You are here: / / FOR CAUSE CHALLENGE TO A JUROR SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED, NEW TRIAL ORDERED...

FOR CAUSE CHALLENGE TO A JUROR SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED, NEW TRIAL ORDERED (FIRST DEPT).

The First Departing, ordering a new trial, determined defendant’s for cause challenge to a juror should have been granted:

The challenged panelist stated that he could not be “fully fair” if defendant did not testify and “defend himself,” and that it might be difficult for him to acquit a defendant who did not testify, because then “we only get one side.” This reflected a state of mind likely to preclude the rendering of an impartial verdict (see CPL 270.20[1][b]), and the court did not elicit an unequivocal assurance that he would set aside any bias and render an impartial verdict based on the evidence … . When the court asked if he would “hold it against” defendant if defendant did not testify, he responded “No, not hold it against him, but —- I don’t know.” When the court further asked whether defendant’s failure to testify would trouble the panelist to the point where he could not give defendant a fair trial, he responded “I think I’ll be able to give him a fair trial.” Although expressions such as “I think” are not disqualifying, here the panelist’s responses, viewed as a whole, fell short of the required express and unequivocal declarations … . “If there is any doubt about a prospective juror’s impartiality, trial courts should err on the side of excusing the juror, since at worst the court will have replaced one impartial juror with another” … . People v Laverpool, 2020 NY Slip Op 03745, First Dept 7-2-20

 

You might also like
Police Officer (a Passenger in a Police Car) Who Was Injured by Underinsured Driver Was Covered By Police-Officer-Driver’s (Private) Underinsured Motorist Endorsement
Dismissal of Labor Law 240, 241 and 200 Actions
WHERE A LADDER SHIFTS OR SLIDES FOR NO APPARENT REASON A VIOLATION OF LABOR LAW 240 (1) IS ESTABLISHED; DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO SET ASIDE THE VERDICT IN THIS LADDER-FALL CASE SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT).
DEFENDANT’S DISCARDING A BAG OF MARIJUANA AS HE WAS BEING PURSUED BY POLICE FOR AN OPEN-CONTAINER VIOLATION CONSTITUTED ATTEMPTED TAMPERING WITH PHYSICAL EVIDENCE (SECOND DEPT).
WHERE THE ONLY RELIEF SOUGHT FOR BREACH OF FIDUCIARY DUTY IS MONEY DAMAGES, THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS IS THREE YEARS (SECOND DEPT).
THE REFEREE DID NOT COMPLY WITH THE ORDER OF REFERENCE; SUPREME COURT’S RULINGS BASED UPON THE REFEREE’S ORDER WERE THEREFORE INVALID (SECOND DEPT).
Amendment of Summons and Complaint after the Statute of Limitations Has Run
DESIGNATING ATTORNEY AS STANDBY COUNSEL WAS INSUFFICIENT, DEFENDANT’S REFUSAL TO BE REPRESENTED BY THE SUBSTITUTE COUNSEL WHO APPEARED FOR SENTENCING REQUIRED THE COURT TO CONDUCT A SEARCHING INQUIRY TO BE SURE THE DEFENDANT UNDERSTOOD THE CONSEQUENCES OF REPRESENTING HIMSELF (SECOND 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

ALTHOUGH DEFENDANT COMPLETED HIS SENTENCE HE IS ENTITLED TO A DETERMINATION... DEFENDANT’S INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY REQUIRED A MORE PROBING COLLOQUY BEFORE...