State of New Jersey, Plaintiff-Respondent v. Juan Ramos Crisantos, A/K/A Juan Crisantos Ramos, A/K/A Florentino…

Summary

The Supreme Court of New Jersey affirmed the conviction of Juan Ramos Crisantos for felony murder and first‑degree robbery and held that the trial court was not required to give a passion/provocation manslaughter instruction because the record did not provide a rational basis for such a verdict. The Court also affirmed the Appellate Division’s decision to vacate the sentence and remand for resentencing. Justice O'Hern concurred in part and dissented in part, arguing that the manslaughter issue should have been submitted to the jury.