Donald Loftin

Case overview

Donald Loftin was convicted of the murders of Sofia Fetter and Gary Marsh. He was sentenced to death on October 15, 1993, for the Gary Marsh murder, and that murder conviction and death sentence were vacated by the New Jersey Supreme Court on June 6, 2007. Loftin later admitted in court that he killed Gary Marsh during the robbery of a gas station in 1992, pleaded guilty to one count of murder, and faced a 30-year prison sentence for the Marsh killing.

People

• Sofia Fetter — 69-year-old chambermaid working at Harrah’s Casino Hotel in Atlantic City; victim.
• Gary Marsh — honors graduate at Rider University; part-time job at a Lawrence gas station; victim.
• Donald Loftin — defendant; convicted for the murders of Sofia Fetter and Gary Marsh.
• Gary Marsh’s co-worker — saw Marsh’s body and called police when he found no sign of Gary.
• Paramedics — arrived and struggled to get Gary breathing.
• Medivac helicopter — transported Gary Marsh to a Camden hospital.
• Superior Court Judge Charles A. Delehey — to whom Loftin admitted and who accepted statements in connection with the guilty plea.
• Defense lawyer Steven Lember — counsel mentioned in relation to speculation about Loftin’s plea.
• Deputy First Assistant Prosecutor Doris Galuchie — prosecutor statement after Loftin’s confession.
• Associate Justice Barry T. Albin — wrote the opinion described in connection with the June 6, 2007 ruling.
• Judge Paulette Sapp-Peterson — presided in the jury-bias issue involving a juror described as a postal worker.
• Joseph L. Bocchini Jr. — Mercer County prosecutor.
• David B. Glazer — Loftin’s lawyer in the successful appeal described in connection with the Supreme Court decision.
• Mr. Loftin — described as black in connection with the Supreme Court discussion.

Timeline

• March 28, 1992 — Sofia Fetter was sent to clean Room 1134 in Harrah’s Harbor Tower at Harrah’s Casino Hotel in Atlantic City and was murdered execution-style, shot in the head at close range.
• March 28, 1992 — Investigation established the presence of an unauthorized man in the Harbor Tower area, and video surveillance tracked his movements before and after the time of Sofia’s murder.
• May 5, 1992 — During the pre-dawn hours, Gary Marsh was working alone at a Lawrence Township Exxon station; he was shot and mortally wounded.
• May 5, 1992 — Gary’s co-worker arrived at six a.m., found no sign of Gary, and later saw Marsh’s body on the floor with his head in a large pool of blood; the co-worker called police.
• May 5, 1992 — Paramedics arrived; although taken by Medivac helicopter to a Camden hospital, Gary never regained consciousness and died that afternoon.
• May 1, 2008 — Loftin admitted in court that he killed Gary Marsh during the robbery of a gas station in 1992; he pleaded guilty to one count of murder and faced a 30-year prison sentence for the Marsh killing.
• June 6, 2007 — The New Jersey Supreme Court vacated Loftin’s murder conviction and death sentence for the Gary Marsh killing due to failure to pursue the potential bias of a juror; it ordered a new trial.
• October 15, 1993 — Loftin was sentenced to death.

The offence

Murder of Sofia Fetter

Sofia Fetter was murdered execution-style in Harrah’s Harbor Tower after being sent to clean Room 1134 at Harrah’s Casino Hotel in Atlantic City. She was shot in the head at close range.

Ballistics testing of bullets obtained from the hotel room identified the type of weapon used: a .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol.

Murder of Gary Marsh

Gary Marsh was gunned down while working part-time at a Lawrence gas station as he completed training in aviation.

During the pre-dawn hours of May 5, 1992, Gary was working alone at a Lawrence Township Exxon station. A co-worker arrived at six a.m., approached the office, and saw Marsh’s body sprawled on the floor with his head in a large pool of blood. Gary was barely alive when the co-worker called for the police, and paramedics struggled to get him breathing.

The autopsy determined that the cause of death was a gunshot to the head. The bullet entered over the left ear, penetrated his skull, passed directly through both hemispheres of his brain, and exited on the opposite side above the right temple.

Both the bullet and its shell casing were recovered at the scene.

