You are here: / / REVERSING THE APPELLATE DIVISION, THE COURT OF APPEALS HELD THAT THE TRIAL...
,

REVERSING THE APPELLATE DIVISION, THE COURT OF APPEALS HELD THAT THE TRIAL COURT DID NOT ERR IN REFUSING TO INSTRUCT THE JURY ON THE JUSTIFICATION DEFENSE, STRONG TWO-JUDGE DISSENT (CT APP).

The Court of Appeals, reversing the appellate division, over a two-judge dissenting opinion, determined the trial court properly refused to instruct the jury on the justification defense. The dissent laid out the facts. At the time of the shooting defendant (Sanchez), who had just been beaten up, and defendant’s friends were confronted by several people who apparently had a knife and broken bottles. Although the defendant had retrieved a gun from a car and returned to the confrontation, it was defendant’s friend who took the gun and fired:

Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to defendant … , the trial court properly declined to charge the jury on the justification defense because, even assuming that the jury could rationally find that defendant subjectively believed he had been threatened with the imminent use of deadly physical force, “the jury could not rationally conclude that his reactions were those of a reasonable [person] acting in self-defense” … . Further, on this record, there was no reasonable view of the evidence that defendant could not safely retreat at the time that deadly physical force was used … .

From the dissent:

Lurking somewhere beneath the majority’s opinion is the thought that you mustn’t bring a gun to a knife fight. We should keep in mind that, although there is no evidence that the group threatening Mr. Sanchez and his friends was armed with guns, courts of this state have held that the threat of deadly force may exist when a group of people attacking an individual is not armed at all … or when, in a one-on-one altercation, an unarmed victim “grabs” at a defendant’s gun … . Courts have also characterized a variety of items as dangerous instruments which, if used as part of a real or threatened attack, might justify the use of deadly force … . People v Sanchez, 2018 NY Slip Op 01957, CtApp 3-22-18

CRIMINAL LAW (JUSTIFICATION DEFENSE, REVERSING THE APPELLATE DIVISION, THE COURT OF APPEALS HELD THAT THE TRIAL COURT DID NOT ERR IN REFUSING TO INSTRUCT THE JURY ON THE JUSTIFICATION DEFENSE, STRONG TWO-JUDGE DISSENT (CT APP))/EVIDENCE (CRIMINAL LAW, (JUSTIFICATION DEFENSE, REVERSING THE APPELLATE DIVISION, THE COURT OF APPEALS HELD THAT THE TRIAL COURT DID NOT ERR IN REFUSING TO INSTRUCT THE JURY ON THE JUSTIFICATION DEFENSE, STRONG TWO-JUDGE DISSENT (CT APP))/JUSTIFICATION DEFENSE (CRIMINAL LAW, REVERSING THE APPELLATE DIVISION, THE COURT OF APPEALS HELD THAT THE TRIAL COURT DID NOT ERR IN REFUSING TO INSTRUCT THE JURY ON THE JUSTIFICATION DEFENSE, STRONG TWO-JUDGE DISSENT (CT APP))

You might also like
Failure to Read Jury Notes to Counsel Before Calling in the Jury Was Not a Mode of Proceedings Error—The Error, Therefore, Must Be Preserved by Objection
THE DEFENDANT’S ACTIONS OBSERVED BY THE POLICE OFFICERS IN THIS STREET STOP DID NOT MEET THE “REASONABLE SUSPICION DEFENDANT HAD COMMITTED A CRIME OR WAS IN POSSESSION OF A WEAPON” STANDARD; THE FRISK WAS THEREFORE ILLEGAL AND THE SEIZED DRUGS SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUPPRESSED (CT APP).
POLICE LOST A VIDEO WHICH WAS LIKELY TO BE OF MATERIAL IMPORTANCE, FAILURE TO GIVE THE ADVERSE INFERENCE CHARGE TO THE JURY WAS (HARMLESS) ERROR.
PURPORTED DISSOLUTION OF THE PARTNERSHIP VIOLATED THE PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT, PLAINTIFFS NOT ENTITLED TO ATTORNEY’S FEES, GOODWILL REDUCTION SUPPORTED BY THE RECORD, MINORITY DISCOUNT APPLIED (CT APP).
DEFENDANT’S REQUEST TO REPRESENT HIMSELF, MADE AFTER ELEVEN JURORS HAD BEEN SELECTED, WAS PROPERLY REJECTED AS UNTIMELY (CT APP).
Evidentiary Issues Not Preserved for Review
CASE 1: THE ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF SIGNATURES ON A NUPTIAL AGREEMENT MUST BE CONTEMPORANEOUS, BUT NOT NECESSARILY SIMULTANEOUS, WITH THE SIGNING; HERE A SEVEN-YEAR DELAY WAS TOO LONG; CASE 2: A DEFECT IN THE ACKNOWLEDGMENTS, HERE THE LAWYERS’ FAILURE TO STATE THE SIGNERS WERE PERSONALLY KNOWN TO THEM, DID NOT INVALIDATE THE AGREEEMENT (CT APP).
DEFENSE EXPERT’S CONCLUSORY ASSERTIONS DID NOT RAISE A QUESTION OF FACT ABOUT THE ALLEGATIONS THE NEGLIGENT PRESCRIPTION OF TWO DRUGS CAUSED HEART DAMAGE.

Categories

Sign Up for the Mailing List to Be Notified When the Site Is Updated.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Copyright © 2025 New York Appellate Digest, Inc.
Site by CurlyHost | Privacy Policy

CITY NOT LIABLE FOR AN INMATE ON INMATE ASSAULT, ATTACK NOT FORESEEABLE (SECOND... FRYE HEARING PROPERLY ORDERED, CRITERIA EXPLAINED, DOUBLE HEARSAY ABOUT PRIOR...