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DWI

DWI Tips for Your Next Encounter

Imagine the following scenario: you go out for a few happy hour cocktails with friends after work, have a few, drink some water, wait an hour or so, and hop in your car to get home. On your way home, you drive 5 miles per hour above the speed limit just like everyone around you is doing, when suddenly you hear a chirp and realize that you are being pulled over.

You are not a criminal. In fact, you took steps to make sure that you were okay to drive by drinking water and waiting for your body to metabolize the alcohol you consume. After all, drinking alcohol and driving is not illegal – drunk driving is.

Unfortunately, for those of us who enjoy the occasional drink, drunk driving laws have become so strict that even 1-2 drinks could put you over the legal limit in some circumstances. In addition, you do not even need to be over the legal limit to be accused of DWI. It is sufficient that the police officer that stopped you believes that you are sufficiently impaired, and you better believe that he or she will write the police report in such a way as to make it seem like you were clearly drunk while you were driving.

Fortunately, there are certain things you can do to protect your rights in the event that you are pulled over after you have consumed any alcohol. Basically, you need to keep in mind that any questions you are asked are not asked for any other reason except to obtain evidence against you. For example, if the officer asks you how you are doing this evening, he or she does not actually want to know but rather is observing your speech, demeanor, and appearance in order to determine whether you may be intoxicated. For this reason, you should generally refuse any field sobriety tests that you are asked to perform and also refuse to provide a breath sample. There is no way to beat these tests, and any evidence gathered from them will simply be used to indicate that you were drunk.

Call 856-795-9688 today for a free consultation.

If you have been accused of drunk driving or DWI in New Jersey, you should contact the Law Office of Robert DePersia II as soon as possible. To schedule a free consultation, call us today at 856-795-9688 or send us an email through our online contact form.

Criminal, Drug Crime, DWI

Expungement in New Jersey

A criminal conviction on your permanent record can have a significant impact on your life. For example, if you apply for a job and your potential employer requires that you provide a background check, even a conviction for a minor offense could keep you from getting a job. Similarly, a landlord may be hesitant to rent to you because of the worry that you may engage in illegal activity on the property or be at risk for not paying rent on time.

Fortunately, New Jersey law allows people to have their criminal record cleared in certain circumstances through a process known as “expungement.” It is important to understand, however, that the laws that govern who can have their record expunged are extremely complicated. In addition, the process can be difficult and require you to gather a significant amount of paperwork from various parties. For these reasons, it is highly advisable for anyone seeking an expungement to discuss their circumstances with an experienced attorney.

Can my Record Be Expunged?

Unfortunately, there is no way to answer this questions without thoroughly analyzing your case. Some general information about expungement can sometimes be informative, however. Some basic rules include the following:

  • New Jersey courts may only expunge New Jersey offenses
  • Only criminal and juvenile records are eligible for expungement
  • Motor vehicle records are NOT eligible for expungement (NOTE: New Jersey law treats DWI as a motor vehicle offense, not a criminal matter. Consequently, DWI convictions cannot be expunged).
  • Other issues that may be relevant include the offense of which you were convicted, how much time has passed since your conviction, whether you completed the sentence imposed by the court, and whether you have other convictions on your record

Importantly, there are certain crimes that cannot be expunged under any circumstances. These include criminal homicide, kidnapping, selling or manufacturing child pornography, perjury, criminal restraint, and others.

Call 856-795-9688 today for a free consultation.

If you have a criminal record, you should find out if you can have it expunged as soon as possible. With over 25 years of experience practicing law, New Jersey criminal defense attorney Robert DePersia, II knows how to navigate the criminal justice system and is committed to bringing each case he handles to a successful resolution. To schedule a free consultation, call our office today at 856-795-9688 or send us an email through our online contact form.

Uncategorized

License Suspended? Steps to Restore Your License

Not having a driver’s license can make it extremely difficult to handle everyday tasks that would normally be relatively simple. For example, taking public transportation to and from work or school each day may take significantly longer than it would if you could drive, and even just getting groceries from the store can turn into an even that takes hours and hours.

