NJ Supreme Court Upholds Mom’s Conviction In Son’s Death

SOUTH AMBOY, NJ — New Jersey’s highest court has upheld the conviction of Michelle Lodzinski in the death of her 5-year-old son, Timothy Wiltsey, nearly 30 years ago.

The 3-3 split decision means an earlier appellate ruling rejecting Michelle Lodzinski’s appeal will hold.

“The judgment of the Appellate Division upholding defendant’s conviction is affirmed by an equally divided court,” the court wrote in a 100-page opinion. “Three members of the court found the evidence sufficient and three members found the evidence insufficient to sustain the murder conviction.”

Lodzinski is currently serving 30 years in prison for her son's murder. She had requested a retrial, and her lawyer argued the jury was "tainted" by outside information. He also argued that her right to due process was violated when prosecutors waited 23 years to bring her to trial, and that sufficient evidence was never shown clearly proving Lodzinski killed her own son.

The New Jersey Supreme Court also ruled that Lodzinski was not entitled to a new trial because juror substitution occurred.

Her 30-year sentence has no parole eligibility, meaning she must serve the entire term. Lodzinski will be approximately 80 years old when she is released from prison.

Lodzinski, 51, is originally from South Amboy. That's where she and her son were living when she first reported him missing from a carnival in Sayreville over Memorial Day weekend in 1991.

Police and fellow residents helped Lodzinski look for her son for months after he disappeared, doing regular searches of the woods near Sayreville and posting Timothy's photos on flyers all over the area.

A year later, in 1992, the 5-year-old boy's partial remains were found by a bird watcher in a marshy area off Olympic Drive in Raritan Center.

She was not brought to trial until 2016. The trial in New Brunswick lasted four months, and a jury found her guilty in May.

The state Supreme Court's ruling may not mark the end of this case, as Lodzinski’s lawyer could bring the case to the U.S. Supreme Court

Ongoing Patch reporting on this case:

Middlesex County Pays Michelle Lodzinski $25K To Settle Lawsuit
Michelle Lodzinski Said She 'Wasn't Made' to be a Mother, Witness Testifies