Drop DWI Charges Against Ambulance Driver, Attorney Says

Despite an attorney's request to have charges of driving a Hackettstown First Aid & Rescue Squad ambulance while intoxicated dropped for his client, James Rigney Jr. is set to appear in Allamuchy Municipal Court on June 13.

"The case is still active," Hackettstown Municipal Court Administrator Laura Moore said Monday following Rigney's May 2 appearance on the charges.

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 was arrested.

Tynan said at headquarters, Rigney blew a .08 on a breathalyzer. He was was charged with driving while intoxicated, driving while intoxicated in a school zone and careless driving.

Rigney, an assistant foreman with the squad, resigned from his post.

Prior to May 2, Rigney's Morristown-based lawyer, James Porfido, submitted a nine-page report to Hackettstown Municipal Prosecutor James Sloan asking that the charges be dropped on grounds that the ambulance was not stopped from driving and Rigney was attempting to exit the parked vehicle when the officer allegedly smelled alcohol on his breath.

Porfido also claimed that police launched an investigation of Rigney based on just one evaluation, the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus Test. With this test, officers evaluate involuntary eye-jerking.

The report, compiled by Pinnacle DWI Consulting Group, claims not enough DWI tests were provided to Rigney at the scene before his arrest.

No further details were available on the expectations or procedures of the June 13 court appearance.