New Jersey does not divide charges into felonies and misdemeanors. It grades them by degree. Which category your charge falls into determines the court, the procedure, the exposure, and the record that follows you.
The firm does not offer free consultations. Phone intake staffed 24/7.
Where your case is heard
01 — Classification
New Jersey's criminal law is codified at N.J.S.A. Title 2C, the Code of Criminal Justice, effective September 1, 1979. Individual offenses are cited in the form N.J.S.A. 2C:XX-YY.
The charges most people elsewhere would call felonies. They proceed through the county prosecutor's office and the Superior Court, Law Division, Criminal Part. First degree is the most serious grading; fourth degree the least serious of the indictable set.
New Jersey does not label these crimes. They carry no right to indictment by grand jury and are generally resolved in the municipal court for the town where the charge was issued.
The lowest grading, handled the same way procedurally as disorderly persons offenses.
Penalty exposure is set by statute and turns on the degree, the offense chapter, any sentencing enhancement, and prior record — so this page does not state a general range. One verified example: aggravated sexual assault under N.J.S.A. 2C:14-2 is a first-degree crime carrying a statutory term of 10 to 20 years, with a presumption of incarceration and an 85 percent parole disqualifier under the No Early Release Act. On that charge, the parole disqualifier — not the headline number — governs time served.
This page describes New Jersey law in general terms. It is not legal advice about any particular charge, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
02 — Title 39
Driving while intoxicated under N.J.S.A. 39:4-50 sits in Title 39, New Jersey's motor vehicle and traffic code — not in Title 2C. It is charged and heard in municipal court as a quasi-criminal motor vehicle violation. There is no right to a jury trial, and no pre-conviction administrative license proceeding of the kind drivers in other states expect.
A New Jersey DWI is decided by a municipal court judge. The defense work is documentary and technical — the stop, the observations, the instrument, the operator's certification, the twenty-minute observation period — rather than a jury argument.
Because New Jersey does not treat the offense as criminal, a Title 39 DWI often does not trigger a crime-involving-moral-turpitude analysis the way a criminal DUI conviction elsewhere can. This is fact-specific and belongs in front of counsel — but it is a real reason a New Jersey charge and a Virginia charge with identical facts can end in very different places.
03 — Forum
Municipal court and Superior Court run on different calendars, different discovery practice, and different plea postures. A charge that starts in one can move to the other. Getting the forum right at the outset shapes everything after it.
04 — Matters handled
Organized by the way New Jersey actually sorts them.
Aggravated assault · assault and battery · robbery · kidnapping · criminal homicide · domestic violence charges under the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act (N.J.S.A. 2C:25) · restraining order matters and alleged violations of a protective order
Theft · burglary · trespassing · robbery · forgery and fraud offenses under chapter 2C:21
Simple assault · shoplifting-grade theft · disorderly conduct · trespass · the municipal-court charges that carry no grand jury and no jury trial
Sexual assault and aggravated sexual assault (N.J.S.A. 2C:14-2) · aggravated criminal sexual contact · endangering the welfare of a child · Megan's Law registration matters and alleged failure to register · internet-based charges including solicitation, luring and enticement, and non-consensual pornography
Possession · distribution · trafficking · conspiracy · federal controlled-substance charges brought in the District of New Jersey
Unlawful possession · certain-persons offenses · federal firearms charges
Wire fraud · mail fraud · bank fraud · securities fraud · insider trading · money laundering · tax charges · identity theft, including claims under the New Jersey Identity Theft Prevention Act (N.J.S.A. 56:15-1)
Computer criminal activity · unauthorized access · cryptocurrency-related charges · dark web charges
Juvenile delinquency in the Family Part · pretrial detention and release hearings · probation and parole violation hearings · expungement and record relief · federal sentencing, appeals and habeas corpus · DWI, reckless and careless driving
05 — Coverage
The firm accepts New Jersey criminal matters statewide — Superior Court in the county of offense, and municipal court in the town that issued the charge.
06 — Attorney
Mr. Sris founded the firm in 1997 and is admitted in New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, and New York. He is a former prosecutor. He testified before the Virginia House Courts of Justice Committee in support of 2019 HB 635 (chief patron Del. David Bulova).
07 — Process
Indictable crime, disorderly persons offense, or Title 39 summons — the grading decides which court you appear in.
New Jersey resolves release through a pretrial detention and release process rather than money bail first. This happens fast, and it is not the moment to be unrepresented.
In municipal court it comes from the prosecutor's file. In Superior Court it follows the county prosecutor's schedule and the grand jury track.
Indictable matters go before a grand jury. Municipal matters proceed directly.
Sentencing exposure, license consequences, registration obligations, immigration consequences, and eligibility for later record relief all attach here.
08 — FAQ
No. New Jersey grades charges by degree under N.J.S.A. Title 2C, the Code of Criminal Justice, which took effect September 1, 1979. First- through fourth-degree charges are called indictable crimes. Lesser charges are graded as disorderly persons or petty disorderly persons offenses, which New Jersey law does not classify as crimes.
An indictable crime is a first-, second-, third-, or fourth-degree charge prosecuted in the Superior Court, Law Division, Criminal Part in the county where the offense is alleged to have occurred, and it carries the right to grand jury indictment and to a jury trial. A disorderly persons offense is not classified as a crime under New Jersey law, carries no grand jury right, and is generally heard in municipal court.
No. Driving while intoxicated under N.J.S.A. 39:4-50 sits in Title 39, New Jersey's motor vehicle and traffic code, not in the criminal code. New Jersey treats it as a quasi-criminal motor vehicle violation heard in municipal court, and there is no right to a jury trial.
Indictable crimes are heard in the Superior Court, Law Division, Criminal Part in the county of the alleged offense. Disorderly persons offenses, petty disorderly persons offenses, and Title 39 motor vehicle charges including DWI are heard in municipal court. Federal charges are heard in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey.
For offenses to which it applies, the No Early Release Act imposes an 85 percent parole disqualifier, meaning the person must serve 85 percent of the sentence imposed before becoming parole eligible. Aggravated sexual assault under N.J.S.A. 2C:14-2 is one such offense: it is a first-degree crime carrying a statutory term of 10 to 20 years with a presumption of incarceration, and the parole disqualifier governs actual time served.
Yes. Mr. Sris is admitted in New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, and New York. He founded Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. in 1997 and is a former prosecutor.
No. The firm does not offer free consultations. You can request a consultation by calling (888) 437-7747.
Call (888) 437-7747 to request a consultation. The phone intake line is staffed 24 hours a day; attorney availability is scheduled by appointment.
Call to discuss the grading of the charge, the court it belongs in, and what happens next. The phone intake line is staffed 24 hours a day; attorney availability is by appointment.
