Summary
stating that probable cause existed for the defendant's arrest where the arresting officer's partner saw the defendant commit the crime and the arresting officer saw the defendant flee from the scene
Summary of this case from Vargas v. City of N.Y.Opinion
January 27, 1994
Appeal from the Supreme Court, New York County (Alvin Schlesinger, J.).
The hearing court properly denied suppression of the recovered money and the statements made by defendant as probable cause existed for his arrest. Indeed, not only did one officer inform his partner (the arresting officer) that he saw defendant commit the crime, the arresting officer himself saw defendant flee from the scene while being chased by an unidentified individual and then saw defendant counting the money he had apparently taken from the victim (see, People v. Petralia, 62 N.Y.2d 47, 51-52, cert denied 469 U.S. 852).
Defendant's belated request for a missing witness charge with respect to the victim was unfounded. Defendant, who waited until the close of the evidence to ask for the charge (see, People v Gayle, 162 A.D.2d 261, 262, lv denied 76 N.Y.2d 857), failed to demonstrate that the victim was available to the People and that he possessed noncumulative material information favorable to defendant (cf., People v. Kitching, 78 N.Y.2d 532).
Finally, defendant's claim concerning the failure of the court to obtain his consent before it permitted several sworn jurors to leave the courtroom while the voir dire process continued (CPL 270.15), is unpreserved (see, People v. Ortiz, 69 A.D.2d 825). Were we to review the claim in the interest of justice, we would find it to be meritless. Indeed, since defendant can demonstrate "no real prejudice sustained by [him] through the absence of the sworn jurors," any such error was harmless (People v. Cassado, 156 A.D.2d 183, lv denied 75 N.Y.2d 917).
Concur — Sullivan, J.P., Carro, Wallach, Kupferman and Tom, JJ.