State of New Jersey, Plaintiff-Appellant v. Waverly Lark, Defendant-Respondent

Summary

The Supreme Court of New Jersey reversed the Appellate Division, holding that the rule announced in State v. Howard requiring trial courts to advise defendants of the parole consequences of an Avenel sentence is not to be applied retroactively to convictions finalized before Howard; its retroactive effect is limited to the Howard defendant and to cases pending when Howard was decided. Justice Clifford, in a concurring opinion, argued that the retroactivity issue was moot because the issue was never raised on direct appeal.