Q. What is the difference between the Criminal Justice System and the Civil Justice System?
A. The critical difference is the penalty involved. Those who are found guilty of crimes, even minor ones, risk the loss of their liberty as a result. Civil wrongs are typically addressed by an award of monetary damages. In addition, the burden of proof in criminal matters is "beyond a reasonable doubt", which is a much more strict standard than the "preponderance of evidence" standard that is used in most civil cases.
Q. Are police officers the only ones who can sign criminal complaints?
A. No. Criminal complaints may be signed by anyone. However, the vast majority of all criminal complaints in Cape May County are signed by police officers.
Q. How do I sign a criminal complaint?
A. Contact the Municipal Court Administrator in the town where the event occurred. He or she will advise you of the procedures that must be followed.
Q. Before signing a criminal complaint should I contact the police
department where the event occurred?
A. Yes, especially if the matter involved violence or the threat of violence. The police will advise you if the matter you are reporting is criminal in nature and whether it requires investigation by their department.
Q. What is a disorderly persons offense and how is it different than a crime?
A. In New Jersey there are basically two types of criminal offenses: crimes and disorderly persons offenses. (In other states these two types of offenses are often referred to as "felonies" and "misdemeanors.") Crimes are punishable by more than six months in jail and are prosecuted by either the County Prosecutor's Office or the Attorney General's Office in the Superior Court, which in Cape May County is located in Cape May Court House. In addition, those charged with committing crimes are entitled to have their matters reviewed by a grand jury and tried by a petit jury. Disorderly persons offenses are punishable by up to a maximum of six months in jail and are typically prosecuted either by a municipal prosecutor or citizen in a municipal court. Those charged with disorderly persons offenses are not entitled to either grand jury presentation or trial by jury.
Q. I was told by the Municipal Court Administrator that the complaint
that I signed was remanded by the Prosecutor's Office. What does that mean?
A. All complaints charging crimes are immediately referred to the Prosecutor's Office for review. Once received, the Prosecutor's Office reviews the complaint, obtains any police reports that were prepared concerning it and, where indicated, contacts the complainant/victim and/or investigating police officer for further information and comment. If the Prosecutor's Office determines that the complaint can be adequately dealt with by the local municipal court, the crime charged in the complaint will be amended to state a disorderly persons offense and the complaint will be returned to the municipal court for hearing.
Q. I want to dismiss a complaint that I signed. How do I go about doing
this?
A. If the complaint charges a disorderly persons offense only, contact the municipal court where you signed the complaint. If the complaint charges an indictable offense (crime), contact the Prosecutor's Office.
Q. When I contacted the Prosecutor's Office and told them that I wanted to dismiss the indictable complaint that I signed, I was told that my "request" would not be honored and that the complaint had been referred to the Grand Jury. Why?
A. Once signed, indictable criminal complaints are prosecuted
on behalf of the State of New Jersey, not the individual who signed the
complaint. A variety of factors are taken into account when deciding whether
to honor a complainant's request not to proceed with an indictable
prosecution, including the nature and extent of the defendant's prior
criminal history, the severity of the alleged crime and whether the
defendant has other pending charges in the criminal justice system.
Q. What is a Grand Jury?
A. Both the State and Federal Constitutions guarantee every individual charged with a crime the right to have their matters reviewed by an independent body before they can be made subject to significant criminal penalties. This body is called a grand jury. In Cape May County there is one grand jury that sits on every other Wednesday. The grand jury is comprised of 23 jurors who are selected at random by the Assignment Judge of the County Superior Court. These grand juries hear evidence regarding criminal matters and decide if those charged should be "indicted", or formally made to answer for their alleged offenses. Because of the sensitive and important subject matter that the grand juries deal with, they meet in closed session and all evidence collected by them is kept secret unless a Superior Court Judge orders otherwise.
Q. Why does the Prosecutor's Office plea bargain with criminals?
A. Plea agreements are necessary and are often no "bargain." If every defendant charged with a crime decided to go to trial, our criminal justice system would literally come to a standstill. Victims would have to wait years for a decision, witnesses would lose interest, memories would fade, evidence would deteriorate, defendants would disappear, etc. Fortunately, the vast majority of defendants decide to plead guilty rather than contest their guilt by trial. They do so, not because they are offered lenient sentences, but because they are offered fair sentences - sentences which appropriately redress the wrongs they have committed. Occasionally a defendant will be offered a lenient sentence in return for cooperation with the police, or because an important witness can't be located or because essential evidence in the case was ruled inadmissible. However, most defendants who plead guilty receive the same degree of punishment that they would have received had they proceeded to trial and been convicted.
Q. My home was broken into and valuable items were stolen. The police
caught the man who broke in and recovered all of my property. How do I get
it back?
A. Contact the Victim/Witness Unit of the Prosecutor's Office at (609) 465-1163. In most cases, recovered valuables can be returned as soon as they are logged in and photographed by the police.
Q: Who must report child abuse?
A: Any person who reasonably suspects that a child is a victim of child abuse must report this information to the Division of Youth and Family Services.
Q: Are children required to testify in court?
A: Although the courts have made certain provisions in order to make
the presentation of child abuse cases easier on the victims, in most cases
the child victim will be required to testify personally in the courtroom.
Q: What is DYFS?
A: The Division of Youth and Family Services is the agency created by the State concerned with the welfare of children. In many child abuse cases, especially those involving family members, DYFS will conduct an investigation cooperatively with the law enforcement authorities in order to ensure a child's future safety.
