STATE v. MORTIMER


135 N.J. 517 (1994)

641 A.2d 257

STATE OF NEW JERSEY, PLAINTIFF-APPELLANT, v. DAVID MORTIMER, DEFENDANT-RESPONDENT.

The Supreme Court of New Jersey.

Decided May 26, 1994.


Attorney(s) appearing for the Case

Simon Louis Rosenbach, Assistant Prosecutor, argued the cause for appellant (Robert W. Gluck, Middlesex County Prosecutor, attorney).

Matthew Astore, Deputy Public Defender II, argued the cause for respondent (Zulima V. Farber, Public Defender, attorney).

Ronald K. Chen argued the cause for amicus curiae American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey (Stephen M. Latimer, attorney; Mr. Latimer, Mr. Chen, Annamay T. Sheppard, Charles H. Jones and Marsha Wenk, of counsel and on the brief).

Debra L. Stone, Deputy Attorney General, argued the cause for amicus curiae Attorney General of New Jersey (Fred DeVesa, Acting Attorney General, attorney).

Marc S. Klein submitted a brief on behalf of amicus curiae American Jewish Congress (Sills, Cummis, Zuckerman, Radin, Tischman, Epstein & Gross, attorneys; Mr. Klein and Marc D. Stern, of counsel; Mr. Klein and Rhonda Sobral, on the brief).

Philip Rosenbach and Walter A. Effross submitted a brief on behalf of amicus curiae Anti-Defamation League (Rosenbach and Rosenbach and McCarter and English, attorneys).

Stephen M. Orlofsky submitted a brief on behalf of amici curiae National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium, American Citizens for Justice, the Asian Law Alliance, Chinese for Affirmative Action, the Chinese American Citizens Alliance, the Committee Against Anti-Asian Violence, the Japanese American Citizens League, the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, and the Organization of Chinese Americans (Blank, Rome, Comisky & McCauley, attorneys; Mr. Orlofsky and Elahna Strom Weinflash, of counsel).


The opinion of the Court was delivered by CLIFFORD, J.

Defendant pleaded guilty to fourth-degree harassment, a violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:33-4 (section 4). He had been charged with having painted on the house of a family of Pakistani descent the words "Dots U Smell" — a scurrilous, offensive allusion that incorporates a reference to the tika, a mark on the forehead of some Hindus, especially women, indicating...

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