An appeals court upheld a ruling today that will require convicted killer Giuseppe Tedesco to appear at his sentencing and hear his victim’s family describe how the killing has affected their lives.
The ruling came in response to an emergent appeal filed by Tedesco’s attorney, Anthony Iacullo of Nutley, who sought to reverse a ruling issued last week by Superior Court Judge N. Peter Conforti, sitting in Newton.
In his ruling, Conforti, citing case law and the state Crime Victims Bill of Rights, said Tedesco would be required to appear at his sentencing to hear victims’ impact statements made by Michele Ruggieri, the mother of murder victim Alyssa Ruggieri, and other family members.
Conforti’s ruling came on the heels of a request made in February by Tedesco to waive his right to appear at his sentencing.
“(The) defendant may not use the waiver process to diminish in any way the victim’s well-recognized right to meaningfully participate in the criminal justice system ...” Appellate Judge Anthony Parrillo wrote in a four-page ruling.
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Tedesco, 27, of Hopatcong was found guilty on Jan. 10 of killing Alyssa Ruggieri, 22, by shooting her six times in her Hopatcong home after she spurned his romantic interests.
During his month-long trial, Tedesco claimed the killing on March 27, 2010, was in self-defense. He testified that the shooting occurred while he and Ruggieri fell down a flight of stairs at her home while they struggled for his gun.
Tedesco is scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday and faces life imprisonment plus 20 years. He had earlier rejected a plea bargain deal that would have required him to serve 30 years in prison.
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