People v. Rivera

93 A.D.3d 409, 938 N.Y.S.2d 888

Opinion

Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Rena K. Uviller, J.), rendered July 1, 2009, convicting defendant, upon his plea of guilty, of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree, and sentencing him to a term of six months, unanimously affirmed.

By pleading guilty, defendant waived his objection to the grand jury instructions (see People v Garcia, 216 AD2d 36 [1995]). In any event, there was no impairment of the integrity of the grand jury proceedings (compare People v Pelchat, 62 [1984]). The prosecutor properly instructed the grand jury on the essential elements of the crime of possession of a cane sword, which is a per se weapon, by reading the language of the statute (see People v Berrier, 223 AD2d 456 [1996], lv denied 88 NY2d 876 [1996]). Under the circumstances, there was no need for any further instructions concerning the element of mental culpability (see id.; compare People v Wood, 58 AD3d 242 [2008], lv denied 12 NY3d 823 [2009]). Accordingly, the prosecutor furnished the grand jury “with enough information to enable it intelligently to decide whether a crime has been committed” (People v Calbud, Inc., 49 NY2d 389, 394 [1980]). Concur — Gonzalez, P.J., Sweeny, Moskowitz, Renwick and Richter, JJ.