N.J. appeals court orders new sentencing hearing for ex-Deptford cop who fatally shot friend

A New Jersey appeals court on Monday ordered a resentencing hearing for a former Deptford police officer who fatally shot a friend seven years ago.

The two-judge panel wrote that James Stuart, 36, should get a new sentencing hearing because the judge at his second trial erred in determining Stuart’s sentence.

Stuart was off duty when he shot David Compton, 27, of South Philadelphia, in the face on Jan. 5, 2013, while they were in Stuart’s Deptford home after a night out at a Sewell bar. He contended the shooting was accidental.

But a Gloucester County jury in October 2015 convicted Stuart of one count each of knowingly murdering Compton and aggravated manslaughter. Prosecutors contended that Stuart was reckless in bringing out a gun — his blood alcohol content, measured four hours after the shooting, was 0.14% — and that as a police officer, Stuart should have known better.

Judge Robert Becker sentenced Stuart in January 2016 to 30 years in prison, the minimum required by law. A year later, Superior Court’s Appellate Division ordered a new trial, finding errors in instructions given to the jury.

A second jury convicted Stuart of the lesser offense of second-degree reckless manslaughter. Judge Christine Allen-Jackson sentenced Stuart in October 2018 to seven years in prison, which was in the middle of the sentencing range.

The appellate panel on Monday affirmed Stuart’s conviction but said it was sending the case back to the sentencing court because the court had erred in finding that the offense was committed in an especially heinous manner but did not support its finding with any elements related to the shooting.