Sponsored by:
Assemblyman REED GUSCIORA
District 15 (Mercer)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman Greenstein
SYNOPSIS
Directs AG to develop mandatory guidelines for municipal prosecutors.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning municipal prosecutors 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 Legislature finds and declares that municipal prosecutors are an essential component of the State’s system for the administration of justice. However, in some municipalities, municipal prosecutors are not provided with sufficient staff and funding to effectively carry out their important role. Therefore, it is necessary that certain minimum standards for municipal prosecutor offices be established to ensure the uniform and proper administration of justice throughout the State.
2. The Attorney General shall develop and implement guidelines for municipal prosecutor offices. The guidelines shall specify:
a. Maximum allowable court room hours for prosecutors,
b. Maximum caseloads for prosecutors,
c. Minimum funding requirements for municipal prosecutor offices, and
d. Minimum requirements for support personnel.
3. Each municipal prosecutor office shall adhere to the guidelines promulgated by the Attorney General pursuant to section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill). If exceptional circumstances demand deviation from the guidelines, a municipal prosecutor office may apply to the Attorney General to waive one or more of the guidelines. The Attorney General may grant the application for a waiver, provided that granting the waiver would not significantly undermine the purposes of this act as enumerated in section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill). The Attorney General’s decision whether to grant a waiver from the guidelines is final.
4. This act shall take effect immediately, and the guidelines required by this act shall take effect on or before the first day of the 12th month following enactment.
STATEMENT
The bill directs the Attorney General to establish minimum guidelines for municipal prosecutor offices to ensure the uniform and proper administration of justice throughout the State. The guidelines shall specify maximum allowable court room hours for prosecutors, maximum caseloads for prosecutors, minimum funding requirements for municipal prosecutor offices, and minimum requirements for support personnel. The guidelines would be mandatory for all municipal prosecutor offices, but a municipal prosecutor office may apply to the Attorney General for a waiver to one or more of the guidelines in exceptional circumstances. Under the provisions of the bill, the Attorney General would have discretion whether to grant the application for a waiver.
The bill would require the guidelines to go into effect on or before the first day of the 12th month following enactment.