New Jersey Criminal Defense Blog

According to an Associated Press article, charges were dropped against a suspect who refused to take a breathalyzer test because the police failed to make him aware of the consequences of his refusal. In 2007, Plainfield police responded to a car accident involving two cars, one of which was driven by the suspect who police believe had been driving drunk. The police first asked the suspect to show his license in English. Because the suspect failed to respond, the police asked the suspect to show his license in Spanish and he obeyed. Although the police initially gave orders to the suspect in Spanish, they spoke to the suspect in English for the remainder of the police questioning.

When police told the suspect in English that he would lose his license for 7 months, if he refused the alcohol breath test, he shook his head and pointed to his eye. Since the suspect declined the alcohol breath test, he was charged both with driving while intoxicated and refusing to take the breath test.

Later, the suspect told the court that he did not understand the police and he pointed to his eye, because he had just consumed painkillers for an eye irritation. He further argued that he was not made fully aware of his rights.

The New Jersey Supreme Court found that because the suspect did not understand the consequences of refusing to take the alcohol breath test, since he did not understand English, he therefore lacked informed consent. Consequently, all New Jersey police officers must now provide translations of rights to suspects in drunk driving cases. This should help prevent common New Jersey police DWI mistakes.

If you have been charged with a DUI in New Jersey, you have the right to be informed that a refusal to an alcohol breath test revokes your license for 7 months. You also have the right to skilled DUI defense representation from the experienced New Jersey DUI defense attorneys of Lependorf & Silverstein. Call our office today at 609-240-0040, for a free consultation.