New Jersey is one of over a dozen jurisdictions that ended requirements for criminal defendants to post cash bail to get out of jail. Since 2017, New Jersey has relied on a system that largely limits monetary bail and replaces it by linking detention to a defendant’s risk of flight or committing an offense while released as determined by a judge.
The state says the system is fairer to defendants because it is unrelated to their ability to pay monetary bail.
What does New Jersey’s 2017 bail reform law mean to you if you are jailed on suspicion of committing a crime? If you are arrested on criminal charges in New Jersey, under the new law, a decision of whether to release or hold a defendant should be made within 48 hours of arrest. It’s important to talk with a criminal defense lawyer about your rights and the pretrial release guidelines that you may face.
Our recommendation is that, upon being arrested, you should respectfully tell the police you would like to speak to an attorney before answering their questions and then remain silent. When allowed, you should contact the Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall. You need reliable legal representation. An experienced criminal defense attorney from our law firm can seek your release and defend you against the charges you face based on our years of experience in courthouses across New Jersey.
Background of New Jersey Bail Reform
Over the past half-century, most states have given judges the discretion to set bail if they believe the defendant poses a safety risk to the community, regardless of whether there is a flight risk. However, requiring people entering the criminal justice system to post bail money makes their release contingent on access to money or credit rather than public safety considerations.
Researchers at Drexel University and Boston University said in a study published in May 2024 in JAMA Network Open that New Jersey’s cash bail reform law successfully reduced the state’s jail population without increasing gun violence.
The Drexel University study says that before bail reform in New Jersey, 38% of the state’s jail population was held pretrial because they could not afford bail. Since New Jersey’s 2017 law virtually eliminated pretrial detention due to the inability to afford bail, the number of people detained pretrial has decreased. For example, 8,899 people were held pretrial at the end of 2015, but there were 4,976 people held pretrial in New Jersey county jails by the end of 2019, a 44% decrease.
Key Changes in New Jersey’s Bail Reform
The changes in New Jersey’s bail reform law are:
- Near elimination of cash bail.
- The use of a risk assessment tool by judges to evaluate a defendant’s risk of skipping court or committing a crime instead of the defendant’s ability to pay bail. The risk assessment tool considers factors such as age, type of offense, prior convictions, and prior failure to appear.
- Use of an objective numerical score of 1 to 6 is assigned to each defendant, which mainly determines whether they are detained.
- Consideration of community safety and other factors when a judge decides whether to detain or release someone.
Understanding the Risk Assessment Process
Each defendant is classified as low, moderate, or high risk based on the score derived from the risk assessment tool. A judge may release a defendant under conditions that do not include posting monetary bail. A prosecutor can recommend detention. Judges are allowed to reject detention but cannot detain someone without the recommendation of the prosecuting attorney.
Those determined to be dangerous are held without bail pending trial. Defendants will not be released if they score a 6 in the risk assessment or:
- The charge is murder or certain violent crimes that carry life imprisonment upon conviction
- The charge is a Graves Act offense, a crime committed while in possession of a firearm
- The charge is another violent crime or burglary, or escape, absconding from parole, or permitting or facilitating escape
- The defendant has previously been arrested on two separate occasions, and those charges were still pending at the time of the current offense.
If a defendant is released, the terms of their release are based on the severity of their charge and may be:
- Released on their recognizance (ROR)
- Pretrial Monitoring Level (PML) 1, once monthly phone reporting
- PML2, once monthly in-person and once monthly phone reporting
- PML3, one in-person and one phone contact every other week
- PML3+, electric monitoring, or home detention.
There are numerous stages to the criminal process in New Jersey. Our criminal defense lawyers at the Law Offices of Jonatha Marshall seek to get involved in criminal cases as soon as possible after an individual has been arrested. If engaged while you are in custody, your attorney can negotiate the conditions of release with the prosecutors and the court. The goal is to get you released on your own recognizance or obtain a release with as few reporting requirements as possible. Our criminal lawyers can also explore release to one of New Jersey’s pre-trial intervention programs for nonviolent first-time offenders.
Contact Our Criminal Defense Attorneys at The Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall for Help
Despite the advances attained with N.J. bail reform measures, being charged with a crime in New Jersey still puts your future at risk. You could lose your freedom and owe money for fines and court fees if convicted. Conviction of a criminal offense damages your prospects for employment or eligibility for certain government benefits. A defense attorney with the Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall can help you assert your rights and develop an effective defense strategy to seek the best possible outcome for you.
If you face criminal charges in New Jersey, an experienced defense lawyer attorney from the Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall is available to help you 24 hours a day by calling 877-534-7338 or by reaching out online. We offer a free consultation.
