By Ben Horowitz
The Star-Ledger
November 3, 2011
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/11/jurors_in_chatham_priest_stabb.html
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| Jose Feliciano, seated, of Easton, Pa., former custodian of St. Patrick Church in Chatham, appears in Superior Court, Morristown, for a status conference hearing on charges that he murdered Rev. Edward Hinds in the church rectory in October 2009. Morristown, NJ Robert Sciarrino/The Star-Ledger |
The jury in the trial of a former church custodian accused of killing a Chatham priest today learned the defendant failed to show up in a Philadelphia court in 1988 to face three charges involving a minor.
But the jurors weren’t told — and won’t be — that one of the still-unresolved charges is indecent assault on a 7-year-old girl.
The prosecution and defense agreed to stipulate to those facts and that the jury’s information about the charges would be limited to those facts.
The prosecution sought to introduce the information about Jose Feliciano’s criminal past because it is trying to prove he killed the Rev. Edward Hinds after the priest fired him when he learned of his criminal background. So-called "prior bad acts" are not normally admitted in a trial, but the prosecution believes the charges will prove Feliciano’s motive.
Superior Court Judge Thomas Manahan in Morristown read the stipulation to the jurors, telling them a Pennsylvania state trooper mailed information about the charges to Hinds on Oct. 6, 2009.
Feliciano, now 66, of Easton, Pa., is accused of stabbing the 61-year-old priest 32 times at St. Patrick Church on Oct. 22, 2009 — just 16 days after the mailing was sent.
Feliciano’s public defender, Neill Hamilton, has acknowledged Feliciano stabbed Hinds, but he said it was manslaughter, not murder, because the priest provoked the janitor by making him perform unspecified acts.
Manahan told jurors they may consider the prior charges as "evidence of motive" and for no other purpose. They should not read into them that Feliciano had a "tendency to commit crimes or is a bad person," Manahan said.
The charges included indecent assault, simple assault and corrupting the morals of a minor, according to a 2010 brief by a Morris County assistant prosecutor.
In August 2009, Hinds was researching Feliciano’s criminal background after allegedly learning Feliciano’s fingerprint card hadn’t been turned in. The Diocese of Paterson was conducting an audit at the time to ensure all employees who had contact with children had undergone background checks.
Hinds paid $10 to a Pennsylvania criminal database for information on Feliciano, Manahan told the jury.
The trial continues Monday.
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