Investigation

Investigation established the presence of an unauthorized man in the Harbor Tower area at the time of Sofia Fetter’s murder, and video surveillance tracked his movements before and after the time of Sofia’s murder.

Ballistics testing identified the weapon used in the hotel room as a .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol. The trail ended at that point.

Later investigation linked both murders through weapon ballistics:

• The bullet that killed Gary Marsh and the bullet that killed Sofia Fetter were identified as coming from the gun belonging to Loftin.

Arrest

Four days later, Donald Loftin was arrested using Gary Marsh’s credit card to buy a computer.

Subsequent searches of his home and car revealed the murder weapon, a .380 semi-automatic weapon, concealed under the dashboard.

Trial

Sofia Fetter trial and sentence

Loftin was tried for the murder of Sofia Fetter in 1993. He was convicted and given a life sentence with thirty years before parole.

Gary Marsh trial and death sentence

Loftin was tried for the murder of Gary Marsh in 1994 and convicted. He received the death penalty, and he had been on death row ever since the sentencing.

Sentencing

• Loftin received a life sentence with thirty years before parole for the murder of Sofia Fetter.
• Loftin was sentenced to death on October 15, 1993, for the murder of Gary Marsh.

Appeals

The New Jersey Supreme Court vacated Loftin’s murder conviction and death sentence for the Gary Marsh killing on June 6, 2007. The court ruled that the trial judge and two lawyers who represented Loftin failed to pursue the potential bias of a juror. The Supreme Court ordered a new trial, describing the failure as tainting the conviction beyond harmless error analysis, despite “overwhelming evidence of guilt.”

Quoted juror-bias rationale

“Denying an accused the right to an impartial jury is to deprive him of the very essence of a fair trial and therefore is not susceptible to a harmless error analysis,” Associate Justice Barry T. Albin wrote.

The events were centered on a white juror who was described as a postal worker. The juror told two black co-workers that he was ready to “go to the hardware store and buy a rope to hang this man with.” The workers reported the conversation to presiding judge Paulette Sapp-Peterson.

When the judge met privately with the juror and the lawyers, the juror admitted making the comment but said it was a joke aimed at colleagues and claimed they considered him biased. Paulette Sapp-Peterson returned the juror to the jury box over defense lawyer objections. When deliberations began, the judge made the juror an alternate. The Supreme Court ruled that the juror should have been immediately disqualified due to the comments and the possibility of sharing his views with other jurors.

The court faulted Loftin’s lawyers for not raising the issue in two previous unsuccessful appeals.

Quoted prosecutorial and defense reactions

Joseph L. Bocchini Jr., described as the Mercer County prosecutor, said: “upsetting to put it mildly.”

David B. Glazer said, “But for this conviction he would not have been on death row all this time.”

Outcome

Loftin’s murder conviction and death sentence for Gary Marsh were vacated and a new trial was set following the Supreme Court decision.

Aftermath

Guilty plea and court admission

On Thursday May 1, 2008, after Loftin’s conviction was overturned on appeal and a new trial was set to begin the following Monday, Loftin admitted in court that he killed Gary Marsh during the robbery of a gas station in 1992.

Loftin told Superior Court Judge Charles A. Delehey:

“I robbed and shot Gary Marsh at a service station on Route 1, an Exxon station,” Loftin told Superior Court Judge Charles A. Delehey. “That's it.”

Loftin pleaded guilty to one count of murder and faced a 30-year prison sentence for the Marsh killing.

The defense lawyer Steven Lember would not speculate on why Loftin agreed to the plea, except to note that:

• he might have been sentenced to another life term if convicted by a jury, and
• “30 years is "a fixed sentence."”

After Loftin’s confession, Deputy First Assistant Prosecutor Doris Galuchie said:

• she was prepared for the trial to begin on Monday, and
• “even though it was an old case, her witnesses were ready and able to testify.”

Loftin’s admission meant the trial was off.

Sentence interaction with Atlantic County life sentence

The 30-year prison sentence was described as running consecutive to a life sentence Loftin was serving for the murder of an Atlantic City hotel chambermaid in 1992.

Loftin had been on death row until his conviction was overturned last year.