Criminal Justice Process

The criminal justice process usually begins with a complaint. A complaint is an official court document signed by either a law enforcement officer or a citizen, accusing a person of committing a crime or offense. The person who signs this document is also called the complainant. The person accused of committing the crime is called the defendant.

A citizen who wishes to report that a crime or offense was committed, should contact the local police department in the town where the incident occurred. This may result in an investigation, a law enforcement officer filing a complaint, or an officer directing the complainant to the municipal court to begin the process of filing a citizen’s complaint.

The complaint states the reason for the charge and lists the specific offenses. Crimes, known as indictable offenses, are heard in the Superior Court. Offenses, or non-indictable charges, are usually handled at the municipal court.

Once a complaint is issued, a defendant is arrested and processed providing their whereabouts are known. A preliminary risk assessment known as a public safety assessment or PSA, is conducted and recommends that charges be placed either a warrant or a summons.  

Click Here for a Diagram of the Criminal Justice Process from Complaint to Detention or Release 

Summons: A summons-complaint directs the defendant to appear in court on a future date. The Defendant is not committed to the county jail, and no specific release conditions are set. The nature of the charges will determine whether the case is heard in the Municipal Court (non-indictable offenses) or the Superior Court (indictable crimes). Some hearings are still taking place virtually.

• For more information on cases listed in the Municipal Court: Municipal Court Information 
• For more information on cases listed in the Superior Court, Hamilton St., Paterson: (VW phone?)

Warrant: If a warrant-complaint is issued, the person accused (the defendant) is committed to the county jail and given the next available date for a hearing, known as central judicial processing or CJP.  These hearings are held six days a week (Monday – Saturday) with an occasional Sunday if a holiday falls on a Saturday, and typically occurs within 24 hours. A second, final risk assessment (public safety assessment/PSA), is conducted and recommends whether the defendant should be released or detained (remains in jail). An assistant prosecutor (attorney for the State) reviews the case and the PSA and determines whether to file a motion asking the Court to detain the defendant while the criminal case is pending.

• Motion to detain NOT filed: The Prosecutor’s Office can request release conditions such as a “No Victim Contact.” A judge decides whether to impose any conditions. The defendant is released with a notice to return to Court on a future date. Some hearings are still taking place virtually

•  Motion to detain FILED, a hearing is scheduled before a Superior Court Judge, typically within 3 days. The prosecutor and the defendant’s attorney will appear before a judge, who must decide whether to release the defendant with conditions or to detain the defendant while the criminal case is pending. For more information about this hearing, see the next section.

A detention motion hearing is a hearing before a Superior Court Judge. The prosecutor and the defendant’s attorney appear before a judge, who must decide whether to release the defendant with conditions or to detain the defendant (keep him/her in jail) while the criminal case is pending.

• If the Defendant is released, the Passaic County Jail staff will contact the victim to notify them of the release. The case will either be scheduled for a Pre-Indictment Conference (PIC) date or be referred to the Grand Jury.
• If the Defendant is detained: they will remain in jail while the case is pending. Speedy trial timelines apply to the case if the Defendant is detained. The case will then be referred to the  Grand Jury 

A Pre-Indictment Conference (PIC) is a scheduled date for the review of a case by an assistant prosecutor. PIC court operates Tuesday through Thursday, with Wednesday being reserved for domestic violence matters (link to DV) There are five possible outcomes from a PIC hearing which are as follow:

1. Case may be dismissed
2. Case may be downgraded and sent to the Municipal Court (Municipal Court Information )
3. Case may be referred to a Grand Jury 
4. Case may be resolved by Accusation or Pre-Trial Intervention 
5. The case may be adjourned

Every crime shall be prosecuted by way of indictment, which is the process where the Prosecutor brings the criminal charges to the Grand Jury panel of 23 citizens for the grand jurors to determine if there is probable cause (sufficient evidence) to charge the defendant formally.  This is the process that is utilized unless the defendant, after having been advised of the right to indictment, decides to waive that right, at which point the defendant may be tried by a document called an Accusation.  An accusation is a written document prepared by the Prosecutor that is presented to a Superior Court Judge during an Accusation Hearing.  The Accusation contains the specific charge or charges that the defendant will be pleading guilty to containing the date(s) that the crime(s) were committed with legal and factual information supporting each crime contained in the accusation.  The accusation includes a written waiver page that is signed by the defendant explaining that the defendant has chosen to forego his right to have the criminal charges presented to the Grand Jury and is opting to have the criminal matter proceed via an accusation.

Rule 3:7 - Indictment and Accusation, N.J. Ct. R. 3:7 

• NJ Courts Online: Pretrial Intervention Program (PTI) NJ Courts Online

The prosecutor’s duty before the Grand Jury is to fairly and impartially present evidence and explain the law that applies to a panel of 23 grand jurors, who are citizens that have been asked to serve jury duty. The purpose of the Grand Jury is to ensure that individuals will only be brought to trial if probable cause for the charge(s) against them exists, and those who are brought to trial will be informed of the charges against them.

The grand jurors hear the evidence presented and then vote whether they believe there is probable cause, or enough evidence, to formally charge the person with the crime (s) against them. This formal charge is called an indictment. The grand jurors do not decide guilt or innocence. This is the State’s side of the case and the State (Prosecution) must establish there is enough evidence that a crime was committed and the accused committed that crime. Each grand juror gets one vote, and a majority vote, twelve or more, is needed for an indictment. There are three possible outcomes of the Grand Jury vote which are:

1. No Bill: The grand jurors do not find probable cause and dismiss the charges. If this happens, the case is closed, and no further action is taken. If the Defendant has been detained (link to detention motion), they must be released from jail as soon as possible that day.
2. True Bill: The grand jurors find probable cause by a majority vote and return an indictment. The case will then be scheduled for a post-indictment arraignment conference (link). Depending on the type of crime for which the Defendant is indicted, the same prosecutor may continue to handle the case, or the case may be assigned to a different prosecutor w assigned to the trial unit.
3. Downgrade – Remand: The grand jurors find that probable cause exists for an offense that is handled out of the municipal court. The case is then remanded or sent to be handled by the municipal court in the town where the offense was committed.

