People v. Perez

2022 NY Slip Op 34768(U)
New York County Court, Westchester County·Decided January 13, 2022·No. Indictment No. 21-0617·Unpublished

Opinion

People v Perez

2022 NY Slip Op 34768(U)

January 13, 2022

County Court, Westchester County Docket Number: Indictment No. 21-0617 Judge: Robert J. Prisco

Cases posted with a "30000" identifier, i.e., 2013 NY Slip Op 30001(U), are republished from various New York State and local government sources, including the New York State Unified Court System's eCourts Service. This opinion is uncorrected and not selected for official publication.

I.

COUNTY COURT: STATE OF NEW YORK' COUNTY OF WESTCHESTER ------------------------ --------------------· -------------------x ,THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE' OF NEW YORK·

-against- DECISION & ORDER

REINALDO PEREZ,

Indictment No: 21-0617

Defendant.

-------------------------. -------·-------------------------------x ROBERT J. PRISCO, J.

Defendant REINALDO PEREZ is charged by Indictment Number 21-0617 with two counts of Assault in the First Degree pursuant to._Penal Law [PL]§ 120.10 (1) and (2) [Counts One and Two] and cme count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree pursuant to PL § 265.02 (1) [Count Three]. The charges pertain to Defendant's alleged striking of another individual's left arm with a machete and the alleged serious physical injury and permanent physical disablement sustained by that individual as a result thereof. The above offenses are alleged to have occurred in the vicinity of 50 Croton Avenue in the Village of Ossining at approximately 9.: 11 a.m. on July 21, 2021.

On October 12, 2021, Defendant was arraigned by the Honorable Susan . .

Cacace on the

charges contained in Indictment Number 21-0617. Attached to the indictment is an Information accusing Defendant of having been previously convicted of Burglary in the Second Degree on or about March ·18, 2010 in the County Court of Westchester, two (2) Criminal Procedure Law [CPL] § 710.30 (1) (a) Notices reflecting the People's intent to offer evidence of statements allegedly_ made by the defendant to a public servant, 1 one CPL§ 710.30 (1) (b) Notice signifying the People's intent to offer testimony of an observation of the defendant either at the time or place of the commission of the offenses or upon some other relevant occasion by a witne~s who has previously .

identified him as such, 2 arid the People's Demand for Notice of Alibi pursuant to CPL § 250.20.

1

The two (2) CPL§ 710.30 (l) (a) Notices pertain to oral and electronically recorded statements 'made by Defendant . to members of the Village of Ossining Police Department at approximately 2:20 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. on July 22, 2021. As to both noticed statements, reference is made to the "[d]isk [a]ttached" and a copy of the disk has been provided to the Court. ·

Ny ·

2

The CPL § 710.30 (1) (b) Notice pertains to a photographic array identification that occurred at approximately 7:45 p.m. oo~t~'[f' ;estchester Medkal Coote,, 100 Woods Road, Valhalla,

1

TEIOTHY C. !DONI

. COUNTY CL::.:::,:-< COUNTY OF WESTCr;~-:;:·;··=;:;

' .

Defendant has filed a Notice of Motion, A'.ttorney's J\.ffirmation and Memorandum of Law, all dated November 25, 2021, seeking various forms of judicial intervention and relief.

On December 15, 2021, the People filed an Affirmation in Response and Memorandum of Law. The Court is also in possession of an unredacted certified copy of the stenographic transcript of the September 22, 2021 Grand Jury proceeding.

Additionally, the Court has been supplied with a copy of the People's Discovery Disclosure Index pursuant to CPL §§ 245.20 and 245.50, which includes but is not limited to disclosures pertaining to written or,recorded statements of Defendant, Grand Jury testimony, tangible objects possessed by Defendant, search warrant related documents, all other tangible property relating to the case and judgments of conviction for defendants and witnesses excluding law enforcement and expert witnesses. The Court has also been provided with a copy of the "Affidavit/Application for Search Warrant," Search Warrant Order and "Search Warrant-Inventory."

After consideration of the above referenced submissions and the unredacted certified stenographic transcript of the September 22, 2021 Grand Jury proceeding, the Court decides. Defendant's Motion as follows: .

1. MOTION FOR INSPECTION OF GRAND JURY MINUTES AND DISMISSAL OR REDUCTION OF THE CHARGES CONTAINED IN INDICTMENT NUMBER 21-0617 DUE TO LEGAL INSUFFICIENCY OF THE EVIDENCE PRESENTED.

Citing CPL Article 210, Defendant moves for_ an order "to inspect the Grand Jury minutes and to dismiss the Indictment for failure of the proceedings to conform to the standards of . \ . fundamental fairness and the requirements of law or alternatively to reduce any counts not supported by the evidence" (see Page 2, Point A, of Defendant's Notice of Motion and Pages 1-2 · of Defendant's Memorandum of Law). Specifically, Defendant contends that "the District Attorney's instructions to the Grand Jury were so incomplete and misleading as to substantially undermine the grand jury's essential functiori ... thereby impairing the integrity of the proceedings and that "the prosecution presented inadequate evidence to support the charges" (see Pages 1-2 of Defendant's Memorandum of Law).

In their response, the People consent to an in-camera inspection of the Grand Jury minutes by the Court and contend that the indictment is supported by legally sufficient evidence (see P_ages 6-7, Point I, of the People's Memorandum of Law), and that "Defendant has failed to meet [his]

.2

'

high burden of showing the existence of any erro'r in the grand jury proceeding which rendered it defective" (see Page 7, Point I, of the People's Memorandum of Law).

The Court has conducted ,an in:..camera review of th~ entirety of the Grand Jury .

proceedings, having examined an unredacted certified copy of the stenographic transcript of the September 22, 2021 presentation.

On September 22, 2021, prior to the commencement of the given sworn testimony, the People specifically inquired of and confirmed with the foreperson that nineteen (19) grand jurors were present. The subsequent 19-0 vote to indict Defendant on the three charges presented for their consideration satisfies this Court that the nineteen (19) grand juror.s who deliberated and voted on the charges contained in Indictment Number 21-0617 on September 22, 2021, were present throughout the one-day presentation of the case.

"Courts assessing the sufficiency of the evidence before a grand jury must evaluate 'whether the evidence, viewed most favorably to the People, if unexplained and uncontradicted -

'

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