In the midst of an historic pandemic, the Legislature enacted changes to sweeping legislation it had enacted last year: limitations on monetary bail; expansion of discovery in criminal cases; and the enhancement of the right to a statutory speedy trial. After those changes became effective on January 1st of this year, advocates and prosecutors waged a fierce battle over amending last year’s legislation and both sides came away with some measure of achievement. The amendment to the bail statute is effective July 2nd while the amendment to the discovery legislation became effective on May 3rd. L. 2020, Ch. 56.

This column will review the most significant aspects of the amendment and the reader is advised to read it in full in order to appreciate its scope and breadth.