What happens to the people on death row in New Jersey if A-3569 is enacted?
A-3569 would amend the murder statute to provide that “[a]n inmate sentenced to death prior to the date of the passage of this bill, upon motion to the sentencing court and waiver of any further appeals related to sentencing, shall be re-sentenced to a term of life imprisonment during which the defendant shall not be eligible for parole.” While A-3569 provides for retroactive punishment in that it provides a punishment for crimes committed prior to its passage, the bill does not implicate ex post facto prohibition. This is because the bill requires a voluntary waiver of the constitutional guarantee to be free from ex post facto punishments, and because it requires that inmates under a sentence of death be re-sentenced to a punishment that, in the eyes of the law, is considered to be a less severe punishment than death. With regard to the constitutionality of the re-sentencing provision in A-3569, the recent State Supreme Court decision in State v. Fortin provides firm support for the p
