STATE OF NEW JERSEY VS. JOSEPH M. TOMZA (19-034, MORRIS COUNTY AND STATEWIDE), A-4581-19

On Nov. 3, 2018 a witness observed a pickup swerve off the road, strike a traffic sign, and continue; the witness followed the truck and called 9-1-1, identifying the truck as a tan/light-colored Dodge and stayed on the line.
Dispatcher relayed the report to Officer Alan Bull, who located a lone light-colored pickup at Comly Road/Route 202 and began to follow it.
Officer Bull lost sight of the truck for 4–5 seconds; the truck then appeared parked in a driveway (passenger door open) and the officer concluded it was the same vehicle he had been following.
Officer Bull ordered the occupant (defendant Tomza) back into the truck, requested license/registration, had Tomza step out, administered field sobriety tests, and arrested him for DWI and related offenses.
Defendant moved to suppress the field sobriety test results, arguing the officer lacked lawful basis for the stop; the municipal court denied suppression, the Law Division affirmed on de novo review, and this appeal followed.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the stop met the constitutional standard (probable cause vs reasonable suspicion)	Officer had reasonable and articulable suspicion to stop and detain based on the 9‑1‑1 citizen report identifying the vehicle and the officer’s identification of the same truck	Officer lacked personal observation of erratic driving and therefore lacked lawful basis; relied on a bare hunch and an imperfect tip (no plate, color discrepancy, brief loss of sight)	Stop was lawful as an investigative detention; reasonable suspicion (not probable cause) sufficed and was satisfied here
Whether the tip and vehicle identification were sufficiently reliable to justify the detention	The informant was an identified citizen who followed the truck and stayed on the line; known citizen tips carry presumptive reliability and the officer reasonably identified the truck	The tip was insufficiently detailed and unreliable (color discrepancy; no plate; officer briefly lost sight), so the officer could not reasonably conclude this was the reported vehicle	The citizen‑informer was reliable; the color discrepancy was inconsequential; officer’s inference that the driveway truck was the same vehicle was reasonable; detention justified

Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (establishes reasonable, articulable suspicion standard for brief investigatory stops)
Delaware v. Prouse, 440 U.S. 648 (traffic stops require constitutional justification)
State v. Golotta, 178 N.J. 205 (upholds stop based on anonymous 9‑1‑1 tip of erratic driving)
Navarette v. California, 572 U.S. 393 (anonymous 9‑1‑1 tip can provide reasonable suspicion for DUI stop)
State v. Locurto, 157 N.J. 463 (two‑court rule; standard for motor vehicle stops: reasonable suspicion)
State v. Stovall, 170 N.J. 346 (known citizen informant calls are presumptively reliable)
State v. Nishina, 175 N.J. 502 (reasonable suspicion requires some minimal objective justification)
State v. Shaw, 213 N.J. 398 (reasonable suspicion, not probable cause, is the standard for short investigative stops)