Travis Tormey and the Tormey Law Firm recently represented a client accused of driving under the influence of drugs (DUI) in Clifton, New Jersey. The client also faced criminal penalties because she was charged with a disorderly persons offense for allegedly being under the influence of drugs. The consequences of a conviction were serious: the client could have lost her driver’s license for one year and been sentenced to six months in Passaic County Jail. Additionally, the client could have ended up with a very serious criminal conviction on her permanent record.
The problems began for the client when she was stopped by a Clifton patrol officer who reportedly saw her make an illegal U-turn. After being pulled over, the client allegedly failed field sobriety tests that were administered by Clifton police. The client was then arrested and charged with a DUI. Clifton police later administered a breath test, during which she blew .00 percent BAC on the Alcotest machine and showed that there was no evidence of alcohol in her system. Since police still suspected that the client was under the influence of drugs, they took a urine sample. However, police neglected to use a drug recognition expert (DRE) to examine the client at any point after her arrest. The DRE is supposed to be utilized to determine whether a DUI suspect was actually under the influence of drugs when they operated the car.
The client’s lab results came back and showed that the client did not test positive for marijuana or any other illegal drugs; she merely tested positive for allergy medicine and cough syrup. Without a DRE evaluation to prove their claims, the prosecution ultimately agreed with Travis Tormey and dismissed the DUI charges. Moreover, Mr. Tormey persuaded the prosecution to dismiss the criminal charges as well. This was a fantastic outcome for our client and a major success for the Tormey Law Firm.