A conviction in Belmar NJ for possessing or consuming alcohol underage under N.J.S.A. 2C:33-15 can have much more significant consequences than you might anticipate. The first thing you should know is that a conviction for this offense will result in a record which cannot be expunged for a minimum of five (5) years. The second ramification is that you will have to pay fines, assessments, and could even be sentenced to up to 6 months in jail (although this is unlikely). Third, your driver’s license will very likely be suspended for at least 6 months. Any one of these penalties is reason enough to make sure you contact our Belmar Office for proper representation. Indeed, our attorneys are former prosecutors in Monmouth County and have appeared in Belmar and Lake Como on countless underage drinking and alcohol possession charges. Much more often than not, our criminal attorneys avoid and criminal record and other penalties, and there is every reason to believe we can achieve the same outcome for you. Call us for immediate assistance — the consultation is free.
Underage Drinking Charge in Belmar NJ
Arrests for underage drinking can arise in the borough alone or in tandem with a Fake ID charge. The consequences of consuming alcohol when you under twenty-one (21) years old are set forth in N.J.S.A. 2C:33-15. The truth is that this law is relatively uncomplicated but nevertheless has the potential to throw a curveball when it comes to your future. N.J.S.A. 2C:33-15, which is titled “Possession, consumption of alcoholic beverages by persons under legal age, provides that:
a. Any person under the legal age to purchase alcoholic beverages who knowingly possesses without legal authority or who knowingly consumes any alcoholic beverage in any school, public conveyance, public place, or place of public assembly, or motor vehicle, is guilty of a disorderly persons offense, and shall be fined not less than $500.00.
b. Whenever this offense is committed in a motor vehicle, the court shall, in addition to the sentence authorized for the offense, suspend or postpone for six months the driving privilege of the defendant.
A disorderly persons offense for consuming or possessing beer or any other form of alcohol when you are under 21 carries a fine of up to $1,000, something that you can deal with, but also results in a 2C record. And when the violation takes place in a motor vehicle, 2C:33-15 mandates that your license be suspended for 6 months. You should also know that Judge Lavender or whomever else presides over your case has discretion to impose the same suspension even when charge wasn’t committed in such a manner (i.e. in a motor vehicle). This discretionary penalty certainly isn’t something foreign to the Belmar Municipal Court but often avoided if you have proper representation.
Belmar Underage Alcohol Attorneys
Its terrible when our firm receives a call from a parent or even an underage defendant who just learned that a need criminal record is now in effect because someone tried to handle one of these cases without an attorney. No one should have to deal with such a ramification when it is, in all likelihood, totally unnecessary. A lawyer at our Belmar firm can make sure that this isn’t the result for you or your child is faced with. Call us any time of day or night to speak to one of our skilled defense lawyers free of charge.
