People v Wiltshire (Victoria)

[*1] People v Wiltshire (Victoria) 2014 NY Slip Op 50533(U) Decided on March 21, 2014 Appellate Term, Second Department Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431. This opinion is uncorrected and will not be published in the printed Official Reports.

Decided on March 21, 2014
SUPREME COURT, APPELLATE TERM, SECOND DEPARTMENT, 9th and 10th JUDICIAL DISTRICTS
PRESENT: : NICOLAI, P.J., IANNACCI and TOLBERT, JJ
2012-2304 D CR.

The People of the State of New York, Respondent,

against

Victoria Wiltshire, Appellant.

Appeal from a judgment of the Justice Court of the Town of LaGrange, Dutchess County (Joseph A. Egitto, J.), rendered September 25, 2012. The judgment convicted defendant, after a nonjury trial, of failing to stop at a stop sign.

ORDERED that the judgment of conviction is affirmed.

Following a nonjury trial, defendant was convicted of failing to stop at a stop sign (Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1172 [a]). Among other things, she claims that the New York State trooper who issued a ticket to her was mistaken when he claimed to have observed her fail to come to a complete stop at a stop line.

Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution (see People v Contes, 60 NY2d 620, 621 [1983]), we find that the trooper's testimony that he had observed defendant fail to come to a complete stop was legally sufficient to establish defendant's guilt of the offense charged. Moreover, in conducting our independent review of the weight of the evidence (see CPL 470.15 [5]; People v Danielson, 9 NY3d 342 [2007]; People v Bleakley, 69 NY2d 490, 495 [1987]), we accord great deference to the factfinder's opportunity to view the witnesses, hear their testimony, observe their demeanor and assess their credibility (see People v Mateo, 2 NY3d 383, 410 [2004]). As defendant "gave a different account of the events from that presented" by the complaining trooper, "the respective testimonies presented an issue of credibility" (People v Aalaam, 40 Misc 3d 131[A], 2013 NY Slip Op 51129[U] [App Term, 2d, 11th & 13th Jud Dists 2013]). Upon our review of the record, we find that the judgment convicting defendant of failing to stop at a stop sign was not against the weight of the evidence (see People v Romero, 7 NY3d 633, 643-644 [2006]; People v Bleakley, 69 NY2d at 493).

Defendant's remaining contentions are without merit.

Accordingly, the judgment of conviction is affirmed.

Nicolai, P.J., Iannacci and Tolbert, JJ., concur.
Decision Date: March 21, 2014