Bill Text: NJ S277 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Provides that act of sexual penetration committed without victim's consent constitutes sexual assault; defines the terms "consent."
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-09 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Judiciary Committee [S277 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-S277-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2024 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator BRIAN P. STACK
District 33 (Hudson)
Senator JOSEPH A. LAGANA
District 38 (Bergen and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Provides that act of sexual penetration committed without victim's consent constitutes sexual assault; defines the term "consent."
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act concerning sexual assault and amending N.J.S.2C:14-1 and N.J.S.2C:14-2.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. N.J.S.2C:14-1 is amended to read as follows:
2C:14-1. Definitions. The following definitions apply to this chapter:
a. "Actor" means a person accused of an offense proscribed under this act;
b. "Victim" means a person alleging to have been subjected to offenses proscribed by this act;
c. "Sexual penetration" means vaginal intercourse, cunnilingus, fellatio or anal intercourse between persons or insertion of the hand, finger or object into the anus or vagina either by the actor or upon the actor's instruction. The depth of insertion shall not be relevant as to the question of commission of the crime;
d. "Sexual contact" means an intentional touching by the victim or actor, either directly or through clothing, of the victim's or actor's intimate parts for the purpose of degrading or humiliating the victim or sexually arousing or sexually gratifying the actor. Sexual contact of the actor with himself must be in view of the victim whom the actor knows to be present;
e. "Intimate parts" means the following body parts: sexual organs, genital area, anal area, inner thigh, groin, buttock or breast of a person;
f. "Severe personal injury" means severe bodily injury, disfigurement, disease, incapacitating mental anguish or chronic pain;
g. "Physically helpless" means that condition in which a person is unconscious or is physically unable to flee or is physically unable to communicate unwillingness to act;
h. (Deleted by amendment, P.L.2011, c.232)
i. "Mentally incapacitated" means that condition in which a person is rendered temporarily incapable of understanding or controlling his conduct due to the influence of a narcotic, anesthetic, intoxicant, or other substance administered to that person without his prior knowledge or consent, or due to any other act committed upon that person which rendered that person incapable of appraising or controlling his conduct;
j. "Coercion" as used in this chapter shall refer to those acts which are defined as criminal coercion in section 2C:13-5(1), (2), (3), (4), (6) and (7).
k. "Consent" means a freely given, knowledgeable, and informed agreement.
(cf: P.L.2011, c.232, s.3)
2. N.J.S.2C:14-2 is amended to read as follows:
2C:14-2. Sexual assault. a. An actor is guilty of aggravated sexual assault if the actor commits an act of sexual penetration with another person under any one of the following circumstances:
(1) The victim is less than 13 years old;
(2) The victim is at least 13 but less than 16 years old; and
(a) The actor is related to the victim by blood or affinity to the third degree, or
(b) The actor has supervisory or disciplinary power over the victim by virtue of the actor's legal, professional, or occupational status, or
(c) The actor is a resource family parent, a guardian, or stands in loco parentis within the household;
(3) The act is committed during the commission, or attempted commission, whether alone or with one or more other persons, of robbery, carjacking, kidnapping, homicide, aggravated assault on the victim or a person other than the victim, burglary, arson, or criminal escape;
(4) The actor is armed with a weapon or any object fashioned in such a manner as to lead the victim to reasonably believe it to be a weapon and threatens by word or gesture to use the weapon or object;
(5) The actor is aided or abetted by one or more other persons and the actor commits the act using coercion [or]; without the victim's affirmative and freely-given permission; or without the victim's consent;
(6) The actor commits the act using coercion [or]; without the victim's affirmative and freely-given permission; or without the victim's consent and severe personal injury is sustained by the victim;
(7) The victim, at the time of sexual penetration, is one whom the actor knew or should have known was:
(a) physically helpless or incapacitated ;
(b) intellectually or mentally incapacitated ; or
(c) had a mental disease or defect which rendered the victim temporarily or permanently incapable of understanding the distinctively sexual nature of the conduct, including, but not limited to, being incapable of providing consent, or incapable of understanding or exercising the right to refuse to engage in the conduct.
