Traffic Ticket Lawyer, Stafford Township NJ

No. Manahawkin is a section of Stafford Township rather than a municipality of its own, so a ticket written there is a Stafford Township ticket, and the same is true of Beach Haven West, Cedar Run, Mayetta and the Stafford side of Ocean Acres. The line that does matter is out past the bay, because the towns on Long Beach Island are separate municipalities with their own courts, so a ticket written after you reached Ship Bottom is not a Stafford case. Everything else is answered at Stafford Township Municipal Court, 260 East Bay Avenue, Manahawkin, NJ 08050, (609) 597-1000, which sits on Wednesdays. Call us with the charge and the date you were given, and we will tell you whether we can cover it for you.

Two, four or five, set by the gap between the posted limit and the speed written on the summons: 1 to 14 miles per hour over is two points, 15 to 29 over is four, and 30 or more over is five, all under N.J.S.A. 39:4-98. The band is what your insurer reads, and a four or five point conviction leaves little room under the six points in three years that brings a Motor Vehicle Commission surcharge. Before advising you we ask for the calibration history of the speed-measuring device and the officer's certification to operate it, and we read the location and speed lines on the summons against the limit posted where you were stopped. Keep the summons handy when you call.

In many cases, yes. For most ordinary moving violations an attorney can handle the matter so the driver does not have to travel, and the exceptions are the serious charges, such as DWI, driving while suspended, or a summons tied to a crash in which someone was hurt, where the court expects the driver present. For someone ticketed on the way to or from a week on Long Beach Island, that often means the matter ends without a second trip down Route 72. Send us the summons and we will tell you on the first call whether you will need to appear. Our fee is flat and quoted upfront at the free consultation.

Yes, careless driving under N.J.S.A. 39:4-97 adds two points. Contact between two cars in the bridge line, or at a Route 72 store entrance, is not proof of the charge by itself, because careless driving requires proof that a driver failed to exercise due caution, and what went into the crash report came from the drivers. Mailing in the payment settles the charge as a plea of guilty, and when the other car belonged to a visitor that record is read by an insurer in another state. Depending on your abstract the charge can sometimes end as unsafe operation under N.J.S.A. 39:4-97.2, which adds no points for a first or second offense. Call before you pay.

Not on a first or second offense. A handheld phone violation under N.J.S.A. 39:4-97.3 carries no motor vehicle points the first two times, although a third or later offense does. The setting hardly matters to the statute, because it is the holding that is prohibited, so whether the phone was mounted, on a speaker or in your hand is the question, along with what the officer could see from the patrol car's position. If you hold a commercial license or already carry points, do not pay it before we review your abstract, since a plea that looks harmless can still reach an employer or an insurer.