWI in New Jersey between 0.08% and 0.10% comes with the following penalties:
If you were charged with a DWI before December 1, 2019, you will be subject to a driver’s license suspension of 3 months instead of an ignition interlock device installation of 3 months.
A conviction of a DWI with a blood alcohol content between 0.10%-0.15% comes with the following penalties:
If a person is caught with a BAC of 0.15% or greater, they are subjected to an ignition interlock device for up to 18 months, and they may face a license forfeiture of up to 6 months. Repeat offenders are subjected to escalated consequences, including more jail time, higher fines, longer periods of license suspension, and mandatory use of the ignition interlock device.
In the state of New Jersey, anyone who is charged with a second-offense DWI will face serious consequences. If you are charged with a DWI for the second time within 10 years of your previous offense, the consequences you may face include the following:
If you have been charged with a third or subsequent DWI in the state of New Jersey over the course of 10 years, the penalties become even more severe. These may include:
New Jersey treats repeat DWI offenses far more harshly than first offenses, but the law also recognizes that a long, clean gap between offenses should count for something. This is where the “step-down” rule, found in N.J.S.A. 39:4-50(a)(3), becomes important.
Under this rule, if your second DWI offense occurs more than ten years after your first, the court must sentence you as if it were a first offense. Likewise, if your third offense occurs more than ten years after your second, the court must sentence you as a second offender rather than a third. The ten-year period is generally measured from one offense date to the next, not from the conviction dates.
The practical difference can be enormous. As explained above, a third offense normally carries up to 180 days in jail and an eight-year license suspension. If the step-down applies, that same charge is sentenced under the second-offense tier instead, which can mean substantially less jail exposure and a much shorter suspension. New Jersey’s highest court has also confirmed that the step-down can apply more than once when there are multiple long gaps between offenses.
It is important to understand what the rule does and does not do. It reduces the sentence for the current offense, but it does not erase the prior conviction from your record, and it must be raised and supported with proper documentation, such as certified driving abstracts and prior judgments, at the time of sentencing. Because eligibility often turns on exact dates and the validity of earlier convictions, having an experienced DWI attorney review your history can make a significant difference in the outcome of your case.
If an underage person in New Jersey has a blood alcohol content of 0.01 percent or higher, they can face an underage DWI charge. This may result in the following penalties:
If a vehicle owner allows an intoxicated person to operate his or her motor vehicle, they can also be charged with a DWI. These situations can even result in a passenger facing more serious penalties than the driver if the passenger already has a previous DWI on their record.
If you are licensed to drive outside of New Jersey, you will still face the same consequences as a New Jersey resident upon getting charged with a DWI within the state. While New Jersey cannot suspend your driving privileges everywhere, it can bar you from driving within the state.
A DWI can have significant impacts on a driver’s auto insurance policy. In New Jersey, your insurance premium may rise between 72% and 132% when charged with a DUI, depending on a variety of other factors.
Being charged with DUI/DWI in the state of New Jersey is a very serious matter. A person can face various consequences that could impact one’s future ability to get a job, housing, and other opportunities. It is important to discuss this matter with an experienced legal team as soon as possible. If you need an effective legal team to explore all legal defenses to fight these charges, contact The Vigilante Law Firm for a consultation with an experienced Gloucester County DWI lawyer.
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