Ocean County NJ Criminal Defense Lawyers: Eluding Offense in Ocean County
An eluding charge is a severe criminal offense anywhere in New Jersey but Ocean County takes these types of crimes particularly serious. If you are convicted of eluding or attempting to elude you can face the very real possibility of incarceration and a drivers license suspension. The Law Offices of John F. Marshall is an Ocean County Defense Firm that has an aggressive team of lawyers who appear throughout the county. Our attorneys are former prosecutors that possess almost 60 years of experience and they have a great relationship with the Ocean County Court system. In fact attorney Thomas V. Campo was a prosecutor throughout Ocean County including Barnegat, Waretown, Little Egg Harbor, Forked River, Point Pleasant, Manahawkin, Brick, Lacey, Beach Haven, Surf City, Long Beach Island, Ship Bottom, Plumsted, Stafford, and Ocean. A lawyer from our law office is prepared to answer any questions you may have and initial consultations are always without charge.
Ocean County Eluding Charges
In New Jersey it is a fourth degree crime to elude or attempt to elude an officer by fleeing from law enforcement officers with the intent of avoiding arrest. The crime is upgraded to a third degree crime if the fleeing party uses or threatens to use physical violence against a law enforcement officer or by some other means creates a substantial risk of injury to the officer or another. It is also a third degree crime to use a motor vehicle or boat to flee from an officer after having received any signal from the officer to bring the vehicle or vessel to a full stop. However, this flight from the officer will often create a risk of death or injury to any person due to high speed pursuits, and then the offense will be enhanced to a crime of the second degree. This is reflected in the court’s permissive inference that the flight or attempt to elude will create a risk of death or injury to any person. It should be noted that this Second Degree Eluding Offense carries a presumption of incarceration. Furthermore, the offense includes a mandatory suspension of the offender’s driver’s license, or boater’s license for six months to two years, depending on the circumstances. A related offense is Obstruction of Justice, under 2C:29-2, which usually happens when a person helps another elude apprehension by preventing or attempting to prevent a law enforcement officer from making an arrest. An obstruction of justice charge is generally a disorderly persons offense. Many defendants argue that the incident occurred because the police officer acted unlawfully in making the arrest, however this not a valid defense as long as he was doing his job and announced his intention to arrest prior to the resistance.
If you fear you may be arrested for eluding or if you have charged because you eluded police in Ocean County then you need to contact a veteran lawyer as soon as possible. The Law Offices of John F. Marshall is an Ocean County Criminal Defense Firm that consists of former New Jersey prosecutors who have worked throughout Ocean County and Monmouth County. Our veteran attorneys possess almost 60 years of combined experience and they handle a substantial amount of eluding and related charges. Our law office is located in Toms River and we represent clients in Ocean County Superior Court and handle municipal matters arising out of incidents that took place in Jackson, South Toms River, Ocean, Lakewood, Bay Head, Seaside, Point Pleasant Beach, New Egypt, Manchester, Lakehurst, and Lavalette. Our free initial consultations with a veteran defense attorney mean you have nothing to wait f
