People v Jimenez

Holding The court held that the detective lacked a good faith basis to believe the driver had authority to consent to the search of a bag she explicitly denied owning. Consequently, the search was unlawful, and the resulting evidence, including narcotics and items from a subsequent warrant, was suppressed.

The court’s words

Decker lacked a "good faith" reason to believe that Nunez, the driver of the Jeep had authority to consent to a search of the bag

2026 NY Slip Op 06577, at the official text

Nunez repeatedly and explicitly denied that the bag belonged to her, denied knowing the contents of the bag, and stated that the bag had "nothing to do with" her

2026 NY Slip Op 06577, at the official text

Decker could not have been said to have had a good faith basis to conclude that Nunez was capable of giving consent to search the bag

2026 NY Slip Op 06577, at the official text