New Jersey has enacted a comprehensive revision of its statewide police use-of-force policy, marking the first major update since 2020 and establishing a framework that emphasizes the sanctity of human life and mandates de-escalation as a core duty for every law enforcement officer.
The reforms, which apply to approximately 38,000 state, county, and local officers, are designed to fundamentally shift police interactions with civilians.
The new policy, effective this month, introduces stricter limits on the use of physical and deadly force, requires officers to intervene if a colleague uses excessive force, and establishes a duty to provide medical aid.
These changes are part of a broader national conversation on policing reform and build upon initiatives New Jersey began several years ago.
The revised policy is built around seven guiding principles.
A key change is the explicit instruction that force must be an absolute last resort, only permissible after officers have attempted de-escalation and provided a clear opportunity for compliance.
Officers are now required to use techniques such as communication, tactical positioning, and slowing down the pace of an incident to gain voluntary compliance before considering force.
They must also use the least amount of force that is objectively reasonable, necessary, and proportional to safely achieve a law enforcement objective.
The policy affirms that every officer, regardless of rank, has a duty to intervene to prevent illegal or excessive force by a colleague and must report such incidents.
The reforms also explicitly prohibit several practices and introduce new safeguards.
Chokeholds and neck restraints are banned, along with sitting, kneeling, or standing on a person’s chest, back, or neck for a prolonged period.
Firing at moving vehicles is generally prohibited, with very limited exceptions. Warning shots are strictly forbidden. Force may not be used against individuals engaged in peaceful demonstrations.
This update builds on a foundation laid in 2020, when then-Attorney General Gurbir Grewal led the first major overhaul of the state’s use-of-force policy in two decades. Those changes introduced a duty to intervene and emphasized de-escalation.
Since then, the state has been engaged in an extensive evaluation of police practices.
The National Policing Institute, in collaboration with the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, is conducting the largest known statewide study of police reform, assessing the impact of mandatory de-escalation training on officer behavior and use-of-force incidents.
For New Jersey residents, the policy aims to raise the standard for police encounters. Officers are expected to use time and communication to resolve situations safely, potentially reducing violent confrontations.
The mandatory duty to intervene and report, combined with a comprehensive review of every use-of-force incident, is intended to increase internal accountability.
The policy also emphasizes protecting vulnerable populations. Officers are directed to consider factors such as behavioral health crises, developmental disabilities or language barriers and to use appropriate techniques to resolve situations without force when possible.
The implementation of these reforms comes amid ongoing challenges. While cities like Camden have drawn national praise for community-policing efforts, others—such as Trenton—have faced federal scrutiny. A 2024 U.S. Department of Justice report found that Trenton police routinely used unreasonable force, underscoring the difficulty of achieving consistent reform across departments.
The success of the new policy will depend on effective training and consistent enforcement. As the statewide evaluation continues, data collected through the Attorney General’s Use-of-Force Portal will play a critical role in measuring the policy’s impact on public safety and police-community relations.
The revised policy represents a significant step in New Jersey’s ongoing effort to reinvent policing, to strengthen trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve while ensuring the safety of all persons.
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