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The PEOPLE, etc., respondent, v. Georgia CHARLTON, appellant.
Appeal by the defendant from a judgment of the Supreme Court, Kings County (D'Emic, J.), rendered March 15, 2004, convicting her of assault in the first degree, upon a jury verdict, and imposing sentence.
ORDERED that the judgment is affirmed.
The defendant's contention that she was deprived of a fair trial because the prosecutor made improper comments during summation is unpreserved for appellate review. The defendant either failed to object to the comments (see People v. Hines, 18 A.D.3d 882, 883, 796 N.Y.S.2d 652), failed to object with specificity (see People v. Arroyo, 309 A.D.2d 870, 766 N.Y.S.2d 51), or failed to request further curative instructions or a mistrial after an objection was sustained (see People v. Morris, 2 A.D.3d 652, 768 N.Y.S.2d 379). In any event, the allegedly improper comments were, for the most part, responsive to arguments and issues raised by the defense counsel, fair comment on the evidence, or related to matters which were fairly inferable from the evidence (see People v. Ashwal, 39 N.Y.2d 105, 383 N.Y.S.2d 204, 347 N.E.2d 564; People v. Shagi, 288 A.D.2d 495, 733 N.Y.S.2d 881). To the extent that any remarks were improper, any error was mitigated by the court's charge to the jury (see People v. Joseph, 20 A.D.3d 435, 797 N.Y.S.2d 310; People v. Credle, 12 A.D.3d 456, 783 N.Y.S.2d 850), or does not warrant reversal (see People v. Crimmins, 36 N.Y.2d 230, 367 N.Y.S.2d 213, 326 N.E.2d 787; People v. Jones, 23 A.D.3d 496, 803 N.Y.S.2d 911).
The defendant was not deprived of the effective assistance of counsel (see People v. Baldi, 54 N.Y.2d 137, 444 N.Y.S.2d 893, 429 N.E.2d 400). The defendant failed to demonstrate the absence of strategic or other legitimate explanations for her counsel's alleged failures in representation (see People v. Martinez, 17 A.D.3d 484, 484-485, 792 N.Y.S.2d 349).
The defendant's remaining contentions, raised in her supplemental pro se brief, are without merit.
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Decided: March 21, 2006
Court: Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Second Department, New York.
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FindLaw’s Learn About the Law features thousands of informational articles to help you understand your options. And if you’re ready to hire an attorney, find one in your area who can help.
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