Finding those Pesky Bail Jumpers in New Jersey

As promised I have started on the quest all of you asked for, the Bounty Jumping Laws in the Garden State of New Jersey.

In 2000 the New Jersey legislature proposed a new law for the licensing of Bounty Hunters. Until that time there were no laws governing the licensing of Hunters.

The first statement in this proposed bill was that Hunters were to be known as “Bail Runners.”

The bill then begins its proposal. It defined bail runners as any person who works for a bail bonding agent either as an employee or agent by assisting the bail bond agent in presenting a criminal defendant in court; in apprehending a criminal defendant or in keeping that defendant under surveillance.

The bill would require all bail runners to undergo a criminal history check, be at least 25 years old and have five years experience as either an investigator or law enforcement.

The bill would require that the Superintendent of the State Police require additional education and experience for Bail Runners as the superintendent deems necessary.

The Superintendent of the State Police is to set fees for both licensing of bail runners and for all other licensing under The Private Detective Act of 1939.

http://www.state.nj.us/lps/njsp/about/pdet_act.html

The Superintendent of the State Police would also require that the increases of insurance requirement for private detectives and bail runners to be at least $100,000 of liability coverage.

The bail runner could not have a record of high misdemeanors or high crime; he could not a record of moral turpitude. The bill would require that all bail runners would be licensed as private detectives. They would also have to renew their license every two years .

If when a hunter applies for a renewal if it has been found he has been convicted of any crime he will be denied a renewal.

After talking to a retired law enforcement agent here in Florida, the feeling was that the reason the bail runner had to have five years experience in law enforcement, it was to give retired officers an income if they chose.

In 2007 there was a proposal written to the State Police in this proposal the Commander of the State Police was told that his Division would have control of the regulation of Bounty Hunters and their employees. The reason for this was so that the accountability and integrity was greater in the industry in order to insure greater protection of the individual rights and to protect the public welfare and safety.

If a Bail Runner hires an assistant or another runner they also have to abide by the same laws.

In 1998 a defendant by the name of Aymen Elmobdy was charged with felony aggravated assault charges. His bail was set at $50,000.00. He posted the bail and released. He immediately fled and not showing up for his first appearance. When the bondsman was given 45 days to produce the defendant or lose the bond to the courts the runners went to work.

On October 11,2000 Elmobdy was located in a hotel in Bucks Co. PA. by the hunters working the case. They went to his room and knocked on the door and identify themselves.

Elmbdy refused to open the door. The hunters consulted with the manager of the hotel and received permission to do what was necessary to get their man.

The hunters threw a brick through the window and crawled in the room. The defendant fled out the door. A short time later he was apprehended. There was still the matter of the window. The defendant was told his father would have to pay for the window since he had signed the bond. The defendant told the hunters to look in his duffle bag which had been left in the room there was money to pay for the window.

Now this is where it gets both interesting and funny. The hunters found the money and also something they were not expecting. They found three pounds of marijuana and a loaded firearm. The hunters immediately turned both the defendant and the evidence over the Pennsylvania authorities. New Charges were filed in PA.

Now the defendant decides he is going to fight these charges by trying to get the courts to suppress the contents of the bag. He said his constitutional rights had been violated by the hunters who threw a brick through the window, ran him down, peppered sprayed him into submission and then bullied him into paying for the broken window.

The Pennsylvania Superior Court in their infinite wisdom carefully considered the argument, and then ruled the charge was without merit. The reason was the Constitution only protects a person from actions of a government or governmental employees. The hunters were acting in the capacity as a private employee. The basis for their apprehension of Elmbdy was a breach of a civil contract he had entered into with bonding company. The police had not even been contacted until after Elmbdy was caught by the hunters. Ergo there was no reasonable basis to conclude the hunters were acting as state employees.

