Law to expand penalties for assaulting NJ law enforcement officers heads to Murphy’s desk
Legislation that would increase penalties for assaulting New Jersey police officers is headed to the governor’s desk after unanimously passing the Assembly.
After approval by the full state Senate in June, the bill — sponsored in the lower chamber by Assembly members Bill Spearman, Alex Sauickie and Wayne DeAngelo and in the upper chamber by state Sens. Vin Gopal and Linda Greenstein — was heard by committee in the Assembly for the first time in September.
Gopal said New Jersey state troopers had been contacting him because of concerns they have about law enforcement officers facing an “increase in bodily fluids” in various encounters. Officers said they are increasingly being spat on, Gopal reported, and that corrections officers in New Jersey prisons are often targeted with urine and thrown feces.
Trenton, NJ — September 26, 2024 — Senator Vin Gopal during the interview for John Jay Hoffman before he was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee to fill the vacancy on the state Supreme Court.
“We worked out something with the state Public Defender’s Office to try to get them in a good place,” he said. “This should be a good compromise bill that hopefully will try to be a deterrent a little bit and give police officers a little bit more recourse if somebody throws urine or spits at them.”
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What will the legislation do?
The bill makes it a second-degree crime to assault a law enforcement officer if the assault results in serious bodily injury to the officer. The person charged would not be eligible to apply for a pretrial intervention program and a conviction can’t be merged with other criminal offenses.
The law also increases the penalty for assault with bodily fluids on a law enforcement officer, paid or volunteer firefighter, court service officer, or person engaged in emergency first aid or medical services who suffers serious bodily injury.
Anyone charged with assault with a bodily fluid would have to provide a sample to be tested for communicable diseases. Any positive results for a communicable disease will be shared with the assault victim.
Serious bodily injury is defined as “bodily injury which creates a substantial risk of death or which causes serious, permanent disfigurement, or protracted loss or impairment of the function of any bodily member or organ.”
A crime of the second degree is punishable by five to 10 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $150,000, or both.
Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. Email: [email protected]
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ police assault penalties law heads to Phil Murphy desk
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