ASSEMBLY, No. 5700

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

221st LEGISLATURE

 

INTRODUCED MAY 22, 2025

 

 

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman  ANNETTE QUIJANO

District 20 (Union)

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     Clarifies court procedure for considering expungement applications when no objections are filed.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As introduced.

  

An Act concerning expungements, and amending P.L.2019, c.269.

 

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

 

     1. Section 11 of P.L.2019, c.269 (C.2C:52-10.1) is amended to read as follows:

     11. a. (1) No later than twelve months after the effective date of this section, the Administrative Office of the Courts shall develop and maintain a system for petitioners to electronically file expungement applications pursuant to N.J.S.2C:52-1 et seq.  The e-filing system shall be available Statewide and include electronic filing, electronic service of process, and electronic document management.

     (2)   The system shall, in accordance with N.J.S.2C:52-10, electronically notify and serve copies of the petition and all supporting documents upon the Superintendent of State Police, the Attorney General, and each county prosecutor as described in that section.

     (3)   The system shall electronically compile a listing of all possibly relevant Judiciary records for an expungement petitioner and transmit this information to all parties served with copies of the petition and all supporting documents in accordance with paragraph (2) of this subsection.

     b.    (1) Upon receipt of the information from the court pursuant to paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection a. of this section, the Superintendent of State Police, the Attorney General, and the county prosecutor of any county in which the person was convicted shall, within 60 days, review and confirm, as appropriate, the information against the person's criminal history record information files and notify the court of any inaccurate or incomplete data contained in the information files, or of any other basis for ineligibility, if applicable, pursuant to N.J.S.2C:52-14.

     (2) If, after 60 days, no objection is filed by the Superintendent of State Police, the Attorney General, or the county prosecutor, objections shall be deemed to be waived and the court shall consider the petition in accordance with N.J.S.2C:52-11 or N.J.S.2C:52-12 on the 61st day after the petition is filed.  If the 61st day falls on a weekend or a legal holiday, the court shall consider the petition on the next business day that is not a weekend or legal holiday.

     c.     The court shall provide copies of an expungement order to the person who is the subject of the petition and electronically transmit the order to the law enforcement and criminal justice agencies which, at the time of the hearing on the petition, possess any records specified in the order in accordance with N.J.S.2C:52-15.

 (cf: P.L.2019, c.269, s.11)

 

     2. This act shall take effect immediately.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

     This bill amends N.J.S.A.2C:52-10.1 of the expungement laws to clarify the procedure for the timely consideration of expungement applications.

     Under current law, once the State Police, the Attorney General, and the appropriate county prosecutors are served with an expungement application through the Judiciary's electronic filing system, these parties have 60 days to review the petitioner's criminal history and notify the court of any inaccuracies or disqualifying information, and to file any objections to the expungement, if applicable. 

     Under the bill, if no prosecutorial or law enforcement objection is filed within the 60-day period, objections are deemed to be waived and the court will proceed to consider the application.  The court may, pursuant to N.J.S.A.2C:52-11, grant the expungement without the need for a hearing, or, pursuant to N.J.S.A.2C:52-12, deny the expungement if the court's own review of the petitioner's record shows the petitioner is not entitled to an expungement.

     In the sponsor's view, clarification of the procedures to be followed in accordance with the 60 day deadline is necessary to provide guidance to all persons involved in the expungement process, and to avoid unreasonable and unnecessary delays for the granting of expungements when no basis for objections exist.