New York Court of Appeals
The People of the State of New York, Respondent v. Mark MacAna, Appellant
July 5, 199484 N.Y.2d 173
Summary
The Court affirmed the Appellate Division’s order granting a missing‑witness charge against the defendant for failing to call his father, and affirmed the denial of a missing‑witness charge against the officer who recovered the pistol. The majority held that the trial court did not abuse its discretion because the father’s potential invocation of the Fifth Amendment was not proven and the officer’s testimony would have been cumulative. The decision rests on established New York missing‑witness jurisprudence and the discretion afforded to trial courts.