Opinion
2000-10587
Argued October 15, 2002.
November 4, 2002.
Appeal by the defendant from a judgment of the Supreme Court, Kings County (Carroll, J.), rendered November 8, 2000, convicting him of robbery in the first degree, upon a jury verdict, and imposing sentence.
Lynn W. L. Fahey, New York, N.Y. (Barry Stendig of counsel), for appellant.
Charles J. Hynes, District Attorney, Brooklyn, N.Y. (Leonard Joblove and Shulamit Rosenblum of counsel), for respondent.
Before: MYRIAM J. ALTMAN, J.P., GLORIA GOLDSTEIN, LEO F. McGINITY, WILLIAM F. MASTRO, JJ.
DECISION ORDER
ORDERED that the judgment is affirmed.
Contrary to the defendant's contentions, the Supreme Court providently exercised its discretion in replacing a sworn juror after making a "reasonably thorough inquiry" (CPL 270.35[a]) into the juror's unavailability, affording the parties the opportunity to be heard and placing the facts and reasons for its determination on the record (see CPL 270.35[a], [b]; People v. Jeanty, 94 N.Y.2d 507). The Supreme Court reasonably determined that the juror's attendance at his cousin's funeral, burial, and subsequent family gathering in the Bronx, would last substantially more than two hours. Therefore, the discharge of the juror does not warrant reversal (see People v. Jeanty, supra; People v. Miranda, 223 A.D.2d 728; People v. Jamison, 203 A.D.2d 385).
ALTMAN, J.P., GOLDSTEIN, McGINITY and MASTRO, JJ., concur.