ASSEMBLY, No. 1383
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 1996 SESSION
By Assemblymen STEELE and PASCRELL
An Act concerning certain interlocal agreements and supplementing Title 40 and Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the governing bodies of any two adjoining municipalities may enter into a joint contract for the arrest and prosecution of any person violating section 2 of P.L. c, (C. )(now pending before the Legislature as section 2 of this bill). Such contract shall be entered into in accordance with the procedures set forth for the entering into of joint service contracts in the "Interlocal Services Act," P.L. 1973, c. 208 (C.40:8A-1 et seq.) and shall include a provision which stipulates that any arrest resulting from a violation of section 2 of P.L. c, (C. )(now pending before the Legislature as section 2 of this bill) may be processed in the police department of either participating municipality.
2. a. Any person who distributes, dispenses, purchases or possesses with intent to distribute or dispense a controlled dangerous substance or controlled substance analog while on any area or areas within 1,000 feet from a participating municipality's boundary is guilty of a crime of the second degree, except that it is a crime of the third degree if the violation involved less than one ounce of marijuana.
b. Notwithstanding the provisions of N.J.S. 2C:1-8 or any other provisions of law, a conviction arising under this section shall not merge with a conviction for a violation of subsection a. of N.J.S.2C:35-5 (manufacturing, distributing or dispensing) or N.J.S. 2C:35-6 (employing a juvenile in a drug distribution scheme).
c. It shall be no defense to a prosecution for a violation of this section that the actor was unaware that the prohibited conduct took place while on or within 1,000 feet from a participating municipality's boundary.
d. It is an affirmative defense to prosecution for a violation of this section that the prohibited conduct did not involve distributing, dispensing, purchasing or possessing with the intent to distribute or dispense any controlled dangerous substance or controlled substance analog for profit and that the prohibited conduct did not involve distribution to a person 17 years of age or younger. The affirmative defense established in this section shall be proved by the defendant by a preponderance of the evidence. Nothing herein shall be construed to establish an affirmative defense with respect to a prosecution for an offense defined in any other section of this chapter.
e. In a prosecution under this section, a map produced or reproduced by any municipal engineer for the purpose of depicting the location and boundaries of the area 1,000 feet from a municipality's boundary, or a true copy of such a map, shall, upon proper authentication, be admissible and shall constitute prima facie evidence of the location and boundaries of those areas, provided that the governing body of the municipality has adopted a resolution or ordinance approving the map as official finding and record of the location and boundaries of the area or areas 1,000 feet from a municipality's boundary.
Any map approved pursuant to this section may be changed from time to time by the governing body of the municipality. The original of every map approved or revised pursuant to this section, or a true copy thereof, shall be filed with the clerk of the municipality or county, and shall be maintained as an official record of the municipality. Nothing in this section shall be construed to preclude the prosecution from introducing or relying upon any other evidence or testimony to establish any element of this offense; nor shall this section be construed to preclude the use or admissibility of any map or diagram other than one which has been approved by the governing body of a municipality, provided that the map or diagram is otherwise admissible pursuant to the Rules of Evidence.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
The bill authorizes the governing bodies of any two municipalities to enter into a joint contract to establish procedures for the arrest and prosecution of any person who is arrested while on any area or areas within 1,000 feet from a participating municipality's boundary involved in the trafficking of illegal drugs. The joint contract would be in accordance with the procedures set forth for the entering into of joint service contracts in N.J.S.A.40:8A-4,"The Interlocal Services Act," and would include a provision which would stipulate that the arrest may be processed in either participating municipality.
This bill would also make it a crime of the second degree for any person to distribute, dispense, purchase or possess a controlled dangerous substances or controlled substance analogs while on any area or areas within 1,000 feet from a municipality's boundary, except that if the violation in the same location involves less than one ounce of marijuana, the offense is classified as a crime of the third degree.
The bill further provides that it is no defense to a charge of trafficking within this designated area if the person was unaware that the prohibited conduct took place on or within 1,000 feet of a municipality's boundary. In addition, the bill provides that a prosecution for trafficking on or within 1,000 feet of a municipality's boundary does not preclude a person from being prosecuted for any other drug-related criminal offense.
The bill also provides that it is an affirmative defense to prosecution if the defendant proves the distribution was not for profit and that the distribution did not involve a juvenile.
It's the sponsor's intent to deter the spread of drug activity.
Authorizes municipalities to enter into certain interlocal agreements; upgrades some drug offenses within 1,000 feet from certain municipal boundaries.