Aggravated Assault While Eluding

Aggravated Assault While Eluding in New Jersey

Getting charged with aggravated assault while eluding a law enforcement officer is no joke in New Jersey. This criminal offense, outlined in N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1(b)(6), is a second-degree felony that carries 5-10 years in state prison. Yikes!

Let’s break down what exactly aggravated assault while eluding means. First, you have to be fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer. This refers to willful failure to stop your vehicle after an officer signals you to pull over, usually by turning on their flashing lights or siren. This is covered under New Jersey’s eluding statute, N.J.S.A. 2C:29-2(b).

Now, if while you’re fleeing or eluding the police, you also cause bodily injury to another person – that’s when it becomes aggravated assault. Bodily injury means physical pain, illness, or any impairment of the victim’s physical condition.

So in a nutshell – you’re speeding away from the cops, you crash into another car and injure the driver – aggravated assault while eluding. You’re facing 5-10 years in prison if convicted.

Why is this crime treated so harshly under New Jersey law? Well, it involves two serious criminal actions – fleeing police and assaulting someone. It endangers law enforcement officers, innocent bystanders, and the public at large. The New Jersey Legislature wanted to crack down hard on this dangerous behavior.

Let’s look at some examples to understand how aggravated assault while eluding works:

• Dan is pulled over for speeding. When the officer approaches his car, Dan hits the gas and speeds away. The officer pursues with lights and siren on. Dan runs a red light and T-bones another car, causing whiplash and a concussion for the other driver. This is aggravated assault while eluding.
• Amanda is driving recklessly late at night. A police officer tries to pull her over but she keeps driving. The officer radios for backup and multiple police cars join the pursuit. Amanda drives through a busy intersection and sideswipes a minivan, injuring the passenger. She will be charged with aggravated assault while eluding.
• Mark is driving under the influence when he sees police lights in his rearview mirror. He accelerates to over 100 mph trying to get away. Mark sideswipes one patrol car and rams into another, causing injuries to both officers. Mark committed aggravated assault while eluding – one for each injured officer.

As you can see, aggravated assault while eluding covers a wide range of dangerous behavior when fleeing police. It’s meant to deter people from fleeing in the first place, since it carries such a stiff prison sentence if you hurt someone.

Now let’s talk about possible defenses if you’re charged with this offense. It’s a strict liability crime, meaning the prosecution only has to prove you were eluding police and caused injury – not that you intended to hurt someone. But there are still defenses that could get the charges reduced or dismissed:

• You weren’t the driver – if someone else was driving the fleeing vehicle, you can’t be guilty of aggravated assault while eluding.
• No bodily injury occurred – if the alleged victim wasn’t actually injured, there’s no aggravated assault.
• You didn’t know the police were pursuing you – you can’t be eluding if you were unaware the cops were chasing you.
• You weren’t driving recklessly – causing an accident doesn’t necessarily mean you were driving dangerously. The collision may have been unavoidable.
• Self-defense – if you had to flee police to protect yourself from immediate harm, that could justify eluding.

If you’ve been charged with this serious offense, don’t go through it alone. Hire an experienced New Jersey criminal defense attorney who understands the complexities of eluding and assault charges. A knowledgeable lawyer can review the evidence, examine potential defenses, and start negotiating with prosecutors to get the charges reduced or dismissed.

With so much at stake – years behind bars – you need someone in your corner who knows how to fight these allegations. An aggressive defense lawyer will also make sure police followed proper protocol when pursuing and arresting you. Any mistakes officers made can help your case.

Don’t take chances with your future. The public defender may be free, but a dedicated criminal defense attorney is worth investing in. They have the courtroom skills to pick apart the prosecution’s case, and highlight any factual or legal flaws.

Police dash and body cameras could make or break your defense. An attorney can file motions to obtain that footage and comb through it for anything that supports your innocence. Witness testimony can also sway these cases one way or another.

And if pleading guilty is your best option, an experienced lawyer can negotiate with the D.A. for lesser charges that don’t include mandatory prison time. There may also be diversionary programs available that allow charges to be dismissed upon completion. A skilled negotiator could get aggravated assault while eluding knocked down to just simple eluding.

The consequences are dire if convicted, so fight back with a top-notch defense team. Don’t go quietly – make the state prove its case. With so much at stake, protecting your rights and future freedom should be your first priority. Consult with a knowledgeable criminal defense attorney as soon as possible.