NJ Cops Found 4 Pounds Of Meth In Woman's Car, Now They're Paying Her $110K

MORRIS COUNTY, NJ — A New York woman arrested on drug charges in Morris County three years ago has received $110,000 in settlements from the law enforcement agencies involved in her arrest.

In June 2023, Amber Arnold, then 45, of Jamestown, New York, was driving home with a friend around 10 p.m. when they both became tired, according to a 2024 lawsuit.

Arnold and her friend decided to sleep in her car at a Sinclair gas station in Netcong after getting permission from an employee, the suit says.

Hours later, a gas station employee asked Netcong police officers to have Arnold and her friend leave the parking lot because the business was closing, according to the suit.

After a brief interaction with the two women, officers requested a K-9 unit when Arnold refused consent to search her car, the lawsuit alleges.

According to an affidavit supporting Arnold's arrest, authorities found 4 pounds of methamphetamine, $1,500 in cash and a Taser, among other paraphernalia in her Hyundai Sonata.

Arnold and her friend were arrested following the discovery, and Arnold was eventually indicted by a Morris County grand jury on several charges, including possession of methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute and possession of a weapon (a Taser) while committing a drug offense.

However, Arnold's attorney later filed a motion to suppress the evidence found in the car and her statements to police, calling the officers' investigation an "unwarranted fishing expedition" that violated her Fourth Amendment rights. The motion also argued that because the vehicle was parked in a parking lot rather than stopped during a traffic stop, the warrantless search was unconstitutional under the New Jersey Supreme Court's decision in State v. Dunbar.

The state argued that Arnold's friend's alleged track marks, the pair's grogginess, and the K-9 alert established probable cause for the search and arrest. However, Judge Ralph Amirata granted the motion to suppress the evidence, leading prosecutors to toss the indictment.

A year later, Arnold sued the Netcong Police Department and the Morris County Sheriff's Office, alleging unreasonable search and seizure, civil rights violations and other claims.

In October 2025, the Netcong Police Department agreed to pay Arnold an $85,000 settlement. Two months later, the Morris County Sheriff's Office agreed to pay an additional $25,000 settlement, bringing the total to $110,000, according to court documents first obtained by TransparencyNJ.com.