Christie seeks more latitude for judges on bail denial

TRENTON - Gov. Christie, a former federal prosecutor, wants a constitutional amendment on the state ballot in November to change the state's bail law so certain violent offenders are kept in jail until their trials.

The change would mirror the federal system and bring New Jersey in line with other states that give judges more leeway in forbidding bail to the accused.

Christie offered no specifics but said pretrial detentions would be allowed if evidence suggested that a defendant might not return to court, or if a defendant's release could lead to violence against witnesses or others.

"Making changes to our bail laws is a commonsense move to stop preventable crimes from occurring by allowing a judge to use his or her commonsense approach to decide whether someone should be released or not," said Christie, who was flanked by the attorney general and several county prosecutors at a Statehouse news conference.

Camden County Prosecutor Warren Faulk, who was not at the news conference, endorsed the idea, noting that even those charged with murder can post bail of up to $1 million by leveraging family members' property. While out on bail, a person could intimidate potential witnesses.

"We might have difficulty proving it because the situation was so severe that the individuals won't tell us they were intimidated," he said.

Faulk also said that bail was a problem when foreigners flee, and in domestic violence cases, where prosecutors seek to protect the abused.

"We can get a restraining order, but it's just a piece of paper," he said.

First announced at his State of the State speech last month, Christie's plan dovetails with another gubernatorial proposal, yet to be detailed, that would divert nonviolent drug offenders to treatment instead of prison. While the constitutional amendment would theoretically increase the number of people incarcerated, his treatment proposal would lower that number, he said.

Christie, the state's U.S. attorney for seven years before becoming governor, brought several former federal prosecutors into his administration. The proposal, he said, was born of their experience in the federal system, where prosecutors can request pretrial detention for certain criminal suspects.

"It's those people with a long history of violent crimes that will be most affected by this proposed amendment," Christie said.