Clarifies that "Prevention of Domestic Violence Act of 1991" covers elder abuse in domestic settings.

A4217

ASSEMBLY, No. 4217

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 19, 2026

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman� CAROL A. MURPHY

District 7 (Burlington)

SYNOPSIS

���� Clarifies that �Prevention of Domestic Violence Act
of 1991� covers elder abuse in domestic settings.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act

concerning domestic violence against the
elderly, and amending P.L.1991, c.261.

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

���� 1.��� Section 2 of P.L.1991,
c.261 (C.2C:25-18) is amended to read as follows:

���� 2.��� The Legislature finds
and declares that domestic violence is a serious crime against society; that
there are thousands of persons in this State who are regularly beaten, tortured
and in some cases even killed by their spouses or

cohabitants; that a significant number of women who are assaulted are
pregnant; that victims of domestic violence come from all social and economic
backgrounds and ethnic groups; that there is a positive correlation between
spousal abuse and child abuse; and that children, even when they are not
themselves physically assaulted, suffer deep and lasting emotional effects from
exposure to domestic violence. It is therefore, the intent of the Legislature
to assure the victims of domestic violence the maximum protection from abuse
the law can provide.

���� The Legislature further finds
and declares that the health and welfare of some of its most vulnerable
citizens, the elderly and disabled, are at risk because of incidents of
reported and unreported domestic violence, abuse and neglect which are known to
include acts which victimize the elderly and disabled emotionally,
psychologically, physically and financially; because of age, disabilities or
infirmities, this group of citizens frequently must rely on the aid and support
of others; while the institutionalized elderly are protected under P.L.1977,
c.239 (C.52:27G-1 et seq.), elderly and disabled adults in noninstitutionalized
,

or
private residential or other
community settings may find themselves
victimized by family members or others
,
upon whom
in many cases

they feel compelled to depend.

���� The Legislature further finds
and declares that
emotional, psychological, and physical
violence
against the elderly and disabled, including criminal neglect of the elderly and
disabled under section 1 of P.L.1989, c.23 (C.2C:24-8), must be recognized and
addressed on an equal basis as violence against spouses and children in order
to fulfill our responsibility as a society to protect those who are less able
to protect themselves.

���� The Legislature further finds
and declares that even though many of the existing criminal statutes are
applicable to acts of domestic violence, previous societal attitudes concerning
domestic violence have affected the response of our law enforcement and
judicial systems, resulting in these acts receiving different treatment from
similar crimes when they occur in a domestic context. The Legislature finds
that battered adults presently experience substantial difficulty in gaining
access to protection from the judicial system, particularly due to that
system's inability to generate a prompt response in an emergency situation.

���� It is the intent of the
Legislature to stress that the primary duty of a law enforcement officer when
responding to a domestic violence call is to enforce the laws allegedly
violated and to protect the victim. Further, it is the responsibility of the
courts to protect victims of violence that occurs in a family or family-like
setting by providing access to both emergent and long-term civil and criminal
remedies and sanctions, and by ordering those remedies and sanctions that are
available to assure the safety of the victims and the public.� To that end, the
Legislature encourages the training of all police and judicial personnel in the
procedures and enforcement of this act, and about the social and psychological
context in which domestic violence occurs; and it further encourages the broad
application of the remedies available under this act in the civil and criminal
courts of this State.� It is further intended that the official response to
domestic violence shall communicate the attitude that violent behavior will not
be excused or tolerated, and shall make clear the fact that the existing
criminal laws and civil remedies created under this act will be enforced
without regard to the fact that the violence grows out of a domestic situation.

(cf: P.L.1991, c.261, s.2)

���� 2.��� Section 3 of P.L.1991,
c.261 (C.2C:25-19) is amended to read as follows:

���� 3.��� As used in this act:

���� a.���� �Domestic violence�
means the occurrence of one or more of the following acts inflicted upon a
person protected under this act by an adult or an emancipated minor:�

���� (1)�� Homicide���
N.J.S.2C:11-1 et seq.

