A 135 New Jersey General Assembly · 2026-2027 Regular Session

Allows juvenile regardless of age to be tried as adult for committing homicide against law enforcement officer.

This bill changes New Jersey's juvenile court rules to require that juveniles accused of killing a law enforcement officer while the officer was on duty be automatically tried as adults. It applies specifically when a juvenile commits an act that would be criminal homicide (excluding vehicular manslaughter) if done by an adult, and the victim was an officer performing official duties or killed due to their law enforcement role. Courts must refer such cases to adult court without the juvenile's consent if probable cause exists, though judges may block the referral if they find the prosecutor abused their discretion. The law aims to ensure juveniles who commit violent acts against officers face adult criminal penalties.
Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Last action Jan 13, 2026
Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
1
Key actions
0
Committee
0
Jan 13, 2026
Introduced
Introduced, Referred to Assembly Judiciary Committee
lower
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Photo of Al Barlas
Al Barlas
RRepublican
NJ
40