Beware “Buzzed” Super Bowl Partiers Pennsylvania Police are looking for you!
Jan 31st, 2008 | By Michael L. Saile, Jr., Esq. | Category: Blogs, DUI-DWI-DAI (Drunk Driving)“Fans don’t let fans drive drunk” is what PennDOT and police departments are hoping people will remember this weekend as they gather to watch the Super Bowl.
People who drink and drive can expect to see a police officer in the rearview mirror, as police across Pennsylvania join the national crackdown on impaired driving now through Feb. 4.
Enforcement efforts will include sobriety checkpoints and roving patrols, with special emphasis being placed on Sunday evening and early Monday morning.
In 2006, 81 alcohol-related crashes and two fatalities were reported on Super Bowl Sunday and the following Monday.
To help keep impaired drivers off the roads this year, PennDOT has budgeted nearly $4 million for DUI enforcement. That funding covers costs associated with the enforcement, such as police overtime, training and necessary equipment for 54 task forces, which consist of approximately 450 police departments.
Remember…this is especially true with the new DUI-DWI-DAI laws in both PA and NJ: Buzzed driving is Drunk Driving!
The author of this Law Blog, Bucks County PA & Mercer County, NJ criminal attorney, Michael L. Saile, Jr., Esq. of Saile & Saile LLP, Attorneys-at-Law practices both New Jersey and Pennsylvania criminal, traffic violations, and DUI/DWI/DAI law. Check out our website for DUI penalties. We handle all NJ Municipal Court cases including DUI in the following NJ Municipal Courts: Hopewell Township, Ewing Township, Trenton, Lawrence Township, Hamilton, Pennington, and other Mercer County, Burlington County, and Camden County, NJ courts. We also handle lower bucks county DUI and traffic violation cases in the following towns: Bensalem, Southampton, Richboro, Newtown, Levittown, Langhorne, Doylestown, Warminster, Trevose, Feasterville, Warrington, Bristol, Fallsington, Yardley, New Hope, Holland, Washington Crossing, PA, and other Bucks County courts. We handle DUI cases in Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery County, PA. We are located just outside of Philadelphia in lower Bucks County.
What are the new laws in NJ about buzzed driving is drunk driving?
As far as i know, the Statute stands as 0.08 % bac or above is drunk driving.
Is there a new kind of Statute?
I did not see anything mentioned on here about it.
If we put mandatory, calibrated , validated, interlock breath device in all cars, there would be not need foe the State to spend 4 million dollars for Sunday night to patrol for drunk drivers.
A DUI FINE IN NJ IS ABOUT 400 DOLLARS MAX, TO RECOUP 4 MILLION THE STATE WILL HAVE TO ARREST OVER 10,000 DRIVERS SUNDAY NIGHT.
this scnerio brings up the 2 schools of thought in the nj alcotest case.
one being- the number should be thrown out, because the instruments were not validated, or accepted by the scientific community, which sachs and menzel are arguing
2nd on being- the number should be reduced because of breath tempt and other factors, as well as certain fundmental proofs and the right to call certain state witneses, which is being argued by reisig/levow
the delemia is, …
if the number is completly thrown out, that State can prosecute and find everyone guilty at whim, based on observation
if the number is reduced, the defense can at the very least have people at 0,08 aquitted, because the bac would sghow then driving below the limit, and first offense people at 0.10 downgraded to the lesser amount 0,09, 0.08, reducing a suspension from 7 to 3 months.
the right thing to do, in my opinion, is throw out all bac number, i agree with menzel and sachs, and let the state prove observations case to case
i think more people will wind up being aquitted or reduced based on throwing out the number than reducing it, as long as each individual defense attorney knew his stuff, had expert observational testimony, and crossed the officers til they were dizzy.
the reasoning behind what i am aying is this…
if the State could make most of its cases and win these cases, based on oberservations, there would be absolutley no need to have mandatory breat testing and refusal law.
