The Spring Lake Police Department made several arrests this past week as a result of a physical altercation involving minors from the borough, Sea Girt, Manasquan and Brielle.  A large group of the juveniles were fighting in the early morning and the incident resulted in at least one juvenile being hospitalized. Alcohol was apparently involved in the incident.  Juvenile Charges are pending for assault, possession of alcohol underage, and vandalism.

The charges in this case will undoubtedly make their way to Monmouth County Superior Court.  Juvenile cases are presided over by Judge Iadanza and Judge McGann, and neither are a push over when it comes to kids crossing the line.  You can anticipate some differed dispositions for the lesser players and probation, at a minimum, for those involved in anything serious (e.g. aggravated assault). 

New Jersey’s legislature is considering a proposal to legalize marijuana for medical use.  NJ would be the 14th state to approve marijuana usage in this manner.  A similar proposal was advanced several years ago.  It is unclear what the perimeters of the bill would be, for example, whether it provides for distribution facilities like those that exist in California.

It is clear from the comments around the Internet that there are individuals with extreme views in opposition to the bill.  I genuinely do not see how legalizing marijuana for medicinal use could promote crime as is posited by those opposing the bill.  I would rather view the situation as if the drug involved was no different than any other approved medication.  Only time will tell what happens on this one given the fierce opposition.

Things are really getting tough for immigrants.  Yesterday, I was in a local municipal court and was having some small talk with the prosecutor, whom I have known for many years.  I was advised that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (commonly referred to as ICE) was planning to make random appearances in local municipal courts in hopes of making arrests.   The intention is to approach individuals who have been issued unlicensed driver tickets and the like, and who appear to be immigrants.  

While I am sensitive to all views on this subject, I am also cognizant of what is really going on here.  The approach planned by ICE shall fail for many reasons.  The reality is that once individuals catch on to the potential for an ICE arrest in municipal court, there will be a significant chilling effect on collection of fines and appearances in response to these types of summonses.  The goal of saving the government money will, in my view, only be further frustrated when collection of fines decline.  I think we need to draw the line here.

On December 15, 2008, the New Jersey Administrative Office of the Courts released the revisions to the Domestic Violence Handbook.  One of the primary components of the revisions involves adoption of procedures for electronic filing of domestic violence complaints and temporary restraining orders in NJ.  Another provision of note concerns uniform rules for paternity testing in conjunction with domestic violence proceedings. 

The number of domestic violence cases handled by our offices every year seems to grow.  We suspect that this may be a function of the increasing number of these cases filed every year.  The electronic filing of complaints and TRO’s should make the process easier and shall probably translate in even more filings.  It will remain to be seen what collateral attacks and/or defenses shall arise by virtue of this process (e.g. evidence considered prior to filing).  

Almost everyone in New Jersey knows what a DWI is – but a BWI or bicycling while intoxicated?  Well it is true, the offense does exist and last week a Sea Girt police officer arrested a bicyclist for the offense. The cyclist allegedly fell on his bike while stopped at a road crossing and the incident was witnessed by the arresting officer.  An ensuing investigation revealed a rather intoxicated bicyclist and resulted in summonses for DWI and an assortment of disorderly persons offenses.

Although I have heard of BWI offenses being issued, I have never had occasion to handle one.  Given the high number of drinking and driving cases we handle every year, I would have to assume that the lack of a BWI case reflects the extreme nature associated with a police officer actually filing such a charge.  I believe that most police officers have the common sense to refrain from filing such a charge for numerous reasons, including the fact that most individuals are riding their bike under these circumstances to avoid DWI. It seems a little unfair to me to penalize an individual for BWI.

The NY Post posted its letters to the editor on the subject of Vito Fosella’s DWI.  There have been a litany of descriptions all over the press concerning the perception of the Senator following his arrest.  He has been described as, among other things, “disgraced” and “humiliated” as a result of his DWI while in office. The letters took issue with the lack of compassion for Fosella.

I have to agree with the comments of the writers.  While a DWI is a serious offense, we find all segments of our society in our office seeking defense representation for this charge – doctors, educators, etc.  In fact, New Jersey has even had Superior Court, Appellate Division and/or Supreme Court Jurists who have been issued DWI summonses.  People make mistakes and thankfully no one was injured by the Senator.  I certainly believe that more good could have been accomplished by the Senator on this issue had he remained in office.  I am sure there are many with a much different view.  

The New Jersey Assembly is considering an amendment to the penalties for DWI related vehicular homicide.  The bill is referred to as “Josh’s Law” and proposes to increase the mandatory jail sentence to 10-20 years from 5-10 for those found guilty of vehicular homicide.  The bill was sponsored in response to the death of Josh Moren, a young man who was killed by a drunk driver possessing a blood alcohol content in excess of four times the legal limit.  

It is always sad to learn of another DWI related death.  While a life was lost, the question of incarceration is always something that needs to be fact sensitive in my judgment.  There is no question that a stiff jail sentence would be warranted when an accused is driving with a blood alcohol content of .35 but how about the high school senior with a .08% blood alcohol content and no prior history of any kind?  Do we destroy two lives to equal the score?  This is a very difficult question and I believe that the enactment of a mandatory jail term of 10-20 years will be too inflexible.

My law firm, the Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall, has launched new service pages in Union County which will be executed through our office at 216 North Avenue, Cranford, New Jersey.  The new pages provide detailed court information for individuals seeking a criminal or dwi lawyer in Cranford, criminal defense lawyer in Elizabeth or a lawyer in any other municipality in Union County.  We offer services in all areas of municipal court defense including dwi, marijuana charges, shoplifting and all other varieties of disorderly persons offenses.  An attorney from our office would be happy to discuss our services in more depth.  

I am also happy to report that our office has become a member of Topix, a daily online newspaper dedicated to providing local news and information.  Daily news relevant to the municipalities in Union County and elsewhere in NJ can be found online at Topix.

We continue to strive to provide online resources to assist individuals seeking legal information and advice in New Jersey.  If you have a legal question or think you might require representation, please contact us any time 24/7 at 877-450-8301.

We previously outlined the planned elimination of the Warren County Juvenile Detention Center as a budget measure by the County.  The Freeholders had determined that it would be more cost effective to house youthful offenders at the Morris County center.  A similar proposal is now being considered by the Monmouth County Board of Freeholders.

The Monmouth County Sheriff, Kim Guadagnino, is scheduled to present a study concerning closing the Juvenile Detention Center and transferring offenders to Middlesex County.  The move has been a matter of considerable debate and one of the newly elected Freeholders was vocal in support of the measure.  Sheriff Guadagnino will be presenting a detailed report outlining the pros and cons of consolidation and the Freeholders will have to make the call on whether the jail shall be closed.  Monmouth County currently spends approximately $5.5 million annually to operate its Juvenile Detention Center.

From the perspective of a NJ defense attorney, the consolidation is unfavorable.  Aside from the logistical complications, the creation of a mini-Jamesburg is nothing to revel about.

The 2008 Christmas holiday resulted in drunk driving fatalities and serious injuries.  Early Sunday morning, a Glassboro man slammed his vehicle into the back of a dumb truck resulting in the death of his passenger.  Chemical tests allegedly revealed a blood alcohol concentration over the legal limit, resulting in vehicular homicide charges being filed filed.

On Tuesday, another alcohol related accident occurred in Kearny.  The collision resulted in serious injuries and involved a motorist with a BAC of .19, over twice the legal limit.  Assault by Auto charges have been filed.

The holiday season is always a festive time involving alcohol. Unfortunately, this seems to result in DWI related fatalities every year.  If the toxicology stands up in cases like these, the defendants have serious jail exposure.