You are here: / / COURTROOM SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN CLOSED TO FAMILY MEMBERS DURING THE UNDERCOVER...

COURTROOM SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN CLOSED TO FAMILY MEMBERS DURING THE UNDERCOVER OFFICER’S TESTIMONY, NEW TRIAL ORDERED (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, ordering an new trial, determined the defendant’s family members should not have been excluded from the courtroom duing the undercover officer’s testimony:

The People concede that the trial court erred in excluding defendant’s family members from some parts of the trial … . Here, the People failed to show specifically that defendant’s family posed a threat to the undercover officer’s safety. The court’s error requires reversal of the conviction … .

The People acknowledge that a harmless error/lack of prejudice analysis does not apply to courtroom closure errors. Nevertheless, relying on nonbinding Second Circuit case law, they argue that reversal is not warranted because the exclusion of defendant’s family was so trivial as not to implicate defendant’s right to a public trial (see e.g. Smith v Hollins, 448 F3d 533 [2d Cir 2006]). We need not decide whether a triviality exception exists under State law, because even applying that standard, the closure here cannot be characterized as trivial. Defendant’s family was kept out of the courtroom during the entirety of the direct examination, and part of the cross-examination, of an undercover officer who was one of the People’s key witnesses. That undercover was one of the officers involved in the narcotics operation that formed the basis of the charge against defendant. He set up the meeting to purchase the drugs, gave the buy money to defendant’s accomplice, and received crack cocaine in return. Thus, the exclusion of defendant’s family members “from the crux of the [People’s] case” was not trivial … . People v Ruffin, 2019 NY Slip Op 08771, First Dept 12-5-19

 

You might also like
NO DUTY TO KEEP BUS STEPS FREE OF TRACKED IN WATER DURING RAINSTORM.
A DISMISSAL FOR FAILURE TO STATE A CLAIM IS NOT ON THE MERITS AND HAS NO RES JUDICATA EFFECT (FIRST DEPT).
THERE WAS A QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER WATER ON THE FLOOR RESULTED FROM A RECURRING LEAK WHICH SHOULD HAVE BEEN NOTICED BY THE NYC HOUSING AUTHORITY; THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE THE ROOF-REPAIR CONTRACTORS HIRED BY THE HOUSING AUTHORITY LAUNCHED AN INSTRUMENT OF HARM; SUMMARY JUDGMENT SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN AWARDED TO THE HOUSING AUTHORITY IN THIS SLIP AND FALL CASE BUT WAS PROPERLY AWARDED TO THE CONTRACTORS (FIRST DEPT).
A JUROR, AN ATTORNEY, ALLEGEDLY TOLD THE OTHER JURORS THAT THE “BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT” STANDARD COULD BE DISREGARDED; DEFENDANT WAS ENTITLED TO A “JUROR MISCONDUCT” HEARING IN CONNECTION WITH HIS MOTION TO SET ASIDE THE VERDICT (FIIRST DEPT). ​
THERE WERE QUESTIONS OF FACT WHETHER A RAISED MANHOLE COVER, EXPOSED WHEN THE ROAD SURFACE AROUND THE MANHOLE WAS MILLED IN PREPARATION FOR REPAVING, CONSTITUTED A DANGEROUS CONDITION CREATED BY THE CITY AND WHETHER THE CONDITION WAS OPEN AND OBVIOUS (FIRST DEPT).
THE EVIDENCE AT THE HEARING ON DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO VACATE HIS CONVICTION DID NOT SUPPORT THE ALLEGATION DEFENDANT’S FRIEND PAID DEFENDANT’S LEGAL FEES CREATING A CONFLICT OF INTEREST FOR DEFENDANT’S ATTORNEY (FIRST DEPT).
STORM IN PROGRESS RULE RELIEVED DEFENDANTS OF RESPONSIBILITY FOR TRACKED IN WATER; EVIDENCE OF ROUTINE MAINTENANCE SCHEDULE COUPLED WITH PLAINTIFF’S OBSERVATIONS SHORTLY BEFORE THE ACCIDENT DEMONSTRATED DEFENDANTS DID NOT HAVE ACTUAL OR CONSTRUCTIVE NOTICE OF URINE ON FLOOR.
PLYWOOD DELIBERATELY PLACED AS A TEMPORARY FLOOR DOES NOT CONSTITUTE “DIRT AND DEBRIS” OR “SCATTERED TOOLS AND MATERIALS” OR “SHARP PROTECTIONS” WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE INDUSTRIAL CODE; THEREFORE PLAINTIFF’S STEPPING IN A HOLE IN THE PLYWOOD AND FALLING IS NOT COVERED BY LABOR LAW 241(6) (FIRST DEPT). ​

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 © 2026 New York Appellate Digest, Inc.
Site by CurlyHost | Privacy Policy

ABSENT A FINDING OF PERMANENT PARTIAL DISABILITY, CLAIMANT NEED NOT SHOW ATTACHMENT... SEARCH WARRANT FOR DEFENDANT’S CELL PHONE WAS OVERLY BROAD; GUILTY PLEA...