State v. Winter

The opinion of the Court was delivered by

CLIFFORD, J.

We granted certification, 93 N.J. 308 (1983), to review the Appellate Division’s reversal, in an unreported opinion, of defendant’s conviction for manslaughter, a violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:11-4b. The order granting certification limited the appeal to two issues: (a) What standard should a trial court apply in determining whether to issue a curative instruction or, in the alternative, to order a mistrial, when the jury has heard inadmissible, prejudicial testimony? (b) Were the curative instruc tions given in this case sufficient to eliminate…