People v. Alston
| Decision Date | 17 January 1995 |
| Citation | 621 N.Y.S.2d 329,211 A.D.2d 498 |
| Parties | The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Larry ALSTON, Defendant-Appellant. |
| Court | New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division |
R. Petrone, for respondent.
R. Budner, for appellant.
Before SULLIVAN, J.P., and ROSENBERGER, NARDELLI and WILLIAMS, JJ.
Judgment, Supreme Court, Bronx County (Joseph Cerbone, J.), rendered September 25, 1992, convicting defendant, after jury trial, of criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree and sentencing him, as a second felony offender, to a term of 5 to 10 years, unanimously affirmed.
Defendant contends that the jury charge on reasonable doubt impermissibly shifted the burden of proof. The charge, viewed as a whole, conveyed the proper standard. The court's singular statement that the jurors "must be in a position to furnish their reason if asked to do so" by a fellow juror, did not impose an "affirmative obligation" on the jurors "to supply concrete reasons 'based upon the evidence' for [an] inclination to acquit" (People v. Antommarchi, 80 N.Y.2d 247, 251-252, 590 N.Y.S.2d 33, 604 N.E.2d 95), "and in no way reduced the People's burden of proof" (People v. Johnson, 196 A.D.2d 765, 602 N.Y.S.2d 15, lv. denied 82 N.Y.2d 926, 610 N.Y.S.2d 178, 632 N.E.2d 488). Nor do we find error in the court's description of reasonable doubt as a doubt that would make a "reasonable person ... hesitate to act" (see People v. Quinones, 123 A.D.2d 793, 507 N.Y.S.2d 417).
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...conveyed the appropriate principle of law (see, People v. Warren, 76 N.Y.2d 773, 559 N.Y.S.2d 954, 559 N.E.2d 648; People v. Alston, 211 A.D.2d 498, 621 N.Y.S.2d 329; People v. Benjamin, 210 A.D.2d 418, 620 N.Y.S.2d 416; see also, People v. Melendez, 205 A.D.2d 392, 613 N.Y.S.2d 395), we de......
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...embedded in the accepted definition of reasonable doubt" (People v. Morgan, 199 A.D.2d 143, 144, 605 N.Y.S.2d 85; see, People v. Alston, 211 A.D.2d 498, 621 N.Y.S.2d 329; People v. Quinones, 123 A.D.2d 793, 507 N.Y.S.2d The defendant's sentence was not excessive (see, People v. Suitte, 90 A......
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