18-Year-Old Arrested for DWI After TOTALING Jeep at Over DOUBLE the Legal Limit

On November 23, 2023 around 12:47 AM, Patrolmen Jeremy Hackney and Matthew Wolf with the Magnolia Police Department were dispatched to the scene of a motor vehicle accident involving a silver 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee that had struck a pole on N Warwick Road near Maryland Avenue. As arrived on scene around 12:52 AM, Patrolman Hackney noticed that the Jeep had sustained severe front-end damages and he observed airbag deployment inside the vehicle. He made contact with the driver of the Jeep, who was identified as 18-year-old Maegen. Maegen admitted to driving the Jeep while 18-year-old Michaela was seated inside the vehicle as her passenger.

Maegen told Patrolman Hackney that she was distracted by looking at Michaela’s phone when her boyfriend was calling, and as a result she crashed into the pole while driving northbound on N Warwick Road. As he was speaking with Maegen, he detected the odor of alcohol and noticed other signs of impairment. Based on his suspicion of impairment, Maegen was asked to perform field sobriety exercises.

Patrolman Hackney started with the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) test. During the HGN test, Patrolman Hackney observed the lack of smooth pursuit and distinct and sustained nystagmus at maximum deviation in both eyes. The second exercise was the Walk and Turn test. During the Walk and Turn test, Maegen did not touch heel-to-toe on each step. The final exercise was the One Leg Stand test, and Maegen displayed a lack of balance while putting her foot down multiple times.

Based on the motor vehicle accident, the odor of alcohol, and her inability to adequately perform the field sobriety exercises, Maegen was placed under arrest for driving while intoxicated. In order to not embarrass her in front of her friend, Patrolman Hackney decided to not place handcuffs on her. Maegen was transported to the Magnolia Police Department for further processing. The other officers stayed with the vehicle until it was towed for a mandatory 12-hour impound as required by John’s Law.

At the Magnolia Police Department, Patrolman Hackney read her the Standard Statement for Motor Vehicle Operators, and she agreed to submit breath samples. Her Alcotest results indicated a BAC of 0.19%, which was more than double the limit of 0.08% for drivers over 21 and 19 times the legal limit of 0.01% for drivers under 21.

After she was processed, Maegen was released to her friend Michaela pending her court appearance in the Magnolia Municipal Court on December 5, 2023 after she signed the Potential Liability Warning form on her behalf. Patrolman Hackney issued her the following summonses: Operating under the influence, operating under the influence underage, reckless driving, careless driving, and traffic on marked lanes

Court records indicate that on March 12, 2024, Maegen was found guilty of operating under the influence. She was required to use an ignition interlock device for 3 months, spend 12 hours at an intoxicated driver resource center, and pay a total of $640 in fines. The other 4 citations were dismissed as part of a plea agreement. Court records also indicate that on April 5, 2024, Maegen was ticketed again for using a hand-held wireless telephone in Lawnside, New Jersey.

------------------------------------------

Please LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, and consider supporting this channel (email us for more information). Donations will be used to acquire more public footage related to law enforcement activities.

Our content is educational and in compliance with YouTube's Fair Use Policy because we edit several long clips into a concise story. This is similar to other law enforcement channels on YouTube. All videos and case documents were obtained pursuant to the New Jersey Open Public Records Act, N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq. (P.L. 2001, c. 404). Defendants are considered innocent until proven guilty.

The New Jersey Supreme Court has previously affirmed in Salzano v. North Jersey Media Group, 993 A.2d 778 (2010) that “The fair-report privilege reflects the judgment that the need, in a self-governing society, for free-flowing information about matters of public interest outweighs concerns over the uncompensated injury to a person's reputation.” This video advances a compelling public interest. The summary of events was based on records that are “open to public view through open access to public records” as defined in the Salzano case. In Ramos v. Flowers, 429 N.J. Super. 13, the Appellate Division of the Superior Court has also affirmed the right to film law enforcement interactions.