State v. Timmendequas

The opinion of the Court was delivered by

GARIBALDI, J.

In May 1997, a jury convicted defendant Jesse Timmendequas of the capital murder of Megan Kanka, committed in the course of a kidnapping and sexual assault. Following a penalty-phase proceeding on the capital-murder conviction, the court sentenced defendant to death. He appeals directly to this Court as of right. See R. 2:2 — 1(a)(3). We affirm defendant’s conviction for murder and his sentence of death.

I

Procedural History

On October 19, 1994, Jesse Timmendequas was charged with: knowing or purposeful murder of Megan Kanka by his own…