You are here: / / THE ALTERNATE JURORS WERE DISCHARGED JUST PRIOR TO THE LUNCH BREAK; A PROBLEM...
,

THE ALTERNATE JURORS WERE DISCHARGED JUST PRIOR TO THE LUNCH BREAK; A PROBLEM WITH A SITTING JUROR AROSE DURING THE BREAK AND THE JUROR WAS REMOVED; DELIBERATIONS HAD NOT YET BEGUN BUT THE ALTERNATE JURORS WERE NO LONGER AVAILABLE FOR SERVICE; THE JUDGE THEREFORE SHOULD NOT HAVE RECALLED ONE OF THE ALTERNATE JURORS; NEW TRIAL ORDERED (CT APP).

The Court of Appeals, in a full-fledged opinion by Judge Garcia, reversing the appellate division and ordering a new trial, determined that once the alternate jurors were discharged they were not longer “available for service.” Therefore, the judge should not have seated one of the discharged alternate jurors after a trial juror was removed for alleged misconduct. The alternates were discharged just before the court broke for lunch. During the break, before deliberations had begun,  the problem with the sitting juror arose. The Court of Appeals noted that, had the judge waited to discharge the alternates until deliberations were about to begin, instead of before the lunch break, there would have been no need for a mistrial:

Prior to the start of deliberations in defendant’s trial, the court discharged the alternate jurors. A trial juror was subsequently challenged and ultimately removed for alleged misconduct, and the court recalled, questioned, and seated one of the discharged alternates. Seating of this discharged alternate juror was error. An alternate juror, once discharged, is no longer “available for service” as a replacement for a trial juror…. . * * *

… [W]hen the trial judge thanked the alternate jurors for their service and “excused [them] from this case,” the alternate jurors were discharged. At that point, the alternates “cease[d] to function” as jurors … and were no longer available for service under the statute. People v Murray, 2022 NY Slip Op 05916, CtApp 10-20-22

Practice Point: Once an alternate juror is discharged the alternate is no longer “available for service” and cannot be recalled even if deliberations have not yet begun.

 

You might also like
Records of Criminal Proceedings Sealed Pursuant to Criminal Procedure Law 160.50 Can Be Accessed by the Commission on Judicial Misconduct Investigating the Alleged Misconduct of a Judge—The Law Surrounding the Sealing of Criminal Records Explained—Mootness Doctrine Explained
THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT OF THE OLD PARKING LOT FOR SHEA STADIUM, ON PARKLAND, IS SUBJECT TO THE PUBLIC TRUST DOCTRINE AND REQUIRES SPECIFIC ENABLING LEGISLATION, THE LEGISLATION FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF SHEA STADIUM IS NOT APPLICABLE.
FAMILY COURT MAINTAINED JURISDICTION TO ISSUE A FINAL ORDER OF PROTECTION FOR VIOLATION OF A TEMPORARY ORDER OF PROTECTION AFTER THE FAMILY OFFENSES, WHICH LED TO THE TEMPORARY VIOLATION OF PROTECTION, HAD BEEN DISMISSED (CT APP).
Environmental Clean-Up Indemnification Agreement Between Seller and Buyer of Property Triggered by Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC’s) “Potentially Responsible Party (PRP)” Letter to Buyer
UNVERIFIED CELL PHONE SUBSCRIBER INFORMATION IN A SPRINT BUSINESS RECORD WAS PROPERLY ADMITTED BECAUSE IT WAS NOT ADMITTED FOR ITS TRUTH, RATHER IT WAS ADMITTED AS A PIECE OF A PUZZLE LINKING THE CELL PHONE TO THE DEFENDANT, WHO WAS OTHERWISE LINKED TO THE ROBBERY.
Writs of Coram Nobis Alleging Ineffective Assistance Not Available In the Three Specific Cases Before the Court Involving the Failure to File Notices of Appeal and the Failure to Make a “Leave to Appeal” Application to the Court of Appeals
Code Provision Prohibiting the Placement of Signs on Public Property Is a Constitutional, Content-Neutral Restriction of Speech Which Was Severable from the Rest of the Code Chapter—There Was, Therefore, No Need to Assess the Constitutionality of the Entire Chapter (As the Appellate Division Had)
STATE’S RULING SCHOOL DISTRICT VIOLATED INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES ACT NOT FINAL, ARTICLE 78 PROCEEDING CHALLENGING RULING PROPERLY DISMISSED.

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

DISNEY WAS DEDUCTING ROYALTY PAYMENTS MADE BY AFFILIATES WHICH DID NOT PAY NEW... ​ AN AMENDED REGULATION DESIGNED TO PROTECT THE INTERESTS OF LIFE-INSURANCE...