Argued
March 5, 2019
Page 1064
Lisa
J. Steele, assigned counsel, for the appellant (defendant).
Timothy
J. Sugrue, Rocky Hill, assistant states attorney, with whom,
on the brief, were John C. Smriga, Bridgeport, and Margaret
E. Kelley, states attorneys, for the appellee (state).
Alvord,
Moll and Bear, Js.
OPINION
ALVORD,
J.
[193
Conn.App. 80] The defendant, Wagner Gomes, appeals from the
judgment of conviction, rendered after a jury trial, of
assault in the second degree in violation of General Statutes
§ 53a-60 (a) (2).[1] On appeal, the defendant claims that
the trial court erred in omitting from [193 Conn.App. 81] its
jury instruction his proposed sentence, "[h]owever, you
may consider evidence of the
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police investigation as it might relate to any weaknesses in
the states case,"[2] and, in doing so, deprived him of
his right to present a defense of investigative
inadequacy.[3] We affirm the judgment of the trial
court.
The
jury reasonably could have found the following facts. In the
early morning hours of September 12, 2015, the victim,
Edilene Brandao, along with several other persons, including
Raphael Morais,[4] attended a birthday party at the
Brazilian Sports Club (club), located at 29 Federal Street,
in Bridgeport. Shortly after arriving, the victim had one
drink, and Morais went to the bar to get a drink for himself.
Morais confronted the defendants girlfriend, who was at the
bar, pushed her, and made offensive remarks to her. A fight
then broke out inside [193 Conn.App. 82] the club between the
defendant and Morais. Security guards intervened and
separated them. The defendant was taken outside, and Morais
was taken to the patio.
The
victim went to the patio with Morais. There was a fence at
the back of the patio, and the victim had her back to that
fence. The victim proceeded to ask Morais why he was
fighting, and Morais responded, "its him." The
victim then turned to face the fence and saw the defendant
standing approximately two feet away from her, on the outside
of the fence, with a bottle in his hand. The defendant then
struck the victim on the fore-head with the bottle.
The
clubs owner, Demetrio Ayala, Jr., knew the defendant because
he visited the club several times per month. Ayala observed
the fight between the defendant and another person known to
him as "Rafael."[5] Ayala, after hearing shouting on
the patio, went to investigate and discovered that the victim
was bleeding. Ayala then
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went out the front door of the club in order to try to find
the defendant, whom he saw in the parking lot running away
from the club. Ayala subsequently called the police.
Before
the police arrived, the victim was transported to St.
Vincents Medical Center in Bridgeport by private car in the
company of several persons who were in the club that night.
She arrived at the hospital at about 12:30 a.m., where she
was seen by a triage nurse and received treatment for the
bleeding and ...