State of New Jersey, Plaintiff-Respondent v. Robert Reldan, Defendant-Appellant

Summary

The Supreme Court of New Jersey affirmed the Appellate Division's judgment that the automobile search, including vacuuming and microscopic analysis of debris, was within the scope of the warrant and therefore reasonable, that FBI assistance did not render the search pretextual, and that the law of the case doctrine does not bar relitigation of the earlier suppression order. The Court emphasized the diminished expectation of privacy in vehicles and the objective standard of reasonableness. Justice O'Hern dissented, arguing that the pre‑trial suppression should not be revisited.