From Casetext: Smarter Legal Research

People v. Bentz

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department
Oct 15, 1996
232 A.D.2d 498 (N.Y. App. Div. 1996)

Opinion

October 15, 1996.

Appeal by the defendant from a judgment of the County Court, Rockland County (Nelson, J.), rendered October 12, 1993, convicting him of murder in the second degree, upon a jury verdict, and imposing sentence.

Before: O'Brien, J. P., Copertino, Santucci and Luciano, JJ.


Ordered that the judgment is reversed, on the law, and a new trial is ordered.

The trial court erred in refusing to dismiss a prospective juror for cause when that juror did not unequivocally state that he would not be influenced by his feelings and would render an impartial verdict ( see, People v Blyden, 55 NY2d 73, 78). Because the defense counsel then exercised a peremptory challenge against that prospective juror, and eventually exhausted his allotment of peremptory challenges, the defendant's conviction must be reversed ( see, People v Torpey, 63 NY2d 361; People v Hewitt, 189 AD2d 781).


Summaries of

People v. Bentz

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department
Oct 15, 1996
232 A.D.2d 498 (N.Y. App. Div. 1996)
Case details for

People v. Bentz

Case Details

Full title:THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, Respondent, v. PATRICK BENTZ…

Court:Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department

Date published: Oct 15, 1996

Citations

232 A.D.2d 498 (N.Y. App. Div. 1996)
648 N.Y.S.2d 642

Citing Cases

People v. Campbell

His responses as a whole showed that there was doubt as to his ability to be impartial. Therefore, the trial…

People v. Budd

The trial court erred in denying the defendant's challenge for cause with respect to a juror who stated that…