Pretrial release overview

If you or a family member has just been arrested in New Jersey, one of the first questions is: “Am I going home, or am I staying in jail?” For years, the answer mostly depended on whether you could pay cash bail. That has changed. Since 2017, New Jersey no longer uses the traditional cash bail system in most criminal cases. Instead, the court uses a risk assessment tool and a new bail reform law to decide whether to release you, put you on conditions, or hold you in jail until trial​. The focus is now on your risk and your history, not your wallet.

What Changed with Bail Reform?

Before bail reform, judges often set a bail amount. If you could pay it (or hire a bondsman), you went home. If you could not, you stayed in jail, sometimes for months, even on relatively low‑level charges. That system kept many poor, low‑risk people in jail simply because they did not have money.​

New Jersey’s Criminal Justice Reform (CJR) eliminated traditional cash bail in most cases and replaced it with a risk‑based system. Today, at your first appearance, the court looks at:

• The seriousness of the charge, including prior violations of restraining orders.

• Your prior record and whether you have any pending criminal court cases.

• Whether you have a history of missing court.

• Whether there are red flags for new criminal or violent behavior if you are released.

The court uses a tool called the Public Safety Assessment (PSA), a type of pretrial risk assessment, to help measure these things. The PSA does not make the decision; it provides the judge with a report and recommendation.

What is a Detention Hearing?

Shortly after your arrest, you will see a judge for your first appearance. At that time, the prosecutor has to decide whether to ask the court to keep you in jail until your case is over. If they do, they file a motion for pretrial detention, and the court schedules a detention hearing, three to six business days later.

At the detention hearing:

• The judge reviews the PSA, your criminal history, and the details of the current charges.

• The prosecutor argues why you should be held, usually claiming you are a danger to the community, a flight risk, or a risk to obstruct justice.

• Your lawyer argues for your release, with or without conditions, and can present information about your job, family, treatment, and ties to the community.

The judge then decides whether to:

• Release you with no conditions.

• Release you with conditions (such as reporting, GPS, curfew, or no‑contact orders).

• Order you held without release until the case is resolved.

What Does “No Cash Bail” Really Mean?

“No cash bail” does not mean everyone goes home. It means the decision to release or detain is based on risk, not on how much money you can put together. If the judge believes you are low risk, you should be released, even if you have very little money. If the judge finds you are high risk—for example, facing serious violent charges and with a long record—you can be held without any option to pay your way out.

When you are released, Pretrial Services (part of the court system) may supervise you. They can:

• Remind you of court dates.

• Check in with you by phone or in person.

• Monitor compliance with conditions, such as GPS or no‑contact orders.

If you miss court or violate conditions, the judge can tighten your conditions or even issue a warrant and lock you up.

Why Having a Lawyer at This Stage Matters

The detention hearing is often one of the, if not the, most important moments in your case. Incarceration pretrial greatly increases your risk of going to prison or serving more time in jail than if you are released on pretrial release. Whether you are home or in jail can affect your ability to work, care for your family, meet with your attorney, and prepare your defense. New Jersey’s reforms reduced the jail population and did not increase violent crime, but they also show that judges still have significant discretion.

A defense lawyer can show you are more than the allegations the State is making:

• Explain the risk assessment, what you can do to reduce your risk of being detained pretrial, and what it means in your situation.

• Present favorable information about your life that does not show up in a database.

• Propose specific conditions (like treatment, home detention, or third‑party custodians) to convince the judge that you can be safely released.

• Challenge weak or incomplete information that the State relies on.

If you or a loved one is in custody, do not assume the outcome is fixed. The pretrial release decision is a real hearing, and what happens there will shape everything that follows.