State v. Dickerson

177 A.3d 788, 232 N.J. 2
CourtSupreme Court of New Jersey
DecidedFebruary 5, 2018
DocketA–1 Sept. Term 2017; 079769
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 177 A.3d 788 (State v. Dickerson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of New Jersey primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Dickerson, 177 A.3d 788, 232 N.J. 2 (N.J. 2018).

Opinions

JUSTICE SOLOMON delivered the opinion of the Court.

**8This appeal raises the question whether, in cases involving a search warrant, Rule 3:4-2(c)(1)(B) obliges the State to produce the affidavit underlying the warrant prior to a pretrial detention hearing pursuant to the Criminal Justice Reform Act (CJRA), N.J.S.A. 2A:162-15 to -26.

During defendant Melvin Dickerson's pretrial detention hearing, the court denied the State's motion for pretrial detention.

*792Relying on Rule 3:4-2(c)(1)(B), the court ordered defendant released subject to conditions as a discovery sanction for the State's failure to produce the search warrant affidavit.

On interlocutory appeal, the Appellate Division agreed that the State was obliged to produce the affidavit but held that the trial court erred by releasing defendant as a discovery sanction. Therefore, the Appellate Division directed the State to produce the affidavit and remanded for a full pretrial detention hearing.

We now reverse the Appellate Division's judgment ordering production of the search warrant affidavit. We further find no evidence or allegation of misconduct on the part of the State justifying discovery sanctions for failure to produce the search warrant affidavit. Thus, we agree with the Appellate Division that the pretrial release of defendant was in error and that the case should be remanded for a full pretrial detention hearing.

I.

The following facts are elicited from record documents, including the search warrant, the incident report prepared by police, and the complaint-warrant.

A.

After multiple meetings with a confidential informant discussing the sales of controlled dangerous substances (CDS), police officers with the Asbury Park Police Department (APPD) applied for a warrant to search Welcome Back Unisex Hair Cuts, a barbershop/hair **9salon in Asbury Park (the salon). A Superior Court judge reviewed the application and issued the warrant. The warrant did not name any individuals as targets of the search but simply stated that the requesting officer had "probable cause to believe" that within the salon "[t]here has been and now is located certain" contraband.

Upon execution of the search warrant, the APPD officers found four men inside the salon, including defendant and co-defendant Julius Franklin (Franklin). Defendant was observed to be at the rear of the salon when the police entered, near where drugs and guns were later found. When questioned, Franklin told the officers he worked at the salon. Defendant, however, was "uncooperative." One of the two other men present told the officers that he was at the salon waiting for a haircut; the other stated he had just "stopped in ... briefly and was not employed [at the salon]."

The officers then conducted a search of the salon. The search revealed thirty-one pieces of evidence including two plastic bags of suspected marijuana, a 9mm sub-machine gun, a .38 caliber semi-automatic handgun, a stun gun, ammunition, two digital scales, a heat-seal vacuum, a box of Ziploc vacuum sealer gallon bags, a suspected police scanner, a cell phone, a State of New Jersey Certificate of Authority addressed to defendant, an expired City of Asbury Park Barbershop/Salon License addressed to a Barbara Dickerson, and several more documents addressed to defendant at the salon. After the search, officers arrested Franklin and defendant.

That same day, a complaint warrant was issued charging defendant with ten crimes: 1) fourth-degree possession of over one-half ounce of marijuana, N.J.S.A. 2C:35-10(a)(3) ; 2) third-degree possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, N.J.S.A. 2C:35-5(b)(11) ; 3) third-degree possession of marijuana with intent to distribute in a school zone, N.J.S.A. 2C:35-7(a) ; 4) fourth-degree unlawful interception or use of official communications, N.J.S.A. 2C:33-21 ; 5) two counts of second-degree possession of a firearm while in the course of committing a narcotics offense, **10*793N.J.S.A. 2C:39-4.1(a) ; 6) fourth-degree possession of a defaced handgun, N.J.S.A. 2C:39-3(d) ; 7) second-degree unlawful possession of a machine gun, N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5(a) ; 8) second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun, N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5(b)(1) ; and 9) fourth-degree unlawful possession of a stun gun, N.J.S.A. 2C:39-3(h). The complaint warrant was based upon an affidavit of probable cause that stated "pursuant to the execution of a search warrant ... [defendant] was arrested after being found to be in possession of suspected CDS, weapons, and contraband."

At defendant's pretrial detention hearing, the State moved to detain defendant. In connection with the hearing, the State disclosed the Preliminary Law Enforcement Incident Report (PLEIR),1 the complaint, the supporting affidavit of probable cause, the Public Safety Assessment (PSA), and the incident and arrest reports. Defendant's PSA rated both his risk of failure to appear and his risk of new criminal activity as a three out of six. No violence flag was indicated. The PSA recommended that defendant be released pretrial with conditions and monthly reporting.

During defendant's pretrial detention hearing, the judge explained to defendant that he had "the right to be provided with all statements or reports in the prosecutor's possession relating to the pretrial detention application." At that point, defense counsel claimed that he had received "limited discovery," because "the affidavit to support the search warrant is absent." When asked whether the State had the affidavit in its possession, the State responded that it did not have the affidavit and that it was "not relying upon the affidavit." The judge found that the affidavit must be produced, stating:

**11It doesn't matter what you're relying on. If it relates to the motion, it must be produced. The Rule does not speak to what information the State intends to rely upon. That is not the litmus test for what must be produced. It is anything that relates to the application. The defendant is entitled to have all of that information.

The State further argued that "[t]he affidavit is not referenced in the PLEIR" and "has nothing to do with the probable cause that is related to this offense." The court, however, found that the affidavit "should be produced .... whether the State is intending to rely on it or not" and, as a sanction, released defendant with conditions.

A day after defendant was released, the Appellate Division decided State v. Robinson, 448 N.J. Super. 501, 154 A.3d 187, aff'd and modified, 229 N.J. 44,

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
177 A.3d 788, 232 N.J. 2, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-dickerson-nj-2018.