Convicted South Jersey killer can't take old plea deal in boyfriend's death. Here's why

CAMDEN – A judge gave a victory to Paige Pfefferle in 2022, vacating a murder conviction and a 30-year, no-parole sentence for the Audubon Park woman.

But the courtroom win — and a potential cut in Pfefferle’s prison time — didn’t last.

An appellate panel on Wednesday reversed the decision by Superior Court Judge Thomas Shusted Jr., who had said Pfefferle could accept a more lenient plea deal that was rejected a decade ago by her trial attorney.

That would have allowed Pfefferle to admit guilt to the aggravated murder of her boyfriend, Matthew Hus of Audubon, in September 2010.

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She also would have faced a recommended sentence of 18 years in prison, with parole eligibility after a little more than 15 years.

Pfefferle was 19 when she stabbed Hus, 21, in the kitchen of her family’s home. Now 32, she has been incarcerated since November 2013.

Shusted's ruling was intended to remedy perceived flaws at her trial by allowing her to accept the plea deal.

Shusted found Pfefferle's trial attorney, the late Jaime Kaigh, had made "an unprofessional error" when he did not show his client a prosecutor's letter that detailed the plea offer.

Shusted also determined that error had adversely affected the outcome of Pfefferle's prosecution.

No new sentence for Paige Pfefferle

But the three-judge panel court, acting on an appeal by the Camden County Prosecutor's Office, rejected those findings in a 32-page decision that restored Pfefferle's murder conviction and its mandatory minimum sentence.

It found insufficent evidence to support the claim that Kaigh was ineffective, or that his actions had prejudiced Pfefferle's trial.

The appeals court also said the plea bargain would require Pfefferle to “repudiate” her sworn trial testimony.

Pfefferle told a jury Hus’ death was accidental, claiming he had walked into a knife she picked up while feeling threatened by him.

A medical examiner, testifying for the prosecution, said Hus had been stabbed in the heart with a downward motion.

Pfefferle “would now need to admit that she did stab Hus and, even if not intentionally, she did so recklessly,” the appellate ruling said.

“A court cannot accept that change in testimony because defendant would be lying if she now tried to plead guilty to aggravated manslaughter,” it continued.

The prosecutor’s office, which said it was “pleased” with the Dec. 27 ruling, also asserted Pfefferle “cannot now perjure herself by pleading guilty to aggravated manslaughter.”

An attorney for Pfefferle could not be reached.

What happened to Matthew Hus?

The appeals court also noted the “unreliability” of Pfefferle’s statements, citing her multiple accounts of how Hus died.

“She told one family member that Hus had just collapsed,” the ruling said. “She told an officer that she and Hus had been arguing and he had collapsed. She added that Hus might have hit his chest on something ‘because it could happen.’”

Officers found a knife, which had Hus’ DNA on its blade and handle, in a holder on a counter.

Pfefferle told police she returned the knife to its holder because "'it didn't look like there was any ... blood on it,' and she 'didn't think anything happened,'" the decision observed.

Shusted’s ruling had been stayed pending the resolution of the prosecution’s appeal.

Pfefferle’s prison term now has a release date in September 2043.

Jim Walsh is a senior reporter for the Courier-Post, Burlington County Times and The Daily Journal. Email: Jwalsh@cpsj.com.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Paige Pfefferle of Audubon Park must continue to serve a 30-year term