New Jersey Sex Crime Laws

New Jersey has no offense named “rape.” Conduct that other states charge under that label is prosecuted here as sexual assault or aggravated sexual assault under N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-2, and the difference is not cosmetic, because the elements, the definitions in N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-1, and the grading all follow the New Jersey text rather than a headline. Chapter 14 also contains criminal sexual contact, lewdness, and invasion of privacy, while offenses involving children, trafficking, and prostitution-related conduct sit elsewhere in Title 2C. This page is an overview of those statute families and their gradings. It does not cover registration or supervision, which are addressed on the firm’s New Jersey sex offender laws page. Statutory text in this area moves: the 2019 amendments revised parts of N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-2, and P.L.2024, c.92 restructured the child exploitation provisions of N.J.S.A. § 2C:24-4. The version that governs a case depends on when the conduct occurred. Request a consultation. Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. maintains 24/7 phone intake at (888) 437-7747.

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Sexual Assault and Criminal Sexual Contact

The two principal penetration offenses are graded in N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-2. Aggravated sexual assault is a crime of the first degree, and a conviction under subsection a.(1) carries a term of 25 years to life with 25 years of parole ineligibility. Sexual assault is a crime of the second degree. The definitions that decide which subsection applies are in N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-1, which defines actor, victim, sexual penetration, sexual contact, intimate parts, severe personal injury, physically helpless, mentally incapacitated, and coercion. Those defined terms carry more weight than the offense names, because a single one can move a charge between degrees.

The 2019 amendments, P.L.2019, c.108 and c.474, replaced the phrase “physical force or coercion” in several paragraphs with “coercion or without the victim’s affirmative and freely-given permission.” Conduct that predates those amendments is governed by the earlier text, so the date of the alleged conduct determines which standard applies. Contact offenses are graded separately in N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-3, where aggravated criminal sexual contact is a crime of the third degree and criminal sexual contact is a crime of the fourth degree. Where the alleged conduct spans a period of years, more than one version of the statute can be implicated in a single charging document.

Offenses Involving Children, Including CSAEM

N.J.S.A. § 2C:24-4 covers endangering the welfare of a child and child sexual abuse or exploitation material, abbreviated CSAEM. That statute was amended by P.L.2024, c.92, approved November 18, 2024 and effective immediately, which restructured the possession and viewing tiers and adopted the term CSAEM in place of “child pornography.” Conduct before November 18, 2024 is graded under the prior thresholds.

Under subsections a.(1) and a.(2), the offense is a crime of the second degree for a person with a legal duty for the child or who has assumed responsibility for the child, and a crime of the third degree for any other person. Subsection b.(3) is a crime of the first degree and subsection b.(4) is a crime of the second degree. Subsection b.(5)(a) is a crime of the first degree where 1,000 or more items are involved and otherwise a crime of the second degree. Subsection b.(5)(b) grades at the first degree for 100,000 or more items, the second degree for at least 1,000 but fewer than 100,000, and the third degree for fewer than 1,000. Luring or enticing a child under N.J.S.A. § 2C:13-6 is a crime of the second degree, and there a child means a person less than 18 years old.

Lewdness and Invasion of Privacy

N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-4 treats lewdness at two levels. Subsection a. is a disorderly persons offense and subsection b. is a crime of the fourth degree. The distance between those two is significant, because one is not an indictable crime and the other is. Which level applies follows the subsection cited in the charging document rather than the general word used to describe the conduct, and that is the first item to confirm in a lewdness matter.

Invasion of privacy under N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-9 is graded across several subsections. Subsection a. is a crime of the fourth degree. Subsection b.(1) is a crime of the third degree and subsection b.(2) is a crime of the fourth degree. Subsection c. is a crime of the third degree and carries a fine of up to $30,000. That fine attaches to subsection c. specifically, which is one reason the exposure in an invasion of privacy matter cannot be read from the offense name alone. Subsection c. is New Jersey’s nonconsensual image disclosure provision, and it is the part of the statute most often at issue when images are shared after a relationship ends. Charges under this section usually arrive with digital evidence attached, and the subsection charged, not a general description in a complaint, controls the exposure.

Human Trafficking and Prostitution-Related Offenses

Human trafficking under N.J.S.A. § 2C:13-8 is a crime of the first degree. Subsection d. sets out the sentencing structure for a first-degree offense under subsection a.(2) or a.(3): either a term of 20 years without parole, or a term of 20 years to life with 20 years of parole ineligibility, together with a mandatory fine of at least $25,000. The subsection charged determines whether that structure applies at all. Trafficking allegations often appear alongside counts drawn from other chapters, and each count is graded under its own statute rather than under the most serious charge in the document.

