State v. Josephs, 803 A.2d 1074 (N.J. 2002)

Cases | State v. Josephs, 803 A.2d 1074 (N.J. 2002) | 2018

The defendant was convicted of the capital murder of two victims, conspiracy to murder four victims, possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose, and unlawful possession of a handgun. The defendant was sentenced to death for the murder convictions. At sentencing, a victim delivered victim impact evidence in which he characterized the murder as “senseless” and provided information about the children of one of the murdered victims. The defendant did not object to the victim impact evidence when it was admitted. On appeal, the defendant argued that the victim impact evidence was prejudicial and arbitrary. The supreme court ruled that the sole purpose of victim impact evidence in death penalty cases is to rebut mitigating evidence presented by the defendant. Consequently, victim impact evidence is limited to relevant and factual information about the victim’s family, employment, and education, and a general description of the impact of the crime on the victim’s family. Victim impact evidence may not include inflammatory testimony, such as the victim’s family’s personal opinions about the crime, defendant, or punishment. In this case, the defendant failed to object to the victim’s personal characterization of the crime at the time that the victim impact statement was admitted and thus waived the issue on appeal. The supreme court declined to disturb the trial court’s admission of the victim impact evidence.