NJ Supreme Court sides with prosecutors in motor vehicle stop case…
Dec 29th, 2008 | By Michael L. Saile, Jr., Esq. | Category: Blogs, DUI-DWI-DAI (Drunk Driving)Last week, the NJ Supreme Court held that an NJ DWI – DUI traffic stop was legal under the United States and the New Jersey Constitutions in State v. Amelio.
On December 11, 2005, a father and his daughter were having some kind of domestic fight, which resulted in the daughter calling the police. The father then left the home and drove away in his car. The daughter called the police back and stated that her father left and is driving drunk.
The daughter gave the police a description of the father’s vehicle, its proximate location, and the license plate number. The police found the car and initiated a DWI – DUI traffic stop and charged the father with NJ DWI. It should be noted that the police did not observe any erratic driving before they made the DWI – DUI traffic stop.
In the NJ Municipal Court, the father made a Motion to Suppress the DUI-DWI traffic stop. The NJ Municipal Court denied the father’s Motion to Suppress. The father then appealed the NJ Municipal Court’s decision and the NJ Superior Court reversed the Municipal Court’s decision, and the NJ Appellate Division confirmed the reversal.
The NJ Supreme Court stated that even though the daughter was only 17-years-old, her reports to the police were deemed reliable under already established case law. The Court ruled that the police had reasonable suspicion and could make a legal DUI – DWI traffic stop.
If you are charged with DWI in New Jersey or DUI in Bucks County Pennsylvania, contact Michael L. Saile, Jr., Esq. for aggressive DWI – DUI legal representation.
was the case remanded back to the municipal court for trial now at this point?
Jim:
The case left the NJ Municipal Court as a conditional guilty plea. So now that the defendant lost the appeal, the guilty plea will hold.
thats bad, ……. i think the attorney could have appealed that ruling, in liue of a trial or conditional guilty plea,no?
there are 1000 of aspects to dui.