Bill Text: NJ A2090 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes "Fairness in Asset Forfeiture Proceedings Task Force."
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-14 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Law and Public Safety Committee [A2090 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-A2090-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
219th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2020 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman LISA SWAIN
District 38 (Bergen and Passaic)
Assemblyman NICHOLAS CHIARAVALLOTI
District 31 (Hudson)
Assemblywoman NANCY J. PINKIN
District 18 (Middlesex)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblyman Wimberly and Assemblywoman Sumter
SYNOPSIS
Establishes "Fairness in Asset Forfeiture Proceedings Task Force."
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act establishing a task force concerning the need for representation in asset forfeiture proceedings.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. There is established the "Fairness in Asset Forfeiture Proceedings Task Force" to study the right to legal representation in asset forfeiture proceedings; the nature, extent, and consequences of the lack of legal representation; and methods to obtain funding for or secure pro bono legal representation and services for certain State residents in asset forfeiture proceedings.
b. The purpose of the task force is to examine, on a Statewide basis, the impact that the lack of access to legal counsel in asset forfeiture proceedings has on the ability of State residents to be protected from the potentially devastating consequences that can result from the seizure of property.
2. a. The task force shall be comprised of 14 members, as follows:
(1) two public members appointed by the Governor, one of whom shall be a representative of a pro bono program organized by a law firm located in the State, and one of whom shall be a State resident who has been a pro se litigant who has appeared as a defendant in an asset forfeiture proceeding in the State;
(2) two public members appointed by the President of the Senate, one of whom shall be the representative of a non-profit organization dedicated to the services and assistance of defendants in civil asset forfeiture proceedings and one of whom shall be a duly licensed attorney of this State;
(3) two public members appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly, one of whom shall be a director of a legal clinic program of a law school located in the State and one of whom shall be a State resident who has been a pro se litigant who had an ownership interest in seized property but was not a criminal defendant who was prosecuted in connection with the seizure of property in a civil asset forfeiture proceeding in the New Jersey State courts;
(4) one member appointed by the Chief Justice, who shall be a retired judge of the Superior Court who had been assigned to the Civil Division;
(5) the Administrative Director of the Courts, or the administrator's designee;
(6) the Public Defender, or the Public Defender's designee, who shall serve ex officio;
(7) the Attorney General, or the Attorney General's designee, who shall serve ex officio;
(8) the dean of Seton Hall University School of Law, or the dean's designee;
(9) the co-dean of Rutgers Law School, Newark Campus, or the co-dean's designee;
(10) the co-dean of Rutgers Law School, Camden Campus, or the co-dean's designee; and
(11) the Executive Director of Legal Services of New Jersey, or the executive director's designee.
b. The task force shall organize as soon after the appointment of its members as is practicable and may meet and hold hearings at the places it designates during the sessions or recesses of the Legislature. The task force shall meet at the call of the co-chairs, and the presence of eight members of the task force shall constitute a quorum at any meeting of the task force.
3. The task force shall be co-chaired as follows: one co-chair shall be the Attorney General, or the Attorney General's designee, and the other co-chair shall be appointed by the Governor from among the public members and shall serve at the pleasure of the Governor. The co-chairs shall appoint a secretary who need not be a member of the task force.
4. Vacancies in the membership of the task force shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments were made. The members of the task force shall serve without compensation, but shall be eligible for reimbursement for necessary and reasonable expenses incurred in the performance of their official duties within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available to the task force for its purposes.
5. The Attorney General's Office shall provide staff and related support services as the task force requires to carry out its work.
6. The task force shall be entitled to call to its assistance and avail itself of the services of the employees of any State, county, or municipal department, board, bureau, commission, or agency as it may require and as may be available to it for its purposes, and to incur such traveling and other miscellaneous expenses as it may deem necessary for the proper execution of its duties and as may be within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available to it for these purposes.
