New Jersey’s police assault penalty bill lands on Phil Murphy’s desk

After approval by the full state Senate in June, the bill — sponsored in the lower house by Reps. Bill Spearman, Alex Sauickie and Wayne DeAngelo and in the upper house by state senators Vin Gopal and Linda Greenstein — was heard in committee in the Senate Assembly for the first time in September.

Gopal said New Jersey state troopers contacted him because they were concerned that officers were experiencing a “surge in bodily fluids” during various encounters. Gopal reported that officers were increasingly being spit on and that correctional officers in New Jersey prisons were frequently attacked with urine and feces.

“We worked something out with the DA’s office to try to get her to a good place,” he said. “This should be a good compromise bill that will hopefully act as a bit of a deterrent and give police officers a little more recourse if someone throws urine at them or spit on them.”