N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law § 310.50: Verdict; form; reconsideration of defective verdict

§ 310.50 Verdict; form; reconsideration of defective verdict.

1. The form of the verdict must be in accordance with the court's

instructions, as prescribed in article three hundred.

2. If the jury renders a verdict which in form is not in accordance

with the court's instructions or which is otherwise legally defective,

the court must explain the defect or error and must direct the jury to

reconsider such verdict, to resume its deliberation for such purpose,

and to render a proper verdict. If the jury persists in rendering a

defective or improper verdict, the court may in its discretion either

order that the verdict in its entirety as to any defendant be recorded

as an acquittal, or discharge the jury and authorize the people to retry

the indictment or a specified count or counts thereof as to such

defendant; provided that if it is clear that the jury intended to find a

defendant not guilty upon any particular count, the court must order

that the verdict be recorded as an acquittal of such defendant upon such

count.

3. If the court accepts a verdict which is defective or incomplete by

reason of the jury's failure to render a verdict upon every count upon

which it was instructed to do so, such verdict is deemed to constitute

an acquittal upon every such count improperly ignored in the verdict.

4. In a prosecution involving a charge of enterprise corruption in

violation of article four hundred sixty of the penal law, the jury must

separately and specifically render a special verdict with regard to each

criminal act and any lesser included offense submitted for its

consideration as a part of a pattern of criminal activity in addition to

its verdict on the charge of enterprise corruption. In the absence of a

unanimous special verdict of guilty with regard to each of at least

three criminal acts and/or lesser included offenses submitted for its

consideration and legally sufficient to constitute a person's

participation in a pattern of criminal activity within the meaning of

subdivision four of section 460.10 of the penal law, the court must

order that the verdict on the count charging enterprise corruption be

recorded as an acquittal.