In accordance with Attorney General Directive 2021-04, Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal today established an online portal for inmates serving sentences for qualifying non-violent drug offenses, or others on their behalf, to request elimination of their mandatory minimum terms. AG Directive 2021-4, which was issued on April 19, and goes into effect today, directed the Director of the Division of Criminal Justice to establish a mechanism for receiving and reviewing requests for incarcerated defendants seeking to rescind the mandatory minimum term associated with their sentence for a non-violent drug offense.
The portal is available for inmates who satisfy the two requirements of AG Directive 2021-4:
- The inmate is currently serving a sentence for a qualifying drug crime that includes a mandatory period of parole ineligibility
- At the time of the request, the defendant remains ineligible for parole solely on account of the parole disqualifier mandated by the qualifying drug crime
After submissions are received to the online portal, prosecutors will work with the Office of the Public Defender to confirm the inmate’s eligibility under the Directive for a sentence reduction, and to file a joint motion with the court for those who qualify. The Office of the Public Defender has agreed to represent qualifying inmates in the filing of a joint motion for a sentence reduction and can provide assistance to inmates and their families seeking to submit a request.
Individuals seeking additional information may contact the Public Defender’s helpline at 833-947-2127 or via email: thedefenders@opd.nj.gov.
Background on AG Directive 2021-4 AG Directive 2021-4 essentially takes the imposition of mandatory minimum terms “off the table” for all current and future non-violent drug defendants, and allows those currently incarcerated pursuant to such mandatory terms an opportunity for early release from custody.
In doing so, the Directive achieves— to the greatest extent possible under current law— the 2019 recommendation of Governor Murphy’s Criminal Sentencing and Disposition Commission, which called for, with broad consensus, the elimination of all mandatory minimum terms for non-violent drug crimes. The Commission’s recommendation to eliminate mandatory minimum terms for non-violent drug offenses received widespread support, including endorsement by the Governor, Senate President, Assembly Speaker, Public Defender, Attorney General, and all 21 County Prosecutors.
Mandatory minimum laws have fueled the significant increase in New Jersey’s prison population over the last four decades, and have also contributed to the stark racial disparities in the state’s prisons.
The Commission noted that Black residents constitute 14 percent of the state’s overall population, but 61 percent of its inmate population, with many serving sentences for non-violent drug offenses. For most state crimes, particularly those not subject to mandatory minimums, a defendant becomes eligible for parole after serving one-third of the sentence imposed.
Under the Directive, prosecutors remain authorized to seek periods of additional parole ineligibility in non-violent drug cases—as they are in every case—when warranted to protect public safety based on the specific facts of the case.
State law authorizes a judge at sentencing to impose a discretionary period of parole ineligibility for any crime if the judge is clearly convinced that the aggravating factors in the case substantially outweigh the mitigating factors.
The Directive allows prosecutors to continue to seek discretionary periods of parole ineligibility and incorporate them into plea agreements where appropriate. Similarly, the Directive allows prosecutors to seek the continued incarceration of inmates who present a significant public safety risk.
While prosecutors must file a joint application to modify the sentence of any inmate who remains in prison solely because of a mandatory minimum term imposed for a non-violent drug offense, they can seek imposition of a discretionary period of parole ineligibility when the sentence is modified, if appropriate, which may result in continued incarceration.
To ensure such requests are made rarely and in a consistent manner, prosecutors will consult with the Director of the Division of Criminal Justice in such cases. Prosecutors must meet the same standards in court that would have applied at the initial sentencing if there been no mandatory minimum term. Directive 2021-4 is posted here.