Attorneys defending New Jersey DWI / DUI cases employ carefully crafted pretrial motions to help improve the accused driver's outcome in their DWI case. Pretrial motions are formal legal requests that ask the court to take a particular action. A motion to suppress evidence is one common pretrial request employed in a New Jersey drunk driving case.
A suppression motion in a driving while intoxicated case is generally used as an effort to exclude the results of a chemical test that measured the driver's blood alcohol content (BAC). A skilled New Jersey DWI defense attorney can also use a suppression motion to raise questions about whether police had probable cause to make a traffic stop and arrest.
A NJ DWI lawyer making a motion to suppress chemical test evidence will want to examine whether the test was properly conducted. Strict protocols regulate the administration of chemical tests, and if police don't follow those guidelines, the results of the testing can be suppressed. If a motion to suppress is successful, evidence gained as a result of the test would be excluded, such as observations of signs and symptoms of intoxication. A motion to suppress can be brought on several different grounds.
A motion to suppress based on whether the officer had probable cause to make an arrest usually focuses on whether or not the officer had a reasonable belief that an offense was committed. If this motion succeeds, the NJ DWI / DUI charges can be dismissed.
Any New Jersey vehicle code violation establishes probable cause for a traffic stop, but the violation must occur in the officer's presence. Officers cannot stop a vehicle merely to determine whether the driver has a valid license and registration, or in the hopes of discovering a violation. Police must have probable cause before initiating a traffic stop.
Accused New Jersey drunk drivers often fear that an incriminating chemical test result or other evidence means a slam-dunk conviction, but that's just not the case. Evidence isn't automatically admissible - the prosecutor must meet specific legal requirements. An experienced New Jersey drunk driving defense attorney will examine each piece of evidence in a New Jersey DWI / DUI case to determine whether it can be suppressed.
We offer a free consultation. Please call Levow DWI Law, P.C. at 877-593-1717 to discuss any and all issues related to your New Jersey DWI / DUI arrest.