Sponsored by:
Assemblyman SEAN T. KEAN
District 30 (Monmouth and Ocean)
SYNOPSIS
Delays prosecution of law enforcement officers for crime of official deprivation of civil rights related to underage possession or use of cannabis or alcohol for one year.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning law enforcement, amending P.L.2021, c.25 and P.L.1979, c.264, and supplementing Title 52 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 3 of P.L.2021, c.25 (C.2C:30-6.1) is amended to read as follows:
3. [A] a. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a law enforcement officer, when responding to a call for service or upon the initiation of any other law enforcement or investigative encounter related to a violation or suspected violation of paragraph (1) of subsection a. of section 1 of P.L.1979, c.264 (C.2C:33-15), concerning the possession or consumption of alcoholic beverages, marijuana, hashish, or any cannabis item by a person under the legal age to purchase alcoholic beverages or cannabis items, shall be guilty of a crime of official deprivation of civil rights as defined in section 2 of P.L.2003, c.31 (C.2C:30-6) if that officer knowingly violates the provisions of subsection a. of section 1 of P.L.1979, c.264 (C.2C:33-15) that address law enforcement actions involving persons who are under the legal age to purchase alcoholic beverages or cannabis items by requesting that a person consent to a search who is not capable of giving lawful consent or searching a person after wrongfully obtaining that person's consent, initiating an investigatory stop without reasonable articulable suspicion, initiating a search without probable cause, issuing a warning or write-up without a proper basis that a person committed a violation, or detaining or taking into custody a person in a manner or for a longer period beyond the extent required to issue a warning or write-up, or arresting a person for a possession or consumption violation of paragraph (1) of subsection a. of section 1 of P.L.1979, c.264 (C.2C:33-15), or if that officer knowingly engages in any other unlawful act, as described in subsection e. of section 2 of P.L.2003, c.31 (C.2C:30-6), against the person arising out of the call for service or initiation of any other law enforcement or investigative encounter, including but not limited to the unjustified use of force in violation of N.J.S.2C:3-7. A violation set forth in this section shall not require that the law enforcement officer have acted with the purpose to intimidate or discriminate against a person or group of persons because of race, color, religion, gender, handicap, sexual orientation or ethnicity. A violation of this section shall be graded in the same manner as set forth in section 2 of P.L.2003, c.21 (C.2C:30-6) for other crimes of official deprivation of civil rights.
b. A law enforcement officer responding to a call for service or initiating a law enforcement or investigative encounter shall not be guilty of a crime of official deprivation of civil rights pursuant to subsection a. of this section if the call for service or investigative encounter occurs prior to the first day of the thirteenth month next following the date of enactment of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
c. Except to the extent required to dismiss, withdraw, or terminate the charge, no prosecutor shall pursue any charge, based on a crime of official deprivation of civil rights pursuant to subsection a. of this section based on a call for service or investigative encounter that occurs prior to the first day of the thirteenth month next following the date of enactment of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill). These non-prosecutable charges and cases shall be expeditiously dismissed, which may be accomplished by appropriate action by the prosecutor based upon guidelines issued by the Attorney General, or the court's own motion based upon administrative directives issued by the Administrative Director of the Courts.
d. (1) Any guilty verdict, plea, or other entry of guilt for a crime of official deprivation of civil rights pursuant to subsection a. of this section based on a call for service or investigative encounter that occurs prior to the first day of the thirteenth month next following the date of enactment of section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) entered prior to the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), but the judgment of conviction or final disposition on the matter was not entered prior to that date, shall be vacated by operation of law. The Administrative Director of the Courts, in consultation with the Attorney General, may take any administrative action as may be necessary to vacate the guilty verdict, plea, placement in a diversionary program, or other entry of guilt.
(2) Any conviction, remaining sentence, ongoing supervision, or unpaid court-ordered financial assessment as defined in section 8 of P.L.2017, c.244 (C.2C:52-23.1) of any person who, on the effective date of section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), is or will be serving a sentence of incarceration, probation, parole or other form of community supervision as a result of the person's conviction for a crime of official deprivation of civil rights pursuant to subsection a. of this section based on a call for service or investigative encounter that occurs prior to the first day of the thirteenth month next following the date of enactment of section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall be vacated by operation of law. The Administrative Director of the Courts, in consultation with the Attorney General, may take any administrative action as may be necessary to vacate the conviction, remaining sentence, ongoing supervision, or unpaid court-ordered financial assessment.
(cf: P.L.2021, c.25, s.3)
2. Section 1 of P.L.1979, c.264 (C.2C:33-15) is amended to read as follows:
1. a. (1) Any person under the legal age to purchase alcoholic beverages, or under the legal age to purchase cannabis items, who knowingly possesses without legal authority or who knowingly consumes any alcoholic beverage, cannabis item, marijuana, or hashish in any school, public conveyance, public place, or place of public assembly, or motor vehicle shall be subject to the following consequences:
(a) for a first violation, a written warning issued by a law enforcement officer to the underage person. The written warning shall include the person's name, address, and date of birth, and a copy of the warning containing this information, plus a sworn statement that includes a description of the relevant facts and circumstances that support the officer's determination that the person committed the violation, shall be temporarily maintained in accordance with this section only for the purposes of determining a second or subsequent violation subject to the consequences set forth in subparagraph (b) or (c) of this paragraph. If the violation of this section is by a person under 18 years of age, a written notification concerning the violation shall be provided to the parent, guardian or other person having legal custody of the underage person in accordance with section 3 of P.L.1991, c.169 (C.33:1-81.1a).