The New Jersey Supreme Court recently approved a warrantless search of a vehicle’s glove box for registration and related documentation. In doing so, the Court set parameters for when such a search will be constitutionally valid. Defendant’s truck ran a traffic control and almost hit a police car. The officer…
An inventory search is a narrow exception to the Fourth Amendment warrant requirement. This search occurs after a defendant is arrest, but before incarceration. Briefly, the police are allowed to search the defendant/arrestee without a warrant and inventory the property in their possession. The goals of this search are to…
A state trooper stopped a vehicle on I-295 in Burlington County. The basis for the stop was a damaged tail light. The vehicle, which also changed lanes without signaling, had three occupants – the driver, a front-seat passenger, and a six-year-old child in the back seat. The trooper smelled burnt…
Most defendants who are facing jail time are very satisfied with a probationary sentence in lieu of incarceration. However, defendants sentenced to probation do not always realize that the sentence comes with a list of terms and conditions with which they must comply during their period of supervision. Some terms…
Generally speaking, there are two broad categories of searches. Either a search can be made with a search warrant, or it can be warrantless. Our law prefers searches that are made pursuant to a warrant. A warrantless search will be valid only if the search and seizure activities fall within…
Criminal attorneys frequently assert novel defenses at trial and during plea negotiations. One of the more interesting defenses, sometimes referred to as the “Twinkie” defense, has existed for a number of years. It sounds patently silly on the surface given its name, but may actually have some basis in reality…
It has been said that the defense attorney is frequently the most ignorant person in the room. The reason for this unflattering description is that s/he knows the least about what actually happened at the crime scene. The prosecutor has an army of investigators tasked with developing as much information…
In State v. Robinson, decided on May 1, 2017, the New Jersey Supreme Court considered the extent to which the “protective sweep” doctrine, which is an exception to the warrant requirement, applies to a police search of the passenger compartment of a vehicle during a traffic stop. In Robinson, an…
New Jersey has among the most liberal criminal discovery rules in the country. The State is obligated to provide defense counsel with a substantial body of material early in the case. This is unlike many – if not most – other jurisdictions. For example, in the federal system, significant amounts…
In State v. Bacome, decided January 31, 2017, two Woodbridge detectives observed the defendant-driver and a passenger in a Ford Bronco. The passenger, who was in the front seat, was later identified as the vehicle’s owner. The detectives claimed that both men were known drug dealers. They followed the Bronco…