People v Stewart
2010 NY Slip Op 01153 [70 AD3d 1367]
February 11, 2010
Appellate Division, Fourth Department
As corrected through Wednesday, March 31, 2010


The People of the State of New York, Respondent, v Wayne R.Stewart, Appellant.

[*1]Anthony J. LaFache, Utica, for defendant-appellant.

John H. Crandall, Sr., District Attorney, Herkimer (Jacquelyn M. Asnoe of counsel), forrespondent.

Appeal from a judgment of the Herkimer County Court (Patrick L. Kirk, J.), renderedAugust 30, 2007. The judgment convicted defendant, upon a jury verdict, of assault in the firstdegree.

It is hereby ordered that the judgment so appealed from is unanimously affirmed.

Memorandum: On appeal from a judgment convicting him upon a jury verdict of assault inthe first degree (Penal Law § 120.10 [1]), defendant contends that the conviction is notsupported by legally sufficient evidence because the People failed to establish that the victimsustained a serious physical injury within the meaning of Penal Law § 10.00 (10).Defendant did not move for a trial order of dismissal on that ground and thus failed to preservehis contention for our review (see People v Gray, 86 NY2d 10, 19 [1995]). In any event,we conclude that his contention lacks merit (see generally People v Bleakley, 69 NY2d490, 495 [1987]). The People presented evidence establishing that the victim sustained four stabwounds, which resulted in permanent scars. In addition, the victim testified that he feels pain"[e]very day" as a result of his injuries. We thus conclude that the evidence, viewed in the lightmost favorable to the People (see People v Contes, 60 NY2d 620, 621 [1983]), is legallysufficient to establish that the victim sustained a serious physical injury (see People v Alston, 45 AD3d398, 399 [2007], lv denied 10 NY3d 807 [2008]; People v McDuffie, 293AD2d 287 [2002], lv denied 98 NY2d 699 [2002]; People v Gagliardo, 283AD2d 964 [2001], lv denied 96 NY2d 901 [2001]).

Defendant's challenge to the jury panel was not in writing and thus is not preserved for ourreview (see CPL 270.10 [2]; People v Prim, 40 NY2d 946, 947 [1976];People v Whitfield, 152 AD2d 998, 999 [1989], lv denied 74 NY2d 900 [1989]).In any event, the contention of defendant that he was denied the right to be tried by a jury of hispeers is without merit, inasmuch as he failed to meet his initial burden of establishing "a primafacie case of the systematic exclusion of blacks from the jury panel" (Whitfield, 152AD2d at 999; see People v Guzman, 60 NY2d 403, 409 [1983], cert denied 466US 951 [1984]; People v Jordan, 261 AD2d 947 [1999], lv denied 93 NY2d1003 [1999]). Present—Scudder, P.J., Smith, Fahey and Lindley, JJ.


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