People who cough or spit on police officers and then claim to have Covid-19 will be facing big-time prosecution in New Jersey. This is according to state Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal, who announced at the start of April that his office was prosecuting at least six cases, and upgrading charges where individuals claimed to have tried to infect law enforcement personnel with the virus.
Grewal’s office released a statement noting that, “We take all assaults on police officers seriously, but it is especially heinous for someone to spit or cough at an officer in an attempt to infect or threaten to infect them with COVID-19.”
The A.G.’s office has added a second-degree charge of making terroristic threats during a state of emergency in four of the cases, and all six have had fourth-degree aggravated assault on an officer charges added.
The defendants, all of whom had their altercations with police during March, are from around the state and came into contact with police in a variety of ways, from DWI stops to domestic violence incidents to allegations of shoplifting.
Second degree crimes carry a sentence of five to ten years in New Jersey, while conviction for a fourth degree crime can put you away for 18 months.
During the pandemic, it’s unlikely that judges will feel any need to go lightly on you if you’re charged with conduct like this. If you’ve been charged with assaulting a police officer in relation to the Covid-19 / Coronavirus pandemic, talk to an experienced lawyer right away. Call Matt Reisig today at 732-385-3339 for a free consultation.