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DEFENDANT’S AVERMENTS IN HER MOTION TO VACATE HER CONVICTION BY GUILTY PLEA WERE SUFFICIENT TO WARRANT HEARINGS ON WHETHER HER PARTICIPATION IN THE OFFENSE WAS THE RESULT OF HER BEING A VICTIM OF SEX TRAFFICKING AND WHETHER HER COUNSEL WAS INEFFECTIVE FOR FAILING TO INFORM HER OF THE DEPORTATION CONSEQUENCES OF HER PLEA (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined defendant was entitled to a hearing on her motion to vacate the judgment of conviction. The motion to vacate argued defendant participated in the offense as a result of being a victim of sex trafficking within the meaning of CPL 440.10. In addition, defendant argued her counsel was ineffective in failing to inform her of the deportation consequences of her guilty plea:

…. [T]he defendant averred … that the underlying offense occurred within two to five years of her emigration to the United States, that she was initially hired to provide massages that did not require her to perform sex acts, and that after approximately two months, her boss moved her to another location and instructed her to perform sex acts on clients. The defendant further averred that she twice attempted to leave, but that each time her boss threatened to report the defendant’s activities to either her husband or the authorities. Moreover, in addition to her affidavit, the defendant submitted a letter from the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance dated November 4, 2022, which stated that the defendant “me[t] the criteria for confirmation as a human trafficking victim in New York State.” Under these circumstances, the defendant’s allegations were sufficient to raise an issue of fact as to whether her participation in the offense underlying her conviction was the result of having been a victim of sex trafficking. * * *

The defendant’s averments, including that she feared for her safety if she returned to China, sufficiently alleged that a decision to reject the plea offer would have been rational … . Therefore, the defendant was also entitled to a hearing on that branch of her motion which was pursuant to CPL 440.10 to vacate the judgment on the ground that she was deprived of the effective assistance of counsel by her counsel’s allegedly erroneous advice regarding the immigration consequences of her plea … . People v L.F., 2026 NY Slip Op 03186, Second Dept 5-20-26

Practice Point: There are statutory grounds for vacation of a judgment of conviction because defendant’s participation in the offense was the result having been a victim of sex trafficking. (CPL 440.10).​

 

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