Opinion
2641
December 24, 2002.
Judgment, Supreme Court, Bronx County (Michael Gross, J.), rendered October 31, 2000, convicting defendant, after a jury trial, of criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree, and sentencing him, as a second felony offender, to a term of 5 to 10 years, unanimously affirmed.
Lara R. Binimow, for respondent.
Jonathan M. Kirshbaum, for defendant-appellant.
Before: NARDELLI, J.P., SAXE, SULLIVAN, ROSENBERGER, ELLERIN, JJ.
The People's application pursuant to People v. Kern ( 75 N.Y.2d 638) was properly granted, and the court properly disallowed a defense peremptory challenge. The record supports the court's finding that the nondiscriminatory reason provided by defense counsel for the challenge, namely, the panelist's alleged lack of candor, was pretextual, and this finding is entitled to great deference (see People v. Hernandez, 75 N.Y.2d 350, affd 500 U.S. 352).
THIS CONSTITUTES THE DECISION AND ORDER OF THE SUPREME COURT, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT.