Driving With A Suspended License in NJ
In New Jersey a conviction of driving on a suspended license can carry a sentence of up to five years in jail and up to $2250 in fines and surcharges.
You may wonder if there is any point in getting a lawyer to fight a traffic charge. When the offense is as serious as driving on a suspended license, your liberty and your economic welfare are at stake. If you would like to discuss your situation, contact our New Jersey law office to arrange a free consultation. Our lawyers represent individuals who have received a summons or been arrested for driving while suspended statewide including Monmouth County, Ocean County, Somerset County, Middlesex County, Union County, Mercer County, Essex County and Hudson County.
Driving With Suspended or Revoked License Law in NJ
N.J.S.A. § 39:3-40, makes driving while suspended a serious traffic violation, stating that:
No person to whom a driver’s license has been refused or whose license or reciprocity privilege has been suspended or revoked, or who has been prohibited from obtaining a driver’s license, shall personally operate a motor vehicle during the period of refusal, suspension, revocation, or prohibition.
No person whose motor vehicle registration has been revoked shall operate or permit the operation of such motor vehicle during the period of such revocation.
New Jersey Penalties for Driving With Suspended or Revoked License Law
Under N.J.S.A. § 39:3-40, harsh penalties including jail time can result if you are caught driving in New Jersey with a suspended license.
For a first offense, you could be facing an additional license suspension of up to 6 months and a $500 fine.
For a second offense, potential penalties increase to a mandatory 1-5 days of jail time, additional license suspension of up to 6 months, and a $750 fine.
For a third or subsequent offense, you could be subject to penalties of a mandatory 10 days in jail, additional license suspension of up to 6 months, and a $1,000 fine.
The potential penalties for driving while suspended or revoked can be harsh and serious. These penalties will be increased if your prior suspension resulted from DWI or DUI charges, including mandatory jail time for a first offense under those circumstances as well as a longer additional suspension. For any offense for driving while suspended in New Jersey, these harsh penalties will clearly have detrimental effects on your life, including potentially hindering your current employment or your ability to find new employment. Additionally, if you are convicted for driving while suspended, you will have a permanent blemish on your driver’s history abstract and will incur steep surcharges that must be paid to the DMV as a result of your conviction. Even if your license is suspended without your knowledge because of something like a forgotten parking ticket, harsh and unforgiving penalties still apply. Therefore, it is important to contact a skilled and experienced defense attorney who can aggressively advocate on your behalf in an effort to reduce or avoid these harsh penalties and help you avoid jail time for driving with a suspended license.
Defenses for Driving While Suspended
Was your license suspended because of a financial obligation? Your driver’s license may be suspended even though you have never committed a moving violation.
Under New Jersey law, driving privileges are tied to a wide variety of financial obligations.
Examples include child support, failure to pay parking tickets, failure to pay DMV surcharges, failure to carry motor vehicle insurance, and failure to pay a license restoration fee. If that is the reason for your suspension, our attorney will help you clear up that obligation, and then petition the court to amend the charge to driving without a license.
Did you even know your license was suspended? You may not even realize that the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) mailed a Scheduled Suspension Notice to your former address. It is not unusual for a driver to be pulled over for a minor traffic violation only to be charged with a second violation—driving while suspended. The prosecutor must show that it took reasonable steps to inform you of your suspension.
Was your license suspended by the judge
because of multiple violations? Most New Jersey license suspensions result from multiple traffic violations that result in a certain number of DMV points. Our attorneys will examine the previous convictions for evidence that there were errors in those cases. There may be grounds to argue that the license suspension was not valid.
Only after discussing your case with an attorney with the appropriate experience can you make a well-informed decision about whether to fight a charge of driving on a suspended or revoked license or plead guilty and pay the fine. If you would like to speak with a member of our firm, call 855-450-8310 or e-mail our Shrewsbury office to arrange a free consultation.
Contact An Attorney for Assistance Fighting Your Driving While Suspended Violation
Our lawyers represent clients who have received a summons or been arrested on a wide variety of traffic violations, defending them throughout New Jersey including Monmouth County, Ocean County, Middlesex County, Union County, Mercer County, Somerset County, Essex County, and Hudson County, against charges including the following:
