PEOPLE v. GONZALEZ (1999)

Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Ronald Zweibel, J.), rendered September 16, 1996, convicting defendant, after a jury trial, of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree, and sentencing him, as a second felony offender, to a term of 8 to 16 years, unanimously affirmed.

 The trial court appropriately exercised its discretion in denying defendant an adverse inference charge or other sanction for the Police Department's destruction of the money recovered from defendant after his arrest.   The currency was transferred to the Federal Government for destruction pursuant to routine procedures more than two years after it had been vouchered, after a departmental review of cases erroneously indicated that this case had been terminated, when in fact defendant had recently been returned on a bench warrant.   At the outset of the case, the People had invited defendant to make arrangements for inspection of this evidence, and defendant, who absconded and remained at large for over two years, never availed himself of that opportunity but raised the issue for the first time after the destruction of the evidence was revealed.   Accordingly, defendant forfeited any right to demand production of the evidence (People v. Aponte, 240 A.D.2d 317, 659 N.Y.S.2d 443, lv. denied 91 N.Y.2d 868, 668 N.Y.S.2d 566, 691 N.E.2d 638;  People v. Brimberry, 237 A.D.2d 229, 655 N.Y.S.2d 27).

 We perceive no abuse of sentencing discretion.

MEMORANDUM DECISION.