People v. McKenzie

Smith, J.P., and Troutman, J.

(dissenting). We respectfully dissent. We disagree with the conclusion of the majority that defendant was deprived of his right to counsel because his attorney permitted him to choose a member of the jury. We conclude that the record establishes that defense counsel acceded to defendant’s request to permit the juror at issue to be seated on the trial jury, and we would therefore affirm the judgment.

We agree with the majority that “[t]he selection of particular jurors falls within the category of tactical decisions entrusted to counsel, and defendants do not retain…