Opinion
Decided July 1, 2010.
APPEAL, by permission of a Justice of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in the Second Judicial Department, from an order of that Court, entered September 29, 2009. The Appellate Division modified, on the law, a judgment of the Orange County Court (Jeffrey G. Berry, J.), which had convicted defendant, upon a jury verdict, of robbery in the first degree (two counts), robbery in the second degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree and menacing in the second degree. The modification consisted of vacating the conviction of robbery in the first degree under count one of the indictment, vacating the sentence imposed thereon, and remitting the matter to County Court for a new trial on that count of the indictment. The Appellate Division affirmed the judgment as modified.
People v McRae, 65 AD3d 1382, affirmed.
James McRae, appellant pro se.
Francis D. Phillips, II, District Attorney, Goshen ( Elizabeth L. Guinup and Andrew R. Kass of counsel), for respondent.
Before: Chief Judge LIPPMAN and Judges CIPARICK, GRAEFEO, READ, SMITH, PIGOTT and JONES concur.
OPINION OF THE COURT
MEMORANDUM .
The order of the Appellate Division should be affirmed. Because the accomplice testimony was corroborated with independent evidence as well as evidence that "harmonized" with the accomplice testimony, the evidence was legally sufficient to support defendant's convictions ( see People v Reome, 15 NY3d 188, 194). Next, the trial judge did not abuse his discretion when denying defendant's eve-of-trial application to relieve his second court-appointed attorney and to appoint substitute counsel. Finally, defendant argues that the trial judge's failure to properly instruct the jury on the affirmative defense to Penal Law § 160.15 (4) affected the entire verdict. This claim is unpreserved for our review.
On review of submissions pursuant to section 500.11 of the Rules of the Court of Appeals ( 22 NYCRR 500.11), order affirmed in a memorandum.