Legal Question in Criminal Law in New Jersey

Legal or not?

While driving a company car i was stopped for failure to use a turn signal i was then arrested on a traffic warrant and the car was then searched with a narcotic sniffing K-9 there were no narcotics on my person but i do have a past convition for narcotics was it legal for the officer to search the car with the K-9 based on my past criminal history?


Asked on 11/15/01, 5:09 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Joseph Grassi Barry, Corrado, Grassi & Gibson, PC

Re: Legal or not?

The answer is Maybe. There is no way to determine whether such a search is "legal" or not without having a hearing. While your past conviction alone is not probable cause for a search, coupled with other factors - ie your nervousness, furtive movements, appearance, or whatever other factors might appear in the police report - whether true or not, that prior might cause a Judge to rule in favor of the State.

If you haven't been charged with a crime, I'm afraid that there isn't much for you to do about this, unless you want to spend a lot of money to make the cop's life miserable. Because a jury is unlikely to award damages of any size in a case like this, and hence most reputable, competant lawyers will accept the case on a contingency basis.

Sorry

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Answered on 11/19/01, 7:39 pm


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