Robert Lavezzi and Karen Lavezzi, Plaintiffs v. State of New Jersey, Defendant-Respondent, and Carolyn A. Murray…

Summary

The Supreme Court of New Jersey held that the State must defend and indemnify county prosecutor employees sued for actions taken in the course of law‑enforcement duties, reversing the Attorney General’s denial and remanding for further proceedings; the Court also found the Attorney General’s administrative determination was arbitrary, capricious, or unreasonable. The decision distinguishes law‑enforcement functions, which trigger State liability, from purely administrative functions, which do not.