What Really Happens During a DWI Traffic Stop in New Jersey

Welcome to Spodek Law Group. If you've been pulled over on suspicion of drunk driving in New Jersey, everything feels like it's happening too fast. The lights behind you. The officer at your window. The questions that seem designed to trip you up. Most people focus on the breathalyzer as the moment that decides their fate. But that's not how DWI cases actually work. The decisions you make in the first sixty seconds of that traffic stop—often before you even understand what rights you have—shape everything that comes after. Todd Spodek and the team at Spodek Law Group have seen hundreds of these cases, and the pattern is always the same: people make critical mistakes because nobody told them the truth about what they can and cannot refuse.

This article is going to walk you through what actually happens during a DWI traffic stop, what the prosecution doesn't want you to know about field sobriety tests, and how the law changed in 2024 in ways that could dramatically affect your case.

The Silence That Convicts You

Heres the first thing you need to understand about DWI stops in New Jersey. Officers dont have to tell you that field sobriety tests are voluntary. Read that again. You cannot be ticketed or penalized for refusing to do the roadside exercises—the walking, the standing on one leg, the following a pen with your eyes. But officers arnt required to tell you that. They ask you to step out of the car. They ask you to perform some "simple tests." And most people, wanting to seem cooperative, wanting to prove there not drunk, just do what there told.

Look, that silence is not an oversight. Its strategy.

The field sobriety tests become the prosecutions primary evidence. Your "performance" on these tests gets written up in a police report that will be used against you in court. Every stumble, every wobble, every moment of hesitation becomes proof of impairment. And you voluntered for it. You didnt have to. But nobody told you that.

The 46% Problem Nobody Talks About

OK so heres were things get realy disturbing. Researchers at Clemson University conducted a study were they videotaped 21 totaly sober individuals—every single one confirmed at 0.00 BAC by breath test—performing standardized field sobriety tests. Then they showed the footage to certified law enforcement officers and asked them to evaluate wether the people were too drunk to drive.

Nearly half of the entirley sober people—46%—were judged too impaired to drive.

Let that sink in for a moment. These wernt people whod had a drink or two. These were stone-cold sober individuals with zero alcohol in there systems. And almost half of them failed the test.

This gets even worse. When the same sober individuals were shown performing normal activities—not "sobriety tests"—only 15% were judged impaired. The act of watching someone do these specific exercises makes officers more likely to see impairment, even when none exists.

The test dosent measure wether someone is drunk. It measures wether a person can perform artificial tasks under extream stress on the side of a highway at night with traffic passing and lights flashing. Thats not sobriety. Thats a setup.

Three Tests, Three Traps

New Jersey officers typicaly use three standardized field sobriety tests, and each one has serious problems that a defense attorney needs to understand.

The Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) Test

Heres something most people dont know: the eye test—were officers move a pen or finger in front of a drivers eyes and look for jerking movements—is actualy inadmissible in New Jersey courts to prove intoxication. It can only be used to establish probable cause for the arrest. But officers lean heavily on this test during stops, and they use it to justify everything that comes after.

The HGN test is suppose to detect involuntary eye movements that occur when someone is intoxicated. The problem is that nystagmus can be caused by dozens of conditions that have nothing to do with alcohol: inner ear problems, certain medications, neurological conditions, even caffene or fatigue. The test has never been scientificaly validated for drug impairment. And yet officers use it as if it proves definativley that the driver is drunk.

The Walk-and-Turn Test

This is were they ask you to walk heel-to-toe along a straight line, turn, and walk back. Officers are suppose to follow NHTSA protocols precisley—giving specific instructions, demonstrating the test properly, and scoring based on specific criteria.

But look at the reality. Officers recieve three days of training on these tests. Most of them dont follow those procedures on the roadside. Instructions get abbreviated. Demonstrations get skipped. The driver is standing on uneven asphalt at 2 AM with headlights blinding them and semis passing feet away. The roadside is basicly designed to make people look guilty.

Think about that for a second. Even if you did everything right, the conditions are working against you. Bad lighting, wet pavement, traffic noise, unsuitable footwear—all of these affect performance, and none of them get documented in the officers report.

The One-Leg Stand Test

The officer asks you to stand on one leg for 30 seconds while counting out loud. The test is looking for swaying, using arms for balance, hopping, or putting the foot down. But medical conditions like bad knees, back problems, weight issues, or inner ear conditions can make this test impossable to pass even for totaly sober individuals. If someone is over 65 or wearing heels above 2 inches, the test becomes even more unreliable.

And the kicker—officers dont have to consider any of that. They mark the "clues" and write it up.

What You Must Do Versus What They Want You To Do

This is were people get confused, and its were cases get won or lost in court.

In New Jersey, theres a critical distinction between what drivers are legaly required to do and what officers want them to do. Under the states implied consent law, when someone operates a vehicle on New Jersey roads, they have effectivly consented to submit to a breath test (the Alcotest) if an officer has probable cause to beleive the driver is under the influence.