7. The task force shall present a report of its findings and recommendations to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), to the Legislature no later than 18 months after the organization of the task force. The recommendations shall include mechanisms to:
a. secure access to justice and legal representation in civil asset forfeiture proceedings by providing funding for and increasing the availability of legal assistance with civil asset forfeiture matters throughout the State;
b. institute a review of New Jersey's Rules of Professional Conduct and Unauthorized Practice of Law rules with the purpose of identifying revisions that expand the ability of law students to provide pro bono assistance to persons of limited means; and
c. increase the availability of pro bono representation and services by the State's legal community.
8. The task force shall dissolve three months after presenting the report.
9. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill establishes the "Fairness in Asset Forfeiture Proceedings Task Force" for the purpose of studying the right to legal representation in asset forfeiture proceedings; the nature, extent, and consequences of the lack of legal representation; and methods to obtain funding for or secure pro bono legal representation and services for certain State residents in asset forfeiture proceedings.
A civil asset forfeiture proceeding is an action by the government seeking ownership of personal property either used as an instrumentality of a crime or which represents the proceeds of criminal activity. New Jersey allows the practice of asset forfeiture when law enforcement officers can meet the "preponderance of evidence" standard that property was used in the commission of a crime. Forfeited proceeds are required to be used solely for law enforcement purposes and are required to be designated for the exclusive use of the law enforcement agency that contributed to the surveillance, investigation, arrest, or prosecution resulting in the forfeiture.
Certain civil liberty groups have criticized civil asset forfeiture as a means for law enforcement entities to obtain an individual's personal property for the purpose of funding law enforcement initiatives. Many citizens are either unaware of their right to oppose a civil asset forfeiture or do not have the financial wherewithal to do so.
According to a recent American Civil Liberties Union-New Jersey (ACLU) report, between January and June of 2016, there were approximately 1,860 civil forfeiture cases initiated by county prosecutors in the State, mostly in low-income areas. These cases involved more than $5.5 million, 234 cars, and a home. Of these 1,860 cases, the defendants in only 50 of them appeared in court to oppose the forfeiture. The ACLU report further notes that public defenders are prohibited from representing defendants in civil matters and most legal services providers in this State do not offer assistance to defendants in civil asset forfeiture matters.
The 14-member task force would submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Governor and Legislature within 18 months of its organization.
The membership of the task force would be as follows:
(1) two public members appointed by the Governor; one is to be a representative of a pro bono program organized by a law firm located in the State, and the other is to be a State resident who has been a pro se litigant appearing as a defendant in an asset forfeiture proceeding in the State;
(2) two public members appointed by the President of the Senate; one is to be the representative of a non-profit organization dedicated to the services and assistance of defendants in civil asset forfeiture proceedings and the other is to be a duly licensed attorney of this State;
(3) two public members appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly, one is to be a director of a legal clinic program of a law school located in the State and one is to be a State resident who has been a pro se litigant with an ownership interest in seized property but was not a criminal defendant who was being prosecuted in connection with the seizure of property in a civil asset forfeiture proceeding in New Jersey State courts;
(4) one member appointed by the Chief Justice, who is required to be a retired judge of the Superior Court who had been assigned to the Civil Division;
(5) the Administrative Director of the Courts or a designee;
(6) the Public Defender, or the Public Defender's designee, who is to serve ex officio;
(7) the Attorney General, or the Attorney General's designee, who is to serve ex officio;
(8) the dean of Seton Hall University School of Law, or the dean's designee;
(9) the co-dean of Rutgers Law School, Newark Campus, or the co-dean's designee;
(10) the co-dean of Rutgers Law School, Camden Campus, or the co-dean's designee; and
(11) the Executive Director of Legal Services of New Jersey, or the executive director's designee.
The task force is to be co-chaired: one co-chair is the Attorney General, or the Attorney General's designee, and the other co-chair is to be appointed by the Governor from among the public members and would serve at the pleasure of the Governor.
The task force may meet and hold hearings at the places it designates during the sessions or recesses of the Legislature. The task force would meet at the call of the co-chairs. The presence of eight members of the task force would constitute a quorum at any task force meeting.
