People v. Smalls, 68 N.Y.2d 553 (1986)

A defendant cannot claim a due process violation for failure to disclose exculpatory material (Brady violation) when they had the opportunity to cross-examine witnesses about the evidence at trial; convictions for both robbery in the first degree and criminal use of a firearm cannot stand when the firearm elevates the robbery to a class B felony, and the same firearm is used to sustain the conviction for criminal possession of a firearm.

Summary

The case concerns a robbery conviction where the prosecution failed to produce photo arrays requested by the defense (alleged Brady violation) and the propriety of convicting the defendant of both robbery in the first degree and criminal use of a firearm. The Court of Appeals held that because the defense knew of the photo arrays during the trial and could have cross-examined the witness about them, there was no due process violation. Additionally, the Court found it was an abuse of discretion to convict the defendant of both robbery and criminal use of a firearm when the firearm was the basis for both charges.

Facts

Several masked men committed a gunpoint robbery at a tavern. A special police officer, Merrel Sanford, identified the defendant from a photo array as one of the robbers. The defendant requested production of the photos used in the identification. Initially, the prosecution claimed a first photo array no longer existed. At trial, Sanford testified he viewed two photo arrays: one immediately after the crime (where the defendant’s picture was absent) and another five days later (containing multiple pictures of the defendant). The prosecution assured the defense the photos were available, yet failed to produce them.

Procedural History

The defendant was indicted for robbery, criminal use of a firearm, and unlawful imprisonment. After a Wade hearing, the motion to suppress identification evidence was denied. Following a bench trial, the defendant was convicted. The Appellate Division modified the judgment, reversing the weapons counts but otherwise affirming. Both the defendant and the People appealed.

Issue(s)

1. Whether the People’s failure to produce the photo arrays in response to the defendant’s request constituted a Brady violation requiring a new trial or reopening of the Wade hearing?
2. Whether expert medical testimony regarding scars on the defendant’s body was improperly admitted as speculative?
3. Whether convictions for both robbery in the first degree and criminal use of a firearm in the first degree were proper when the same firearm was the basis for both charges?

Holding

1. No, because the defendant had the information regarding the photo arrays during the trial and an opportunity to cross-examine the witness.
2. No, because the expert testimony demonstrated sufficient confidence to satisfy accepted standards of reliability, and the weight of the testimony was for the trier of fact.
3. No, because convictions of both crimes under these circumstances constituted an abuse of discretion.

Court’s Reasoning

Regarding the Brady violation, the Court acknowledged the prosecution’s duty to disclose exculpatory material. However, the Court emphasized that the defense knew of the information and had the chance to use it during cross-examination. The Court stated: “Defendant cannot claim that he was deprived of due process when he had the opportunity during the bench trial to cross-examine the identifying witness using the allegedly exculpatory evidence.” Because the defendant failed to challenge the identification based on the availability of photos until after being found guilty, no due process violation occurred.

Regarding the expert testimony, the Court noted that expert opinions need not be asserted with absolute certainty, so long as the expert demonstrates sufficient confidence in their conclusions. The Court deferred to the trial court’s discretion in determining that the testimony had probative value. “While the doctor could not fix the dates of defendant’s wounds with any certainty, he was able to identify a scar on defendant’s left hand as an untreated bullet wound at least four months old.”

Regarding the convictions for both robbery and criminal use of a firearm, the Court found that while technically proper under CPL 300.40(3)(a), convicting the defendant of both crimes constituted an abuse of discretion because neither crime contains an element which is not also an element of the other crime. The court explained, “When use of or display of a firearm is an element of a class B felony, the use or display of that same firearm cannot also be the predicate for criminal display of a firearm in the first degree.”