Here are some of the steps associated with getting your driver’s license back after a suspension. Importantly, an attorney can help along every step of the way and may even be able to help stop a potential suspension from taking effect. For more information, call our office today.

Determine the Cause of the Suspension

Your New Jersey driver’s license can be suspended for a number of reasons, including multiple traffic violations, driving without insurance, failing to pay parking tickets, or driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs (DWI). Chances are that you know why your driver’s license was suspended, but if you do not, you should call the DMV to discuss the matter. It is important to learn why your license is suspended as the reason for the suspension will affect the steps you have to take to get it back.

Comply with any Requirements

Different reasons for suspension result in different steps that drivers must take in order to lift their suspension. For example, if you have had your license suspended for traffic violations, you may need to complete a driving course before you can have your license reinstated. Similarly, if you were arrested for drunk driving, you will likely need to obtain proof of completion of New Jersey’s Intoxicated Driver Program. These requirements must be completed before your license is reinstated, even if the period of your suspension has ended.

Pay the Restoration Fee

As with most things related to the government, there is a fee associated with restoring your license.  The final step associated with getting your license back is paying the $100 reinstatement fee, which you can pay online, in person at a regional service center or a Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) that offers walk-in service, or by mail.

Call 856-795-9688 today for a free consultation.

If you have had your license suspended, you should speak with an attorney as soon as possible. New Jersey criminal defense lawyer Robert DePersia, II has over 25 years of experience practicing law in New Jersey courts and is committed to helping his clients move on with their lives. To schedule a free case evaluation, call our office today at 865-795-9688 or send us an email through our online contact form.

Drug Crime

What are New Jersey Drug Laws?

New Jersey arrested more than 55,000 people in 2014 for drug abuse violations, according to the 2014 Uniform Crime Report. If you are convicted of a drug-related offense, you may be facing criminal penalties such as fines, probation, community service, and even jail time. Furthermore, you will have a criminal conviction on your record that could affect you for the test of your life. Below, we discuss some of the basic drug laws in New Jersey. For more information, or to retain legal representation, call our office today.

Drug Possession

You do not have be a drug user to be accused of a criminal offense related to drugs – simply possessing them may be enough. Of course, possession of drugs like MDMA, heroin, marijuana, and methamphetamines is illegal, but so is the unauthorized possession of a prescription drug. Many people are surprised to learn that taking a few of their friend’s Xanax or Adderall pills has the potential to get the in significant legal trouble.

Drug Distribution/Possession with the Intent to Distribute

If you are found with a substantial amount of drugs, you may be accused of an offense related to the distribution of drugs. These kinds of allegations are a serious matter and should not be taken lightly. Often, whether or not you will be accused of simple possession or possession with the intent to distribute will be determined by subjective factors, such as the way the drugs were packaged and the amount you had on your person.

Drug Cultivation and Manufacture

Producing illegal drugs is also a serious criminal offense in the state of New Jersey. If you are caught growing marijuana plants or with equipment and materials usually used to make illegal drugs, you may be facing extremely serious legal consequences. Fortunately, in many cases, there are ways that a skilled attorney can defend against these kinds of allegations or have them significantly reduced.

Call Robert DePersia Today to Speak with a New Jersey Criminal Defense Lawyer

If you have been accused of any offense related to illegal drugs, you should speak to an attorney immediately. With more than 25 years of experience in criminal defense, New Jersey criminal defense lawyer Robery DePersia is qualified to represent people accused of any crime and fights to get is clients the best outcome possible. To schedule a free consultation, call our office today at 800-761-2093 or send us an email through our online contact form.

DWI

New Jersey DWI? What’s Next?

You are driving along, perhaps aware of the fact that you have had more to drink than you should have, when suddenly there are police lights behind you. The next thing you know, you are being handcuffed, taken to the police station, fingerprinted, photographed, and sitting in a cell until someone bails you out or you are released the next morning. Your next thought will probably be, “what’s next?”

