Opinion
Submitted June 11, 2001.
July 23, 2001.
Appeal by the defendant from a judgment of the County Court, Orange County (Pano Z. Patsalos, J.), rendered July 23, 1997, convicting him of robbery in the first degree, robbery in the second degree, and assault in the second degree, upon a jury verdict, and imposing sentence.
David L. Rich, Hawthorne, N.Y., for appellant.
Francis D. Phillips II, District Attorney, Goshen, N.Y. (Anderw R. Kass of counsel), for respondent.
Before: LAWRENCE J. BRACKEN, P.J., WILLIAM D. FRIEDMANN, ANITA R. FLORIO, SANDRA J. FEUERSTEIN, JJ.
ORDERED that the judgment is affirmed.
Contrary to the defendant's contention, the record establishes that his waiver of his right to be present at sidebar discussions during voir dire (see, People v. Antommarchi, 80 N.Y.2d 247) was made knowingly, voluntarily, and intelligently (People v. Keen, 94 N.Y.2d 533, 538; People v. McNeil, 267 A.D.2d 478; People v. Tappin, 264 A.D.2d 449; People v. Broadwater, 248 A.D.2d 719, 720; People v. Stokes, 216 A.D.2d 337). In addition, the trial court properly dismissed as grossly unqualified a juror who admitted to being ill and "dozing off" during portions of the testimony of at least one witness (see, CPL 270.35; People v. Rogers, 266 A.D.2d 481; People v. Adams, 179 A.D.2d 764; People v. South, 177 A.D.2d 607; People v. Valerio, 141 A.D.2d 585; People v. Russell, 112 A.D.2d 451).
BRACKEN, P.J., FRIEDMANN, FLORIO and FEUERSTEIN, JJ., concur.