PEOPLE v. DIAZ

The record is insufficiently clear as to the meaning of the court's excusal of four prospective jurors "on consent", following sidebar conferences conducted in defendant's absence. Accordingly, a reconstruction hearing is required to determine, if possible, whether the parties had agreed that the prospective jurors should be excused for cause, whether the court made that determination, or whether the jurors were excused for other reasons ( see, People v. Childs, 232 A.D.2d 308).

Concur — Nardelli, J. P., Williams, Tom, Lerner and Friedman, JJ.