Dismissed & Expunged – Impersonating an Officer, Leaving the Scene & Assault by Auto
Felony Charges
Traffic Violations
Our client, a federal law enforcement officer, was arrested on a complaint-warrant out of Woodbridge Township after a multi-vehicle crash on the Garden State Parkway. According to the State Police, a speeding car lost control and struck other vehicles, and several people were taken to the hospital, one with serious bodily injury. After reviewing a witness’s dash-camera footage, the investigating trooper alleged that a vehicle with emergency lights had been following that car before the crash, traced it to our client, and charged him with six offenses.
The Charges
- Impersonating a law enforcement officer, N.J.S.A. 2C:28-8(b) (fourth degree)
- Knowingly leaving the scene of an accident resulting in serious bodily injury, N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1.1 (third degree)
- Assault by auto, N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1(c)(4) (third degree)
- Three counts of assault by auto, N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1(c)(1) (disorderly persons offenses)
What He Faced
Each third-degree count carried three to five years in state prison, and the fourth-degree count up to eighteen months. On the leaving-the-scene charge, the usual presumption against prison for a first offender does not apply, and any prison terms on it must run consecutively. For a sworn officer, any conviction, and the impersonation charge in particular, threatened his career, his ability to carry a firearm and his clearance. The impersonation count also rested on an odd premise: the statute requires that the defendant “falsely pretend” to be a law enforcement officer, and our client is one.
The Result
The matter was referred to the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office in New Brunswick. William Proetta represented the client from arrest through resolution. Every charge was dismissed, and the arrest record was expunged, leaving our client with no criminal record and his career intact.
State v. J.B.
Every case turns on its own facts, and prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.