"murphy's law" bill would fine, imprison governor murphy for violating "murphy's law" if passed

“Murphy’s Law” Bill Would Fine, Imprison Governor Murphy for Violating “Murphy’s Law” if Passed

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1 min read
August 29, 2020

TRENTON, NJ – New Jersey residents are sick and tired of Governor Phil Murphy breaking his own executive orders and now, one Monmouth County legislator wants to make it illegal for the governor to violate his own absurd and insane laws.

Introduced by Republicns Jay Webber, Holly Schepisi and Gerry Scharfenberger, the law would grant Governor Murphy the same penalties that are being imposed daily against the residents of New Jersey.

This bill, designated “Murphy’s Law,” would nullify any order, rule, or regulation, or relevant portion thereof, adopted by the Governor to address a declared state of emergency in accordance with P.L.1942, c.251 (C.App.A:9-33 et seq.), if the Governor violates the Governor’s own order, rule, or regulation.

Additionally, it would create an affirmative defense to prosecution for violating any such order, rule, or regulation, or aiding and abetting a violation, when the Governor committed the same violation (a violation is a disorderly person offense, punishable by imprisonment for up to six months, a fine of up to $1,000, or both).  The bill would take effect immediately, and apply to any prosecution initiated prior to the effective date for which a final judgment has not been rendered, and any prosecution initiated on and after that date.

As with all bills proposed by Republicans, this bill is expected to never see the light of day in a floor vote and if that were to happen, there’s about as much chance of Murphy reopening indoor dining and movie theaters than there is of him not vetoing this bill.

Phil Stilton

Phil Stilton is the Editor and Publisher of Shore News Network, an independent digital newsroom providing original reporting on New Jersey, national news, government, public policy, public safety, courts, and community affairs.

As founder of the publication, Stilton leads editorial strategy, investigative reporting, and daily newsroom operations while overseeing coverage that reaches millions of readers annually.

With extensive experience covering municipal government, county government, state legislatures, elections, law enforcement, emergency management, and public records, Stilton specializes in translating complex government actions into clear, factual reporting. His work frequently relies on primary source documents, including court filings, legislation, public meeting records, election finance disclosures, government databases, police reports, and Freedom of Information and Open Public Records Act (OPRA) requests. He has reported extensively on local government accountability, taxpayer spending, campaign finance, public corruption investigations, infrastructure, public safety, and the policies affecting New Jersey residents.

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