People v. Young

298 A.D.2d 258, 748 N.Y.S.2d 479, 2002 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 10044

Opinion

Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Dorothy Cropper, J.), rendered April 3, 2000, convicting defendant, after a jury trial, of criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree, and sentencing him, as a persistent felony offender, to a term of 25 years to life, unanimously affirmed.

The court properly denied defendant’s challenge for cause, since the prospective juror’s voir dire responses, viewed as a whole, did not cast any doubt on her ability to remain impartial (see People v Arnold, 96 NY2d 358). The panelist’s use of terms such as “think” and “pretty sure” were not equivocal when taken in context (see People v Chambers, 97 NY2d 417, 419).

The court properly exercised its discretion in adjudicating defendant a persistent felony offender, given his serious and violent criminal history. We perceive no basis for a reduction of sentence. Concur — Williams, P.J., Nardelli, Andrias and Marlow, JJ.