A bill to abolish the death penalty was defeated in...

A bill to abolish the death penalty was defeated in June, as was a bill to reduce the number of peremptory challenges (removing prospective jurors without providing a reason) in criminal cases. Advocates of the measure included the New Jersey chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, the New Jersey Association on Correction and the Coalition for Peace Action, and two lawmakers - Alfred Steele, D-Passaic, and Wilfredo Caraballo, D-Essex. "This is the beginning of a long crusade to inject some moral and pragmatic reasoning into this state's approach to criminal punishment," said Alfred Steele. Added Wilfredo Caraballo, "The government does not have a right to kill. Capital punishment is nothing less than a cowardly and lackadaisical approach to fighting crime." Bills to amend the state constitution to permit a mentally competent person to waive post-conviction procedures in death penalty cases, to permit certain juveniles to be eligible for the death penalty, and to amend the constitution to allow automatic death sentences for those who murder police officers, were defeated. Following the earlier recommendations of a commission established by the Governor to speed up New Jersey's death penalty process, the legislature passed a series of bills to streamline appeals. One of the bills would have greatly restricted proportionality review - a process whereby the court looks at each death sentence to see how it compares with the sentences for similar crimes. The New Jersey Supreme Court, however, rejected the restrictions which would have allowed them only to look at other death sentences, rather than at all other murder convictions, regardless of sentence. A bill to expand the aggravating circumstances to include violation of a domestic violence restraining order was passed and is awaiting the Governor's signature. Governor Christie Whitman gave families of murder victims several new rights under bills signed on December 23. A bill would allow four relatives of the victim and two of the inmate to witness the execution of the condemned killer, along with officials, doctors, clergy and four journalists. Another bill would permit victims' family members who choose to speak to the jury at a murder trial to also show them a photo of the victim. Current law provides for so-called "victim's impact statements" in which family members may address the jury to explain how the loss of the loved one affected their lives. But the law was silent on whether relatives could display a photograph of the deceased, and trial judges have taken different stances. The new bill gives them that right, but leaves it to the state Supreme Court to decide under what conditions the photo could be displayed.