People v. Samba

*412At trial, Rashad Blake, the victim of the assault, testified as follows: Shortly after 11:00 p.m. on May 30, 2009, defendant approached Blake and his friend, Keith Edwards, on West 111th Street in Manhattan. Blake and Edwards had known defendant for several years. During a verbal exchange concerning Blake’s brother, defendant removed a gun from his vest. Defendant stepped back and pointed his gun at Blake’s waist. When Blake stepped forward, defendant hit Blake in the head with “the butt of the gun.” As defendant hit him, Blake heard the gun “[go] off [with] a loud pop” sound. Blake fell to…