Opinion ID: 2382857
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 34

Heading: State v. Dreher

Text: Although John Dreher's murder conviction has been reversed, I discuss it because the majority does and, equally importantly, because the prosecution's theory of the case was similar to the prosecution's theory in Marshall's case. Dreher's case was not prosecuted capitally. The majority assumes that that was because the prosecutor did not believe the c(4)(c) aggravating factor, a wantonly vile murder, was present in that there was insufficient evidence to show that Dreher had intended that his wife suffer pain beyond that incident to her death. Ante at 177, 613 A. 2d at 1094. Yet Dreher's case (as described by the prosecutor at trial) and Marshall's are similar in terms of both the crime and the defendant. Both Marshall and Dreher were alleged to have killed their wives for pecuniary gain so that they could live in luxury with their mistresses. Both defendants were financially secure, mature adults without prior criminal records. Neither cooperated with authorities, and neither, consistent with his claims of innocence, expressed remorse for his crime. Both had indicated to their lovers that they wished their wives were out of their lives at a time some months before the actual murder, indicating a long period of premeditation and a motive to eliminate the spouse in order to be with another woman. Both could be understood as having involved aborted attempts to kill the victims, as Dreher sought a gun several months before the murder and Marshall arranged an opportunity to have his wife killed at a restaurant parking lot a few nights before the murder. In neither case were extenuating circumstances present that would explain or justify the defendant's actions. One element enhancing Dreher's culpability is that he enlisted the help of his mistress, Nance Seifrit, in the killing. The c(4)(d) and c(4)(e) aggravating factors reflect the notion that killing for profit is reprehensible and deserving of the death penalty. In part, those factors reflect the concept that hiring a killer is offensive because it involves another person in a criminal enterprise beyond the person who intends the victim to die. That notion is grounded in a concern that the plan is more likely to succeed if others are involved as partners in crime, as the partners will prod one another into action. That element was present in Marshall's case, inasmuch as he had hired another person to kill his wife for him. The payment of money triggered the c(4)(d) aggravating factor. Similarly, Dreher was said to have involved another person in his plan to kill his wife. According to the prosecution, he asked Seifrit to bring him something sharp while he was in the process of strangling his wife; only after she gave him a pair of scissors, said the prosecution, did Dreher stab his wife in the throat. In comparing Dreher's case with Marshall's, one point that stands out is that Dreher's victim was terrified when she died, whereas Marshall's victim seems not to have known what was about to happen to her. Before her death, Gail Dreher was said to have begged for her life as her husband dragged her down the stairs to the basement and beat her. If, as the State claims, she overheard her husband ask for something sharp, then she almost certainly was aware of her impending death. Marshall's victim appears to have suffered much less by comparison. The evidence suggests that when Maria Marshall died she was dozing on the front seat of the car and probably was unaware of her assailant. Unlike Gail Dreher, who was in pain for a considerable period, Maria Marshall died immediately from two bullet wounds. 123 N.J. at 32-33, 586 A. 2d 85 (noting that Marshall told police that his wife was asleep but that he had asked her to pop the trunk lever); id. at 34, 586 A. 2d 85 (noting that pathologist had testified that victim had been lying down at time of shooting).