An Act concerning bail and supplementing Title 2A of the New Jersey Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. a. For the purposes of this section, a non-violent offense means an offense that is not enumerated as a crime with bail restrictions as defined in subsection a. of section 1 of P.L.1994, c.144 (C.2A:162-12).

b. If a court determines that releasing a person charged with a non-violent offense will not reasonably assure the appearance of the person as required for trial, the court may order the pretrial release of that person subject to the least restrictive conditions, or combination of conditions as an alternative to setting bail.

The court may order the following least restrictive conditions, or combination of conditions, which may include that the person:

(1) remain in the custody of a designated person, who agrees to assume supervision and to report any violation of a release condition to the court, if the designated person is able reasonably to assure the court that the person will appear for trial as required;

(2) maintain employment, or, if unemployed, actively seek employment;

(3) maintain or commence an educational program;
(4) abide by specified restrictions on personal associations, place of abode, or travel;

(5) avoid all contact with an alleged victim of the crime and with a potential witness who may testify concerning the offense;

(6) report on a regular basis to a designated law enforcement agency, or other agency as determined by the court;

(7) comply with a specified curfew;

(8) refrain from possessing a firearm, destructive device, or other dangerous weapon;

(9) refrain from the excessive use of alcohol, or the use of any controlled dangerous substance or controlled substance analog as defined in N.J.S.2C:35-2 without a prescription provided by a licensed medical practitioner;

(10) undergo an available medical, psychological, or psychiatric treatment, including treatment for drug or alcohol dependency, and remain in a specified institution if required for that purpose;

(11) return to custody of a law enforcement agency or other entity as determined by the court for specified hours following release for employment, schooling, or other limited purposes; or

(12) satisfy any other condition that the court determines is reasonably necessary to assure the appearance of the person as required and to assure the safety of any other person and the community.

c. The court may revoke at any time a person's eligibility for pretrial release subject to a condition or combination of conditions under subsection b. of this section as an alternative to bail. If any defendant violates the terms of release under the pretrial release conditions or provides false or misleading information to the court regarding his eligibility or compliance with the conditions, the person's eligibility for pretrial release as an alternative to bail shall be terminated immediately. Upon arrest for any such violation, the person shall be returned to custody and shall appear before a court for a bail hearing within 12 hours following the arrest.

2. The Supreme Court may adopt Rules of Court and the Administrative Director of the Courts may issue directives to effectuate the purposes of this act.

3. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill provides a court with alternatives to setting bail for defendants charged with non-violent offenses to ensure the defendant appears for trial. The bill allows a court to release a defendant who fulfills pretrial conditions as an alternative to bail. The court may order one or a combination of conditions requiring that a defendant:

(2) maintain employment, or, if unemployed, actively seek employment;

(3) maintain or commence an educational program;
(4) abide by specified restrictions on personal associations, place of abode, or travel;

(5) avoid all contact with an alleged victim of the crime and with a potential witness who may testify concerning the offense;

(6) report on a regular basis to a designated law enforcement agency, or other agency as determined by the court;

(7) comply with a specified curfew;

(8) refrain from possessing a firearm, destructive device, or other dangerous weapon;

(9) refrain from the excessive use of alcohol, or the use of any controlled dangerous substance or controlled substance analog without a prescription provided by a licensed medical practitioner;

(10) undergo an available medical, psychological, or psychiatric treatment, including treatment for drug or alcohol dependency, and remain in a specified institution if required for that purpose;

(11) return to custody of a law enforcement agency or other entity as determined by the court for specified hours following release for employment, schooling, or other limited purposes; and

(12) satisfy any other condition that the court determines is reasonably necessary to assure the appearance of the person as required and to assure the safety of any other person and the community.

Persons charged with first and second degree crimes that are statutorily subject to bail restrictions would be ineligible from satisfying a bail requirement by fulfilling pretrial conditions. These crimes include: murder, manslaughter, kidnapping, sexual assault, robbery, carjacking, arson, causing or risking widespread injury or damage, burglary, theft by extortion, endangering the welfare of children, resisting arrest, eluding an officer, escape, corrupting or influencing a jury, possession of weapons for unlawful purposes, weapons training for illegal activities, soliciting or recruiting gang members, certain drug-related crimes, racketeering, or any crime or offense involving domestic violence.

The bill provides that a court may revoke at any time a defendant's eligibility for pretrial release subject to conditions as an alternative to bail. If any defendant violates the terms of release under the pretrial release conditions or provides false or misleading information to the court regarding the person's eligibility or compliance with the conditions, the person's eligibility for pretrial release as an alternative to bail is terminated immediately. Upon arrest, the bill requires that the defendant be returned to custody and appear before a court for a bail hearing within 12 hours following the arrest.