ALTHOUGH THE ‘LEGALLY INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE’ ISSUE WAS NOT PRESERVED BY THE MOTION FOR A TRIAL ORDER OF DISMISSAL, THE APPEAL WAS HEARD IN THE INTEREST OF JUSTICE; THE ELEMENT OF RECKLESSNESS IN THIS ASSAULT CASE WAS LEGALLY INSUFFICIENT; INDICTMENT DISMISSED (FOURTH DEPT).

The Fourth Department, reversing defendant’s assault convictions and dismissing the indictment, determined the evidence of recklessness was legally insufficient. Although the issue was not preserved by the motion for a trial order of dismissal, the appeal was heard in the interest of justice. The facts were not described:

Defendant failed to preserve that contention for our review, however, “because [her] motion for a trial order of dismissal was not specifically directed at the ground[] advanced on appeal’ ” … . We nevertheless exercise our power to review her challenge as a matter of discretion in the interest of justice (see CPL 470.15 [6] [a]).

We agree with defendant that the conviction of both counts of assault in the third degree is not supported by legally sufficient evidence … . The evidence submitted by the People is insufficient to establish that defendant acted recklessly, “i.e., that [s]he perceived a substantial and unjustifiable risk of [injury] and that [her] conscious disregard of that risk constituted a gross deviation from the standard of conduct that a reasonable person would observe in that situation” … . People v Romeiser, 2020 NY Slip Op 04054, Fourth Dept 7-17-20