State v Darius Carter and State v Miguel A. Roman Rosado - Consolidated Appeal

Meg and Jeff Horn, Toms River family law attorney and host of The Bold Sidebar, continue their discussion of 2021 New Jersey Supreme Court decisions. In Episode 3 of this NJ law podcast, Meg and Jeff discuss several cases dealing with New Jersey motor vehicle statutes prohibiting license tag frames that conceal a portion of the license tag and New Jersey motor vehicle statutes prohibiting tinted windows, in terms of when the police can lawfully stop a driver who is violating these laws. In the consolidated appeals of State v. Darius J. Carter and State v. Miguel A. Roman-Rosado, the New Jersey Supreme Court decided to narrowly interpret NJSA 39:3-33, which makes it illegal to have a license plate frame that conceals any part of the tag.  Earlier this year the New Jersey Supreme Court granted cert in State v. David L. Smith, a case dealing with NJSA 39:3-74 and -75, the law prohibiting tinted windows.  We are anxiously awaiting the Court’s decision next year on this issue Although these motor vehicle statutes may seem minor, a stop due to a violation of them may have grave consequences due to the domino effect of a subsequent search and seizure of alleged contraband on the person or on the vehicle of the driver.