Opinion
March 17, 1986
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Queens County (Baker, J.).
Judgment affirmed.
Although the trial court's charge regarding circumstantial evidence did not include the phrase "to a moral certainty", the jury was sufficiently instructed as to the People's burden of proof regarding circumstantial evidence (see, People v. Sanchez, 61 N.Y.2d 1022, 1024). The omission of the words "reasonable doubt" in that same portion of the charge also does not require reversal. The charge must be read as a whole (see, People v Woods, 41 N.Y.2d 279, 283), and in so doing, we note the trial court's multiple references to the People's burden of proving the defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Defense counsel provided meaningful representation (see, People v. Baldi, 54 N.Y.2d 137); his cross-examination of the People's fingerprint expert was effective, but apparently unpersuasive, and his summation emphasized the possibility of misidentification of fingerprint evidence.
Finally, we decline to substitute our discretion for that of the sentencing court (see, People v. Suitte, 90 A.D.2d 80). Mangano, J.P., Thompson, Brown and Eiber, JJ., concur.