Bill > ACR166

This Concurrent Resolution proposes a constitutional amendment to allow for the death penalty in New Jersey under specific circumstances, aiming to restore it after it was eliminated in 2007. The amendment would require the Legislature to pass a new law that makes it more difficult to impose a death sentence by mandating that a jury or court must find, without any doubt, that all aggravating factors of a case outweigh all mitigating factors, and that no juror or the court has any residual doubt. It also establishes strict time limits for appeals in death penalty cases, requiring the New Jersey Supreme Court to issue an opinion within 150 days and setting a one-year deadline for further appeals after the U.S. Supreme Court's final action, though these time limits are not grounds for preventing the death penalty's ultimate imposition. The amendment would only apply to crimes committed after its approval and submission to the public for a vote.