People v. Lorentzos

Summary

The Appellate Division, First Department affirmed Alexandros Lorentzos's convictions for second-degree murder and first-degree robbery, while vacating the surcharge and fees imposed at sentencing. The court rejected challenges concerning invocation of the right to counsel, prosecutorial statements, the weight of the evidence, the felony-murder affirmative defense, and the unanimity instruction.

Holdings

1. Defendant did not unequivocally invoke his right to counsel by asking whether he should have a lawyer present for the questioning.
2. The court rejected on the merits defendant's unpreserved argument that the prosecutor was required under these circumstances to advise him that he should obtain counsel.
3. The challenge was unpreserved, and the court declined to review it in the interest of justice.
4. The verdict was not against the weight of the evidence, and the jury properly rejected defendant's felony-murder affirmative defense.
5. The instructional challenge was unpreserved, and, alternatively, the instruction sufficiently conveyed that unanimity was required for the jury to reject the affirmative defense; therefore, reversal was unwarranted.
6. The surcharge and fees were vacated in the interest of justice, and the remainder of defendant's sentence was not reduced.

Questions Presented

1. Whether defendant unequivocally invoked his right to counsel during videotaped questioning.
2. Whether the prosecutor was required under the circumstances to advise defendant that he should obtain counsel.
3. Whether defendant preserved his challenge to the prosecutor's statements during the pretrial interview.
4. Whether the verdict was against the weight of the evidence and whether the jury properly rejected defendant's felony-murder affirmative defense.
5. Whether the challenge to the jury instruction requiring unanimity to reject the affirmative defense was preserved and, if not, whether reversal was warranted in the interest of justice.
6. Whether the sentencing surcharge and fees should be vacated.

Disposition

other