makes sense, right?
am i being too logical?
dui and breath testing is not an easy subject where one can write a line or two and sum it up. i have myself explored this in over 500 postings on here i guess.
now, in the perfect world of plato, we would have a philospher king, a good king, to make the final decision.
in nj, the nj supreme court is our philoshper king, and we will be bound by their decision on the alcotest.
does this mean dui can not be defended in court, of course not.
there are always going to be dui trials, even with the alcotest.
only a small fraction of defendants plead guilty to dui. and why should they? the State needs to submit all the proofs in a court of law, and cdefendants should never tyake these proofs for granted, …. not guilty pleas should always be entered, in my opinion , unless a defendant was falling down drunk pukingh, and can get some lenancy on sentencing for a guilty plea.
i am mainly talking about those cases of 0.08. 0.09. and 0.10, for first offense defandants
it would be intresting if there was a study we could read, a statistical analysis from every dui breath terst, to see how many and what percentage of defendants fall into the categoi am talking about.
this would be a great project vfor the rutgers law school to hand off to the math/statrisrics deepartment at the university.
the nj supreme court asked on april 5th 2007, to defense attorney, this very same question, and to the amicus, but no answer could be given, because no data has been accumlated.
i say, instead of putting 4 million dollars into patroling for dui for one day, put 3.8 million dollars into it, take 200k of the left over money, and have 2-3 people work oin this question for a year and come upo with the answers needed, so the philosopher king has the right information to make a sound judgement.
now, it could very well be they already have these answerrs and are under no pressure to make them public… certainly the legislature has been quiet beyond belif in this case and everything concerning dui. they just say, well, the federal guidlines say 0,08 bac, thats what we made law, lets the state and the courts and defense attroneys fight it out on how it will be done.
this is not exactly the right way to go about it… citizen participation, in the form of the state legislature, needs to dig in and get all the facts and answers. this is my opinion
i really feel this is the right way to go about all issue, not just dui.
when individual cases, and courts , the state, and defense attorneys, engage in this type , if i can call it a negotiation, in any issue, the results become fragmented and do not necessarily come out with the right remedy.
well, i have just read what i wrote, and i am not completely convinced anyone can understand it, without having any feedback about what i wrote.
if i had no dui pending against me, i am sure not only would i have not wrote a word on the subject, but i would be like, hey, you drank, you drove, thats it.
it is much more complicated than that though.
maybe these last 18 months of me pinning over this, and 2 1/2 yrears since my arrest, is for a bigger reason.
maybe i have helped some people with my writting, maybe i have helped myself, or maybe sometime in the future i can piece it all together and help someone deal with a alcotest dui, or any dui.
persoanly, should i have been subjected to 2 1/2 years of concerning my life over this issue?,…. no, probably not.
certainly barker v wingo, speedy trial law, certainly says i should not have, …not for a first offense, low level, no accident, no special circumstances, run of the mill, dui in which the nj supreme court ordered to proceed to trial on jan 10, 2006!
however, i find myself , my mind, in a position of having to think, rethink, and think again, and write on, all aspects of the alcotest, dui, and government as it relates to this issue.
this phenonenon is directly on the States head for not obeying the nj supreme court order and proceeding to trial as so ordered.
it stems out of each of 13 court appearances, each time expecting the state to obey the nj supreme court and go to trial!’
so, in my particular case, you can throw out all my arguments on dui and the alcotest, and focus solely on barker v wingo.,
now, unfortunatley, this is my job, and not my attorneys, … i will have to focus on speedy trial law and make my own arguments, and my attorney focus on discovery , cross examination, and defense witnesses.
hopwever, is it just a matter of money to get an attorney to fight for my rightsk, or is it a matter of fundamental fairness , of lack there of, that i am forced to make these arguments personally, which i will have to do on record?
all in all, i will be using the wroids, fundamental fairness, in my pre written statement to the judge, on my next court appearance.
