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Criminal Law Keyed to Kennedy
The People of the State of New York v. Eric Dorsey
Citation:
429 N.Y.S.2d 828 (1980)Facts
On August 27, 1979, the complainant, a 49-year-old woman, who was five feet tall and who weighed 130 pounds, entered the lobby of her apartment building at about 6:00 p.m., returning home from work. When an elevator arrived, the complainant entered and pressed the button for the 10th floor, on which her apartment was located. A young male entered the elevator with her and pressed the button for another floor.
The next thing the complainant noticed was the elevator stopping. Upon looking up to see if it was her floor, she saw the defendant standing by the elevator buttons, manipulating them. She also saw that the elevator was stopped between floors, with the door to the elevator shaft being open. However, the alarm bell of the elevator did not go off.
The complainant testified that the defendant, a 15-year-old male approximately five feet seven inches tall and weighing in excess of 200 pounds, turned around and told her to take her clothes off, and undress. When the complainant did not respond the defendant repeated this demand. The complainant then complied and was subjected to acts of sexual intercourse and sodomy during the next 10 to 15 minutes.
The complainant testified that she had not attempted to scream at any time before or during the incident because she felt that no one outside the elevator could have heard her, or helped her. She also testified that the defendant did not use any overt physical force against her, either before or during the incident, other than what was necessary for completion of the sexual acts. She further testified that the only express threat made by the defendant came after completion of the incident, as he was leaving the elevator, in which he stated that if anything “happened” to him in the next couple of days, his friends would “get her”.
The defendant was indicted for rape in the first degree. The defense filed a motion to dismiss at the end of the People’s case. The Court reserved decision on the motion and the jury returned a verdict of guilty. The motion to dismiss must now be decided.
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