People v. Washington

• Citation: 679 N.Y.S.2d 31,254 A.D.2d 148
• Parties: The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Altarik WASHINGTON, Defendant-Appellant.
• Decision Date: 20 October 1998
• Court: New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division

Page 31

679 N.Y.S.2d 31

254 A.D.2d 148

The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Altarik WASHINGTON, Defendant-Appellant.

Supreme Court, Appellate Division,

First Department.

Oct. 20, 1998.

Susan Axelrod, for Respondent.

Kevin F. Casey, for Defendant-Appellant.

Before NARDELLI, J.P., and WALLACH, TOM and ANDRIAS, JJ.

MEMORANDUM DECISION.

Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Renee White, J.), rendered February 28, 1997, convicting defendant, after a jury trial, of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree and resisting arrest, and sentencing him to concurrent prison terms of 1 year, unanimously affirmed.

Defendant's motion to suppress was properly denied. We see no reason to disturb the court's credibility determinations, which are supported by the record (see, People v. Prochilo, 41 N.Y.2d 759, 761, 395 N.Y.S.2d 635, 363 N.E.2d 1380).

The court properly exercised its discretion in refusing to excuse for cause a prospective juror who indicated to the court that a close friend had been shot to death but that she would try not to let that affect her ability to be impartial (People v. Williams, 63 N.Y.2d 882, 483 N.Y.S.2d 198, 472 N.E.2d 1026; People v. Middleton, 220 A.D.2d 202, 631 N.Y.S.2d 837, lv. denied 87 N.Y.2d 848, 638 N.Y.S.2d 607, 661 N.E.2d 1389). This prospective juror never expressed any actual bias; therefore, she was not required to make an unequivocal declaration overcoming a bias that she never stated she possessed (compare, People v. Torpey, 63 N.Y.2d 361, 482 N.Y.S.2d 448, 472 N.E.2d 298).