right now, all i am doing is still exploring thougts, writting parts of the argument in my head, and i am charged with having to condense 2000 pages of writing into 2-3 of a readable statemen t to the judge concerning barker v wingo, and the chun order.
but, i do not see any other option, no one is helping me, ceryainly not my former first attorney, who did nothing for 23 months, and i have charged my new attorey with discovery, and cross examination.
i cant get a straight answer from anyone in the legal profession on how to write up a clear argument with caselaw references or anything, … i an on my own in this quest.
i do not understand that from a personal perspective, because if someone asked my sometrhing about analytical chemistry, i would tell them all they wanted to know, on and on, til they said they understood, and followed up… but lawyers , in general, refuse to give give their education and experience away like this…
it is hard to come to terms with as to why attorneys are so reluctant to help someone like me, whos rights have been clearly violated, who knows exactly what he wantws to do and how to pursue it, who just needs a little help in putting it together in a proper way.
i am trying, i might need a little help though, thqats all, lol, so i am searching for that help.
i wouldnt , not one time, ever turn anyone down for help as to analytical chemistry, of which i am educated and experienced in.
so i try….
the whole situation stinks, to say in angry about it is an understament.
106 emails of questions to my former attorney, while he was my attorney, without one question ever being answered…. if he had answered the first few, i wouldnt have wrote so many to him .
but its not just that i am angry about…. im angry at the State for not following the court order, and i am angry at the court for not properly shepherding the case.
the fact is i am 41 years old, and have some life to live, and i can not live a life in the traditional sense, with this case hanging over my head, for many reasons.
the nj supreme court understood this, and ordered all cases to proceed to trial… they certainly did not say, over the next 30 months, call a defendant in 13 times to face a trial and hold the ax at his head, then send him home with nothing being done!
this is psycological abuse, and it is intentional, albiet for whatever reason, still an intentional act by the State’s prosecutor, and also maybe to a degree the court.
they can be absolutley no justifiable reason to have me appear 13 times, with the nj supreme court order in place.
mr saile, you said from the very beginging after my very first posts, you did not understand why i have been being called into court so many times…. and i feel anyone with any intelectual intergrity would see it the same way, why????????????
why should i , after 30 moths, be sitting here, facing my 13 court appearance, woorying about how i am going to write and make speedy trial motion to dismiss, and trying to figure out how to sue the state for psycological abuse, and figuring and writting on every possible angle and point of view about the alcotest and dui?
i do not belive i should be in this situation for any reason!!!!
i am accused, but it is only an accusation!
the throwing out of fundamebntal fairness in my case, by the State number 1, the court number 2, and my former attorney number 3, is simply unjustifiable from every point of view.
i need to get a job, go to work, make money, pay my taxes, and be able to support myself and others…. not be sitting here for 2 1/2 years subjected tro psycological abuse by the State!
do you understand what i am saying?
getting back to the alcotest,
one may sit hear and read everything i wrote, and say, well, why did you have a reading on 0.09% BAC IF YOU ARE NOT GUILTY.
well there are few answers from difgferent angles.
1)i did not drink, i do not know why i had a readimg
2) the number itself can not be sustained because the analytical instrument is not validated, and has not been accepted by the scientific community in nj.
3) IF I AM SO GUILTY AND IT CAN BE PROVEN, WHY HASN’T THE STATE INITIATED A TRIAL, AS THEY WERE ORDERED TO BY THE BJ SUPREME COURT.
all of these are included my arguments, but as you know, my arguments do not stop there.
the statute does not include intentional psycological abuse, before conviction, for someone accused of dui.
did i go to sleep and wake up in north korea?
am i a prisoner at gitmo?
there is a 60 day rule fdui in nj, for arrest to trial, there is the 6th amendmen t to the us constitution, and there is the nj constitutiuon, and on top of all that, the nj supreme court ordered the cases to proceed to trial on jan 10, 2006.
