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What Is New Jersey's Implied Consent Law? - Rachel Kugel · BSPE Legal Marketing Podcast

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: What is New Jersey's implied consent law?
• 0:02
  SPEAKER_00: The moment you drive on a public road in New Jersey, the law already considers you to have agreed to breath testing if an officer has reasonable grounds to believe you violated the state's DWI statute.
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_00: This legal principle, codified under New Jersey statutes, annotated 39-4, 50.2, binds every driver operating on a public road, street, highway, or quasi-public area in the state.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: Implied consent is not triggered simply because a traffic stop occurs.
• 0:30
  SPEAKER_00: The officer must have reasonable grounds to believe you operated a vehicle in violation of New Jersey's DWI or under-21 alcohol law.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: After an arrest, the officer is required to follow the statutory breath test procedure, which includes reading a specific refusal warning before asking for a breath sample.
• 0:49
  SPEAKER_00: That warning explains that New Jersey law requires you to provide breath samples, that refusal can result in a separate summons, and that you have no legal right to wait for an attorney or physician before testing.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: If a driver gives an ambiguous or conditional answer instead of a clear yes, the officer must deliver an additional warning and ask again before a refusal can be recorded.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_00: The refusal warning must be communicated in a language the driver understands, and any issue with its wording, language, or delivery can become a significant factor in a refusal case.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: New Jersey's implied consent law applies equally to out-of-state drivers, meaning someone licensed in New York or Pennsylvania faces the same breath test obligation and refusal penalties when driving here.
• 1:33
  SPEAKER_00: A refusal conviction in a New Jersey municipal court can follow an out-of-state driver home, potentially triggering action from their home licensing agency under reciprocity agreements.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: Drivers under 21 are subject to the same testing duty under a zero-tolerance standard, where a blood alcohol concentration as low as 0.01% can result in license forfeiture, community service, and mandatory education programs.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_00: While the law treats consent as already given, it also protects drivers by entitling them to a record of the test and prohibiting the forcible taking of a breath sample over physical resistance.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_00: After completing required testing, drivers have the right to arrange an independent breath, urine, or blood test at their own expense, and the officer must inform them of this right.
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_00: Rachel Kugel, the founding attorney at the Kugel Law Firm, represents drivers in Newark and throughout Essex, Hudson, Union, and Bergen counties, reviewing police reports, breath testing records, and available recordings to examine how each step of the process was handled.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_00: Call the Kugel Law Firm at 973 854 0098, located at One Gateway CTR Suite 2600, Newark, New Jersey 07102, to discuss your case before your first court date.