Friday, August 4, 2017

POLICE MAY NOT ENTER RESIDENCE TO SEARCH FOR CONTRABAND WITHOUT FIRST OBTAINING A JUDICIAL WARRANT




Prepared as a public service by the Law Office of Vincent J. Sanzone, Jr. (908) 354-7006.
In State v. Wright the New Jersey Supreme Court held that police cannot enter a home or residence to search for contraband, notwithstanding that a landlord or third-party reports to the police that they saw contraband in plain view.

In this case a landlord fixing a water leak, who was in the residence lawfully saw contraband and reported it to the police.  The police without obtaining a judicial warrant searched the residence and later arrested the occupant. 

The Supreme Court said that the police were required to obtain a judicial warrant and in applying for the warrant use in the affidavit what the landlord saw as their probable cause to search the residence.

In deciding the hire a Union County criminal defense attorney it is wise and best practice to hire a NJ criminal attorney who is familiar with the fourth amendment motion to suppress issues which might resolve your criminal case most favorable to you.

Also, in a recent United States Supreme Court case in Rodriguez v. United States, our highest court held that a motorist does not have to wait for an extended period of time for a drug sniffing dog to arrive.  In that case the motorist was told to wait after the motor vehicle warning had been issued for another 7-minutes until the dog had arrived.  The court held that was to long and suppressed the CDS found in his motor vehicle.  This holding was affirmed by the New Jersey Supreme Court.

Law office of Vincent J. Sanzone, Jr.
Elizabeth, (Union County) New Jersey
(908) 354-7006
CriminalDefenseNJ.com

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