what more do you want?
there are observations for probable cause, and a reading that can not be contested at this time because of the chun order, therefore, the case is a slam dunk for the prosecution.
but is it?
one- if it was a slam dunk, why havnt i been be trialed?
two- is intentional psycological abuse and the taking away of 30 months of a persons life justifiable in such a case?
now, my last few posts have dealt with speedy trial, and i feel these are my strongest arguments.
now, lets say, for arguments sake, there are courts out there in combination with the State, that say, well, listen, there are chun issues and we are not going to trial cases until this is resolved, albiet though my contention is the chun order ordered the state to proceede to trial, then why have me make 13 court appearances thus far?
in fact, the court can not have called me into court 13 times without expecting the State to proceed to trial.
now, discovery issues in my case are appearant, but there is no legitimate excuse or reason for the State not to have completed discovery and go to trial, after 2 or 3 appearances.
no hold up for discovery on the alcotest can be a reason for not proceeding to trial, as reliability hearings are stayed, and the state was ordered to proceed to trial, with a free ride on the alcotest evidence.
no delay in a trial is going to change the facts of the case, the obervations.
i do not see the law division ruling against me , and in all fairness, the local court should not rule against me either, making me go to the law division.
it is not my fault i am in this situation.
100 % of the fault is on the State!
basicaly, all we need to trial the case oin the defense side is the radar discovery, even though i wasnted charged with speeding, i was stopped for speeding, weiod huh?
now, the state can proceed to trial with what they have, introduce what everv they want as evidence, my aTTORNEY MAKE ARGUMENTS, BASED ON LACK OF DISCOVERY, AND THE JUDGE MAKE RULINGS.
this is my constitutional right, and what the nj supreme court ordered to occur as of jan 10, 2006.
listen, if the radar discovery is not prensted in court, the stop and all fuits of the stop must be thrown out
\neither my first attorney , nor my current attorney has ever gotten this discovery on the radar.
my case should be dropped by the state, or dismissed by the judge, based on failure to sustain a prosecution.
if not
my case should be dismissed based on speedy trial and fundamebntal fairness
if not
my case should be obverturned by the law division.
all this being said, i feel no matter the outcome i have 2 more options
1- contempt of court charges against the prosecutor with an investifation
and
2- a civil trial for intentional emotional abuse by the State
HOW IS THE STATE GOING TO PROSECUTE, WITH A TRIAL, 10,000 CASES FROM ONE NIGHT, WHEN THEY REFUSE TO EVEN PROSECUTE ONE CASE…MINE?
ARGMENTYS ON EITHER SIDE, MUST BE MADE ON RECORD, IN COURT, IN FRON T OF THE BENCH AND JUDGE, ORALLY… AND NOT EX PARTE OR IN THE HALLWAY BETWEEN PARTIES.
THIS IS A FUNDAMENTAL MATTER OD LAW AND FAIRNESS TO DEFENDANTS
GOD DAMMIT
BECAUSE THIS ISSUE PERSINALLLY TO ME, AND ON A WHOLE FOR EACh DEFENDANT, and even each citizen, is so complacarted, and because of my style or writting and train of thought, i ask that the entire argument be read, …. take the 15-20 minutes, read the entire postings in this thread, do not leave on word out, and then i will be glad to answer questions, and i would appeciate any feedback, albiet, you can hold back from the speeling and grammar errors feedback, and stick to the context on the issues.
Good! Crack down on all of these drunk drivers! I’m tired of worrying that I will get killed by some nit-wit who had one too many. People need to start investing in a taxi or designated driver when they go out drinking. A good friend of mine is in some hot water for his stupidity, looking at 72 hours to 90 days in jail for drinking and driving. He didn’t learn his lesson from his first offense and now he will have to pay the man with his feedom. When will people learn?? Its digusting that somebody could be so stupid to get basically a slap on the wrist for a first offense and then be stupid and brazen enough to go out and get caught again for the same thing. Lock em all up for 120 – 180 days for a first offense and scare them straight! Buzzed or wasted out of your mind retarded drunk its the same thing. Dont drink and drive!
