STATE OF NEW JERSEY VS. BRYAN J. BLACKÂ Â (14-04-0311, UNION COUNTY AND STATEWIDE), A-0737-15T4

Background

Police detectives Muhammad and Alston observed Bryan Black and others in a known high‑crime, high‑narcotics area; one man said “oh, the narcs” and two subjects began running when officers approached.
Muhammad pursued Black on foot; during the chase Black fell and discarded a small plastic bag a few feet away; officers recovered the bag, which contained CDS and drug paraphernalia.
At police headquarters the same day, Black’s girlfriend Kindrins McLeanor (whose apartment the officers had reason to search) told officers Black stayed with her "from time to time," refused to sign a written consent form but verbally permitted officers to search her apartment.
Inside the apartment closets officers found closed bags of CDS and two ID cards bearing Black’s name; McLeanor had disclaimed ownership of Black’s belongings.
Black moved to suppress: (1) the CDS he discarded during flight, arguing the stop was unconstitutional and evidence seizure not sufficiently attenuated; and (2) the CDS and items seized from McLeanor’s apartment, arguing third‑party consent did not extend to containers belonging to him.
The trial court denied suppression, Black pled guilty to possession with intent to distribute in a school zone (preserving suppression appeal), received a five‑year term with 30 months parole ineligibility; the appellate court affirmed suppression of discarded CDS but reversed suppression of apartment evidence and vacated the conviction.

Issues

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Validity of third‑party consent to search apartment containers	McLeanor had authority to consent to search the apartment and her verbal consent was voluntary, so containers found may be searched	McLeanor disavowed ownership of defendant’s containers; third‑party consent does not extend to containers belonging exclusively to another	Reversed suppression as to apartment: consent did not authorize search of closed containers that belonged to Black; officers should have secured scene and obtained a warrant or shown other authority to search those containers
Lawfulness of investigatory stop and seizure of CDS discarded during flight	Officers had reasonable and particularized suspicion (high‑crime area, prior knowledge of location and persons, observed furtive behavior, verbal identification as "narcs," flight) so stop was lawful and CDS admissible	Stop was unconstitutional so evidence thrown during flight should be suppressed for lack of attenuation	Affirmed suppression ruling as to discarded CDS: stop was supported by reasonable suspicion; flight and circumstances justified seizure and abandonment doctrine applied
Standing/privacy in girlfriend’s apartment	McLeanor’s ownership and consent suffice to search premises	Black, as an overnight/periodic guest, had a privacy interest; third‑party consent cannot reach containers he exclusively owned	Court recognized Black’s privacy interest in his containers and held third‑party consent insufficient to authorize search of containers he disclaimed
Need for resentencing based on alleged incorrect parole‑ineligibility advice	State argued sentence conformed to plea agreement	Black argued he was misinformed that 30 months parole ineligibility was mandatory (Kovack)	Court vacated conviction on suppression grounds and therefore did not address the sentencing claim further; remanded for further proceedings

Key Cases Cited

State v. Suazo, 133 N.J. 315 (N.J. 1993) (third‑party consent does not extend to containers owned exclusively by another)
State v. Citarella, 154 N.J. 272 (N.J. 1998) (officer experience and totality of circumstances inform reasonable‑suspicion analysis)
United States v. Matlock, 415 U.S. 164 (U.S. 1974) (third‑party consent to search shared premises may be valid)
State v. Stott, 171 N.J. 343 (N.J. 2002) (overnight guest has reasonable expectation of privacy in host’s home)
State v. Johnson, 193 N.J. 528 (N.J. 2008) (abandonment doctrine and standing to challenge seizures)
State v. Pineiro, 181 N.J. 13 (N.J. 2004) (area reputation for crime is relevant to reasonable suspicion)
State v. Ramos, 282 N.J. Super. 19 (App. Div. 1995) (abandonment during flight can justify admission of discarded evidence)
State v. Lee, 245 N.J. Super. 441 (App. Div. 1991) (third‑party consent invalid if third party disclaims ownership of container)