People v. Rockefeller

• Decision Date: 03 November 2011
• Citation: 931 N.Y.S.2d 807,89 A.D.3d 1151,2011 N.Y. Slip Op. 07753
• Parties: The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent,v.Jeffrey ROCKEFELLER, Appellant.
• Court: New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division

89 A.D.3d 1151
931 N.Y.S.2d 807
2011 N.Y. Slip Op. 07753

The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent,
v.
Jeffrey ROCKEFELLER, Appellant.

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

Nov. 3, 2011.

[931 N.Y.S.2d 807]

Eugene P. Grimmick, Troy, for appellant.Richard J. McNally, District Attorney, Troy (Michael W. Shanley of counsel), for respondent.

[931 N.Y.S.2d 808]

Before: MERCURE, J.P., MALONE JR., KAVANAGH, McCARTHY and EGAN JR., JJ.MALONE JR., J.

[89 A.D.3d 1151] Appeal from a judgment of the County Court of Rensselaer County (Jacon, J.), rendered January 13, 2010, upon a verdict convicting defendant of the crimes of stalking in the third degree and aggravated harassment in the second degree.

Defendant was charged by indictment with making a terroristic threat, stalking in the third degree and aggravated harassment in the second degree. The charges stemmed from allegations that defendant threatened to kill Gary Gordon, an investigator for the Rensselaer County District Attorney's office. Following a jury trial, defendant was acquitted of making a terroristic threat, but convicted of the crimes of stalking in the third degree and aggravated harassment in the second degree. Prior to sentencing, defendant unsuccessfully moved, pro se, pursuant to CPL 330.30 to set aside the verdict as repugnant. County Court thereafter sentenced defendant to one year in prison on each conviction, with the sentences to run concurrently. Defendant appeals.

We are not persuaded by defendant's contention that the verdict is against the weight of the evidence.¹ With respect to stalking in the third degree, defendant argues that there is no evidence that Gordon was in reasonable fear of harm or injury as a result of defendant's alleged conduct. We disagree. Three individuals testified that defendant had approached them and made statements about Gordon that were of a threatening nature. To one witness, defendant stated that Gordon had ruined his life and that he wanted to beat Gordon to death. Two others testified that defendant made comments to them that Gordon was “a dead man.” Gordon testified that, between August 2008 and March 2009, he received numerous threatening calls on his work-issued cell phone from defendant, including a call in August 2008 during which defendant told Gordon to “watch [his] back” and that Gordon was “a f* * *ing dead man.” Gordon also testified that, during a call on March 9, 2009, defendant told him that he was “going to burn down [Gordon's] family's house [in the City of Troy, Rensselaer [89 A.D.3d 1152] County] and kill everybody inside of it.” Gordon stated that as a result of defendant's threats, he feared for...