New Jersey School Teacher Pleads Guilty to DWI

A Randolph Middle School science teacher recently pleaded guilty to DWI. She was accepted into a pre-trial intervention (PTI) program for a separate charge related to the incident of eluding police.

Patricia R. Blakeley, 58, from Byram pleaded guilty of DWI in Randolph New Jersey on May 18 - with a blood alcohol concentration of .20 percent. Ms. Blakeley spent more than two months at an in-patient facility in Florida after her arrest.

As a New Jersey DWI Defense lawyer, I witness most clients who are charged with DWI in a state of shock and shame. I had one client tell me that being charged with DWI was like being hit square in the face from God with a two-by-four. For many clients, a DWI charge opens up a period of introspection about alcohol abuse, and the life challenges that caused the charge.

I have learned a lot from representing clients charged with DWI in New Jersey. One thing in is certain - nobody on this earth is perfect. In addition, many imperfect people are good people who can find themselves ensnared by a DWI charge. Another life certainty is that people love to judge others and expose their flaws while failing to look at their own imperfections. This is probably why we like seeing and hearing about celebrity gossip. I was a first-time visitor to a new Church, and the Pastor said during his sermon that he, like all of us, was not perfect. I respected that and immediately, he had credibility with me.

Ms. Blakeley attended in-patient counseling follow her arrest. I am sure the ordeal was stressful and embarrassing for her. She, like all of us, is not perfect. Unfortunately, for her, her error was exposed publically which I would imagine was not an easy thing to deal with. I wish her well.