SENATE, No. 1608

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

INTRODUCED OCTOBER 24, 1996

By Senators CAFIERO and KOSCO

An Act concerning the giving of false information to law enforcement officials and amending N.J.S.2C:29-3.

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

    1. N.J.S.2C:29-3 is amended to read as follows:

    2C:29-3. Hindering apprehension or prosecution.

    a. A person commits an offense if, with purpose to hinder the detention, apprehension, investigation, prosecution, conviction or punishment of another for an offense he:

    (1) Harbors or conceals the other;

    (2) Provides or aids in providing a weapon, money, transportation, disguise or other means of avoiding discovery or apprehension or effecting escape;

    (3) Suppresses, by way of concealment or destruction, any evidence of the crime, or tampers with a witness, informant, document or other source of information, regardless of its admissibility in evidence, which might aid in the discovery or apprehension of such person or in the lodging of a charge against him;

    (4) Warns the other of impending discovery or apprehension, except that this paragraph does not apply to a warning given in connection with an effort to bring another into compliance with law;

    (5) Prevents or obstructs, by means of force, intimidation or deception, anyone from performing an act which might aid in the discovery or apprehension of such person or in the lodging of a charge against him;

    (6) Aids such person to protect or expeditiously profit from an advantage derived from such crime; or

    (7) [Volunteers]Gives false information to a law enforcement officer.

    The offense is a crime of the third degree if the conduct which the actor knows has been charged or is liable to be charged against the person aided would constitute a crime of the second degree or greater, unless the actor is a spouse, parent or child of the person aided, in which case the offense is a crime of the fourth degree. The offense is a crime of the fourth degree if such conduct would constitute a crime of the third degree. Otherwise it is a disorderly persons offense.

    b. A person commits an offense if, with purpose to hinder his own detention, apprehension, investigation, prosecution, conviction or punishment, he:

    (1) Suppresses, by way of concealment or destruction, any evidence of the crime or tampers with a document or other source of information, regardless of its admissibility in evidence, which might aid in his discovery or apprehension or in the lodging of a charge against him; or

    (2) Prevents or obstructs by means of force or intimidation anyone from performing an act which might aid in his discovery or apprehension or in the lodging of a charge against him; or

    (3) Prevents or obstructs by means of force, intimidation or deception any witness or informant from providing testimony or information, regardless of its admissibility, which might aid in his discovery or apprehension or in the lodging of a charge against him; or

    (4) [Volunteers]Gives false information to a law enforcement officer.

    The offense is a crime of the third degree if the conduct which the actor knows has been charged or is liable to be charged against him would constitute a crime of the second degree or greater. The offense is a crime of the fourth degree if such conduct would constitute a crime of the third degree. Otherwise it is a disorderly persons offense.

(cf: P.L.1981, c.290, s.29)

    2. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

    N.J.S.2C:39-3 criminalizes acts which hinder the apprehension and prosecution of persons in criminal cases. This bill substitutes the word "gives" for the word "volunteers" in both subsection a. of 2C:39-3 which deals with false information for the purpose of hindering the apprehension of another and subsection b. of 2C:39-3 which deals with false information for the purpose of hindering one's own apprehension. State v. Valentin, 105 N.J. 14 (1987), our Supreme Court ruled that the word "volunteers" as used in 2C:39-3 covers only statements which are made in response to an inquiry by a law enforcement officer.

Clarifies that the crime of hindering a prosecution includes the giving of false information to law enforcement officers.