What’s next from a legal standpoint is that you will be assigned a court date, at which you will be expected to plead not guilty or guilty. If you plead not guilty, a trial date shall be set, where you will need to argue that you were not drunk or that some legal justification for your actions applied. If you plead guilty, this is what is may be next:

  • Fines
  • Probation
  • The suspension of your driver’s license
  • The installation of an ignition interlock device on your vehicle
  • Community service
  • Jail time

Hopefully, what is next for you is that you will call an attorney. Your lawyer will thoroughly evaluate the facts of your case and determine whether any legal defenses apply. For example, if the officer lacked the legal justification to stop you, any evidence that was gathered after the stop could be thrown out. Perhaps you have a medical condition like GERD that has been shown to increase the amount of mouth alcohol in a person’s mouth, making breath test results inaccurate. Another possibility is that the young police officer that pulled you over lacked the experience and training required to determine whether or not you were drunk.

The list of potential defenses goes on and on. If there are no defenses available, there are some cases in which your lawyer may be able to negotiate a plea bargain that will avoid the most damaging consequences associated with a DWI case in New Jersey.

Call a New Jersey DWI Defense Attorney Today to Protect Your Legal Rights

A DWI conviction has the potential to negatively impact nearly every aspect of your life, from your financial situation to your professional reputation. For this reason, it is extremely important to retain an attorney who will defend your rights. New Jersey criminal defense lawyer Robert DePersia has more than 25 years of experience practicing law and is intimately familiar with New Jersey drunk driving laws. To schedule a free consultation, call our office today at 856-795-9688 or send us an email through our online contact form.

Criminal

Criminal Defense Strategies

A criminal conviction can lead to legal penalties that no one wants to face. Fortunately, if you have been accused of a crime, there are many ways that an attorney can help. The specific strategy that your lawyer will employ depends on a variety of factors, including the strength of the state’s case against you and whether there are any viable defenses. Some of the more common criminal defense strategies used include the following.

Asserting an Affirmative Defense

An affirmative defense is one where the defendant does not deny any of the allegations made by the prosecution, but rather asserts additional facts that, if true, relieves the defendant of criminal culpability. For example, if you were in a fight with another person and hit them and were facing a battery case, you may be able to argue that you were acting in self-defense and that your use of force was justified. In this scenario, you would not deny that you used force, but rather would introduce evidence that indicating that you used a reasonable amount of force in order to protect yourself from a threat.

Creating a Reasonable Doubt

In our criminal justice system, the state needs to be able to prove every element of a criminal offense beyond a reasonable doubt in order to secure a conviction. In some criminal cases, the best strategy is to create reasonable doubt about one element of the offense, making it impossible for the prosecution to make their case. For instance, if the elements of drunk driving are (1) driving a vehicle while (2) having a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of over .08, your attorney may try and create doubt as to whether the results of any chemical testing that was performed were accurate.

Mitigating the Consequences

In some cases, the best strategy to take is simply to mitigate the consequences you are facing by accepting a plea bargain. Plea bargains involve pleading guilty to a lesser offense or a reduced sentence, thereby saving the state the time and expense associated with taking your case to trial. Generally, plea bargaining is used when the state has a strong case and the defendant simply want to move on with as little legal consequence as possible.

Call 856-795-9688 today for a free consultation.

If you have been accused of a crime in New Jersey, you should contact an attorney as soon as possible. Even relatively minor offenses can have serious consequences, and trying to defend yourself against a professional prosecutor is a recipe for disaster. To schedule a free consultation with experienced New Jersey criminal defense lawyer Robert DePersia, II, call our office today at 856-795-9688 or send un an email through our online contact form.

