PEOPLE v. IZEPIA (2024)

DECISION & ORDER

Appeal by the defendant from a judgment of the Supreme Court, Kings County (Donald Leo, J.), rendered July 11, 2022, convicting him of criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree, upon his plea of guilty, and imposing sentence.

ORDERED that the judgment is affirmed.

The defendant was convicted of criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree, upon his plea of guilty, as a result of allegations that he possessed an unlicensed firearm in his home.

As the defendant correctly concedes, his contentions that Penal Law § 265.01(1) is unconstitutional as applied to him and that Penal Law former § 400.00(1)(b) was facially unconstitutional in light of the decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Assn., Inc. v Bruen (597 U.S. 1) are unpreserved for appellate review, as the defendant failed to raise a constitutional challenge before the Supreme Court (see People v. Chase, 223 AD3d 913;  People v. Manners, 217 AD3d 683, 685).  “Preservation of a constitutional challenge, in particular, ensures that the drastic step of striking duly enacted legislation will be taken not in a vacuum but only after the lower courts have had an opportunity to address the issue and the unconstitutionality of the challenged provision has been established beyond a reasonable doubt” (People v. Cabrera, 41 NY3d 35, 43 [internal quotation marks omitted]).

Under the circumstances, we decline to exercise our interest of justice jurisdiction to consider the defendant's contentions (see CPL 470.15[3][c]).

BARROS, J.P., GENOVESI, TAYLOR and GOLIA, JJ., concur.