Attorney Tries Again to Dismiss DWI Charges Against Rescue Squad Driver

The attorney for an first aid squad driver charged with driving an ambulance to an emergency call while he was intoxicated is asking for the second time for the case to be dismissed.

The case of James Rigney Jr., the former assistant foreman of the Hackettstown First Aid & Rescue Squad, was supposed to be heard in Independence Court last week on Nov. 14, attorney James Porfido said.

Rigney, an expert witness and Porfido all showed up at the Independence court, ready for the judge, but the case wasn't on the court docket, Porfido said in a letter of complaint he dispatched to Hackettstown Municipal Court Judge Vincent Palmer.

Porfido said there were "charades" going on with the Hackettstown Court's notification system, since two police officers he subpoenaed also did not appear in Independence for the trial.

"Clearly, those officers must have been notified by the Hackettstown Court that the case would not proceed on this date," Porfido wrote, exasperated that he hadn't received "the benefit of a phone call, a letter or any respect to civility or courtesy" that the trial wasn't going to take place that day.

The lack of notification was just one more problem Porfido said he's experienced with the disposition of Rigney's case since it began.

Rigney, 39, was arrested Feb. 20 after he responded to a medical call on Vans Drive and drove into the complex the wrong way, according to Hackettstown Police Sgt. Darren Tynan. An officer on the scene allegedly smelled alcohol on Rigney's breath, and Rigney's readings were .08 on a breathalyzer test, Tynan said. 

He was charged with driving while intoxicated, driving while intoxicated in a school zone and careless driving.

In the letter to the court, Porfido said he will be seeking to have the case dismissed on Dec. 12, the next date slated for trial. He cited the prosecutor's "lack of preparation", along with repeated postponements, the moving of the case from Hackettstown to Independence instead of Mansfield as had been originally agreed, and a ten-month delay as reasons he believes the case should be thrown out of court.

Porfido said he found the lack of notification "to be unexplained and unacceptable."

"We are moving for dismissal due to the prosecution not being ready for trial for ten months," Rigney said in an email. "The prosecution has no case."