DWI case bottleneck hits West Windsor courts

Number of factors cited for problem

By: Nick Norlen
   WEST WINDSOR — The township’s prosecution of drunken driving cases is facing a trio of challenges.
   According to Municipal Court Judge Mary Brennan, three factors — an increase in defendants charged with driving while intoxicated, a pending state Supreme Court case, and the fact that the township prosecutor is prohibited from handling challenged DWI cases — have contributed to extra costs and a backlog of cases over the past year.
   Although Township Attorney Michael Herbert, who is director of the township law department, said challenged DWI cases are rare because defendants frequently plead guilty, Judge Brennan said DWI cases are on the rise, partially because of the "aggressive" way township police pursue offenders.
   "Our police officers look for drivers under the influence before they’re in an accident — before they hurt somebody," she said.
   Judge Brennan addressed the issue during a Feb. 20 budget presentation. In addition to the increase in cases, she also referred to "confusion and fluctuation in the law".
   State v. Chun, a lawsuit filed in 2005, in which plaintiffs are challenging the reliability of breath test results from a device called Alcotest 7110, is currently before the New Jersey Supreme Court.
   Township Chief Financial Officer Joanne Louth said the township is experiencing a backlog of cases resulting from defendants contesting the legality of the Alcotest device.
   Township Attorney Michael Herbert said Township Prosecutor Kenneth Lozier is currently undergoing training on the machine.
   Judge Brennan said the township currently pays an outside prosecutor to handle cases in which drunken driving defendants have challenged the charges.
   "Our existing prosecutor is not trained on the machine, and therefore is prohibited from handling the DWI cases that we have, which has caused us to have to hire an outside prosecutor to work on the DWI cases that are being challenged within our court system," she said. "If the DWI defendants are pleading guilty, our regular prosecutor can handle those cases, and he is handling those cases."
   Ms. Louth said there were 13 extra sessions — those employing an outside prosecutor — in 2006.
   She said the 2007 budget proposed by Judge Brennan Feb. 20 includes $4,200 to cover 12 extra sessions, in which outside prosecutors will be paid $350 per session.
   According to Ms. Louth, the township typically receives grant money to cover the extra session costs, but she said it won’t be known how much the township will receive until June.
   "We may not need to spend this money," she said.
   Ms. Louth said that although the grants would typically be "sufficient to conduct" the extra sessions, West Windsor — and townships across the state — are experiencing a backlog because of defendants contesting Alcotest results.
   "That’s the primary reason for the extra sessions. It’s not the fact that our prosecutor is in training," she said. "That’s a small compounding of it."
   Because of the pending training of Mr. Lozier, Judge Brennan said she didn’t expect to encounter such extra session costs in 2008.
   "I think it’s safe for me to say it is temporary," she said.
   Neither Judge Brennan nor Mr. Herbert questioned Mr. Lozier’s effectiveness as a prosecutor.
   "He’s a very capable prosecutor," Mr. Herbert said. "Very few people are qualified on this machine."
   Mr. Herbert said he thinks Mr. Lozier will become certified "very shortly," but wasn’t able to provide a specific date.
   Mr. Lozier didn’t return calls seeking comment.