You are here: / / Defendant Would Not Admit to the Commission of Certain Elements of the...
,

Defendant Would Not Admit to the Commission of Certain Elements of the Offense to Which He Pled Guilty—Vacation of Plea as Involuntary Was Required, Despite Lack of Preservation and a Waiver of Appeal

The Third Department determined defendant’s guilty plea must be vacated, despite a failure to preserve the error and a waiver of appeal. During the plea allocution, defendant denied elements of the offense to which he was pleading guilty (strangulation in the second degree). Defendant denied that the victim experienced a loss of consciousness or any injury, and denied he had the intent to impede the breathing of the victim.  The guilty plea, therefore, was not knowing, intelligent and voluntary (constituting an exception to the “preservation of error” requirement):

Although defendant’s challenge to the voluntariness of his plea survives his uncontested waiver of the right to appeal …, it is unpreserved for our review in the absence of an appropriate postallocution motion … . Upon reviewing the record, however, we are persuaded that the narrow exception to the preservation requirement has been triggered here, as defendant made numerous statements during the course of the plea colloquy that negated essential elements of the crime, thereby calling into question the voluntariness of his plea … . * * *

Simply put, defendant’s responses to the questions posed during the plea colloquy negated more than one element of the charged crime, thereby casting doubt upon his guilt. Inasmuch as further inquiry by County Court neither resolved that doubt nor otherwise established that the resulting plea was knowing, intelligent and voluntary … , it should not have been accepted by the court and must now be vacated … . People v Mcmillan, 2015 NY Slip Op 04680, 3rd Dept 6-4-15

 

You might also like
DEFENDANT’S COUNSEL WAS INEFFECTIVE FOR FAILING TO FILE A VALID MOTION TO WITHDRAW THE PLEA; THE MOTION WAS MISCHARACTERIZED AS A MOTION TO VACATE THE CONVICTION AND WAS NOT SUPPORTED BY NECESSARY AFFIDAVITS; DEFENDANT’S SENTENCE WAS VACATED (THIRD DEPT).
CLAIMANT ACTOR WAS NOT AN EMPLOYEE OF THE SCHOOL OF VISUAL ARTS AND THEREFORE WAS NOT ENTITLED TO UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE BENEFITS (THIRD DEPT).
BUDGETARY CONCERNS RELATED TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC JUSTIFED THE DENIAL OF CERTIFICATION TO CONTINUE SERVING ON THE BENCH TO 46 SUPREME COURT JUSTICES WHO REACHED THE MANDATORY RETIREMENT AGE OF 70 IN 2020 (THIRD DEPT).
Hearsay Alone Will Not Support Revocation of Probation/Failure to Pay Restitution Will Not Support Revocation of Probation If Due to an Inability to Pay
FALL ON SIDEWALK NEAR PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT NOT COMPENSABLE, CRITERIA EXPLAINED (THIRD DEPT).
WHETHER THE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL RECEIVED COMPETENT REPRESENTATION AT HER DISCIPLINARY PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE NYC DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION WAS RELEVANT TO HER DECERTIFICATION PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE NYS DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION; THEREFORE THE MOTION TO QUASH THE SUBPOENA SEEKING THE ATTORNEY’S TESTIMONY SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (THIRD DEPT).
Limitation of Liability Clause in House-Design Contract Valid
Conflict Between Federal and State Law Required Application of Federal Law—Carrier of “Household Goods” Not Entitled to Tax Exemptions Allowed by State Law but Not Allowed by Federal Law

Categories

Sign Up for the Mailing List to Be Notified When the Site Is Updated.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Copyright © 2026 New York Appellate Digest, Inc.
Site by CurlyHost | Privacy Policy

Dismissal of a Summary Judgment Motion as “Premature” Requires an... Inadequate Waiver of the Right to Appeal Required Vacation of Guilty Plea, Despite...