Criminal Defense in New Jersey

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• DWI / DUI

  First-offense DWI

  First DWI in New Jersey? Fines, IDRC, possible jail, license forfeiture, and interlock by BAC level under N.J.S.A. 39:4-50, plus pre-conviction interlock and the 2029 sunset.

• DWI / DUI

  Breath test refusal

  Charged with refusing the Alcotest in New Jersey? Refusal penalties under N.J.S.A. 39:4-50.4a, what the State must prove, how refusal differs from DWI, and common defenses.

• DWI / DUI

  Ignition interlock

  How long you need an ignition interlock after a New Jersey DWI or refusal, pre-conviction installation and credit, the drug-DWI exclusion, and the January 1, 2029 sunset.

• DWI / DUI

  Alcotest 9510

  The NJ Supreme Court lifted its stay of Alcotest 9510 DWI cases on December 19, 2025 without ruling on reliability. What that means for pending DWI cases and how results can be challenged.

• DWI / DUI

  Second and third DWI

  Second or third DWI in New Jersey? Mandatory jail, fines, community service, license forfeiture, interlock periods, the 10-year step-down, and how out-of-state priors count.

• Restraining Orders (TRO / FRO)

  Served with a TRO

  Just served with a temporary restraining order in New Jersey? What the order means, what not to do, how to prepare for the FRO hearing in about 10 days, and how to get your belongings.

• Restraining Orders (TRO / FRO)

  The FRO hearing

  How a New Jersey final restraining order hearing works: the Silver two-step test, evidence and witnesses, testifying when there is a criminal case, decisions, and appeals.

• Restraining Orders (TRO / FRO)

  TRO vs. FRO

  The difference between a temporary restraining order and a final restraining order in New Jersey: how each is issued, the standard, how long it lasts, and what it can order.

• Restraining Orders (TRO / FRO)

  Contempt of a restraining order

  Charged with violating a TRO or FRO in New Jersey? When contempt is a fourth-degree crime or a disorderly persons offense under N.J.S.A. 2C:29-9(b), and how these charges are defended.

• Restraining Orders (TRO / FRO)

  Coercive control

  New Jersey added coercive control as a factor in restraining order decisions in January 2024. What it is, what it is not (a crime or predicate act), and how it affects FRO hearings.

• Domestic Violence

  Simple vs. aggravated assault

  How New Jersey grades assault in domestic violence cases: simple assault (disorderly persons), mutual fight (petty disorderly), and aggravated assault including strangulation under 2C:12-1(b)(13).

• Domestic Violence

  After a domestic violence arrest

  What happens after a domestic violence arrest in New Jersey: mandatory arrest rules, release decisions and no-contact conditions, detention hearings, weapons seizure, and the separate TRO.

• Domestic Violence

  Harassment and terroristic threats

  How New Jersey defines and grades harassment and terroristic threats, why they are the most common restraining order allegations, and how they are defended.

• Indictable Crimes (Felonies)

  Degrees of crimes

  New Jersey's first- through fourth-degree crimes compared: prison ranges, maximum fines, presumptions of incarceration and non-incarceration, NERA, and the Graves Act.

• Indictable Crimes (Felonies)

  Pretrial Intervention (PTI)

  How New Jersey's Pretrial Intervention program works under N.J.S.A. 2C:43-12 and Rule 3:28: who is eligible, the $75 fee, supervision of 6 months to 3 years, plea requirements, and appeals.

• Indictable Crimes (Felonies)

  Detention hearings

  How New Jersey detention hearings work under Criminal Justice Reform: when they happen, the Public Safety Assessment, the clear and convincing standard, and the 90/180-day deadlines.

• Indictable Crimes (Felonies)

  Grand jury and indictment

  How New Jersey grand juries work: who presents, what the jurors decide, waiving indictment, and what happens after an indictment is returned.

• Drug Charges

  CDS possession

  Penalties for drug possession in New Jersey under N.J.S.A. 2C:35-10 by schedule and amount, actual vs. constructive possession, and diversion options.

• Drug Charges

  Intent to distribute

  How New Jersey grades possession with intent to distribute by drug and weight under N.J.S.A. 2C:35-5, how intent is proven, and aggregation rules.

• Drug Charges

  Conditional discharge

  New Jersey's conditional discharge program for first-time disorderly persons drug offenses: who qualifies, supervision of up to 3 years, the $75 fee, and dismissal without a conviction.

• Drug Charges

  Marijuana law in NJ

  What New Jersey's 2021 cannabis laws changed: the 6-ounce possession limit, the odor rule for searches, what is still a crime, and marijuana DWI.

• Drug Charges

  School and park zone charges

  How New Jersey's 1,000-foot school zone and 500-foot public housing, park, and building zones work for drug distribution charges, and how distances are challenged.

