Can My Sentence be Made Harsher After-the-Fact?

March 28, 2017

(16-04-1150 ) State v. Hester, App. Div. (Decided March 23, 2017) Submitted by New Jersey Criminal Defense Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark. 4 cases were recently consolidated for review by New Jersey Appellate Division. In each of the matters, an issue arose of whether it was a violation of the Ex Post Facto Clause of New Jersey’s…

What is the Standard for Appellate Review for a Court’s Decision to Detain Me Before Trial?

March 28, 2017

Submitted by New Jersey Criminal Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark The statute explicitly confers upon defendants a right to appeal an order of pretrial detention “pursuant to the Rules of Court” N.J.S.A. 2A:162-18(c) and “shall be heard in an expedited manner.” An appellate court “may find an abuse of discretion when a decision ‘rest[s] on an impermissible…

What is the New Assessment Process for Pretrial Detention?

March 24, 2017

Submitted by New Jersey Criminal Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark The new Bail Reform Act (the “Act”), which has been in effect since January 1, 2017, is now being analyzed by New Jersey Courts. Part of the Act is the new automated risk-assessment process in deciding whether pretrial detention is appropriate.  The automated process gathers information about…

What Does the Prosecutor have to Prove for Pretrial Detention?

March 23, 2017

Submitted by New Jersey Criminal Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark The new system in the Bail Reform Act favors pretrial release and monitoring as the presumptive approach and limits preventive detention to defendants who actually warrant it.  Nonetheless, the trial court remains authorized, upon motion of a prosecutor, to order pretrial detention of a particular defendant when…

Pretrial Detention Risk Assessment and Juvenile Records

March 22, 2017

14-2-2812 State v. C.W., N.J. Super. App. Div. (Sabatino, P.J.A.D.) (50pp) Submitted by New Jersey Criminal Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark A case was recently decided by New Jersey Appellate Division in which several issues under the new Bail Reform Act (the “Act”) were reviewed for the first time. Factual Circumstances In the case, a nineteen year…

Can My Juvenile Record be Used as a Risk-Assessment for Pretrial Detention?

March 22, 2017

Submitted by New Jersey Criminal Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark A defendant’s juvenile record is not considered as part of the new automated risk-assessment as part of the Bail Reform Act (the “Act”). However, Section 20 of the Act broadly authorizes the trial court to consider a defendant’s “past conduct” as one of the many permissible factors…

Can My DNA be Taken in Jail While I Await Trial?

March 22, 2017

14-2-2814 State v. Gathers, N.J. Super. App. Div. (Fisher, P.J.A.D.) (13pp) Submitted by New Jersey Criminal Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark. A case was recently decided by New Jersey Appellate Division in which the Court ruled a buccal (mouth) swab, taken from a defendant while he awaited trial, was unreasonable. In this case, the defendant was charged with second-degree…

Town Car flees scene of Route 80 accident

March 21, 2017

Submitted by New Jersey Criminal Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark. A Lincoln Town Car fled the scene of a three-vehicle accident Sunday night on Route 80 in Mount Arlington, according to a New Jersey State Police report. No details were available Monday afternoon regarding the circumstances of the accident, which also involved a Nissan Sentra and a…

How can I get into PTI after the Prosecutor objects or denies my participation into PTI

March 14, 2017

I want to get into PTI (Pretrial Intervention) because my criminal charge is for a 3rd or 4th degree offense.  Why is the prosecutor objecting and not letting me in?  What can I do? Submitted by New Jersey Criminal Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark. In this case a government employee, defendant Morgan who was a school district…

Police: Intoxicated driver charged in crash that killed woman, injured her brother at bus stop in Verona

March 10, 2017

Submitted by New Jersey Criminal Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark. VERONA, New Jersey (WABC) — A New Jersey man is facing charges after a crash at a bus stop that killed a woman and injured her brother. The Essex County Prosecutor’s Office charged Anthony Casale Jr., 25, of Belleville, with first degree death by auto in connection…

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