Thats the breath test. The chemical test. The one at the station.

The field sobriety tests are fundamentaly different. Those are voluntary. A driver can politely decline. There is no penalty for refusing. And yet the way officers present these tests—"can you step out and do some simple tests for me"—makes it sound like theres no choice.

Heres the truth. You do have a choice.

The breath test is a legal requiremnt. The roadside gymnastics are not.

The Refusal Trap

Now this is were things get complicated, because refusing the breath test is a seperate issue entirely—and it comes with its own set of consequences.

If you refuse the Alcotest (the breath test at the station, not the roadside), you actualy end up facing two seperate cases. The DWI charge. And a refusal charge. The prosecution effectivly doubles its leverage before you even get a lawyer.

The penalties for first-time refusal include:

• Fines between $300 and $500
• License suspension for 7 to 12 months
• Installation of an ignition interlock device during the suspension and for 6 to 12 more months after the license is restored
• MVC surcharge of $1,000 per year for three years
• Mandatory IDRC (Intoxicated Driver Resource Center) attendance

And the part that realy matters: a refusal conviction stays on the driving record permanantly. Unlike some criminal records that might be eligable for expungement, the refusal never comes off. Its there forever.

So refusing the breath test is not a "get out of jail free" card. A driver is trading one set of problems for a potentialy worse set. This is exactly why clients need an attorney who understands the strategic calculus of DWI defense—someone like Todd Spodek who can evaluate the specific circumstances of the stop and advise on the best path forward.

The 2024 Revolution

For decades, New Jersey was one of the strictest states in the country when it came to DWI prosecution. Plea bargaining wasnt allowed. If you were charged with DWI, the only options were trial or conviction. There was no negotiating.

That changed in February 2024.

Governor Murphy signed bill S-3011/A-4800 into law, and for the first time in New Jersey history, plea bargaining is now permitted in DWI cases. This is a massive shift. It means that defense attorneys can now negotiate with prosecutors. Cases that would have automaticaly gone to trial now have room for resolution. First-time offenders with mitigating circumstances have options they never had before.

This dosent mean every DWI case gets pled down. Prosecutors still have discretion. But it fundamentaly changes the landscape of DWI defense in New Jersey. Anyone facing charges needs an attorney who understands how to leverage this new reality.

When The System Exposes Itself

OK so sometimes the system reveals its own problems in ways that cant be ignored.

In New Mexico, a state police officer known as the "DWI King" made over 100 DWI arrests per year for nearly a decade. He was celebrated for his productivity. He appeared on billboards. He trained other officers. Then investigators discovered he had been fabricating evidence. Falsifying reports. Making arrests based on lies.

Those cases are now being dismissed en masse. Hundreds of convictions. Years of work. All of it thrown out because one officer decided the rules did not apply to him.

Read that again. This is not an isolated incident. Across the country, DWI cases have been thrown out because of officer misconduct, faulty breathalyzer calibration, procedural violations, and evidence tampering. The system is not infallable. Officers make mistakes—and sometimes they make them on purpose.

This is why every traffic stop needs to be scrutinized. Every piece of evidence needs to be examined. Every procedure needs to be verified. Because if the officer didnt follow the rules, the evidence they collected might not be admissable.

What Your Attorney Will Attack

A skilled DWI defense attorney will examine the case from multiple angles, looking for weaknesses in the prosecutions evidence.

The Initial Stop

The officer had to have reasonable suspicion to pull you over in the first place. If they didnt—if the stop was pretextual or based on a mistake—everything that happened after becomes "fruit of the poisonous tree." All the evidence gathered disappears. The case collapses.

The Field Sobriety Tests

Were the tests administered correctly? Did the officer follow NHTSA protocols? Were environmental factors considered? Was the drivers medical history taken into account? Any deviation from proper procedure can be used to challenge the results.

The Breath Test

Was the Alcotest machine properly calibrated? Was it operated by a qualified technician? Was the 20-minute observation period followed? Were you observed continuosly before the test? Issues with any of these can make the results inadmissable.

Your Rights

Was the driver informed of their rights at the appropriate time? Was the standard statement about refusal read correctly? Did the officer comply with all constitutional requirements?

If any of these elements fall apart, the case against you weakens—sometimes fataly.

What You Should Do Right Now

If someone is reading this because they were stopped for DWI, or because a court date is coming up, this is what needs to be understood: the outcome of the case isnt determined by wether the driver was actualy impaired. Its determined by wether the prosecution can prove impairment using evidence gathered legaly and properly.

The field sobriety tests might be challengeable. The traffic stop itself might have been improper. The breath test might have procedural problems. The officers testimony might contradict the dashcam footage. There are more angles to attack than most people realize, and a skilled defense attorney knows how to find every one of them.

At Spodek Law Group, we examine every angle. We challenge every assumption. We fight for our clients because we know that the system is not always right, and the evidence is not always what it appears to be.

Call 212-300-5196 to speak with someone who understands exactly what the situation requires.