Maplewood Township Municipal Court

Maplewood Township Municipal Court cases in Essex County, Maplewood, NJ

Maplewood Township Municipal Court is a municipal court within New Jersey's judiciary that exercises limited jurisdiction over offenses occurring in Maplewood, Essex County. It handles motor-vehicle and parking matters (including DWI), municipal ordinance and local code violations, and disorderly persons and petty disorderly persons offenses such as simple assault, harassment, and shoplifting at the non-indictable level. The court also hears certain fish and game or boating violations. For indictable criminal charges (felonies), it conducts initial proceedings as permitted by law and then refers the matters to the Superior Court of New Jersey, Essex County. Civil, small-claims, probate, and family cases are not heard in municipal court.

Maplewood Township Municipal Court Contact and Location Information

Services and Case Types Handled in Maplewood Township Municipal Court

Maplewood Township Municipal Court serves the public by adjudicating lower-level offenses and local code matters. It processes filings from police and residents, including traffic and parking tickets, municipal ordinance violations, and citizen complaints. Case types include disorderly persons/petty disorderly persons offenses (e.g., simple assault, shoplifting, harassment, alcohol offenses), motor-vehicle charges (including DWI), and certain state regulatory violations.

Core services:
- Scheduling and conducting arraignments, pretrial conferences, plea hearings, bench trials, and sentencing
- Violations bureau, online payments, time-payment plans, and compliance monitoring
- Interpreter and ADA accommodations; public defender applications
- Discovery via the municipal prosecutor; referrals to mediation for neighbor disputes
- Records and certificate requests

Protective orders: Municipal judges may issue temporary domestic-violence restraining orders in emergent situations; ongoing restraining-order matters proceed in Superior Court. Jury services are not provided; jury trials occur in Superior Court.