Opinion
March 29, 1993
Appeal from the County Court, Rockland County (Nelson, J.).
Ordered that the judgment is affirmed.
Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution (see, People v. Contes, 60 N.Y.2d 620), we find that it is legally sufficient to establish the defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Moreover, resolution of issues of credibility, as well as the weight to be accorded to the evidence presented, are primarily questions to be determined by the jury, which saw and heard the witnesses (see, People v. Gaimari, 176 N.Y. 84, 94). Its determination should be accorded great weight on appeal and should not be disturbed unless clearly unsupported by the record (see, People v. Garafolo, 44 A.D.2d 86, 88). Upon the exercise of our factual review power, we are satisfied that the verdict of guilt is not against the weight of the evidence (CPL 470.15).
The defendant contends that the County Court erred in denying his presentence motion pursuant to CPL 330.30 (2) to set aside the verdict on the ground of juror misconduct. We disagree. The motion was based, essentially, on the contention that one juror failed to disclose during the jury voir dire that she knew the defendant. The day after the jury's verdict was rendered, the defendant allegedly recalled that he personally knew this juror, and he related, in his affidavit in support of the motion, his extensive knowledge of the juror's family members, a description of the area of the juror's residence, her automobile, and the family dog. To object successfully to a juror's misconduct after a verdict, a defendant is required to demonstrate that the objectionable conduct was not known to him before the verdict, and that it would not have been disclosed by a proper inquiry before the jury was sworn (see, People v. Hammond, 132 A.D.2d 849; People v. Albright, 104 A.D.2d 508, revd on other grounds 65 N.Y.2d 666). The juror revealed sufficient information during voir dire to allow the defendant to recall the juror's identity at that time. Despite the defendant's ample opportunity to further inquire into this juror's background, he chose not to challenge her placement on the jury and, in fact, actually requested that she be restored to the jury panel under Batson v. Kentucky ( 476 U.S. 79) after the People had used a peremptory challenge to remove her. In our view the County Court did not improvidently exercise its discretion in denying the defendant's motion to set aside the verdict on ground of juror misconduct.
The defendant's remaining contentions are either unpreserved for appellate review or without merit (see, People v. Baldi, 54 N.Y.2d 137; People v. Medina, 53 N.Y.2d 951, 953; People v Robinson, 133 A.D.2d 859, 861). Thompson, J.P., Rosenblatt, Miller and Ritter, JJ., concur.