Drug Crime

CDS Possession in New Jersey

The possession of illegal drugs or unlawful possession of prescription drugs is a serious matter in the state of New Jersey. Under New Jersey law, these substances are referred to generally as Controlled Dangerous Substances, often shortened to “CDS” by law enforcement and other people who work in the criminal justice system. People who are caught violating laws related to the possession of CDS are subject to significant legal penalties, including the following:

  • Probation
  • Mandatory drug testing and supervision
  • Community service
  • Significant fines
  • Jail time

It is important to keep in mind that the consequences of a drug possession case can go far beyond those imposed by the court. For example, if you are convicted of CDS possession, you will have a permanent record that is accessible to the general public. As a result, anyone who is curious about your past could potentially find out embarrassing details about your life. Additionally, many employers and landlords are hesitant to hire or rent to a person with a criminal record, so a drug possession conviction could make it much harder to get a job or rent an apartment. If these issues were not enough, a drug conviction could make you ineligible for federal student financial aid, potentially jeopardizing your ability to get an education.

Defenses to CDS Possession May Be Available

If you have been arrested for CDS possession in New Jersey, do not make the mistake of thinking that you do not have any options. In many cases, a conviction may be completely avoidable with the assistance of an experienced lawyer. An attorney may be able to identify constitutional violations that occurred when the police investigated your case, which could potentially result in your case being dropped. Even if there are no legal defenses available, the representation of an attorney may result in a conditional plea agreement that keeps a conviction from being entered on your record if you comply with terms set by the court for a certain period of time.

Call 856-795-9688 today for a free consultation.

If you have been accused of possession of a CDS in New Jersey, you could be subject to extremely serious legal consequences. New Jersey criminal defense lawyer Robert DePersia, II has been practicing law for over 25 years and is committed to obtaining the best possible outcome for each client he takes. To schedule a free consultation, call our office today at 856-795-9688 or send us an email through our online contact form.

DWI

Your First–and Hopefully Last–DUI

Getting arrested is always frightening, especially if you have never been in that type of situation before. You may be a generally law-abiding citizen who made the decision to drive home on this occasion. Now, you are facing serious allegations of driving under the influence (DUI). Many people who are arrested for a first-time DUI have never had much–if any–experience with the criminal justice system and may not realize how serious the consequences of a conviction can be. The truth is that even a first DUI can result in serious penalties that can affect your life. For this reason, you should always contact a highly experienced NJ DUI defense attorney as soon as possible after your arrest.

Some of the potential penalties for a first-time DUI in New Jersey can include:

  • 30 days of jail time
  • Fines up to $500
  • Suspension of your driver’s license up to one year
  • Possible requirement of an ignition interlock device on your vehicle
  • Probation
  • Alcohol education classes

In addition, having a DUI conviction on your record can cause serious issues for you in the future including professional limitations or higher insurance rates. A conviction for a first DUI can also result in increased penalties if you are ever accused of DUI again. For this reason, it is best to avoid even one DUI conviction whenever you can.

Defenses to a First-Time DUI

The fact that you have been arrested on suspicion of drunk driving does not mean that you will be convicted. Remember, the state must prove every element of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt, which is the highest burden of proof that exists in the U.S. criminal justice system. Some of the defenses commonly raised in a New Jersey DUI case include the following:

●     Casting doubt on the accuracy of any chemical testing that was performed

●     Impeaching the credibility of the officer that arrested you

●     Proving to the court that you have a medical condition that could cause symptoms consistent with alcohol intoxication

●     Showing that the initial traffic stop was not legally justified

Determining whether these or other DUI defenses apply in your case is complicated, so you should always have your case thoroughly analyzed by an experienced New Jersey DUI attorney.

Consult with a Skilled New Jersey DUI Defense Lawyer as Soon as Possible

At the Law Office of Robert E. DePersia, II, we help individuals facing first-time DUI charges as well as individuals with multiple convictions. If you have been arrested, call our office for a free consultation at 856-795-9688 today.

