Requires New Jersey Supreme Court to issue order dismissing certain charges, complaints, and arrest warrants filed with or issued by municipal courts and unresolved for five years or more; requires AOC to conduct certain studies.

A2177

ASSEMBLY, No. 2177

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman SHANIQUE SPEIGHT

District 29 (Essex and Hudson)

Assemblywoman VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman Tucker

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires New Jersey Supreme Court to issue order
dismissing certain charges, complaints, and arrest warrants filed with or
issued by municipal courts and unresolved for five years or more; requires AOC
to conduct certain studies.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning the dismissal of certain municipal court
matters and supplementing Title 2B of the New Jersey Statutes.

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

���� 1.��� The Supreme Court of New
Jersey shall issue an order dismissing and recalling any unresolved charges,
complaints, and arrest warrants filed with or issued by any municipal court
five years or more prior to the date of enactment of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)
concerning the following offenses:

���� a.���� Petty disorderly
persons offenses, as defined in subsection b. of N.J.S.2C:1-4, including but
not limited to:

���� (1) Simple assault committed
in a fight or scuffle entered into by mutual consent, as set forth in
subsection a. of N.J.S.2C:12-1;

���� (2) Shoplifting if the value
of the merchandise is less than $200, as set forth in paragraph (4) of
subsection c. of N.J.S.2C:20-11;

���� (3) Disorderly conduct, as set
forth in N.J.S.2C:33-2; and

���� (4) Harassment, as set forth
in subsections a., b., or c. of N.J.S.2C:33-4; and

���� b.��� Disorderly persons
offenses, as defined in subsection b. of N.J.S.2C:1-4, including but not
limited to:

���� (1) Simple assault, other than
assault committed in a fight or scuffle entered into by mutual consent, as set
forth in subsection a. of N.J.S.2C:12-1;

���� (2) Lewdness, as set forth in
subsection a. of N.J.S.2C:14-14;

���� (3) Bad checks in an amount of
less than $200, as set forth in paragraph (4) of subsection c. of
N.J.S.2C:21-5;

���� (4) Obstructing the
administration of law or other governmental function other than by obstructing
the detection or investigation of a crime or the prosecution of a person for a
crime, as set forth in N.J.S.2C:29-1;

���� (5) Resisting arrest, as set
forth in paragraph (1) of subsection a. of N.J.S.2C:29-2;

���� (6) Disorderly conduct, as set
forth in N.J.S.2C:33-2;

���� (7) Use or possession with
intent to use drug paraphernalia, as set forth in N.J.S.2C:36-2; and������

���� (8) Possession of 50 grams or
less of marijuana, including any adulterants or dilutants, or five grams or
less of hashish, as set forth in paragraph (4) of subsection a. of N.J.S.2C:35-10.

���� 2.��� The dismissal and recall
of unresolved charges, complaints, and arrest warrants set forth in P.L.��� ,
c.���� (C.������� ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall not
apply to any violation of a municipal ordinance.

���� 3.��� Within six months
following the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending
before the Legislature as this bill) the Administrative Office of the Courts
shall submit the following reports to the Legislature:

���� a. A study to determine the
feasibility of expanding the municipal court conditional dismissal program set
forth in P.L.2013, c.158 (C.2C:43-13.1 et al.) and the conditional discharge
program set forth in N.J.S.2C:36A-1 to carry out the provisions of section 1
of� P.L.��� , c.���� (C.������� ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)
in dismissing and recalling unresolved charges, complaints, and arrest warrants;
and

���� b.� A study to determine the
feasibility of an initiative similar to the federal �Fugitive Safe Surrender
Program,� whereby persons charged with non-violent criminal offenses are
encouraged to voluntarily surrender in a faith-based or other neutral setting
and seek favorable consideration from the courts.

���� 4.��� This act shall take
effect on the 90
th
day following enactment.

STATEMENT

���� This bill would require the
New Jersey Supreme Court to issue an order dismissing certain unresolved
charges, complaints, and arrest warrants filed with or issued by any municipal
court five years or more prior to the date of enactment of the bill.� The bill
would apply to disorderly persons offenses and petty disorderly persons
offenses.