Aggravated sexual assault is a crime of the first degree.
Except as otherwise provided in subsection d. of this section, a person convicted under paragraph (1) of this subsection shall be sentenced to a specific term of years which shall be fixed by the court and shall be between 25 years and life imprisonment of which the person shall serve 25 years before being eligible for parole, unless a longer term of parole ineligibility is otherwise provided pursuant to this Title.
b. An actor is guilty of sexual assault if the actor commits an act of sexual contact with a victim who is less than 13 years old and the actor is at least four years older than the victim.
c. An actor is guilty of sexual assault if the actor commits an act of sexual penetration with another person under any one of the following circumstances:
(1) The actor commits the act using coercion [or]; without the victim's affirmative and freely-given permission; or without the victim's consent, but the victim does not sustain severe personal injury;
(2) The victim is on probation or parole, or is detained in a hospital, prison or other institution and the actor has supervisory or disciplinary power over the victim by virtue of the actor's legal, professional or occupational status;
(3) The victim is at least 16 but less than 18 years old and:
(a) The actor is related to the victim by blood or affinity to the third degree; or
(b) The actor has supervisory or disciplinary power of any nature or in any capacity over the victim; or
(c) The actor is a resource family parent, a guardian, or stands in loco parentis within the household;
(4) The victim is at least 13 but less than 16 years old and the actor is at least four years older than the victim;
(5) The victim is a pupil at least 18 but less than 22 years old and has not received a high school diploma and the actor is a teaching staff member or substitute teacher, school bus driver, other school employee, contracted service provider, or volunteer and the actor has supervisory or disciplinary power of any nature or in any capacity over the victim. As used in this paragraph, "teaching staff member" has the meaning set forth in N.J.S.18A:1-1.
Sexual assault is a crime of the second degree.
d. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection a. of this section, where a defendant is charged with a violation under paragraph (1) of subsection a. of this section, the prosecutor, in consideration of the interests of the victim, may offer a negotiated plea agreement in which the defendant would be sentenced to a specific term of imprisonment of not less than 15 years, during which the defendant shall not be eligible for parole. In such event, the court may accept the negotiated plea agreement and upon such conviction shall impose the term of imprisonment and period of parole ineligibility as provided for in the plea agreement, and may not impose a lesser term of imprisonment or parole or a lesser period of parole ineligibility than that expressly provided in the plea agreement. The Attorney General shall develop guidelines to ensure the uniform exercise of discretion in making determinations regarding a negotiated reduction in the term of imprisonment and period of parole ineligibility set forth in subsection a. of this section.
(cf: P.L.2019, c.474)
3. This act shall take effect on the 90th day following enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill specifies that an act of sexual penetration committed without the victim's consent would constitute sexual assault or, depending on the circumstances, aggravated sexual assault.
Under current law, an act of sexual penetration constitutes sexual assault if the act is committed without the victim's affirmative and freely-given permission. The bill provides that an act of sexual penetration would also constitute sexual assault if the act is committed without the victim's consent. Sexual assault is a crime of the second degree. A crime of the second degree is generally punishable by a term of imprisonment of five to 10 years or a fine of up to $150,000, or both.
Current law provides that an act of sexual penetration constitutes aggravated sexual assault if the actor is aided or abetted by one or more other persons and the act is committed without the victim's affirmative and freely-given permission, or if the act is committed without the victim's affirmative and freely-given permission and severe personal injury is sustained by the victim. The bill provides that an act of sexual penetration under either of these circumstances would also constitute aggravated sexual assault if the act is committed without the victim's consent. Aggravated sexual assault is a crime of the first degree. A crime of the first degree is generally punishable by a term of imprisonment of 10 to 20 years or a fine of up to $200,000, or both.
The bill defines "consent" as "a freely given, knowledgeable, and informed agreement."
