People v. Benjamin

• Decision Date: 21 May 2020
• Docket Number: 110157
• Citation: 183 A.D.3d 1125,123 N.Y.S.3d 770
• Parties: The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Kenneth D. BENJAMIN III, Appellant.
• Court: New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division

183 A.D.3d 1125

123 N.Y.S.3d 770

The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent,

v.Kenneth D. BENJAMIN III, Appellant.

110157

Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Third Department, New York.

Decided and Entered: May 21, 2020

Calendar Date: March 27, 2020

John R. Trice, Elmira, for appellant.

Matthew VanHouten, District Attorney, Ithaca (Emily Perks Quinlan of counsel), for respondent.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

Reynolds Fitzgerald, J.

Appeal from a judgment of the County Court of Tompkins County(Miller, J.), rendered December 1, 2017, upon a verdict convicting defendant of the crimes of menacing a police officer or peace officer, menacing in the second degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree and endangering the welfare of a child.

Defendant was charged by indictment with menacing a police officer or peace officer, menacing in the second degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree and endangering the welfare of a child based upon allegations concerning an incident that took place in February 2017 when defendant allegedly brandished a weapon at a Tompkins County Deputy Sheriff(hereinafter the deputy) and another person (hereinafter child's father) in the presence of the child.Following a jury trial, defendant was convicted on all counts and sentenced to concurrent prison terms, the greatest of which was four years followed by three years of postrelease supervision for his conviction of menacing a police officer or peace officer.Defendant appeals.

Defendant contends that the jury's verdict as to the menacing charges and the endangering charge was against the weight of the evidence."In determining whether [the]defendant's convictions were against the weight of the evidence, we first must determine whether a different result would have been unreasonable; if not, we then weigh conflicting testimony, reviewing any rational inferences that may be drawn from the evidence and evaluate the strength of such conclusions.Based on the weight of the credible evidence, the Court then decides whether the jury was justified in finding the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt"( People v. Jasiewicz,162 A.D.3d 1398, 1399, 79 N.Y.S.3d 755[2018][internal quotation marks, brackets and citation omitted], lv denied32 N.Y.3d 1005, 86 N.Y.S.3d 763, 111 N.E.3d 1119[2018] )."In conducting a weight of the evidence analysis, [this Court] must give deference to the jury's credibility assessments"( People v. Anatriello,161 A.D.3d 1383, 1385, 77 N.Y.S.3d 581[2018][citation omitted], lv denied31 N.Y.3d 1144, 83 N.Y.S.3d 426, 108 N.E.3d 500[2018] ).

Regarding the two menacing charges, defendant asserts that the evidence failed to establish that he intended to place or attempted to place the deputy or the child's father in reasonable fear of physical injury."A person is guilty of menacing a police officer or peace officer when he or she intentionally places or attempts to place a police officer or peace officer in reasonable fear of physical injury, serious physical injury or death by displaying a ... rifle ... or other firearm, whether operable or not, where such officer was in the course of performing his or her official duties and the defendant knew or reasonably should have known that such victim was a police officer or peace officer"( Penal Law § 120.18 )."A person is guilty of menacing in the second degree when ... [h]e or she intentionally places or attempts to place another person in reasonable fear of physical injury ... or death by displaying ... what appears to be a ... rifle ... or other firearm"( Penal Law § 120.14[1] ).

The trial testimony established that the deputy received a dispatch to aid the child's father in removing the child – defendant's nephew – from a residence in the Town of Enfield, Tompkins County.The deputy, dressed in uniform and driving a vehicle with Tompkins County Sheriff emblazoned on it, arrived at the residence before the child's father and observed defendant exit a silver Honda Civic and enter the residence.Shortly thereafter, the child's father arrived at the residence and gave the deputy a court order authorizing him to remove the child.While the deputy was reading the order, the child's mother – defendant's sister – confronted the child's father, striking him in the chest and yelling "don't take my little boy."The deputy commanded defendant's sister to go inside the house, and she complied.Defendant then came running out of the house and attempted to punch the child's father in the face.Defendant then went to his car, reached into it and pulled out a rifle.Although the evidence would later establish that the gun was not capable of firing bullets, the deputy testified that she did not know this at the time.The deputy further testified that she was standing approximately three to five feet from defendant when he pointed the rifle at her hip or abdominal area and at the child's father, who was standing approximately 10 to 15 feet away from her.She further stated that the event was "shocking" and it made her "very nervous and scared."The child's father testified similarly, stating that, when he arrived at the residence to retrieve the child, defendant's sister charged at him, punching him in the chest.He stated that she then went back into the house and defendant came outside, attempted to strike him and, when this attempt proved futile, defendant retrieved a rifle from the back seat of the car and charged him and the deputy.He further averred that defendant"definitely" pointed the rifle at him and the deputy, and that he feared for his safety and believed that defendant was going to shoot him and that the deputy was going to shoot defe...