Prostitution and related offenses are collected in N.J.S.A. § 2C:34-1, which spreads across the full range of gradings. Subsections b.(3) and b.(4) are crimes of the first degree. Subsection b.(7) is a crime of the second degree. Subsections b.(5) and b.(6) are crimes of the third degree. Subsection b.(2) is graded at the third or fourth degree. Patronizing under subsection b.(1) is a disorderly persons offense, escalating to a crime of the fourth degree on a second or third conviction and a crime of the third degree on a fourth. Fines of $10,000 to $50,000 apply to subsections b.(2) through b.(7), with a minimum of $25,000 where a child under 18 was involved.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does New Jersey charge an offense called rape?

No. New Jersey has no offense named rape. Allegations that would carry that label elsewhere are charged under N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-2 as sexual assault, a crime of the second degree, or aggravated sexual assault, a crime of the first degree. The distinction matters when reading coverage written for a national audience, because that word does not appear in the New Jersey charge itself.

What separates sexual assault from criminal sexual contact?

The statutes are different and so is the grading. N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-2 covers sexual assault and aggravated sexual assault, graded at the second and first degree. N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-3 covers contact offenses, with aggravated criminal sexual contact a crime of the third degree and criminal sexual contact a crime of the fourth degree. Which statute applies depends on the defined terms in N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-1, including sexual penetration and sexual contact.

What did the 2019 amendments change?

P.L.2019, c.108 and c.474 replaced the phrase physical force or coercion in several paragraphs of N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-2 with coercion or without the victim’s affirmative and freely-given permission. Conduct that occurred before those amendments is governed by the earlier text. If your case involves older allegations, the date of the alleged conduct, and not the date of the charge, decides which version of the paragraph applies.

What does CSAEM mean?

CSAEM stands for child sexual abuse or exploitation material. P.L.2024, c.92, approved November 18, 2024 and effective immediately, adopted that term in N.J.S.A. § 2C:24-4 in place of child pornography and restructured the possession and viewing tiers. The change is not only vocabulary, because the grading structure moved with it, and conduct before November 18, 2024 is graded under the prior thresholds.

How does the number of items affect grading under N.J.S.A. § 2C:24-4?

Under subsection b.(5)(a), the offense is a crime of the first degree where 1,000 or more items are involved and otherwise a crime of the second degree. Under subsection b.(5)(b), the grading is the first degree for 100,000 or more items, the second degree for at least 1,000 but fewer than 100,000, and the third degree for fewer than 1,000. The count drives the degree.

Is lewdness always a minor charge?

No. N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-4 has two levels. Subsection a. is a disorderly persons offense. Subsection b. is a crime of the fourth degree, which is an indictable offense. The subsection charged, rather than the word lewdness, tells you which side of that line a case falls on, so reading the charging document carefully is the only way to know what has actually been alleged.

What does subsection c. of N.J.S.A. § 2C:14-9 cover?

Subsection c. is New Jersey’s nonconsensual image disclosure provision. It is a crime of the third degree and carries a fine of up to $30,000. Other parts of the statute are graded differently: subsection a. is a crime of the fourth degree, subsection b.(1) is a crime of the third degree, and subsection b.(2) is a crime of the fourth degree.

How are prostitution-related offenses graded?

N.J.S.A. § 2C:34-1 grades by subsection. Subsections b.(3) and b.(4) are first degree, b.(7) is second degree, b.(5) and b.(6) are third degree, and b.(2) is third or fourth degree. Patronizing under b.(1) is a disorderly persons offense that escalates to the fourth degree on a second or third conviction and the third degree on a fourth. Fines of $10,000 to $50,000 apply to b.(2) through b.(7).

Mr. Sris, Owner and Founder of Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C., is a former prosecutor, and the firm has handled criminal defense matters since 1997. He is admitted in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and New York, and the firm concentrates in criminal defense. Mr. Sris and the firm’s Of Counsel attorneys read charging documents subsection by subsection, because in this area the grading, and often the entire exposure, follows the subsection rather than the offense name. If you are facing a New Jersey charge under any statute described on this page, the applicable text and the date of the alleged conduct are the first things to establish. Request a consultation by calling (888) 437-7747.

This page provides general information and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Case results depend on a variety of factors unique to each case. Results may vary.

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