newjerseynewsroom.com

Attorney general says force meeting consent decree mandates

BY TOM HESTER SR.

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

A new monitoring report made public Wednesday on New Jersey State Police road stops for the period from Jan. 1 to June 30, 2009, shows that consent-to-search requests by troopers are increasing following the end of federal supervision of their actions.

A total of 405 consent-to-search requests were made during the 2009 period, which was monitored by the state Attorney General’s Office of Law Enforcement Professional Standards.

The number is more than triple the highest number of requests reported in any prior six-month reporting period. The previous high number of consent-to-search requests was 134, when the federal consent decree was still in place.

Attorney General Paula T. Dow said the increase in consent-to-search requests is directly related to the state Supreme Court’s February 2009 decision in State v. Pena-Flores. Essentially, the decision requires that police obtain a search warrant or ask for consent-to-search a vehicle in cases where probable cause exists.

It was frequent roadside searches of vehicles driven by minority motorists that played a role in the institution of federal supervision of the State Police in 1999.

The 2009 report also finds that while the State Police remain in compliance with all mandates for the reporting period, the number of errors during motor vehicle stops that went undetected by supervisors resulted in an overall uncaught error rate of 12.8 percent. The error rate resulted in a warning to State Police concerning trooper supervision.

The report states that the State Police continue to move toward more digital recording of motor vehicle stops, with the ultimate objective being to record all stops. Currently, most stops are recorded using audio and video tape.

During the reporting period covered by the report, 49 stops were identified as having problems with the audio recording, video recording, or both. The problems are blamed on aging equipment.

The report also states that the State Police remain in compliance with all consent decree requirements. Specifically, the State Police Training Academy’s “ability to provide effective and meaningful training continues to evolve and improve.” Particular note is made in the report of the Academy’s capability in providing effective updates for troopers on current case law and other emerging issues.

The report is the second in-house monitoring review of State Police activities issued since dissolution of the federal supervision on 2009. It is based on an analysis of data from hundreds of motor vehicle stops, and a review by OLEPS staffers of more than 400 videotapes of stops. OLEPS also conducted audits of the State Police internal affairs and training functions to determine if they met the standards of the consent decree. In addition, the agency evaluated the efforts of State Police management in supervising the activities of troopers.

“This report shows that the State Police continues to function as a model law enforcement agency – one that demonstrates strength in all facets of the ‘traditional’ policing mission while adapting well to social change, and to changing legal principles,” Dow said. “However, despite the continued progress observed throughout this report, we are committed to remaining vigilant, and to ensuring that the ‘best practices’ that got State Police to this point are adhered to every day.”