On June 6, 2023, the New Jersey Appellate Division issued State v. Johnson, a valuable published opinion that clarifies the procedures that must be followed under the “vehicle registration search” exception to the warrant requirement. The vehicle registration search exception the warrant requirement authorizes police to enter a lawfully stopped vehicle to conduct a pinpointed search for a paper registration certificate if the motorist is unable or unwilling to produce that document after having been provided a meaningful opportunity to comply with the officer’s request. By holding that “a motorist is not ‘unable’ to produce a registration certificate within the meaning of the exception when the sole reason for that inability is a police officer’s discretionary decision to prevent reentry,” the Appellate Division effectively prevents police from forcing a police search of a glove compartment by denying the motorist access for safety reasons.

In Johnson, the defendant parked and exited his vehicle before the police could complete the stop. The question before the court was whether the police could lawfully initiate a vehicle registration search when the detained driver is outside the vehicle at the time the officer requests the registration certificate, but where the officer deems it unsafe for the driver to reenter the vehicle to retrieve it. The court concluded that providing a detained driver with a meaningful opportunity to produce the registration certificate is an essential prerequisite for conducting a registration search, and that the requirement to provide that opportunity can only be waived if the driver is genuinely unable or unwilling to comply with the police request for the vehicle credentials. In the court’s view, any alternative interpretation of the registration search exception would undermine, if not completely negate, the protection of privacy rights guaranteed by the meaningful opportunity element, as it would leave the application of this exception entirely at the discretion of the police without any possibility of review.

Applying the new rule to the facts of the case, the court concluded the police were justified in placing the defendant in their car for safety reasons and preventing him from reentering the detained vehicle during the investigative detention, but that they were not permitted to undertake a warrantless registration search. The court noted that adhering to the meaningful opportunity prerequisite in such circumstances does not hinder the police’s ability to investigate whether a car is stolen, as they can obtain the necessary information contained in the paper registration certificate by conducting a lookup in the Motor Vehicle Commission database.

The court also addressed the impact of a recent revision to N.J.S.A. 39:3-29, the statute that outlines a motorist’s obligation to possess and present a registration certificate to the police during a motor vehicle stop and serves as the foundation for the registration search exception to the warrant requirement. Under the revised statutory framework, motorists are no longer obligated to carry a physical copy of the vehicle registration certificate. Instead, they are now permitted to possess and present the registration certificate in either paper or electronic form. To prevent fruitless searches for a physical document that may not even exist and is not required to be kept in the vehicle, going forward, police officers may not enter a detained vehicle under the authority of the registration search exception to search for a paper document without first inquiring whether the registration is kept in paper or electronic form.

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Protect your rights. If you are the driver of a personal vehicle or the owner, you have what is known as an expectation of privacy and “standing” to suppress searches. For questions regarding criminal defense of traffic and warrantless searches, contact Stahl Gasiorowski Criminal Defense Lawyers. Our offices are located in Mountainside, New Jersey and Manhattan. Contact us online or call us at 908-301-9001.

You are driving on the roads of New Jersey, paying attention to the speed limit, road conditions, and other drivers, when you glance in your rearview mirror and see the flashing strobe lights of a police car. You carefully reduce speed and pull to the side of the road to let the officer pass, but you realize he is pulling you over. What do you do, and what are your rights?

First, remain as calm as possible, turn off the radio and wait for the officer to approach before you start looking for your documents. The officer will approach either your driver’s window or the front passenger window depending on the officer and the situation. The officer will ask you for your driver’s license, registration and proof of insurance. Hand those to the officer and ask why you were stopped. Some officers will tell you the reason and briefly listen to your side of the story. Many will simply tell you to wait in your car and return with your summonses. The side of the road is not the time to debate or argue with the officer. You are better off firmly, but respectfully, asserting your rights. If the officer asks you to step out of the car, you must do so. If the officer begins to question you about where you are going to, or coming from, you have the right to decline answering.

Suspicion of Alcohol Intoxication

If the officer says that he smells the odor of alcoholic beverage on your breath and asks how many drinks you have had, what type, and over what period of time, you have the right to refuse to answer.

If the officer asks you to perform certain roadside, field balance tests, you have the right to refuse, but you may still be arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and may be brought to the station for a breath test (known as the “Alcotest” as long as the officer has reasonable grounds to believe that you are driving under the influence of alcohol.

If you refuse to submit to a breath test, however, you will be charged with a separate violation for “refusal” and face a separate period of license suspension and fines that are meant to mirror those for DWI. Your right to remain silent does not give you the right to refuse a breath test; every motorist on the roads in New Jersey is deemed to having given implied consent to submit to a breath test. Also, even without a breath test, a motorist who refuses a breath test can still be found guilty of DWI, because a conviction for DWI can be based upon the officer’s observations of your driving prior to the motor vehicle stop; your actions, appearance and movements while stopped; and your appearance in police headquarters.

Suspicion of Marijuana

If the officer says that he smells an odor of marijuana in your car and asks you whether you have just smoked, or where the drugs are in the car, you have the right to refuse to answer any questions. If the officer asks for your consent to search your car, you also have the right to refuse consent. The officer should (but might not), tell you explicitly that you have the right to refuse consent to search the car. Police officers usually attempt to obtain consent prior to performing a search, because obtaining consent allows them to search the car, even without probable cause that a crime was committed or that the car contains contraband.

But your refusal to provide consent to search does not mean that the officer does not have the right to search the car. If the officer can (or is willing to testify that he can) smell marijuana in your car, he can search the car under the theory that he has probable cause to believe that there is contraband – marijuana – in the vehicle.

The possession of a small amount of marijuana or a DWI or refusal is handled in the local municipal court. The possession of a small amount of marijuana is known as a “disorderly persons” offense (which is akin to a “misdemeanor” in other states), and is criminal in nature. DWI and refusal are considered traffic offenses in New Jersey, but the penalties are severe. For any of the above offenses, you can suffer loss of driving privileges, costly fines and penalties, increased insurance costs, and possibly even jail.

Contact Our NJ Drug Trafficking Defense Attorneys

Protect your rights. For questions regarding criminal defense of drug charges and drug trafficking, including charges relating to cocaine and marijuana, or DWI charges, contact Stahl Gasiorowski Criminal Defense Lawyers. Our offices are located in Mountainside, New Jersey and Manhattan. Contact us online or call us at 908-301-9001.