| People v Sampson |
| 2010 NY Slip Op 05200 [74 AD3d 1866] |
| June 11, 2010 |
| Appellate Division, Fourth Department |
| The People of the State of New York, Respondent, v Demetrius F.Sampson, Appellant. |
—[*1] Michael C. Green, District Attorney, Rochester (Leslie E. Swift of counsel), forrespondent.
Appeal from a judgment of the Supreme Court, Monroe County (Joseph D. Valentino, J.),rendered March 7, 2007. The judgment convicted defendant, upon a jury verdict, of murder inthe second degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree and criminal possessionof a weapon in the third degree.
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, inter alia,murder in the second degree (Penal Law § 125.25 [3]), defendant contends that theprosecutor's peremptory challenges with respect to two prospective jurors constituteBatson violations. As defendant correctly concedes, he raises that contention withrespect to one of the two prospective jurors for the first time on appeal and thus failed topreserve for our review his contention concerning that prospective juror (see CPL 470.05[2]), and we decline defendant's request that we exercise our power to review the contention withrespect to that prospective juror as a matter of discretion in the interest of justice (seeCPL 470.15 [6] [a]). With respect to the second prospective juror, we agree with SupremeCourt that the prosecutor's explanation for exercising the peremptory challenge was race-neutraland not pretextual (see generally Peoplev Wedlington, 67 AD3d 1472, 1473-1474 [2009], lv denied 14 NY3d 807[2010]; People v Thompson, 59AD3d 1115, 1117 [2009], lv denied 12 NY3d 852, 860 [2009]).Present—Smith, J.P., Lindley, Sconiers, Pine and Gorski, JJ.