State v. Santamaria

The defendant, Paul Santamaría, appeals his conviction in the Superior Court (Smith, J.) of one count of first degree assault in violation of PSA 631:1 (1996) following a jury trial. The defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence and whether the court erred in permitting a police officer to testify as an expert witness. We affirm.

Viewed in the light most favorable to the State, the evidence would support the following factual findings. While attending a party at his fraternity, the victim overheard the defendant make a sexual comment to a group of girls. The victim ascertained that…