���� (2)�� Assault��� N.J.S.2C:12-1

���� (3)�� Terroristic threats�
N.J.S.2C:12-3

���� (4)�� Kidnapping���
N.J.S.2C:13-1

���� (5)�� Criminal restraint���
N.J.S.2C:13-2

���� (6)�� False imprisonment���
N.J.S.2C:13-3

���� (7)�� Sexual assault���
N.J.S.2C:14-2

���� (8)�� Criminal sexual contact�
N.J.S.2C:14-3

���� (9)�� Lewdness���
N.J.S.2C:14-4

���� (10)��� Criminal mischief���
N.J.S.2C:17-3

���� (11)��� Burglary���
N.J.S.2C:18-2

���� (12)��� Criminal trespass���
N.J.S.2C:18-3

���� (13)��� Harassment���
N.J.S.2C:33-4

���� (14)��� Stalking��� P.L.1992,
c.209 (C.2C:12-10)

���� (15)��� Criminal coercion���
N.J.S.2C:13-5

���� (16)��� Robbery���
N.J.S.2C:15-1

���� (17)��� Contempt of a domestic
violence order pursuant to subsection b. of N.J.S.2C:29-9 that constitutes a
crime or disorderly persons offense

���� (18)��� Any other crime
involving risk of death or serious bodily injury to a person protected under
the �Prevention of Domestic Violence Act of 1991,� P.L.1991, c.261 (C.2C:25-17
et al.)

���� (19)��� Cyber-harassment
P.L.2013, c.272 (C.2C:33-4.1)

���� When one or more of these acts
is inflicted by an unemancipated minor upon a person protected under this act,
the occurrence shall not constitute �domestic violence,� but may be the basis
for the filing of a petition or complaint pursuant to the provisions of section
11 of P.L.1982, c.77 (C.2A:4A-30).

���� b.��� �Law enforcement agency�
means a department, division, bureau, commission, board or other authority of
the State or of any political subdivision thereof which employs law enforcement
officers.

���� c.���� �Law enforcement
officer� means a person whose public duties include the power to act as an
officer for the detection, apprehension, arrest and conviction of offenders
against the laws of this State.

���� d.��� �Victim of domestic
violence� means a person protected under this act and shall include any person
who is 18 years of age or older
, including an elderly person other than an
institutionalized elderly person subject to protections under P.L.1977, c.239
(C.52:27G-1 et seq.),
or
any person
who is an emancipated minor
,

and who has been subjected to domestic violence by a spouse, former spouse, or
any other person who is a present household member or was at any time a
household member. �Victim of domestic violence� also includes any person,
regardless of age, who has been subjected to domestic violence by a person with
whom the victim has a child in common, or with whom the victim anticipates
having a child in common, if one of the parties is pregnant.� �Victim of
domestic violence� also includes any person who has been subjected to domestic
violence by a person with whom the victim has had a dating relationship.

���� e.���� �Emancipated minor�
means a person who is under 18 years of age but who has been married, has
entered military service, has a child or is pregnant or has been previously
declared by a court or an administrative agency to be emancipated.

(cf: P.L.2016, c.77, s.1)

���� 3.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.

STATEMENT

���� This bill clarifies that the
�Prevention of Domestic Violence Act of 1991,� P.L.1991, c.261 (C.2C:25-17 et
al.), covers various forms of physical and non-physical elder abuse in domestic
settings.� Although the existing findings and declarations to the act reference
the Legislature�s intention of addressing elder abuse (and abuse against
disabled persons) �on an equal basis as violence against spouses and children,�
the bill updates the findings and declarations to expressly reference elder
abuse by current or former household members in its many possible forms; that
is, all such �emotional, psychological, and physical [domestic] violence�
against the elderly.� It also updates the existing definition of �victim of
domestic violence� under the act, which currently covers �any person who is 18
years of age or older,� to expressly include a reference to an elderly person
in a domestic setting, who is not otherwise protected pursuant to P.L.1977,
c.239 (C.52:27G-1 et seq.) as an institutionalized elderly person in a public
or private facility or institution.