A 5154 New Jersey General Assembly · 2026-2027 Regular Session

Requires jury, rather than court, to determine whether certain defendants are persistent offenders.

This New Jersey bill requires a jury, instead of a judge, to decide if certain defendants qualify as "persistent offenders" who deserve harsher prison sentences. The law applies specifically to individuals accused of repeated crimes involving stolen vehicles and shoplifting, provided they have prior convictions within a ten-year window. Under the new rules, a jury must determine whether the defendant meets the legal criteria for an extended term of imprisonment before the court can impose it. This change shifts the responsibility of establishing the grounds for enhanced sentencing from the judge to a jury trial for these specific categories of repeat offenders.

Issues: ✗ Criminal Justice

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

May 2026

Committee Review

Jun 2026

General Assembly Passage

Jun 2026

Senate Passage

Jun 2026

Signed into Law

Jul 2026

Introduced May 28, 2026 Signed Jul 22, 2026

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What changed between versions

Introduced → Reprint · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill moved from its introduced version to a first reprint after being reported by the Assembly Judiciary Committee on June 1, 2026, with amendments. The main substantive change is the addition of a new reporting requirement (subsection 1d) that would require the Administrative Director of the Courts to submit a written report within two years covering the number, crimes, and demographics of defendants found to be persistent offenders. The remaining changes are formatting fixes, character encoding corrections, and removal of the explanatory statement section, which is standard when a bill advances through committee.

ENFORCEMENT

New subsection 1d requires the Administrative Director of the Courts to submit a written report to the Governor and Legislature within two years after the effective date of a related pending bill. The report must include: (1) the number of defendants found to be persistent offenders, (2) the crimes for which they were charged and convicted, (3) demographics including the vicinage of the most recent conviction, and (4) any other findings or recommendations on sentencing persistent offenders.

TECHNICAL

The entire explanatory STATEMENT section at the end of the bill was removed, which is standard procedural practice when a bill is reported out of committee with amendments.

Various character encoding issues (garbled characters) were corrected throughout the text, and minor line-wrapping adjustments were made. No substantive policy language was altered in these fixes.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Jun 30, 2026

Lower · Passed

Passed Assembly (Passed Both Houses) (78-0-0)

lower

Jun 18, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed by the Senate (40-0)

upper

Jun 18, 2026

Upper · Passed

Senate Amendment (36-0) (Stack)

upper

Jun 11, 2026

Lower · Passed

Passed by the Assembly (78-0-1)

lower

Jun 1, 2026

Committee

Reported out of Asm. Comm. with Amendments, and Referred to Assembly Appropriations Committee

lower

May 28, 2026

Introduced

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Judiciary Committee

lower

5 primary · 0 co-sponsors