[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/www.newjerseycriminallawfirm.com\/blog\/new-jersey-classifications-of-crimes\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.newjerseycriminallawfirm.com\/blog\/new-jersey-classifications-of-crimes\/","headline":"New Jersey Classifications of Crimes","name":"New Jersey Classifications of Crimes","description":"Indictable Offenses vs. Disorderly Persons Offenses vs. Ordinances Our law office often retains clients who, upon receiving a summons, are unsure of the magnitude or seriousness of their offense. If you are unsure of the difference between an ordinance, a disorderly persons offense, and an indictable offense, hopefully this will clear things up for you. […]","datePublished":"2013-09-17","dateModified":"2024-09-03","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.newjerseycriminallawfirm.com\/blog\/author\/newjerseycriminallawfirm\/#Person","name":"William Proetta Criminal Law","url":"https:\/\/www.newjerseycriminallawfirm.com\/blog\/author\/newjerseycriminallawfirm\/","identifier":12,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bf046e483cfd218aa23b814afd7f502ea8e6bd244632161b6e42395a76e91a8e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bf046e483cfd218aa23b814afd7f502ea8e6bd244632161b6e42395a76e91a8e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"William Proetta Criminal Law","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.newjerseycriminallawfirm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/william-proetta-criminal-law-logo.png","url":"https:\/\/www.newjerseycriminallawfirm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/william-proetta-criminal-law-logo.png","width":250,"height":76}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.newjerseycriminallawfirm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Proetta-Team.png","url":"https:\/\/www.newjerseycriminallawfirm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Proetta-Team.png","width":667,"height":496},"url":"https:\/\/www.newjerseycriminallawfirm.com\/blog\/new-jersey-classifications-of-crimes\/","about":["Misdemeanor"],"wordCount":521,"articleBody":"Indictable Offenses vs. Disorderly Persons Offenses vs. OrdinancesOur law office often retains clients who, upon receiving a summons, are unsure of the magnitude or seriousness of their offense. If you are unsure of the difference between an ordinance, a disorderly persons offense, and an indictable offense, hopefully this will clear things up for you.The following is a brief explanation of a municipal ordinance under New Jersey law as well as a distinction between municipal ordinance and the more severe disorderly persons offense and petty disorderly persons offense.Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2C: 1-4, New Jersey recognizes three classes of offenses. These are indictable offenses, disorderly persons offenses, and petty disorderly persons offenses. Indictable offenses are analogous to common law felonies while non-indictable offenses are analogous to misdemeanors.Indictable offenses can be of the first, second, third, or fourth degree. Fourth degree indictable offenses can expose a defendant to up to eighteen months incarceration while indictable offenses of the third, second, and first degree may result in years to a lifetime of incarceration. These offenses also entitle defendants to trials by jury. Conversely, disorderly persons and petty disorderly persons offenses are those that expose a defendant to up to six months incarceration. Furthermore, these offenses do not entitle defendants to trials by jury.N.J.S.A. 40:49-5\u00a0Penalties for Violating Ordinances, provides, in pertinent part; \u201cThe governing body may prescribe penalties for the violation of ordinances it may have authority to pass, by one or more of the following: imprisonment in the county jail\u2026for any term not exceeding 90 days; or by a fine not exceeding $2,000; or by a period of community service not exceeding 90 days\u2026\u201dIn a nutshell, a town or municipal ordinance is the least serious criminal offense. However, violations of municipal ordinances may result in incarceration but are usually only accompanied by a fine. They should not result in a criminal record. Recently, we had a client who was involved in a fight near\u00a0Rutgers University\u00a0in Middlesex County. Fights can often lead to\u00a0simple assault\u00a0or\u00a0disorderly conduct\u00a0charges. However, we were able to avoid\u00a0New Brunswick Assault charges\u00a0and the crime was reduced to a mere noise ordinance and resulted in a fine.An example of a disorderly persons offense is possession of less than 50 grams of marijuana. Recently, we handled a case in Woodbridge in which a police officer illegally searched the automobile of driver and found about 2 grams of the drug. Due to the illegal nature of his search the case was dismissed. As a result, our client lucked out and avoided a\u00a0Woodbridge NJ marijuana\u00a0charge which is punishable by up to six month incarceration, hefty fines, and community service.A common example of a petty disorderly persons offense involves disorderly conduct which arises out of improper behavior and offensive language.\u00a0Disorderly Conduct in Piscataway\u00a0and New Brunswick is very common due to the close proximity of Rutgers University.Finally, indictable offenses, otherwise known as felonies, are the most serious classification of crime. Indictable offenses include\u00a0possession of heroin,\u00a0possession with intent to distribute marijuana,\u00a0burglary, and\u00a0aggravated assault."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Blog","item":"https:\/\/www.newjerseycriminallawfirm.com\/blog\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"New Jersey Classifications of Crimes","item":"https:\/\/www.newjerseycriminallawfirm.com\/blog\/new-jersey-classifications-of-crimes\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]