What Next-Torture for DWI?
Being convicted of driving while intoxicated in the state of New Jersey is no trivial matter. You can be found guilty in two ways–one is the reading on the Alcotest machine and the other is the officer’s observations. You are not allowed a jury trial and three convictions will land you in jail for half a year, cost you thousands in fines, and a ten year loss of license.
Despite the fact that you can spend a half year in jail, New Jersey does not categorize DWI as a crime. If the state called it a crime, it would be required to provide jury trials and plea bargaining with the prosecution. Since this is the case, judges side with the prosecution and jail otherwise law abiding individuals for six long months. The disruption of family life and professional life has no bearing on these onerous results. In fact, most judges could care less about any extenuating circumstances.
New Jersey has a provision in its code that allows a judge to allow a convicted third offender to request 90 days in rehab following the 90 days in jail. How generous is that? Not very. You are sentenced for committing a potential crime, since DWI itself is not a crime. The potential crime is that the driver could hurt others in an accident. Since when does any legal code call for jailing people for the potential of hurting someone?
Jailing people for the potential of hurting others could result in restaurant owners being jailed for serving liquor or bad food. It could result in houseware store owners being jailed for selling steak knives and gun shop owners would simply change their zip code to the nearest jail.
It is time to reform the legal code surrounding DWI in New Jersey. DWI defendants must have the same rights as other defendants. They must have their constitutional right to a trial with a jury of their peers enforced, and they should be punished according to the gravity of their delinquency. It is manifestly unjust to jail someone for six months for having two drinks.
Posted: December 29th, 2008 under All, Conviction Rules, DWI/DUI Law.
Tags: DWI/DUI Reform, New Jersey
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Comment from eddiemills43
Time February 25, 2009 at 5:55 pm
I am writing this to discuss the penalties of a 3rd DWI conviction. The penalties for a 3rd DWI are as follow: A multitude of fines, 6months in the county jail, and a loss of registration and loss of driving privileges for 10yers, as well as thousands in insurance surcharges. This may not seem like a lot to people who have either been injured themselves or had a loved one injured or killed by a drunk driver, but to the average person these penalties should be alarming! If you were to compare the penalties of this serious driving offense to actual crimes, you will see why this should be alarming to you. People who commit actual crimes such as drug possession, distribution, weapons charges, and more disturbingly crimes of violence or sexual assault rarely receive penalties this severe. People convicted of these crimes are offered many different options in which to full fill there sentences. Such as PTI, Probation, SLAP, Community service, and ISP just to name a few. After they have exhausted all these options and are sentenced to a period of incarceration, these criminals are still not out of options to reduce their sentence. They then have things like good time (consecutive days with no other trouble,) work credit, (days off for each day you work) and then probation or parole again! I’m sure there are other options they have that are not listed above to reduce the amount of days that they actually spend in jail. People convicted of a 3rd DWI offense are not given these or any other options to reduce or avoid their period of incarceration. It’s 180 days they serve day for day. No good time or work credit! Let’s look at the adverse affects that these penalties will most likely have on a person convicted of a 3rd DWI. Once convicted the person is sent directly to the county jail to begin there 6 month period of incarceration, giving them no time to plan anything for their children and families. Unlike with actual crimes in which the offender is given another court date to come back for sentencing allowing time to plan and spend time with children and their families. During this persons period of incarceration he or she will most likely lose their employment and ability to provide for their family. As well as the ability to pay various bills like mortgages, rent, schooling, and car payments just to name a few. This will cause the loss of homes, cars, and other things which will ruin their credit, resulting in added struggles and strains for them and their families. This will put more families on welfare, rental assistance, and other forms of government aid. Costing N.J. tax payers thousands extra each year. This person will have no means to gain employment or assets left to become a productive person in society again. Leading to drinking again to ease there minds from their newly accrued problems. Or maybe even worse another form of substance abuse such as, pills, cocaine, or even heroin. Causing them to perhaps turn to crime as a way to support there new habit as well as recover from the financial hole they fell into while they were incarcerated. These are some examples of how these penalties will do more harm then good! Some people will lose a lot more then just material things such as their marriages, and children.
In short, instead of evaluating these people to determine what is causing there abuse of alcohol, so we can setup some type of rehabilitation process to fix this persons problem at the root. We in turn apply the penalties listed above to complicate there lives more then what initially made them turn to the bottle in the first place! These penalties are very extreme as well as unjust for something that isn’t considered a crime. Not to mention they are very counter productive! The penalties for this offense need to be changed immediately, before they ruin more lives than what they save! Isn’t the justice system supposed to be set up to rehabilitate people? Where is the rehabilitation in these penalties? So for those of you who are going through rough times like a divorce, loss of a job or lived one, skip the bottle and go straight to a needle! The penalties for this are far less and with the penalties the way they are, you are on your way there anyway! If you would like to support me and my fight for a system that rehabilitates people instead of harm them. Send comments, letters, or money orders to:
Morris County Correctional Facility
ATTN: Eddie Mills
43 John Street
Morristown Nj, 07960