New Jersey Criminal Law Article By Jeffrey Hark, Esq.

[5/31/10 - 10:30 pm] The Legisture has amended the provisions of New Jersey's seatbelt law under NJSA 39:3-76-2(f) and (g) to require that all occupants of a passenger automobile, including adults who are seated in the rear utilize a seatbelt when the vehicle is being operated. Under the prior law, adults seated in the rear of a passenger automobile were not required to utilize a seatbelt.

As far as enforcement is concerned, a companion new statute, NJSA 39:3-76.2(n) categorizes seatbelt violations as secondary offenses, meaning that police must detain the vehicle for a different violation before issuing a summons and complaint for this offense.