• Indictable Crimes (Felonies)

  Shoplifting (2C:20-11)

  What counts as shoplifting under N.J.S.A. 2C:20-11, how value sets the grade, the concealment presumption, store detention, and mandatory community service.

• Indictable Crimes (Felonies)

  Unlawful gun possession and the Graves Act

  How N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5 grades unlawful possession of handguns, rifles and other weapons, the Graves Act mandatory minimum under 2C:43-6(c), and the 2C:43-6.2 waiver.

• Indictable Crimes (Felonies)

  Eluding police (2C:29-2(b))

  Eluding under N.J.S.A. 2C:29-2(b): when it is third or second degree, the traffic-violation inference, the 6-month to 2-year license suspension, and resisting arrest.

• DWI / DUI

  Driving while suspended (39:3-40 / 2C:40-26)

  Penalties for driving on a suspended license in New Jersey under N.J.S.A. 39:3-40, the extra penalties during a DWI suspension, and the fourth-degree crime in 2C:40-26.

• Indictable Crimes (Felonies)

  Theft of services (2C:20-8)

  Theft of services under N.J.S.A. 2C:20-8: dine and dash, unpaid rides and hotels, utility meter tampering, cable and telecom theft, how value sets the grade, and the $500 minimum fine.

• DWI / DUI

  DWI plea agreements

  For decades New Jersey banned plea bargaining in DWI cases under Guideline 4. Since February 2024, N.J.S.A. 39:4-50 allows a plea agreement on the prosecutor's recommendation with a factual basis.

• DWI / DUI

  DWI in a school zone

  New Jersey's school-zone DWI enhancement, N.J.S.A. 39:4-50(g), was deleted by P.L.2019, c.248. What that means today, and where school zones still matter for suspended drivers and drug charges.

• Assault

  Aggravated assault (2C:12-1b)

  How N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1(b) defines aggravated assault, which conduct is second, third or fourth degree, assaults on officers and protected workers, strangulation in domestic violence cases, and the court process.

• DWI / DUI

  DWI with a CDL

  How a New Jersey DWI affects a commercial driver license: the 0.04% limit in a commercial vehicle, one- to three-year CDL suspensions, lifetime revocation for a second offense, and DWI in a personal car.

• DWI / DUI

  Underage DWI

  New Jersey's underage drinking and driving law, N.J.S.A. 39:4-50.14: the 0.01% BAC threshold for drivers under 21, the 30- to 90-day license loss, community service, and when the regular DWI law applies instead.

• Indictable Crimes (Felonies)

  Burglary

  How New Jersey grades burglary under N.J.S.A. 2C:18-2, the 2024 residential burglary and home invasion burglary crimes, prison ranges, and when the No Early Release Act applies.

• Indictable Crimes (Felonies)

  Robbery

  What makes a theft a robbery under N.J.S.A. 2C:15-1, when robbery is first instead of second degree, prison ranges, and how the No Early Release Act applies.

• Domestic Violence

  Gun seizure after a DV call

  When New Jersey police must seize weapons, firearm ID cards and purchase permits after a domestic violence incident under N.J.S.A. 2C:25-21(d), the prosecutor's 45-day deadline, and the return hearing.

• Disorderly Persons Offenses

  Discovery in municipal court

  How discovery works in New Jersey municipal court under Rule 7:7-7: who to ask, the 10-day deadline for the prosecutor, what you are entitled to (police reports, video, test results), fees, and what happens if it is not provided.

• Domestic Violence

  Stalking (2C:12-10)

  Stalking under N.J.S.A. 2C:12-10: what a course of conduct means, when it is fourth or third degree, the permanent restraining order after a conviction, and common defense issues.

• Indictable Crimes (Felonies)

  Criminal mischief (2C:17-3)

  Criminal mischief under N.J.S.A. 2C:17-3: damaging or tampering with property, how the dollar loss sets the grade, graffiti restitution and community service, and domestic violence cases.

• Disorderly Persons Offenses

  Criminal trespass (2C:18-3)

  Criminal trespass under N.J.S.A. 2C:18-3: unlicensed entry, defiant trespass after notice, peering into a home, when it becomes a fourth-degree crime, and the statutory defenses.

• DWI / DUI

  Leaving the scene of an accident (39:4-129)

  Leaving the scene under N.J.S.A. 39:4-129: duties after a crash, fines, jail and license loss for injury and property-damage accidents, and the indictable charges for serious injury or death.

• DWI / DUI

  DWI with a minor passenger (39:4-50.15)

  DWI with a child in the car under N.J.S.A. 39:4-50.15: who counts as a parent or guardian, the separate disorderly persons offense, the extra license loss of up to six months and community service.