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THE SEXUAL ABUSE ALLEGATIONS FROM THE 1990’S WERE NOT SUFFICIENTLY SIMILAR TO THE CHARGED OFFENSES AND THEREFORE DID NOT MEET THE “MODUS OPERANDI” CRITERIA UNDER MOLINEUX TO PROVE IDENTITY; NEW TRIAL ORDERED (FOURTH DEPT).

The Fourth Department, reversing defendant’s convictions and ordering a new trial, determined the Molineux evidence allowed by County Court did not meet the “modus operandi” criteria:

Before trial, County Court granted the People’s motion seeking to introduce testimony that defendant sexually abused his eldest son in the 1990s, on the ground that the earlier, uncharged conduct was admissible under the modus operandi exception to the Molineux rule … . …

Modus operandi evidence is a means of establishing the defendant’s identity as the perpetrator … . Here, even assuming, arguendo, that defendant’s identity as the person who committed the crimes was not conclusively established … , we conclude that the similarities between the uncharged acts and the charged crimes were not “sufficiently unique to make the evidence of the uncharged crimes probative of the fact that [defendant] committed the [crimes] charged” … .People v Mountzouros, 2022 NY Slip Op 03840, Fourth Dept 6-9-22

Practice Point: If the identity of the perpetrator is an issue and the manner in which the charged crime was committed is unique, evidence of defendant’s commission of an uncharged crime involving the same unique “modus operandi” may be admissible under Molineux. Here sexual abuse allegations from the 1990’s were not sufficiently similar to the charged offenses. The uncharged-crime evidence should not have been admitted. New trial ordered.

 

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