N.J. poised to increase penalty for home invasions

The New Jersey Assembly will vote Monday on a bill that would increase the penalties for home invasions.

Home break-ins in New Jersey are now prosecuted as a burglary, and Assemblyman Jon Bramnick says that means offenders often get off without a prison sentence.

His bill would create the crime of home invasion with a mandatory five-to-10 years behind bars and no eligibility for early parole.

The measure is headed for a vote without having a legislative hearing.

“These bad guys should go to jail now, and I think we’ve got Democratic and Republican support across the board,” he said. “I suspect that there are times when this Legislature has to act quickly, and this is one of them.”

The measure was prompted by the nanny-cam video of a Millburn woman being beaten by an intruder in front of her 3-year-old daughter.

Bramnick, R-Union, said he hopes the Senate, where the bill will be considered after the Assembly vote, will also act quickly on the bill.