THE RECORD DOES NOT DEMONSTRATE THE WAIVER OF INDICTMENT WAS SIGNED IN OPEN COURT; THE ISSUE NEED NOT BE PRESERVED FOR APPEAL; CONVICTION REVERSED (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, reversing defendant’s conviction, determined the waiver of indictment was invalid because it was not signed in open court:

Defendant’s waiver of indictment … was invalid because the record does not demonstrate that defendant satisfied the requirement of NY Constitution, art 1, § 6 and CPL 195.20 that the written waiver of indictment must be signed by the defendant in open court in the presence of his or her counsel … . The indictment waiver was dated February 3, 2021, the same date on which the SCI was issued, but a date on which there appears to have been no appearance in this case. Further, the court’s description of the indictment waiver suggested that the court understood it to have been signed before the day of the plea. The record as a whole does not clearly support an inference that the “open court” requirement was satisfied. A less than compelling inference does not fulfill the “unequivocal dictate” that the record demonstrate that the defendant signed the waiver in open court … . “Compliance with this unequivocal dictate is indispensable to a knowing and intelligent waiver and the failure to adhere to this strict procedure is a jurisdictional defect which survives a guilty plea and appeal waiver and need not be preserved” … . People v Perez, 2026 NY Slip Op 00210, First Dept 1-15-26

Practice Point; If the record does not unequivocally demonstrate a waiver of indictment was signed in open court, the guilty plea is invalid. The issue need not be preserved for appeal.