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WHEN A JUVENILE PLEADS GUILTY TO AN OFFENSE FOR WHICH HE CANNOT BE HELD CRIMINALLY RESPONSIBLE, THE CONVICTION MUST BE VACATED AND DISMISSED (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, vacating defendant’s conviction by guilty plea, determined that because defendant, a juvenile, cannot be held criminally responsible for the crime to which he pled guilty, the conviction must be vacated rather than sent to Family Court:

The People are correct that where a juvenile is charged with a crime for which he may not be criminally responsible, as well as others for which he may be criminally responsible, Supreme Court may assume jurisdiction over the case … . However, if convicted of a crime for which he cannot be criminally responsible, Supreme Court then “must order that the verdict be deemed vacated and replaced by a juvenile delinquency fact determination,” and remove the matter to Family Court … .

Here … defendant was convicted, by a plea of guilty to a crime to which he cannot be criminally responsible. This was not a case where a jury returned a verdict of guilty to the charge of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree, thus requiring Supreme Court to transfer the case to Family Court for disposition … . Rather, the People specifically requested that in addition to the charge of attempted murder in the second degree, defendant enter a plea of guilty to the fifth count charging criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree, a crime for which the People now concede that defendant cannot be held criminally responsible. Given this, defendant’s conviction for criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree must be vacated and that charge dismissed. People v Raul A., 2023 NY Slip Op 01970, First Dept 4-18-23

Practice Point: If a juvenile goes to trial on offenses which include those for which a juvenile cannot be held criminally responsible, the court can assume jurisdiction over all the offenses. If convicted after trial of an offense for which a juvenile is not criminally responsible, the conviction is vacated and the matter is sent to Family Court for disposition. But if, as here, the conviction is by guilty plea it must be vacated and dismissed.

 

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