The New Jersey Supreme Court held that because the warrant affidavit failed to provide specific information as to why defendant's apartment and not other units should be searched, the warrant application was deficient. The search-and-seizure provision in Article I,...
Drug Crime
Warrants and Specificity of Locations: Part 2
The trial court subsequently issued a warrant to search Boone, his residence, and his car. Police executed the search warrant on September 7, 2012, and found between one-half and five ounces of cocaine and an illegal handgun in Unit 4A. They then arrested defendant....
Warrants and Specificity of Locations : Part 1
On December 18, 2017, the New Jersey Supreme Court decided the case of State v. Akeem Boone. Justice Fernandez-Vina wrote for a unanimous Court. The principle issue was whether a warrant application that did not include evidence as to why a specific apartment unit...
State’s Drug Court Appeals: Part 6
The 1999 amendment to N.J.S.A. 2C:35-14 undermines the State's position that N.J.S.A. 2C:44-1(f)(2) permits the State to appeal a special probation Drug Court sentence. If N.J.S.A. 2C:44-1(f)(2) already authorized the State to appeal special probation Drug Court...
State’s Drug Court Appeals: Part 5
In its imposition of defendant's Drug Court sentence, the court did not apply the presumption of incarceration under N.J.S.A. 2C:44-1(d), nor could it. The court never made findings permitting defendant to overcome the presumption of incarceration, and the court was...
State’s Drug Court Appeals: Part 4
The aforementioned nine factors are: (1) the person has undergone a professional diagnostic assessment to determine whether and to what extent the person is drug or alcohol dependent and would benefit from treatment; and (2) the person is a drug or alcohol dependent...
State’s Drug Court Appeals: Part 3
In its adoption of N.J.S.A. 2C:35-14, the Legislature established an exception to the presumption of incarceration for first and second-degree offenders that is independent of any determination required under N.J.S.A. 2C:44-1(d). Although a probationary sentence "is...
State’s Drug Court Appeals: Part 2
The State argues defendant was convicted of second-degree leaving the scene of a fatal accident, N.J.S.A. 2C:11-5.1, and was therefore subject to the presumption of incarceration. The State reasons that because the court imposed the non-custodial sentence of special...
State’s Drug Court Appeals: Part 1
On November 21, 2017, a three-judge appellate panel decided the Camden County Superior Court case of State v. Hyland. The principle issue under N.J.S.A 2C:44-7 was whether the State has the authority to appeal the sentencing of a defendant to special Drug Court...
Excluding the Public From Jury Selection (Part 2)
Generally, a constitutional error that did not contribute to the verdict obtained is deemed harmless, which means the defendant is not entitled to reversal. However, a structural error, which affects the framework within which the trial proceeds defies harmless error...
