Appealing A Denial into the PTI Program Based on Receiving a Prior Marijuana-Related Conditional Discharge Pre-CREAMMA

State of New Jersey v. Kevin Waters Docket No. A-1679-21 Decided February 27, 2023 Submitted by New Jersey Drug Crime Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark. In a recent unpublished opinion, the Appellate Court of New Jersey decided defendant’s appeal from a trial court order affirming the denial of his application for admission into a pre-trial intervention (PTI) program.…

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NEW JERSEY SUPREME COURT DRUG RECOGNITION EXPERT (DRE) UPDATE

State v. Michael Olenowski Appellate Docket No.: A-56-18 Decided February 17, 2023 Submitted by New Jersey Drug Crime Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark. In a recent opinion, the Supreme Court of New Jersey reviewed the special master’s report on Drug Recognition Experts (DRE) used in criminal cases and in doing so, adopted a new standard of admissibility of…

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An Officer Standing in The Driveway Without a Warrant Cannot Utilize the Warrantless Search of Plain View If the Officer is Not Lawfully in the Area at the Time

State v. Raymond Ingram Appellate Docket No.: A-1500-20 Decided February 13, 2023 Submitted by New Jersey Drug Crime Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark. In a recent published opinion, the Appellate Division of New Jersey reversed a denial of a motion to suppress after finding that officers were not lawfully in the defendant’s driveway and could not view the…

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Reasonableness Is the Relevant Standard to Use When Analyzing the Officer’s Initial Act That Led to the Warrantless Search

State of New Jersey v. M.A., Jr. Docket No. A-0304-19 Decided October 4, 2022 Submitted by New Jersey Drug Crime Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark. In a recent unpublished opinion, the Appellate Court of New Jersey decided the defendant’s appeal of the trial court’s orders denying his motion to suppress, and barring use of the defense of necessity…

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Officer Did Not Have Reasonable Articulable Suspicions of a Tinted Windows Violation That Was Needed to Justify a Motor Vehicle Stop

State v. Edward Bejarno Docket No. A-2163-20 Decided September 23, 2022 Submitted by New Jersey Drug Crime Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark. In a recent unpublished opinion, the Appellate Court of New Jersey decided Defendant’s motion to suppress evidence following a motor vehicle stop, after he appealed the trial court’s denial of his motion. The facts of the…

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There Are Specific Evidentiary Rules as It Relates to Officer’s Testimony, Either at Trial or In Grand Jury Proceedings

State of New Jersey v. Terrell Tucker   DOCKET NO. A-0937-21 Decided August 3, 2022 Submitted by New Jersey Drug Crime Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark. In a recent published decision the Appellate Division of New Jersey reversed the judge’s decision denying defendant’s motion to dismiss the indictment following officer’s testimony of defendant’s state of mind in the…

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There Are Different Levels of Suspicion Necessary for Officers to Effectuate a Traffic Stop, Investigation, Request a Search Warrant, And Search and Seize Property

State v. Muhammad Appellate Docket No.: A-3017-18 Decided July 15, 2021 Submitted by New Jersey Drug Crime Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark. In a recent unpublished opinion, the Appellate Division of New Jersey reviewed whether a fifteen second delay was a violation of the knock and announce rule to search warrants before breaching entry. In State v. Muhammad,…

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