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Driving without your driver’s license, insurance card, or registration tickets are very common in NJ. These tickets are charged under N.J.S.A. 39:3-29. These tickets are often charged among a variety of other high penalties tickets and it is important to be represented by the best traffic ticket / unlicensed driver defense Lawyer possible.
What are the Penalties?
If you are found guilty of N.J.S.A. 39:3-29, you can face the folllowing:
How can a Lawyer Help?
There are many things an experienced New Jersey traffic ticket defense attorney can do to help. Most people will have several tickets rather than just the driving without documents charge. The most common of these extra charges are Uninsured Driving tickets , Careless Driving tickets , Speeding tickets , and Driving while Suspended tickets .
If this was your only charge, in many cases you will be able to simply bring in your documents that were in effect at the time of the stop, and show them to the Prosecutor / Judge. Often the case be resolved on this basis alone.
Other times, especially where you have been issued multiple tickets, it is best to negotiate a deal with the prosecutor. An experienced defense lawyer stands a far better chance of coming away with a beneficial arrangement than a regular citizen. The benefits of this may include, reduced fines, no community service, and even saving a defendant’s license when it would otherwise be suspended.
See our contact page to set up a free consultation with a traffic attorney, or call a NJ Traffic Ticket Defense Attorney today at 201-943-2445.
Frequently Asked Questions:
I have my documents, what do I do?
If your only charge was for failure to have your driver’s license, insurance card, or registration in your possession, you can go to court and present these to the prosecutor. In most cases the case will be dismissed afterwards, and often you will only be fined court costs of $33.
Be aware that the documents you present have to have been valid at the time you were pulled over. If they were not in effect at that time, the consequences of this charge will be more significant and you should consult with a traffic attorney immediately.
Am I allowed to show the police officer a picture of my documents?
You are allowed to show proof of insurance via your phone. Increasingly insurance companies are relying on online or app based documents. The statute specifically contemplates this and you are allowed to show insurance via this method. If you failed to produce your driver’s license or registration, the officer does not have to accept a digital version or picture. Many police officers will accept this, but they do not have to.
The following is a copy of N.J.S.A. 39:3-29, New Jersey’s statute governing the possession of documents while operating a motor vehicle.
The driver's license, the registration certificate of a motor vehicle and an insurance identification card shall be in the possession of the driver or operator at all times when he is in charge of a motor vehicle on the highways of this State.
The driver or operator shall exhibit his driver's license and an insurance identification card, and the holder of a registration certificate or the operator or driver of a motor vehicle for which a registration certificate has been issued, whether or not the holder, driver or operator is a resident of this State, shall also exhibit the registration certificate, when requested so to do by a police officer or judge, while in the performance of the duties of his office, and shall write his name in the presence of the officer, so that the officer may thereby determine the identity of the licensee and at the same time determine the correctness of the registration certificate, as it relates to the registration number and number plates of the motor vehicle for which it was issued; and the correctness of the evidence of a policy of insurance, as it relates to the coverage of the motor vehicle for which it was issued.
The insurance identification card may be displayed or provided in either paper or electronic form. For the purposes of this section, “electronic form” means the display of images on an electronic device, such as a cellular telephone, tablet, or computer.
The use of a cellular telephone, tablet, computer, or any other electronic device to display proof of insurance does not constitute consent for a police officer or judge to access any other contents on the device. Any police officer or judge presented with an electronic device pursuant to this section shall be immune from any liability resulting from damage to the device.
Any person violating this section shall be subject to a fine of $150, except that if the person is a driver or operator of an omnibus, as defined pursuant to R.S.39:1-1 , the amount of the fine shall be $250.
Of the amount of any such fine collected pursuant to this paragraph, $25 shall be deposited in the Uninsured Motorist Prevention Fund established by section 2 of P.L.1983, c. 141 ( C.39:6B-3 ).
If a person charged with a violation of this section can exhibit his driver's license, insurance identification card and registration certificate, which were valid on the day he was charged, to the judge of the municipal court before whom he is summoned to answer to the charge, such judge may dismiss the charge. However, the judge may impose court costs.
In addition to and independent of any fine or other penalty provided for under law, the court shall impose a fine of $150 on any driver or operator of an omnibus, convicted of a violation of this section, who does not have a certificate of public convenience and necessity as required pursuant to R.S.48:4-3 . The State Treasurer shall annually deposit the monies collected from the fines imposed pursuant to this paragraph to the “Omnibus Safety Enforcement Fund” established pursuant to section 4 of P.L.2007, c. 40 ( C.39:3-79.23 ). The fine described herein shall not be deemed a fine, penalty, or forfeiture pursuant to R.S.39:5-41 .