When that was thrown out the defendant contended that the hunters had no legal leg to stand on because he was apprehended in Pa when he was wanted in NJ. Again the courts said, guess again. A hunter can go into any state and do the pickup and since the hunters followed the proper procedure in turning the defendant over to the local authorities for extradition the charges were again struck down. (From the Desk of the D.A. By Jason J. Legg.DA of Susquehanna Co. PA)

From all of my research on this state apparently until 2000 there were very little restrictions on hunters. As I researched this state I found the above story and it only served to reiterate my belief that criminals are about 12 bricks of a ten brick load.

By popular demand next week I will talk about New York and then move to the state of California.

Officer Aldo Rossi, 42

Port Dickinson New York Police Department

On July 27, 2008, Officer Rossi was assisting a motorist when he was struck by a vehicle driven by a drunk driver. He succumbed to his injuries later that same day.

Officer Rossi leaves behind a wife, a sister, three brothers,  and his father.

This weekend we’re fishing for tuna off the coast of Virginia Beach with Brian Lofland and a few of his friends.

Police officers and facial hair. Not a good combination in most departments. Well, except for the mustache. Most police agencies forbid officers from sporting, goatees, full beards, and Elvis-type sideburns. In fact, policy normally mandates the shape and size of the upper lip fuzz. The most common restriction on mustaches is that they cannot extend below the corner of the mouth.

There are a couple of reasons for these constraints. Most departments insist that gas masks will not fit properly over a beard. Which, if true, could be extremely hazardous in a life-threatening situation. Sure it could be dangerous for the officer, but what about the people he’s trying to protect? If he’s incapacitated by a leaky gas mask, then he could also be hindered to the point where he couldn’t protect an innocent person from harm.

Another reason cited for prohibiting officer facial hair is the individual department’s desire for uniformity – they want a regiment of look-a-likes.

A hairy upper lip is part of cop culture. It’s been around for decades. Some officers claim to have had their staches longer than they’ve been married to their wives. Others say it’s a guy thing, an area of their body (no tattoos, beards, earrings, or long fingernails) their department can’t control. They grow them because they can.

University of Dallas police officer

And there’s always the cop in The Village People…

For most officers it’s about tradition. Lawmen of the Wild West had them and so should they.

And for the rookie officers who can’t quite grow a mustache:

1.	cop stache	143 up, 22 down
	The style of mustache that was popular back in the 80’s and made semi famous by Robert Redford, but nowadays worn primarily by police, usually corrupt or a..hole ones. Rule of thumb: The bigger the cop stache, the bigger the a..hole he is.

Police 10-codes were developed in the 1940s to represent common phrases used by law enforcement officers, and for use with CB radios, normally used in the trucking industry.

Contrary to popular belief, there is no standard set of 10-codes. The once secret radio language can vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, which makes it extremely difficult for officers from different agencies to communicate, such as during the 911 disaster in New York City. To some police officers, a 10-10 means Fight in Progress, while an officer from a neighboring department might know a 10-10 to mean Negative, or No. As a result, many agencies are abandoning the old system for plain English speak. Instead of saying “10-4” an officer would simply say “Okay.”

Here’s a list of some of the 10-codes still in use (remember, this varies from location to location).

