People v Edwards
2011 NY Slip Op 09475 [90 AD3d 1575]
December 23, 2011
Appellate Division, Fourth Department
Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431.
As corrected through Wednesday, February 1, 2012


The People of the State of New York, Respondent, v Joseph Edwards, Appellant.

[*1] Frank H. Hiscock Legal Aid Society, Syracuse (William G. Pixley of counsel), for defendant-appellant.

William J. Fitzpatrick, District Attorney, Syracuse (James P. Maxwell of counsel), for respondent.

Appeal from a judgment of the Supreme Court, Onondaga County (John J. Brunetti, A.J.), rendered November 9, 2007. The judgment convicted defendant, upon a jury verdict, of sexual abuse in the first degree and endangering the welfare of a child.

It is hereby ordered that the judgment so appealed from is unanimously affirmed.

Memorandum: Defendant appeals from a judgment convicting him upon a jury verdict of sexual abuse in the first degree (Penal Law § 130.65 [2]) and endangering the welfare of a child (§ 260.10 [1]). Viewing the evidence in light of the elements of the crimes as charged to the jury (see People v Danielson, 9 NY3d 342, 349 [2007]), we conclude that the verdict is not against the weight of the evidence (see generally People v Bleakley, 69 NY2d 490, 495 [1987]). Defendant's objection to the testimony of the victim's half-sister on the ground that it was speculative and irrelevant did not preserve for our review his present contentions that such testimony improperly bolstered the victim's credibility (see People v Valentine, 48 AD3d 1268, 1268-1269 [2008], lv denied 10 NY3d 871 [2008]), and exceeded the scope of the prompt outcry exception to the hearsay rule (see People v Stearns, 72 AD3d 1214, 1218 [2010], lv denied 15 NY3d 778 [2010]). We decline to exercise our power to review those contentions as a matter of discretion in the interest of justice (see CPL 470.15 [6] [a]). Present—Scudder, P.J., Centra, Green, Gorski and Martoche, JJ.