The State of New Jersey, Plaintiff-Respondent v. Leo Robert Forcella, Defendant-Appellant; the State of New Jersey…

Summary

The New Jersey Supreme Court held that the state murder statute does not violate the Fifth Amendment under United States v. Jackson and therefore upheld the statute, affirmed the death‑sentence judgments in Forcella and Funicello, and denied the motion to eliminate the death penalty in the pending Ornes and Perez cases. Justice Jacobs and Hall dissented, arguing that Jackson does apply and the statute should be struck, while Justice Francis concurred in the result but urged procedural reforms.