People v. Jenkins, 55 N.Y.2d 845 (1981)

To preserve an issue for appellate review, a party must raise a specific objection at trial; objections based on different grounds will not suffice to preserve the issue.

Summary

The New York Court of Appeals affirmed the Appellate Division’s order, holding that the defendant failed to preserve certain issues for appellate review. Specifically, the defendant’s objections at trial regarding the arresting officer’s testimony focused on the sufficiency of the testimony, not the reliability, and thus did not preserve the reliability issue. Similarly, the defendant’s motion for a mistrial was based on the People’s inability to connect a knife to the defendant, not on any claim of prejudice from references to the knife. Because these specific objections were not made at trial, the appellate court declined to review them. The court also rejected the defendant’s due process claim regarding the prosecutor’s summation remarks.

Facts

The case record indicates that the defendant was arrested. During the trial, the arresting officer testified, and references were made to a knife. The defendant objected to the officer’s testimony but focused on the sufficiency of the testimony. The defendant also moved for a mistrial after the District Attorney’s opening statement, arguing the People couldn’t link the knife to him. The defendant did not specifically argue that the officer’s testimony was unreliable or that he was prejudiced by references to the knife.

Procedural History

The trial court made a finding of probable cause based on the arresting officer’s testimony. The defendant appealed to the Appellate Division. The Appellate Division affirmed the trial court’s decision. The defendant then appealed to the New York Court of Appeals.

Issue(s)

1. Whether the defendant preserved for appellate review the argument that the arresting officer’s testimony was unreliable because the objection at trial focused on the sufficiency of the testimony.
2. Whether the defendant preserved for appellate review the argument that the trial court erred in not issuing a pretrial ruling regarding the admissibility of the knife at trial, and whether the references to the knife prejudiced the defendant, warranting a mistrial.

Holding

1. No, because the defendant’s objections at trial focused on the sufficiency rather than the reliability of the officer’s testimony.
2. No, because the defendant’s motion for a mistrial was based solely on the People’s inability to connect the knife to the defendant, and not on any claim of prejudice as a result of references to the knife.

Court’s Reasoning

The Court of Appeals emphasized the importance of making specific objections at trial to preserve issues for appellate review. Regarding the officer’s testimony, the court stated that “counsel’s objections to the court’s reliance on the testimony focused upon the sufficiency rather than the reliability of the officer’s testimony.” Because the objection raised on appeal (reliability) differed from the objection made at trial (sufficiency), the issue was not preserved. Similarly, the court found that the defendant’s mistrial motion was based on a different ground than the prejudice argument raised on appeal. The court cited CPL 470.05, subd 2 and 280.10, subd 1, and People v. Medina, 53 NY2d 951, for the proposition that a specific motion for a mistrial is necessary to preserve the issue for appellate review. The court reasoned that if the defendant believed he was prejudiced by references to the knife, he needed to move for a mistrial on that specific ground. The absence of such a specific motion meant the appellate court could not consider the prejudice argument. The court also summarily dismissed the defendant’s due process claim, finding it without merit. The case underscores the principle that appellate courts will generally only review issues that were properly raised and preserved in the trial court. The rationale is to allow the trial court to correct any errors and to prevent parties from raising new arguments on appeal that were not presented below.