PEOPLE v. BROWN (2002)

Appeal by the defendant from a judgment of the Supreme Court, Queens County (Eng, J.), rendered December 14, 1999, convicting him of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree and reckless endangerment in the first degree, upon a jury verdict, and imposing sentence.

ORDERED that the judgment is affirmed.

Contrary to the defendant's contentions, the trial court's Batson ruling (see Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79, 106 S.Ct. 1712, 90 L.Ed.2d 69) properly acknowledged that the prosecution offered a non-pretextual, race-neutral explanation for its peremptory challenge to the prospective juror in controversy (see People v. Payne, 88 N.Y.2d 172, 643 N.Y.S.2d 949, 666 N.E.2d 542).   This prospective juror was a half-sibling of one of the victims of the attack by a group of white teenagers upon three black men in 1986 in the “so-called ‘Howard Beach incident’ ” (People v. Kern, 75 N.Y.2d 638, 643, 555 N.Y.S.2d 647, 554 N.E.2d 1235, cert. denied 498 U.S. 824, 111 S.Ct. 77, 112 L.Ed.2d 50).   Voir dire examination of this prospective juror elicited legitimate concerns as to his suitability as a juror (see People v. Posner, 226 A.D.2d 481, 482, 640 N.Y.S.2d 595;  cf.  People v. Jones, 223 A.D.2d 559, 636 N.Y.S.2d 115).   Accordingly, the Supreme Court providently denied the defendant's Batson challenge (see People v. Benjamin, 278 A.D.2d 239, 717 N.Y.S.2d 901;  People v. Morrison, 235 A.D.2d 553, 653 N.Y.S.2d 863).

The defendant's remaining contentions are unpreserved for appellate review (see CPL 470.05[2] ) and, in any event, are without merit.