A DWI arrest usually means one courthouse and one court date: the municipal court in the town where you were stopped. Add a second charge — eluding — and that simple picture falls apart. The DWI summons in your hand may list Toms River Municipal Court, but the case may never be decided there.
This is not a hypothetical on Route 37. On July 27, 2026, Shore News Network reported that on Saturday, July 25, a Toms River police officer spotted a car traveling eastbound in the westbound lanes of Route 37. According to that report, the officer pursued, other officers used their patrol cars to block the vehicle, and the driver was charged with driving while intoxicated and second-degree eluding. Those are accusations, not convictions. But the pairing — a DWI and an indictable eluding charge out of one stop — is exactly the situation that confuses people about where to show up and who decides their case.
Two charges, two very different kinds of case
The DWI is a motor vehicle offense under N.J.S.A. 39:4-50. On its own, it belongs in municipal court, and for a stop on Route 37, Route 9 or Route 166 in the township, that is Toms River Municipal Court at 255 Oak Avenue, Toms River, NJ 08753 (732-797-3914).
Eluding is a different animal. Under N.J.S.A. 2C:29-2(b), knowingly fleeing or attempting to elude an officer after receiving a signal to stop is a crime of the third degree, and it becomes a crime of the second degree “if the flight or attempt to elude creates a risk of death or injury to any person.” That makes it an indictable offense. Municipal court cannot decide it. It goes to Superior Court in Toms River, where the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office handles it. Our guide to eluding police in New Jersey covers the charge itself; the difference between the two tiers is laid out in disorderly persons offenses vs. indictable crimes.
Why the DWI usually follows the eluding charge
New Jersey’s court rules do not let the same night get tried twice in two buildings. Rule 3:15-3(a)(1) says the Superior Court “shall join any pending non-indictable complaint for trial with a criminal offense based on the same conduct or arising from the same episode.” A DWI written during the same pursuit as an eluding charge is the textbook example.
In practice, that means:
- The DWI travels with the indictable case. The municipal complaint is joined with the eluding charge in Superior Court rather than being tried separately on Oak Avenue.
- A Superior Court judge decides the DWI. Under Rule 3:15-3(a)(2), the Superior Court judge “shall sit as a municipal court judge on the complaint.” Eluding can go to a jury; the DWI is still decided by the judge, on the proofs presented at trial.
- Joinder is not absolute. Rule 3:15-3(b) lets the court decline to join the cases, or grant other relief, if either side would be prejudiced.
- The path can reverse. If the indictable charge is downgraded or not presented to a grand jury, the case can be sent back to municipal court — and the DWI goes back to Toms River Municipal Court with it.
The logistics mistakes we see people make
A split case creates paperwork that does not line up, and the errors are avoidable:
- Skipping a date because “the case moved.” Until you confirm the DWI has been transferred, treat every notice as live. A missed municipal date can turn into a bench warrant. Call the court at 732-797-3914 or have your lawyer confirm the status.
- Pleading to the DWI early to “get it over with.” The DWI and the eluding charge are built on the same facts. A guilty plea on one can undercut the defense of the other.
- Treating the license as one problem. A DWI and an eluding conviction each carry their own driver’s license consequences. The way the two cases are resolved together can matter as much as the result of either one.
How we defend a Route 37 DWI-and-eluding case
One stop produces one body of evidence, and both charges live or die on it. That is where we go to work:
- The video. A pursuit and a vehicle block mean dash cameras and body-worn cameras from more than one patrol car. That footage shows when lights and siren went on, how long it took the car to stop, what traffic was actually on Route 37, and how the driver moved, spoke and stood afterward. Demand it early — see our guide to discovery in NJ municipal court for what to ask for.
- “Knowingly.” Eluding requires that the driver knew an officer was signaling a stop. Confusion, disorientation and a driver who does not realize a car behind them is signaling are real fact questions, not excuses.
- The second-degree upgrade. Second degree requires a risk of death or injury. What the traffic, speeds and distances really were on that stretch of highway decides which grade the State can prove.
- The DWI proofs. Wrong-way driving gets an officer’s attention, but it is not a breath reading. The observations, field sobriety tests and any breath test still have to meet every requirement of N.J.S.A. 39:4-50 — including the Alcotest calibration records. If no breath sample was given, the separate refusal rules apply; see how a DWI refusal works in New Jersey.
- Diversion on the criminal side. For some first-time defendants, Pretrial Intervention may be worth exploring for the indictable charge. It does not cover the DWI, which is one more reason the two cases have to be planned together.
If a wrong-way ticket was also written, that is a separate motor vehicle charge with its own elements — our guide to wrong-way tickets in New Jersey explains it.
Arrested on Route 37? Talk to a lawyer before your first date.
A DWI tied to an indictable charge is two cases, two courthouses and one set of facts — and the order you handle them in matters. Goldman Law Firm defends DWI and criminal cases out of Toms River every week. Start with our Toms River DUI & DWI lawyer page or our statewide NJ DUI defense guide, then call 908-692-7745 for a free consultation. We will tell you, plainly, where each charge sits and how we would fight both.