People v. Gonzalez
155 A.D.3d 507
| N.Y. App. Div. | 2017Background
- Defendant Octavio Gonzalez was tried and convicted of second-degree assault for an incident in which he allegedly wielded a knife and the victim suffered a cut to the throat; defendant admitted hitting and kicking the victim.
- Trial court sentenced defendant to four years' imprisonment; conviction and sentence were appealed.
- Pretrial, defendant moved to exclude or for a Frye hearing on high-sensitivity/low-copy-number (LCN) DNA testing; later he renewed the motion to include forensic statistical tool (FST) DNA testing results.
- During trial a juror told other jurors he was already convinced of guilt; the court removed that juror after disclosure and defense declined further inquiry of remaining jurors or a mistrial.
- Defense also challenged (a) the court’s refusal to submit third-degree assault as a lesser included offense, and (b) the court’s instructions on accessorial liability.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether third-degree assault should be submitted as a lesser included offense | Submission unnecessary because evidence showed defendant personally wielded a knife | Lesser should be submitted because defendant only hit/kicked and did not personally cut the throat | Court refused; no reasonable view supported lesser included charge (affirmed) |
| Whether juror misconduct required mistrial | Removing the juror cured prejudice; no mistrial needed | Mistrial required because a juror prematurely declared belief in guilt | Court denied mistrial; discharging offending juror was sufficient and defense declined further inquiry |
| Whether a Frye hearing was required for admission of LCN/FST DNA evidence | Frye required because techniques are novel and may be unreliable | Prior decisions found LCN/FST generally accepted; Frye hearing unnecessary | Court denied Frye hearing and admissibility challenges; reliance on prior decisions (any error harmless) |
| Adequacy of accessorial-liability jury instructions | Instructions were flawed and warranted reversal | Objections were corrected at trial and no further requests were made; issues unpreserved | Claims unpreserved; in any event, corrected charge viewed as a whole was adequate |
Key Cases Cited
- Frye v. United States, 293 F. 1013 (D.C. Cir. 1923) (established general acceptance test for novel scientific evidence)
- People v. LeGrand, 8 N.Y.3d 449 (N.Y. 2007) (court may rely on prior rulings to decide admissibility without a new Frye hearing)
- People v. Montanez, 147 A.D.3d 444 (1st Dept. 2017) (discussing accessorial liability and lesser-included offense standards)
- People v. William Rodriguez, 153 A.D.3d 235 (1st Dept. 2017) (Frye hearing held as to FST; court found FST generally accepted)
- People v. Ayers, 214 A.D.2d 459 (1st Dept. 1995) (defense counsel may decline further juror inquiry, affecting relief for juror misconduct)
- People v. Heide, 84 N.Y.2d 943 (N.Y. 1994) (issues not preserved when objections are corrected and no further request is made)
- People v. Whalen, 59 N.Y.2d 273 (N.Y. 1983) (preservation principles for jury charge objections)