State of New Jersey, Plaintiff-Respondent v. Braynard Purnell, Defendant-Appellant

Summary

The Supreme Court of New Jersey held that a death sentence cannot be imposed when the jury is not permitted to consider a non‑capital felony‑murder verdict, vacating the death penalty and affirming the murder conviction. The Court also affirmed the trial court's jury‑selection, ineffective‑counsel, and prosecutorial‑comment rulings as moot. Justice HANDLER, in a concurrence‑in‑part/dissent‑in‑part, argued that the murder conviction should also be reversed.