The State of New Jersey, Plaintiff-Appellant v. John Henry Tune, Defendant-Respondent

Summary

The Supreme Court of New Jersey held that a criminal defendant is not entitled to a pre‑trial inspection of statements made by witnesses or other persons (the prosecutor’s work product) and reversed the trial court’s order permitting the defendant to inspect his own confession, affirming the denial of inspection of the other statements. The court emphasized that discovery in criminal cases is limited by the need to protect the integrity of the prosecution and that the burden rests on the moving party to show a compelling need for inspection.