People v. Brown

• Decision Date: 27 May 2020
• Docket Number: Ind. No. 01-1415,2017-12211
• Citation: 124 N.Y.S.3d 711,183 A.D.3d 910
• Parties: The PEOPLE, etc., Respondent, v. William BROWN, Appellant.
• Court: New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division

183 A.D.3d 910
124 N.Y.S.3d 711

The PEOPLE, etc., Respondent,
v.
William BROWN, Appellant.

2017-12211
Ind. No. 01-1415

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

Argued - October 18, 2019
May 27, 2020

124 N.Y.S.3d 712

Mischel & Horn, P.C., New York, N.Y. (Richard E. Mischel of counsel), for appellant.

Anthony A. Scarpino, Jr., District Attorney, White Plains, N.Y. (John J. Sergi, William C. Milaccio, and Steven A. Bender of counsel), for respondent.

WILLIAM F. MASTRO, J.P., JOHN M. LEVENTHAL, COLLEEN D. DUFFY, VALERIE BRATHWAITE NELSON, JJ.

DECISION & ORDER

Appeal by the defendant, by permission, from an amended order of the County Court, Westchester County (Anne E. Minihan, J.), dated October 25, 2017, which denied, without a hearing, his motion pursuant to CPL 440.10 to vacate a judgment of the Supreme Court, Westchester County (Thomas A. Dickerson, J.), rendered July 8, 2003, convicting him of assault in the first degree and criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree, upon a jury verdict, and imposing sentence.

ORDERED that the amended order is affirmed.

The defendant moved pursuant to CPL 440.10 to vacate his judgment of conviction, which was previously affirmed by this Court (see People v. Brown, 7 A.D.3d 535, 535–536, 775 N.Y.S.2d 877). In support of his motion, the defendant contended that

124 N.Y.S.3d 713

the People's alleged nondisclosure of certain evidence prior to trial violated his constitutional rights under Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 and People v. Rosario ,9 N.Y.2d 286, 213 N.Y.S.2d 448, 173 N.E.2d 881. He argued, in the alternative, that if the People in fact disclosed the evidence upon which he based his Rosario claim, then his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to utilize it in support of his defense. In an amended order dated October 25, 2017, the County Court denied the defendant's motion.

We agree with the County Court that the defendant failed to establish a Brady violation by virtue of the People's failure to disclose a fingerprint comparison report. " Brady does not require that a prosecutor ‘supply a defendant with evidence when the defendant knew of, or should reasonably have known of, the evidence and its exculpatory nature’ " ( People v. McClain, 53 A.D.3d 556, 556–557, 861 N.Y.S.2d 764, quoting People v. Doshi, 93 N.Y.2d 499, 506, 693 N.Y.S.2d 87, 715 N.E.2d 113 ; see People v. Wade, 166 A.D.3d 912, 912–913, 88 N.Y.S.3d 239 ; People v. Banks, 130 A.D.2d 498, 499, 515 N.Y.S.2d 81 )....