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PEOPLE v. GREENE

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department.
Apr 2, 1990
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Ordered that the judgment is affirmed.

The defendant's primary contention on appeal is that he was denied the effective assistance of counsel. Defense counsel elicited hearsay testimony from a homicide detective which indicated that a second witness who did not testify at trial saw the defendant stab the victim. However, counsel's actions were consistent with a strategy to supplement the mistaken identification defense by suggesting that the police had seized upon an unreliable tip made by an individual who was himself a suspect in order to quickly close the case. Under these circumstances, defense counsel's decision to elicit testimony regarding this individual "was at most a mistaken judgment as to trial strategy and cannot be characterized as ineffective assistance of counsel" (People v. Jackson, 52 N.Y.2d 1027, 1029; see also, People v. Hinton, 140 A.D.2d 712). Upon our review of the record, we are satisfied that defense counsel provided meaningful representation to the defendant (see, People v Satterfield, 66 N.Y.2d 796; People v. Baldi, 54 N.Y.2d 137).

The defendant's remaining contention is unpreserved for appellate review (see, People v. Alfaro, 66 N.Y.2d 985; People v Satloff, 56 N.Y.2d 745). Bracken, J.P., Lawrence, Kunzeman and Kooper, JJ., concur.