10-1 poor reception
10-2 good reception
10-3 stop transmitting
10-4 message received, affirmative, okay
10-5 relay this information to ___.
10-6 busy
10-7 out of service
10-8 in service
10-9 please repeat your message
10-10 negative
10-12 standby
10-13 civilians present and listening
10-15 en route to station with suspect
10-18 urgent
10-19 return to station
10-20 specify location/my location is ___.
10-21 place a phone call to ___.
10-22 disregard
10-23 stand by on this frequency (also “On scene” in some areas)
10-27 vehicle registration request
10-28 arrests/warrants on driver’s license
10-29 arrests/ warrants on the vehicle
10-32 gun
10-33 emergency traffic follows, hold routine messages
10-34 frequency open (cancels 10-33)
10-36 what is the correct time of day?
10-39 false alarm, premises was occupied
10-40 false alarm, no activity, premises appears secure
10-41 begin watch
10-42 end watch
10-45 fueling vehicle
10-49 en route to assignment
10-50 accident
10-51 tow truck needed
10-52 ambulance needed
10-53 road blocked at ___.
10-54 animals on highway
10-55 security check
10-57 hit-and-run accident
10-58 direct traffic
10-59 escort
10-60 squad in vicinity
10-61 personnel in area
10-62 reply to message
10-63 clear to copy info?
10-64 message for delivery
10-65 net message assignment
10-66 net message cancellation
10-67 person calling for help
10-68 dispatch message
10-69 message received
10-70 prowler, fire alarm
10-71 gun involved
10-72 shooting
10-73 smoke report
10-74 negative
10-75 in contact with ___.
10-76 en route
10-77 ETA ___.
10-78 need assistance
10-79 bomb threat, coroner’s case
10-80 bomb has exploded
10-81 Breathalyzer report
10-82 reserve lodging
10-83 work school crossing at ___.
10-84 if meeting ___, advise ETA
10-85 delay due to ___.
10-86 officer on-duty
10-87 pickup
10-88 present phone number of ___.
10-89 bomb threat
10-90 bank alarm at ___.
10-91 pick up prisoner
10-92 improperly parked vehicle
10-93 blockage
10-94 drag racing
10-95 prisoner/subject in custody
10-96 psych patient
10-97 check signal (“On Scene” in CA and other areas)
10-98 prison/jail break
10-99 wanted/stolen record
10-100 dead body
10-200 alarm

Here’s another agency’s list of similar numerical codes and their meanings.

10-1 Receiving poorly
10-2 Receiving well
10-3 Stop transmitting
10-5 Relay
10-6 Busy
10-7 Out of service
10-8 In service
10-9 Repeat
10-10 Out of service – subject to call
10-11 Dispatching to rapidly
10-12 Officials or visitors present
10-13 Advise weather and road conditions
10-14 Convoy or escort
10-15 Prisoner in custody
10-16 Pick up prisoner at _______
10-17 Pick up papers at _______
10-18 Complete present assignment quickly as possible
10-19 Return to your station
10-20 What is your location ?
10-21 Call by telephone, number _______
10-22 Take no further action
10-23 Officer in trouble, location _______
10-24 Trouble at station, units in vicinity report at once
10-25 Do you wish to have contact with _______
10-26 Motorist assist, location _______
10-27 Any answer our message _______
10-28 Check full registration information
10-29 Check for stolen or wanted
10-30 Does not conform to rules and regulations
10-31 Breathalyzer operator report to _______
10-32 Is Breathalyzer available ?
10-33 Emergency traffic
10-35 Confidential information
10-36 Correct time ?
10-37 Operator on duty
10-39 Your message delivered
10-40 Advise if officer _______ available for radio call
10-41 Traffic record summary
10-42 Complete driver license record
10-43 Driver license status
10-44 Check for record wanted / with _______
10-45 Meet for coffee
10-46 Meet for vehicle or D.L. check
10-47 Subject in question possibly armed and dangerous or wanted
10-48 NCIC hit, is it safe to copy information ?
10-49 10-28 with amount of registration and weight paid
10-50 No calls
10-51 Pick up partner for road block assignment at _______
10-52 Set up road block at _______
10-53 Discontinue road block, authority _______
10-54 Estimated time of arrival
10-63 Radio net directed to _______
10-64 Radio net free
10-69 Have you dispatched to _______
10-70 Stopping vehicle, may be dangerous, location _______
vehicle description and license information
10-71 Officer is clear from 10-70
10-72 Information incomplete – no action will be taken until
further information is furnished
10-73 Information is not in proper form – rewrite information
and retransmit
10-74 Possible drug interdiction, stop being made at _______
10-75 Drug interdiction arrest made – request supervisor
10-82 Reserve room at motel for officer _______ at _______ for _______
10-84 Report to _______ for information
10-85 Keep vehicle under surveillance, DO NOT STOP
10-86 Pick up your partner
10-87 Aircraft assignment, location and time
10-88 Advise phone number for station to station call to officer _______
10-90 Officer welfare contact
10-91 Response to 10-90 by non-sworn personnel
10-97 Arrived at scene
10-98 Last assignment completed

Confusing, YES!