NEW JERSEY – The Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously passed legislation sponsored by Senator Vince Polistina (R-2) that would establish a presumption of pretrial detention for individuals charged with reckless or strict liability vehicular homicide while intoxicated.
Fittingly advanced during the month of December, which marks National Impaired Driving Prevention Month, this proposed legislation would strengthen deterrents against drunk driving, improve public safety, and further protect the people of New Jersey.
“When someone’s reckless actions behind the wheel result in the loss of a life, they must be held fully accountable,” said Polistina. “This legislation would help safeguard the citizens of New Jersey by keeping dangerous drivers off our streets.”
The bill, S-2295, would create a rebuttable presumption that an intoxicated driver is to be detained while awaiting trial for reckless or strict liability vehicular homicide. The legislation would also ensure that a conviction for either of these crimes is subject to a mandatory license suspension, and would allow for the forfeiture of vehicles used to commit those criminal acts.
This legislation comes in the wake of the tragic loss of 8-year-old Javier Velez, who when visiting Atlantic County for a fishing trip with his father, was killed when a drunk driver struck the family’s parked car. The reckless driver was released while awaiting trial, to the shock of Javier’s family and the community.
Earlier this year, Senator Polistina’s legislation was signed into law that designated the State Highway Route 42 and Interstate Highway Route 295 intersection as the “Ensign John R. Elliott Memorial Interchange,” honoring the late Egg Harbor Township resident and U.S. Naval Academy graduate who was killed in a head-on collision with a drunk driver in July 2000.
According to Elliott’s father, the driver had been arrested earlier that evening but was released into the custody of a friend, only to later get back behind the wheel.
“We must ensure that individuals who pose a significant threat to public safety by committing such heinous acts are kept off the streets while awaiting trial, and that justice is served for the victims and their families,” Polistina said.
