New Jersey Criminal Defense Blog

A Garwood Borough resident was arrested on January 29th on charges of driving while intoxicated and leaving the scene of an accident, according to an associated press report published Wednesday, January 30th. Ronald J. Ciuba, 39 was charged by Officer Todd Herz with leaving the scene of an accident, careless and intoxicated driving, and having no insurance.

The arrest occurred after a motorist called police at 5:50p.m. Saturday to report she saw a 1999 Chrysler strike a parked car. She went on to explain that she saw the car continue for several blocks, then park on the 300 block of Third Avenue. The witness continued to watch the car until the officer arrived.

Being arrested or accused of a DWI is a scary and distressing situation, but running from an arresting officer is only making a bad situation much worse. Our aggressive New Jersey DWI defense lawyers at Lependorf & Silverstein have much experience representing DWI clients in New Jersey, successfully achieving dismissals, acquittals and lowered sentences, but there is little we can do for an individual who flees from the scene of an accident. Our attorneys have found that it’s best to invoke your rights when stopped for a DUI in New Jersey. While you should never be rude or hostile toward a police officer you should always insist on your right to not answer their questions without a lawyer. While you may also refuse to participate in a field sobriety test you should realize that this looks extremely suspicious to any DWI judge hearing your case and can lead to further penalties later. You cannot refuse to take a breath sample test.