ADOPTED SEPTEMBER 25, 2008

Requires records to be maintained concerning the sale of used jewelry.

Substitute as adopted by the General Assembly.

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Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes. 2

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1. No person engaged in the business of retailing, wholesaling, 7

or smelting jewelry who purchases any article of used or 8

secondhand jewelry shall sell or offer to sell that used or 9

secondhand jewelry, unless that person: 10

a. Maintains, for five years, a record of the name, address and 11

telephone number of the person from whom it was purchased and: 12

(1) a descriptive list of any used jewelry purchased from that 13

seller, including any identifying characteristics of that jewelry; or 14

(2) photographs of any used jewelry purchased from that seller; 15

b. Verifies the identity of the person selling the jewelry by 16

requesting and examining a photograph-bearing, valid State or 17

federal issued driver’s license or other government issued form of 18

identification bearing a photograph; 19

c. Delivers, on a weekly basis, to the police department having 20

jurisdiction in the location of that person’s place of business a copy 21

of the record of all used jewelry purchased by that person during the 22

preceding week; 23

d. Maintains in his possession any used jewelry purchased for 24

not less than three business days following the delivery of the 25

record of the purchase of that jewelry to the police department, as 26

required by subsection c. of this section; and 27

e. Maintains, for five years, a copy of any list provided by an 28

individual pursuant to section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending 29

before the Legislature as this bill). 30

Nothing in this section shall be construed to apply to 31

pawnbrokers licensed and regulated pursuant to the pawnbroking 32

law, R.S.45:22-1 et seq., or sales made through an Internet website. 33

Nothing in this section shall be construed to apply to a person 34

engaged in retail, provided the sale of jewelry is not his primary 35

business and further provided the person does not engage in the 36

purchase of used or secondhand jewelry on more than three days in 37

a calendar year. 38

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2. Any individual who purchases used or secondhand jewelry 40

from another individual with the intent of selling that jewelry to a 41

person engaged in the business of retailing, wholesaling, or 42

smelting jewelry shall: 43

a. Maintain, for five years, a record of the sale of that jewelry, 44

including, but not limited to, the date the jewelry is sold; name of 45

the person engaged in the business of retailing, wholesaling, or 46

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smelting jewelry to whom it is sold; and an itemized, descriptive list 1

of that jewelry; and 2

b. Provide an itemized, descriptive list of the jewelry sold to the 3

person engaged in the business of retailing, wholesaling, or 4

smelting jewelry at the time of sale. 5

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3. The requisite knowledge or belief for a violation of 7

N.J.S.2C:20-7 is presumed in the case of a person subject to the 8

provisions of sections 1 or 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before 9

the Legislature as this bill) who purchases any article of used or 10

secondhand jewelry and fails to comply with the requirements of 11

sections 1 or 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the 12

Legislature as this bill), as applicable. 13

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4. Any person who purchases any article of used or secondhand 15

jewelry shall immediately report to an appropriate law enforcement 16

agency any delivery or sale of used jewelry under circumstances 17

that would cause a reasonable person to believe the used jewelry 18

was probably stolen or otherwise inappropriately obtained. 19

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5. Notwithstanding any provision of the law to the contrary, any 21

person who reports information to a law enforcement official or 22

agency concerning the suspect sale of used jewelry shall be immune 23

from any civil liability on account of the report, unless such person 24

has acted in bad faith or with malicious purpose. 25

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6. The Attorney General shall promulgate regulations pursuant to 27

the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et 28

seq.), necessary to effectuate the provisions of this act. 29

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7. This act shall take effect on the first day of the fourth month 31

following enactment, but the Attorney General may take such 32

anticipatory acts in advance of that date as may be necessary for the 33

timely implementation of this act. 34

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STATEMENT 37

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This Assembly substitute requires records to be maintained 39

concerning the sale of used jewelry. These requirements create a 40

“paper trail” of any used jewelry sold in this State so that if stolen, 41

the rightful owner may be able to recover it. 42

The substitute requires jewelry retailers, wholesalers, and 43

smelters to verify the identity of anyone selling them jewelry with a 44

driver’s license or other government issued form of photograph 45

identification. Under the substitute, jewelry retailers, wholesalers, 46

and smelters must maintain detailed records of all secondhand 47

jewelry they buy for five years, which is equivalent to the statute of 48

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limitations for burglary. In addition, a copy of these records must 1

be delivered to the local police department each week, and the 2

jewelry may not be sold until three business days after the records 3

are so delivered. 4

The substitute also requires any individual who purchases used 5

or secondhand jewelry with the intent of selling it to provide an 6

itemized, descriptive list of the jewelry to the retailer, wholesaler, 7

or smelter to whom it is sold, and to maintain a record of the sale 8

for five years. 9

The substitute requires any individual who purchases used or 10

secondhand jewelry and suspects that it may be stolen or otherwise 11

inappropriately obtained to report to a law enforcement agency. 12

Under the substitute, a person who makes such a report is immune 13

from civil liability on account of the report, unless he was acting in 14

bad faith or with malicious purpose. 15

The substitute specifies that violations of its record-keeping 16

provisions are presumed to be requisite knowledge or belief for a 17

violation of N.J.S.2C:20-7, which prohibits the receipt of stolen 18

property. As such, violations would be punishable by the penalties 19

established in N.J.S.2C:20-2 for theft, which can range from a 20

disorderly persons offense to a crime in the second degree, 21

depending on the value of the stolen goods. A disorderly persons 22

offense is punishable by up to six months imprisonment, a $1,000 23

fine, or both. A crime of the fourth degree is punishable by up to 24

18 months imprisonment, a $10,000 fine, or both. A crime of the 25

third degree is punishable by three to five years imprisonment, a 26

fine up to $15,000, or both. A crime of the second degree is 27

punishable by five to 10 years imprisonment, a fine up to $150,000, 28

or both. 29