Plainfield Police Officer Pleads Guilty to Assault from Drunk Driving Crash
A Plainfield police officer plead guilty on April 17 to third degree assault by auto, driving while intoxicated (DWI), and failure to exhibit a driver's license relating to a 2007 car crash in which the officer's blood alcohol content was nearly three times the legal limit at .23%. The accident occurred on Route 22 in North Plainfield on the night of July 31, 2007. As part of the plea agreement, the officer has given up his job, faces probation with sixty (60) days in the Somerset County jail, the loss of his driver's license for two years, thirty (30) days of community service, and fourty-eight (48) hours in the Intoxicated Driver's Resource Center along with fines and court costs. For additional info, please read "Plainfield Police Officer Accused of Driving Drunk, Causing Crash Forfeits Job".
This is a very tragic story that could have turned out a lot worse for the officer. This story is eerily similar to another post I made recently regarding a 23 year old man who was sentenced to six years in prison for second degree aggravated assault arising from a drunk driving accident. In this case, the police officer was extremely lucky that the other individuals involved in the accident were not severely injured. Otherwise, he too would have been facing a substantial prison sentence or even vehicular homicide if one of the other drivers or passengers died during the drunk driving accident.
