People v. Adams
| Decision Date | 22 December 1995 |
| Citation | 635 N.Y.S.2d 906,222 A.D.2d 1124 |
| Parties | The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Gilbert ADAMS, Appellant. |
| Court | New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division |
Linda S. Reynolds by Chrysanthe Vergos, Buffalo, for Appellant.
Kevin M. Dillon by Raymond Herman, Buffalo, for Respondent.
Before PINE, J.P., and FALLON, WESLEY, DOERR and DAVIS, JJ.
The evidence of attempted arson was legally sufficient (see, People v. Bleakley, 69 N.Y.2d 490, 495, 515 N.Y.S.2d 761, 508 N.E.2d 672). That evidence established that defendant was observed splashing gasoline onto the house of his estranged girlfriend at 4:00 A.M. Smelling the gasoline, the occupants of the house ran outside where they saw defendant and heard him say that he thought everyone in the house was asleep and that "you all supposed to burn". Two lighters were found on defendant. Twice earlier that night, defendant had been at the house of his estranged girlfriend, smashing windows and threatening to kill her. The absence of evidence that defendant attempted to ignite the gasoline does not mean that defendant was not dangerously close to the completion of the crime (see, People v. Mahboubian, 74 N.Y.2d 174, 190, 544 N.Y.S.2d 769, 543 N.E.2d 34; People v. Johnson, 186 A.D.2d 363, 588 N.Y.S.2d 162, lv. denied 81 N.Y.2d 763, 594 N.Y.S.2d 725, 610 N.E.2d 398).
The trial court did not abuse its discretion in rejecting defendant's challenge for cause to a prospective juror who worked with the law enforcement division of the IRS and whose car was vandalized eight years earlier. Without more, a mere relationship with law enforcement officers does not inexorably lead to the conclusion that a juror is biased or incapable of rendering an impartial verdict (People v. Colon, 71 N.Y.2d 410, 418, 526 N.Y.S.2d 932, 521 N.E.2d 1075, cert. denied 487 U.S. 1239, 108 S.Ct. 2911, 101 L.Ed.2d 943; People v. James, 191 A.D.2d 957, 958, 594 N.Y.S.2d 499, lv. denied 82 N.Y.2d 720, 602 N.Y.S.2d 817, 622 N.E.2d 318, cert. denied 510 U.S. 1077, 114 S.Ct. 891, 127 L.Ed.2d 85). Based upon her unequivocal statements that those matters would not affect her duties as a juror, that she could be fair and impartial, and that she would vote to acquit if the prosecution did not prove its case, there was no indication that she possessed "a state of mind that [was] likely to preclude [her] from rendering an impartial verdict based upon the evidence adduced at the trial" (CPL 270.20[1][b]. We...
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...accomplishment of the intended crime.") (internal citations and quotations omitted) (alteration in original); see also People v. Adams, 222 A.D.2d 1124(4th Dep't 1995) (finding evidence of attempted arson legally sufficient where proof established that defendant splashed gasoline onto house......
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People v. Richards
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