The recent New Jersey Supreme Court decision in State v. Bruce Sterling gives us pause. The defendant was charged with rapes against three victims (K.G., L.R. and J.L.) and a burglary against victim S.P. The state sought to try the cases together. The trial court held that the offenses against K.G. and L.R. could be joined because the evidence in each case would be admissible at the trial of the other. In particular, the court opined that those crimes were “so nearly identical as to constitute signature” based on the attacker’s condom use, racial comments, and the wielding of a knife to cut off the victim’s underwear. The trial court further ruled that the case involving J.L. had to be tried separately because those signature features were absent. In addition, the court determined that the S.P. burglary could be joined with either trial or admitted as other-crimes evidence because it demonstrated the identity of the defendant and how he came to be linked to the earlier crimes. (He was caught in the act of burglary, chased down and found to have a knife and a condom).
At the joint trial against K.G., L.R. and S.P. for the offenses, 50 percent of the evidence adduced had nothing to do with the assault on K.G.; 60 percent had nothing to do with the assault on L.R.; and 85 percent had nothing to do with the burglary of S.P. The jury found defendant guilty on all counts. At a second trial regarding J.L., the court permitted extensive evidence about the burglary of S.P.’s home. The second jury also found defendant guilty of all charges. He was sentenced to an aggregate term of 80 years, with a 63 years of parole ineligibility.
