People v. Townsend

Appeal from a judgment of the County Court of Chemung County (Danaher, Jr., J.), rendered July 29, 1985, upon a verdict convicting defendant of the crime of sexual abuse in the first degree.

Defendant was indicted and charged with first degree sexual abuse based upon allegations that he engaged in sexual contact with the eight-year-old son of his wife. Though defendant was not the child’s natural father, he had adopted the boy. *731After a trial, a jury found defendant guilty as charged and he was sentenced to an indeterminate prison term of 2 to 6 years. This appeal by defendant ensued.

Initially,…