| People v Chavis |
| 2009 NY Slip Op 01165 [59 AD3d 240] |
| February 17, 2009 |
| Appellate Division, First Department |
| The People of the State of New York,Respondent, v David Chavis, Appellant. |
—[*1] Robert M. Morgenthau, District Attorney, New York (Britta Gilmore of counsel), forrespondent.
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Arlene R. Silverman, J.), rendered July 27,2005, convicting defendant, after a jury trial, of criminal sale of a controlled substance in thethird degree, and sentencing him, as a second felony offender, to a term of 4½ to 9 years,unanimously affirmed.
The court's Sandoval ruling balanced the appropriate factors and was a properexercise of discretion (see People v Hayes, 97 NY2d 203 [2002]; People vWalker, 83 NY2d 455, 458-459 [1994]; People v Pavao, 59 NY2d 282, 292 [1983]).The convictions at issue were probative of defendant's willingness to place his interests abovethose of society, and were not unduly prejudicial.
Defendant failed to preserve his argument that he was denied a fair trial because of the trialcourt's interference during the prosecutor's direct examination and defense counsel'scross-examination of the People's witnesses and defense counsel's summation (see e.g.People v Charleston, 56 NY2d 886, 888 [1982]), and we decline to review it in the interestof justice. As an alternative holding, we find no basis for reversal. While both before and afterdefendant's trial we have expressed our disapproval of this trial justice's continued practice ofimproperly interjecting herself into the proceedings (see e.g. People v Canto, 31 AD3d 312 [2006], lv denied[*2]7 NY3d 900 [2006] [and cases cited therein]), the court'sconduct in this case did not deprive defendant of a fair trial (see People v Moulton, 43NY2d 944 [1978]). Concur—Friedman, J.P., Gonzalez, Buckley and Renwick, JJ.