This Day in History: 1958-08-13
Legal maneuverings to delay the execution of Edgar H. Smith, convicted of having murdered Victoria Zielinski in Fardale continued. On August 12 Justice Brennan of the U.S. Supreme Court, with the single word “NO”, had refused a stay of execution for the Mahwah resident. He had already been denied clemency from N.J. Governor Robert B. Meyer and his automatic appeal to the N.J. Supreme Court had been denied. Meanwhile testimony continued in Hackensack for defense motions for a new trial. The two major claims made by Smith’s team of lawyers were in connection with defense attempts to implicate another man, Donald Hammill in the crime, and accusations that one of the jurors had acted improperly in the case. In testimony on August 13, tavern owner Herbert Pelzer testified that Hammill had not been in his tavern on the evening of the crime, as Hammill claimed. Several other witnesses contradicted some of Pelzer’s testimony, and one claimed that Hammill had been there most of the evening. Testimony concerning the conduct of the juror was inconclusive. Finally the heat and the mosquitos forced a continuance into the next day without a ruling from Judge Arthur J. O’Day. Additional moves were being made in Federal Courts claiming Smith’s constitutional rights had been violated, and the N.J. opponents of capitol punishment were active in opposing the execution. (Bristow)