Manville Borough Council will hold a public hearing and vote Aug. 12 on a castigated morality borough ordinance characterized as vague and conflicting with superceding state law
Manville Borough Council will hold a public hearing and vote Aug. 12 on a castigated morality borough ordinance characterized as vague and conflicting with superceding state law.
John Paff, chairman of the open records committee of the New Jersey Libertarian Party, has targeted the law because he says it is pre-empted by state law revisions of decades ago.
The ordinance lists unsocial public behavior loitering, being drunk, fighting, cursing, trespassing, lewdness, public nudity, annoy school teachers, call in a false fire alarm, have burglar tools, curse at a policeman, or litter, to name a few. It repeals almost all sections, but rewrites one that makes it illegal to discharge a firearm in a public place, and increases the potential maximum fine to $2,000, up from $200.
Mr. Paff, a Franklin Township (Somerset) resident, spoke at the July 15 Borough Council meeting about repealing the ordinance.
”‘”He said in 1978 the state Legislature amended the criminal code so it would be uniform throughout the state “so you didn’t have one set of laws in Manville and another set of laws in Somerville, so people didn’t have to check the laws books every time they moved from municipality to municipality,” he said.
He said the ordinance “has been languishing on the books” for 30 to 40 years.
”I would like to say that the ordinance hasn’t been used but it has been used in a very bad way,” he said.
”He said in 2011 he checked municipal court records and people were being convicted under the ordinance as prosecutors persuaded defendants to plead to a “lesser” charge and avoid a criminal conviction on their personal records.
Mr. Paff told the mayor and council if someone assaulted someone, they should have a criminal record, which would remind the municipal judge the next time that they are a repeat offender.
”That is the way the criminal justice system is supposed to work. But Manville, like Somerville and South Bound Brook, was taking a very bad shortcut and this is exactly why I am here.”
Mr. Paff said the practice avoided trials, which costs time and money, while clearing the docket by paying a fine to the municipality.
’“””Your court was doing this routinely… ’Come in here, pay us your money and you don’t have to suffer the consequences of criminal conviction. That is wrong,” he said.
”You are not the only one who is doing this; it is a basic problem around the state of New Jersey,” said Mr. Paff. “There has to be a better way to deal with the backlog than serving justice the way this ordinance was doing. I think you are doing the right thing and I do appreciate it.”