���� In January 2019 the New Jersey
Supreme Court issued a similar order, dismissing over 700,000 unresolved
complaints and open warrants in minor municipal court matters that were more
than 15 years old (those dating from before January 1, 2003). In its order, the
Supreme Court noted that the existence of such old outstanding complaints and
open warrants in minor matters �raise questions of fairness, the appropriate
use of limited public resources by law enforcement and the courts, the ability
of the State to prosecute cases successfully in light of how long matters have
been pending and the availability of witnesses, and administrative
efficiency.���

���� In the view of the sponsor,
this bill is a necessary supplement to the 2019 New Jersey Supreme Court order,
which only focused on minor municipal matters. This bill would allow the court
system to remove a significant portion of its backlog by dismissing unresolved
complaints and arrest warrants for charges that do not reach the severity of
indictable offenses. The COVID-19 pandemic and the Public Health Emergency
currently in effect in New Jersey resulted in the closing of the court system
for months, and our courts have still not resumed full operations. It is the
view of the sponsor that, in this context, New Jersey must focus on minimizing
unnecessary contact and allowing individuals every opportunity to regain their
financial footing. Removing the possibility of being summoned into court or
arrested on an old warrant for a low-level offense will go a long way towards
allowing New Jerseyans, especially those from communities of color, a chance to
recover.

���� Specifically, the bill applies
to the following unresolved charges, complaints, and arrest warrants that are
at least five years old:

���� a.���� Petty disorderly
persons offenses, as defined in subsection b. of N.J.S.2C:1-4, including but
not limited to:

���� (1) Simple assault committed
in a fight or scuffle entered into by mutual consent, as set forth in
subsection a. of N.J.S.2C:12-1;

���� (2) Shoplifting if the value
of the merchandise is less than $200, as set forth in paragraph (4) of
subsection c. of N.J.S.2C:20-11;

���� (3) Disorderly conduct, as set
forth in N.J.S.2C:33-2; and

���� (4) Harassment, as set forth
in subsections a., b., or c. of N.J.S.2C:33-4; and

���� b.��� Disorderly persons
offenses, as defined in subsection b. of N.J.S.2C:1-4, including but not
limited to:

���� (1) Simple assault, other than
assault committed in a fight or scuffle entered into by mutual consent, as set
forth in subsection a. of N.J.S.2C:12-1;

���� (2) Lewdness, as set forth in
subsection a. of N.J.S.2C:14-14;

���� (3) Bad checks in an amount of
less than $200, as set forth in paragraph (4) of subsection c. of
N.J.S.2C:21-5;

���� (4) Obstructing the
administration of law or other governmental function other than by obstructing
the detection or investigation of a crime or the prosecution of a person for a
crime, as set forth in N.J.S.2C:29-1;

���� (5) Resisting arrest, as set
forth in paragraph (1) of subsection a. of N.J.S.2C:29-2;

���� (6) Disorderly conduct, as set
forth in N.J.S.2C:33-2;

���� (7) Use or possession with
intent to use drug paraphernalia, as set forth in N.J.S.2C:36-2; and������

���� (8) Possession of 50 grams or
less of marijuana, including any adulterants or dilutants, or five grams or
less of hashish, as set forth in paragraph (4) of subsection a. of
N.J.S.2C:35-10.

���� This bill would not apply to
any violations of municipal ordinances, providing deference to municipalities
to enforce their own laws and continue their collection of revenue.

���� In addition to the provisions
discussed above, the bill also provides that, within six months following the
effective date of the bill, the Administrative Office of the Courts would
submit two reports to the Legislature:

���� (1) A study to determine the
feasibility of expanding the municipal court conditional dismissal program set
forth in P.L.2013, c.158 (C.2C:43-13.1 et al.) and the conditional discharge
program set forth in N.J.S.2C:36A-1 to carry out the provisions of the bill in
dismissing� and recalling unresolved charges, complaints, and arrest warrants;
and

���� (2) A study to determine the
feasibility of an initiative similar to the federal �Fugitive Safe Surrender
Program,� whereby persons charged with non-violent criminal offenses are
encouraged to voluntarily surrender in a faith-based or other neutral setting
and seek favorable consideration from the courts.