Opinion
Argued November 13, 2000.
December 6, 2000.
Appeal by the defendant from a judgment of the County Court, Westchester County (Perone, J.), rendered February 25, 1999, convicting him of attempted assault in the first degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree (two counts), reckless endangerment in the first degree, reckless endangerment in the second degree, and attempted robbery in the first degree (two counts), upon a jury verdict, and imposing sentence.
Stephen J. Pittari, White Plains, N.Y. (Robert W. Stieve of counsel), for appellant.
Jeanine Pirro, District Attorney, White Plains, N.Y. (Laurie Sapakoff and Richard Longworth Hecht of counsel), for respondent.
Before: CORNELIUS J. O'BRIEN, J.P., DAVID S. RITTER, FRED T. SANTUCCI, ROBERT W. SCHMIDT, JJ.
DECISION ORDER
ORDERED that the judgment is affirmed.
In response to the defendant's Batson challenge (see, Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79), the prosecutor responded with a race-neutral reason for exercising a peremptory challenge, thereby shifting the burden to the defendant to prove that the peremptory challenge was used in a racially-discriminatory manner (see, People v. Allen, 86 N.Y.2d 101, 109). The defendant failed to prove that the reason given by the prosecutor was pretextual and that the prosecutor acted in a racially-discriminatory manner. Accordingly, the denial of his Batson challenge was proper (see, Batson v. Kentucky, supra; People v. Allen, supra; People v. Wint, 237 A.D.2d 195).
The defendant's remaining contentions are without merit.