DWI

Tips for Interacting with Police During a DUI Stop

Being stopped by police is never a pleasant experience. Even if you know you have done nothing wrong, seeing flashing lights in your rear-view mirror can cause instant anxiety and even defensiveness. These feelings can be significantly escalated if you believe you are under suspicion of driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol or drugs. Whether or not you are drinking and driving, you should be extremely careful when you are interacting with police officers during a DUI stop. This goes for isolated stops as well as organized sobriety checkpoints. The following are only a few tips to remember when you are stopped by law enforcement.

Try to Remain Calm

Staying calm and cooperative is always best in any situation involving police, however, this can be much easier said than done when you are suspected of DUI. While it is completely natural to become anxious or nervous during any police encounter, you should realize that officers will generally take such behavior as a sign that you have something to hide, which will only incite further suspicion. Furthermore, becoming agitated or uncooperative at the scene of a DUI stop can make officers more determined to find a good reason to arrest you.

If you were anxious or agitated during a DUI stop, the officer will almost certainly include it in their police report and/or testify about your behavior in your DUI case. While such evidence can seem daunting, an experienced DUI defense attorney can present evidence that you were simply nervous and stressed about the encounter. However, it is always best to remain calm whenever possible.

Be Careful of any Questions Asked by the Officer

Many officers will begin to casually ask you questions during the DUI stop. You should be fully aware that this is not casual conversation or small talk, but that the officer is actively trying to get answers that can later be used against you in court. While you may think it is harmless to admit you had a “couple of drinks,” a prosecutor can spin such statements to try to prove that you admitted to being impaired. It is always best to politely refrain from answering any questions until you have consulted with your DUI defense attorney.

Call for a Consultation with a New Jersey DUI Defense Lawyer Today

At the Law Office of Robert E. DePersia, II, we work to build effective defenses in DUI cases, no matter what the circumstances were surrounding your DUI stop and arrest. Please call for help today at 856-795-9688.

Uncategorized

Concert Season Could Mean More Arrests

As the weather warms up, music venues all across the state of New Jersey are preparing for their busy concert schedules. From huge pop or country stars to smaller indie shows to weekend-long festivals, there will be opportunities for almost anyone to get out and enjoy a good show. Unfortunately, with the revelry and enjoyment that often accompanies a concert also comes an increase in legal troubles for some concert-goers.

Common Reasons for Arrests at Concerts

While many people attend concerts simply to hear some good music, others may view concerts as a time and place for irresponsible and even unlawful behavior. Concerts are often a hotbed for drugs and alcohol, which can lead to a variety of bad decisions and, ultimately, to arrests. Law enforcement officers commonly arrest people at concerts for the following offenses and more:

  • Disorderly conduct
  • Possession of marijuana, Molly (ecstasy), cocaine, or other controlled substances
  • Underage possession of alcohol or underage drinking
  • Public intoxication
  • Assault or sexual assault
  • Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol (DUI)

Even if some of the above offenses may seem to be no big deal, a conviction can have a significant effect on your life. This is especially true for younger adults, as any type of conviction of their record may hinder their ability to get accepted to certain higher education institutions or to obtain financial aid. An experienced attorney can help to avoid conviction and to limit consequences for you whenever possible.

Other charges that can stem from concert season can have extremely serious and lasting effects, such as drug possession or drinking and driving. These charges can result in the loss of your license, fines, or even jail time, among many other possible consequences. In addition, if you ever face charges in the future, a prior conviction can mean significantly enhanced penalties. It is essential to have a strong legal drug or DUI defense in these types of cases.

Call a NJ Criminal Defense Attorney for a Consultation Today

If you went to concert in New Jersey expecting to have a good time and instead ended up behind bars, you need the assistance of a highly qualified criminal defense lawyer as soon as possible. Defense attorney Robert DePersia successfully handles a wide variety of cases, from relatively minor citations to serious criminal charges. No matter why you were arrested, you should take any resulting case extremely seriously to avoid any long-term consequences of a criminal record. Please contact the Law Office of Robert E. DePersia, II at 856-795-9688 to discuss your case today.