Grand Jury proceedings are confidential. They are not open to the public or to victims and families. A Judge does not preside over the proceedings, though a Superior Court Judge must sign off on any indictment returned by the Grand Jury. The Defendant’s attorney is not present, and the Defendant is not required to testify. In a small percentage of cases, if invited by the prosecutor to testify, a defendant may choose to testify before the Grand Jury. If they do not testify, they are not present for the proceeding.

Post Indictment Arraignment: The first hearing, before a Superior Court Judge, after the grand jury returns an indictment. During this hearing, the Defendant is informed on the record of the charges the grand jury returned against them. The Judge will also ask the Defendant to enter an initial plea of guilty or not guilty. At this early stage of the process, the vast majority of Defendants will enter a not-guilty plea, as they have not yet had the chance to review all the discovery (documents pertaining to the case) and get the advice of their attorney about how to proceed.

Disposition Conferences (status conferences) and Review Hearings: These hearings are scheduled periodically to allow the Judge to keep track of the status of the case. The assistant prosecutor and the defense attorney give status updates to the Judge regarding any discussions about possibly resolving the case, called plea negotiations, and any other legal matters. The Judge may schedule future motions if necessary. If a Defendant chooses to accept a plea offer, and enter a guilty plea, this will happen at a disposition conference. Please notify the Office of Victim Witness Advocacy if you would like to be informed of any plea offers (link to contact) 

Motions:
 Motions can be testimonial (include witnesses that testify) or non-testimonial. A motion is filed by either the assistant prosecutor or defense attorney to ask the Judge to rule on (make a decision about) a legal or factual issue related to the case. Typically, each attorney will have to first submit a document to the Judge, called a brief. The attorney filing the motion will submit a brief outlining what issue(s) they wish the Judge to consider, and the legal arguments supporting their request. The opposing attorney will then file a response. The Judge will give the attorneys a timeline (briefing schedule) as to when these briefs must be submitted to the Court. The Judge will typically then schedule a hearing, in open court, for the attorneys to argue their position (oral arguments) before the Judge makes his or her ruling. Sometimes the Judge will issue their ruling on the same day as the oral arguments while other times they set a future hearing date to give their decision.

Most criminal cases are resolved with a negotiated plea agreement however, some cases will need to be resolved at a trial. Defendants charged with an indictable offense have a constitutional right to a trial by jury. This means it is the defendant’s right to choose to go to trial or enter a guilty plea. The role of the jury in a trial is to listen to the evidence presented by the assistant prosecutor and the defense attorney and to decide the guilt or innocence of the defendant (return a verdict). The jury’s decision must be unanimous. A hung jury is the term used when a jury is unable to make a unanimous decision. If this happens, the Judge will declare a mistrial and excuse those jurors. The role of the judge is to oversee the trial to ensure all court rules are followed and there are no legal mistakes. All trials for indictable offenses in Passaic County are held at the Superior Court at 77 Hamilton Street in Paterson.

Once the case is scheduled for a trial, it is typical that the initial court date will be changed several times. This happens because the Court schedules several trials to begin the same day knowing that some cases may resolve with a plea agreement and some cases may not be ready for trial on the assigned date. To confirm a trial date, you can contact the Office of Victim Witness Advocacy at 973-881-4887.

Any criminal case can resolve with a plea agreement, (aka plea bargain or plea deal). In fact, most criminal cases resolve this way. This is an agreement made between the prosecutor and the defense attorney, for the defendant to enter a guilty plea to agreed-upon charges. If a case resolves this way, there is no longer a need for a jury trial to determine if the defendant is guilty or not guilty, because the defendant is admitting guilt.

While crime survivors do not have the authority to decide whether a case will resolve with a plea agreement or what the terms of the agreement are, you do have the right to be informed of the agreement and give input to the prosecutor. You have the right to have the terms of the plea agreement explained to you.

Plea Hearing: If a case resolves with a plea agreement, there will be a hearing before a Superior Court Judge. At this hearing, the Defendant must enter his or her guilty plea on the record in open court by giving what is called a factual basis. You have the right to attend this hearing if you choose, but you are not required to do so. 

Once a defendant has been found guilty at trial or, has pleaded guilty before a Superior Court Judge instead of proceeding to trial, the case will be scheduled for a sentencing hearing.  Prior to the sentencing hearing, court staff will conduct a presentence investigation and prepare a report containing, in part, the original charges, the charge(s) to which the defendant plead guilty, prior criminal history of the defendant, and statements from the victim or victim’s family/survivors. The presentence report is reviewed by the Judge who is sentencing the defendant, the Prosecutor, and Defendant in consultation with their Defense Attorney. 

Before imposing the sentence, the Judge shall ask if the defendant wishes to speak on his/her own behalf. Pursuant to the Crime Victims' Bill of Rights N.J.S.A. 52:4B 34-38, the crime victim and victim’s family or survivors may speak at sentencing. 

Prior to the Judge imposing sentence, they will provide their rationale for imposing the specific sentence, including an explanation of aggravating and mitigating factors that were considered in arriving at the specific sentence.