People v. Vereen

OPINION OF THE COURT

Memorandum.

The order of the Appellate Division should be affirmed.

In this case the court, without request from the defendant, charged the jury that no adverse inference could be drawn from the defendant’s failure to testify at the trial. At the conclusion of the charge defendant objected to the court’s submission of this instruction absent a request from the defendant to do so.

Under CPL 300.10 (subd 2), the court "must deliver” a "no inference” charge to the jury when requested by the defense (People v Britt, 43 NY2d 111). We do not read the statute conversely as…