Eliminates presumption of pretrial release when defendant is charged with contempt of domestic violence restraining order.
This bill amends New Jersey law to remove the automatic right to release on bail for individuals charged with contempt of a domestic violence restraining order. Under current rules, courts must generally release eligible defendants unless specific exceptions apply, but this legislation explicitly adds domestic violence contempt charges to the list of offenses where that presumption does not hold. The change means judges will have broader authority to order pretrial detention for these defendants without being required to grant release first, aiming to better protect victims and community safety. The measure directly affects prosecutors, defense attorneys, and defendants involved in domestic violence cases by altering the initial bail hearing process.
Bill status
in committee
1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Jun 2026
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Jun 4, 2026
Last action Jun 4, 2026
Floor votes
How they voted
No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
1
Key actions
0
Committee
0
Jun 4, 2026
Introduced
Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Judiciary Committee
upper
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
John Burzichelli
DDemocratic
Ask Maddy
·
AI policy assistant
Ask Maddy about S 4398
Scope: NJ
Hi! I can help you understand S 4398. What would you like to know?
Try one of these
i
Maddy answers using official bill text and legislative records. Always verify before sharing.
Sources cited inline