November 10, 2009-Today, our Supreme Court held that the statute NJSA 39:4-97.2 (the "no point" ticket) permits a motor vehicle operator to avoid points on his or her third or subsequent offense, if five years have elapsed since the prior offense.
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November 10, 2009-Today, our Supreme Court held that the statute NJSA 39:4-97.2 (the "no point" ticket) permits a motor vehicle operator to avoid points on his or her third or subsequent offense, if five years have elapsed since the prior offense.
Continue Reading...
November 10, 2009-Today, our Supreme Court held that the statute NJSA 39:4-97.2 (the "no point" ticket) permits a motor vehicle operator to avoid points on his or her third or subsequent offense, if five years have elapsed since the prior offense.
Continue Reading...
Deal, NJ- A task force from Monmouth County and Deal Police will perform a sobriety checkpoint tonight to determine whether drivers are under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs. Anyone who is, will be charged with DWI, N.J.S.A. 39:4-50. It will begin at 11:00 p.m. tonight and continue through 3:00 a.m. Saturday on Ocean Avenue. The unit will direct vehicles from the northbound lanes into the Deal Casino Beach Club parking lot to check drivers' sobriety.
If you are arrested and charged as a result of this stop for DWI, please be aware that the police are obligated to follow strict guidelines. Their failure to comply with these mandates can and does lead to dismissals of these serious offenses. Hiring an attorney who specializes in these matters can and does make the difference.
The Appellate Division, in a case of first impression, ruled that the five-year point forgiveness component of NJSA 39:4-97.2, (unsafe operation of a motor vehicle) between offenses does not apply to third offenses; regardless of how long a time goes by between the 2nd and 3rd offense. Rather, the "no point" forgiveness section of the statute only applies when there is a period of 5 years or more between a 3rd and subsequent offense.
As has always been the law, a first and second offender are not assessed points. A third offender will receive 4 points. Hereafter, if 5 years elapse following the 3rd offense, the defendant may again plead guilty without the assessment of points. Previously, attorneys, municiapl courts and prosecutors have taken the position that if five years had elapsed after the second ticket, you could receive a no point ticket for unsafe driving on your third use of the statute. The case which no longer supports this proposition is called Patel v. New Jersey MVC.
This is a tough decision which continues the recent trend against motorists' abilities to plea bargain their cases to no point offenses. Since most offenses are either 2, 4 or 5 points (unless multiple tickets are issued to a single driver) it's hard to envision a scenario where a motorist would trade/plead a two point ticket (i.e. careless or speeding ticket) or four point (i.e. speeding ticket, or improper passing ticket) to a third offense, FOUR POINT Unsafe driving ticket; which also comes with a $250.00 debt reduction statute. With any luck, a legislator will see this anomaly and correct it.
As a result of a memorandum issued September 17, 2008, Anne Milgram, the Attorney General, has ordered that municipal prosecutors cannot offer or accept plea bargains which result in non-point violations for offenses involving defendants who have a graduated driver’s license (GDL). The logic behind the new plea bargaining bar stems from the mandatory driver improvement program that possessors of GDL's must attend upon receiving 3 or more penalty points. By receiving non-point downgrades, these drivers are able to avoid attending the driver improvement program.
Yes, a cell phone ticket can result in four (4) motor vehicle points on your license under certain limited circumstances. On March 1, 2008, N.J.S.A. 39:4-97.3 (a cell phone offense) became a primary offense. Prior to this date, an officer needed to witness a driving offense or moving violation before he stop you and ticket you for talking on a cell phone as well. This means that a police officer can now stop you solely for talking on the cell phone (which is a no point offense when it is charged originally by the officer).
The catch (or when points apply) comes in when a person, looking to avoid points, amends or plea bargains some moving violation ticket to a cell phone ticket; thinking they are receiving a no point ticket. When this occurs, the MVC will treat the cell phone ticket as if it were a conviction for unsafe driving. The conviction should show up on your history as N.J.S.A. 39:4-97.2G. However, under the unsafe driving statute, N.J.S.A. 39:4-97.2, a driver will be charged four (4) points if he pleads guilty to a 3rd offense unsafe driving within five years of his/her second conviction of unsafe driving.
To simplify the confusion, any combination totaling three (3) or more offenses of unsafe driving and unsafe driver/cell phone amendments, will result in four (4) points for the third offense if it occurs within five (5) years of the second offense.
Generally, if you have a Pennsylvania license and you are issued a speeding (N.J.S.A. 39:4-98) ticket in New Jersey, the typical plea bargains to a "no point" ticket that benefit a NJ driver will not benefit a Pennsylvania driver. In order for a licensed Pennsylvania driver to receive a "no point" ticket in NJ, they should seek to have their plea to the offense amended to a speed between 1 to 5 m.p.h. over the posted speed limit. See 75 Pa. C.S.A. 3362.
By comparison, when a NJ licensed driver receives a speeding ticket in Pennsylvania (or other State), he/she will only be assessed 2 points regardless of the speed.
What are Surcharges and Do They Affect Me?
Surcharges are monetary penalties assessed by the Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) on a yearly basis for drivers who have been issued excessive points or committed a specific violation such as DWI. Surcharges are in addition to any court fines and penalties and are assessed by the MVC.
Why do I get surcharges?
Your motor vehicle history is checked by MVC every time points are assesed to it. If you acquire six (6) or more points within three years from your last posted violation, you will receive a $150 surcharge plus $25 for each additional point. The following is a list of surcharges that apply to specific convictions for offenses. They are...
New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (NJ MVC) Points
We have all heard, either through a driver's education class or by the angry police officer standing next to our car, that "driving isn't a right, it is a privilege." If you are found guilty or pled guilty to a traffic infraction (such as speeding, reckless driving, driving without insurance, DWI or while suspended, etc.), your privilege to drive may be revoked or suspended. This will result in fines, yearly surcharges, increases in your car insurance premiums and even jail. The severity of your actions are patrolled by the MVC using a point system. When you are convicted of certain moving violations, MVC will punish you by adding points to your driving history or abstract. As a general rule, you only get points on your record for moving violations.
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