State v. S.N.
176 A.3d 813
| N.J. | 2018Background
- In March 2017 S.N. was arrested on complaint-warrant charging first-degree aggravated sexual assault and related offenses based on allegations by his stepdaughter; probable cause was undisputed at the detention hearing.
- Pretrial Services’ PSA scored S.N. 1/6 for both failure to appear and new criminal activity but nonetheless recommended against release.
- The State moved for pretrial detention under the CJRA, alleging risk of flight (citing dual U.S./Canadian citizenship), danger to the victim and family, and risk of obstruction of justice.
- The trial court granted detention, emphasizing the seriousness of the charged offense, dual citizenship, the NERA designation and the prosecutor’s assertions about obstruction risk, but issued limited factual findings.
- The Appellate Division reversed, ordering conditional release; the Supreme Court granted leave, then lifted a stay to allow release and retained the case to decide the proper appellate standard and apply it.
Issues
| Issue | State's Argument | S.N.'s Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proper appellate standard for reviewing CJRA pretrial detention orders | Abuse of discretion; appellate court should defer to trial court's factual judgment | Adopt independent review with deference to fact findings clearly supported | Abuse-of-discretion standard governs; de novo review only if law misapplied or factual underpinnings absent |
| Whether State met clear-and-convincing burden to rebut presumption of release | Trial court reasonably relied on offense seriousness, dual citizenship, PSA and obstruction risk to detain | Evidence insufficient; detention based on speculation and factors that favor release (PSA, ties, employment, lack of record) | Trial court abused discretion; State failed to present clear-and-convincing evidence to overcome presumption |
| Permissibility of factors relied on by trial court (dual citizenship; "he said/she said" characterization) | Dual citizenship may indicate flight risk; familiarity with victim supports obstruction/danger concern | Dual citizenship alone is not probative; "he said/she said" weakness favors release and cannot be used to presume higher risk absent support | Court improperly relied on speculative/conclusory assertions (dual citizenship, generalized obstruction risk, offense label) and failed to consider defendant's ties and characteristics |
| Remedy after finding abuse of discretion | Appellate reversal should remand for reconsideration or allow appellate imposition of conditions | Independent review supports direct release or conditions imposed by appellate court | Affirmed reversal but remanded to trial court to hold a new detention/release hearing and set appropriate conditions of release |
Key Cases Cited
- McLane Co. v. EEOC, 137 S.Ct. 1159 (2017) (two-part test for selecting appellate standard where statute silent)
- Pierce v. Underwood, 487 U.S. 552 (1988) (statutory wording may imply deference to trial court)
- State v. C.W., 449 N.J. Super. 231 (App. Div. 2017) (advocating abuse-of-discretion review for CJRA detention orders)
- State v. Ingram, 230 N.J. 190 (2017) (State need not present live witnesses at CJRA detention hearing; courts may require live testimony)
- State v. Robinson, 229 N.J. 44 (2017) (liberty as the norm; substantial burden required to detain pretrial)