NJ Court rules that enhanced penalties should be imposed for DUI-DWI suspended, out-of-state drivers who drive in NJ
Dec 17th, 2007 | By Michael L. Saile, Jr., Esq. | Category: Blogs, DUI-DWI-DAI (Drunk Driving)Last week, the NJ Appellate Division was asked to rule on a case involving a New York driver whose license was suspended in New York for Driving Under the Influence (DUI-DWI). Via the Interstate Drivers Compact, this driver’s license was also suspended in the State of New Jersey.
The driver was caught driving near the George Washington Bridge in NJ and was pulled over for an NJ traffic violation. The NJ police officer ran the driver’s credentials and determined that his license was suspended for a NY drunk driving (DUI-DWI) charge.
The NJ Municipal Court found the man guilty of driving while suspended for a DWI-DUI in NJ and sentenced him with the enhanced penalties which include a minimum of a 10-day jail sentence and an additional license suspension on one year.
The man appealed claiming that the enhanced DUI-DWI penalties of the Driving While Suspended do not apply in his case because he was an out-of-state driver with an out-of-state drunk driving (DUI-DWI) charge. The plain language of the NJ drunk driving law specifically makes reference to the NJ DUI-DWI statute (39:4-50).
The NJ Law Division and the NJ Appellate Division ruled against the driver’s arguments and imposed the enhanced penalties. The Appellate Division case is a published decision which represents new law. Please read State v. Colley attached here: State v. Colley.pdf
Do you think it was fair for the court to impose enhanced penalties when the written law only makes reference to the NJ DUI-DWI law? Is 10 days in jail fair punishment? What if you thought your DUI-DWI suspension was expired and you thought you were legal to drive?
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.
The decision was absolutley 100 percent not fair or right.
TheNJ legislature could have wrote that scnerio into the law, but they did not. The NJ legislature only included the NJ Stature as a reference and did not mention one thing about people convicted of dui statues from other states.
The courts are tro interpet the laws, but in this case, the law is clear as tro what it says.
This guy should appeal, to the NJ Supreme Court.
Would it be possible to get the actual person the wrote the statue on enhanced penalities to testify as to the legislative intent and why they did not include out of state dui convictions in it.
why do we not as a people call the legislatures out on this, and see how they feel about it, under testimmony.
certainly, if the law could be passed including out of state dui convictions, it would have been written as such.
the courts in this case have circumented the people of new jersey.
Well Jim the litigants of this case could try to appeal to the NJ Supreme Court.
I hope they do try.
Mr. Saile, can the defense actaully get state senators in the legislatrure to testify as to the reason they did not include out of state dui convictions in the statute?
does the legislature have any remedy to the issue of llaw division or appealate division clearly misinterpting the law, or is it solely of the shoulders of the individual defendant?