Jim,
Not to pick on you, but if you know that you have mispelled words, why not just proof read your post and try to correct some of them for those of us who would like to read your entry? I usually ignore your posts due to the amount of spelling and grammatical errors in them. It is frustrating to an intelligent reader to try and decipher what you are trying to say. Why would I want to read something with errors a first grader could catch?? It goes on to say something about the content of your posts as well. If you can’t even form a proper sentence or even spell the simplest of words correctly, how intelligent can your comments/posts be?
kevin, you are an idiot.
peopler arrested for dui are not drunk drivers nor did they drive drunk, its a matter of law
Jim,
You are an idiot! People arrested for DUI are drunk drivers, THAT IS WHY THEY HAVE BEEN ARRESTED! How can somebody be arrested for Driving Under the Influence if they were not driving or under the influence??? You should just give it up because you are a peon and cannot hold court or a rational conversation on an intelligent level. Stop posting and retire. You are a fool and deserve everything you are going through. YOU drank the alcohol, YOU go behind the wheel of a car, YOU got pulled over, YOU broke the law and now YOU will pay the price for your actions! Stop looking for loop holes and man up and face the music. Take your medecine and learn your lesson and dont do it again.
Keven, You are worng on so many levels.
If a person has a BAC reading of 0.079 , all 4 readings, on the alcotrest, they are NOT GUILTY of DUI.
The person would have still be arrested and brought to the police station for a breath test.
If I broke the law, which i did not, because i was stone cold sober at the time of my arrerst, then i should be tried and pay the price,… that price does not include 13 court appearances over 30 months time without as much as a hearing let alone a trial!
I do not need you to validate my inteligence.
When i win my 10 million dollar lawsuit against the state, ill send you an email from my suite on the qm2.
Jim,
If you didn’t beak the law then why are you going through all of this? If you were “stone cold sober” how on earth could they prosecute you for a DUI? If you were “Stone Cold Sober” how could you have blown anything that would indicate otherwise on the BAC (alcohol) test? I highly doubt that you are 100% innocent and a victim of the legal system as you claim to be. If you were “stone cold sober” any attorney worth his a$$ would have been able to have these false charges, as you claim, against you dismissed in a heart beat. So don’t cliam to be innocent, when the legal system, although not perfect, wouldn’t put you through all of this if you didn’t break some sort of law or didn’t have any alcohol in your system at the time of your arrest. You will never win a $10 million law suit of anykind unless they let you sue God for making you an imbacile, but then how would you go about collecting the money when you won???
1)THEY HAVNT PROSECUTED ME, JESUS CHRIST, HAVNT YOU RERAD ANYTHING I HAVE BEEN TYPING SINCE JULY 3RD ON HERE?
2)THE ALCOTEST REPLACES REASDING AND NUMBERS AT RANDOM
3)IF I BROKE SOME SORT OF LAW, THE STATE SHOULD NOT HAVE PUT ME THROUGH ALL OF THIS, THEY SHOULD HAVE PROSECUTED ME A LONG LONG TIME AGO, AS TH ENJ SUPREMME COURT ORDERED THEM TO.
4)I will sue and win, the State wil not get away with taking away 30 months of mt life thus far, and who know how much more they will take away form me.
5) I also will see that the prosecutor goes to some jail time for contempt of court.
6)the state does not just dismiss charges like this, they usually hold trials. why i havnt had a trial is a matter for a higher court and a civil court.
how can not understand in reading hte chun order all reliability hearings on the alcotest are stayed until chun is over – theres no way to dismiss.
7) the only proper course of action the state had was to trial the case.
i was stone cold sober.. i was arrested stemming from an undocumented dometic dispute.
the stealing of 30 months of my life was wrong and i will sue