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Appellate Review of Conviction Based Upon Circumstantial Evidence Explained

In a full-fledged opinion by Judge Pigott, the Court of Appeals determined there was sufficient circumstantial evidence to support defendant’s conviction, even though innocent explanations for the evidence could be offered. The court explained appellate review of circumstantial evidence:

…[I]t is well-established that “[t]he standard of appellate review in determining whether the evidence before the jury was legally sufficient to support a finding of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt is the same for circumstantial and non-circumstantial cases” … . That standard, of course, is whether, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, “there is a valid line of reasoning and permissible inferences from which a rational jury could have found the elements of the crime proved beyond a reasonable doubt” … . A jury, faced with a case in which the proof of a particular charge, or element thereof, consists entirely of circumstantial evidence, “must exclude to a moral certainty every other reasonable hypothesis” … . But an appellate court's duty, when reviewing the jury's finding, is not to determine whether it would have reached the same conclusion as the jury, with respect to a proposed innocent explanation of the evidence (see Grassi, 92 NY2d at 699 [“Defendant has offered myriad innocent explanations or inferences that could be drawn by a jury to counter this evidence. That, however, is not the legal standard by which this Court is bound for reviewing a sufficiency of the evidence appeal”]). Rather, the appellate court, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the People, must decide whether a jury could rationally have excluded innocent explanations of the evidence offered by the defendant and found each element of the crime proven beyond a reasonable doubt. People v Reed, 3, CtApp 2-13-14

 

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Agent for Partially Disclosed Principal Is Personally Liable on the Contract

In finding the agent (Sussman) liable for a contract because the principal was not fully disclosed, the Second Department wrote:

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…[The evidence] indicates at best that Sussman was acting as an agent for a “partially disclosed principal,” in that the agency relationship was known, but the identity of the principal remained undisclosed (Restatement [Second] of Agency § 4[2]…). As an agent for an undisclosed principal, Sussman became personally liable under the contract (…Restatement [Second] of Agency § 321). Stonhard v Blue Ridge Farms, LLC, 2014 NY Slip Op 00985, 2nd Dept 2-13-14

 

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Employer Which Hired Undocumented Workers Who Were Injured On the Job Protected from Suit by the Workers’ Compensation Law

In a full-fledged opinion by Judge Smith, the Court of Appeals determined the employer [Microtech] was entitled to the protection of the Workers’ Compensation Law and a suit against the employer by the hospital (which paid out Labor Law claims to the injured workers) was properly dismissed. The employer had hired undocumented workers [the Lemas] who were injured doing demolition work at the hospital. The workers were paid Workers’ Compensation benefits by the employer. The workers sued the hospital under the Labor Law and were awarded a verdict. The hospital then sued the employer which, the Court of Appeals held, was protected from suit by section 11 of the Workers’ Compensation Law:[Quoting the appellate division, the Court of Appeals wrote:]

…[T]o rule in the hospital's favor would “effectively deny [Microtech] the economic protections it acquired under the Workers' Compensation Law in return for providing [the Lemas] with compensation for their injuries,” as well as “relieve [the hospital] of its responsibility to ensure a safe construction site for workers under the Labor Law”… . New York Hospital Medical Center of Queens v Microtech Contracting Corp, 1, CtApp 2-13-14

 

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Public Interest Privilege (Protecting Government Documents from Disclosure) Explained

In determining Supreme Court erred when it ordered the county to produce documents sought during discovery without reviewing them to determine the applicability of the asserted public interest privilege, the Second Department wrote:

CPLR 3101(a) broadly mandates “full disclosure of all matter material and necessary in the prosecution or defense of an action.” This provision is to be liberally interpreted in favor of disclosure … . Nonetheless, a party from whom disclosure is sought may seek to prevent disclosure by properly invoking a recognized privilege. “A party asserting that material sought in disclosure is privileged bears the burden of demonstrating that the material it seeks to withhold is immune from discovery” … .”A public interest privilege inheres in certain official confidential information in the care and custody of governmental entities” … . “This privilege permits appropriate parties to protect information from ordinary disclosure, as an exception to liberal discovery rubrics” … . “Specifically, the privilege envelops confidential communications between public officers, and to public officers, in the performance of their duties, where the public interest requires that such confidential communications or the sources should not be divulged” … “The justification for the privilege is that the public interest might otherwise be harmed if extremely sensitive material were to lose this special shield of confidentiality”… . Ren Zheng Zheng v Bermeo, 2014 NY Slip Op 00979, 2nd Dept 2-13-14

 

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Court-Ordered Period for Bringing Summary Judgment Motion Which Was Shorter than the Statutory Period Cannot Be Modified Absent Good Cause—Law Office Failure Not Enough

The First Department determined that the court-ordered deadline for bringing a summary judgment motion could not be modified absent good cause, even though the court-ordered deadline shortened the statutory 120 period:

As the Court of Appeals has repeatedly reiterated, court-ordered time frames are requirements to be taken seriously by the parties … . Contrary to the distinction defendant seeks to draw, it does not matter whether a motion for summary judgment has been made more than 120 days after the filing of the note of issue or after the expiration of a shorter time limit set by a court order or stipulation. Whatever the source of the deadline with which a party fails to comply, the lateness may not be excused without a showing of good cause within the meaning of CPLR 3212(a)—a showing of something more than mere law office failure… . Quinones v Joan & Sanford I Weill Med Coll, 2014 NY slip Op 00882, 1st Dept 2-11-13

 

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Labor Law Suit for Gratuities Not Preempted by Labor Management Relations Act or Prohibited by Collective Bargaining Agreement

In a full-fledged opinion by Justice Renwick, the First Department determined the plaintiffs, food and beverages servers at Madison Square Garden, had stated a cause of action against the defendant Garden under Labor Law 196-d. The plaintiffs alleged the Garden was not distributing to the plaintiffs all the “service charges” paid by customers who were led to believe the “service charges” were gratuities for the servers. The First Department rejected the Garden’s argument that the claims were preempted by federal law (Labor Management Relations Act [LMRA]) and, alternatively, subject to mandatory arbitration under the collective bargaining agreement [CBA].

Section 301 of the LMRA provides that “[s]uits for violation of contracts between an employer and a labor organization representing employees in an industry affecting commerce … may be brought in any district court of the United States having jurisdiction of the parties” (29 USC § 185[a]. The Supreme Court has interpreted this section to preempt state law claims “founded directly on rights created by collective bargaining agreements” as well as “claims substantially dependent on an analysis of a collective bargaining agreement'”… . * * *

Section 301 [of the LMRA] … does not preempt state claims when state law confers an independent statutory right to bring a claim … .Even if resolution of a state-law claim “involves attention to the same factual considerations as the contractual determination … such parallelism [does not mandate preemption]” … .

A defendant’s reliance on the CBA is not enough to “inject—a federal question into an action that asserts what is plainly a state-law claim”… . * * *

A CBA cannot preclude a lawsuit concerning individual statutory rights unless the arbitration clause in the agreement is “clear and unmistakable” that the parties intended to arbitrate such individual claims … . “A clear and unmistakable’ waiver exists where one of two requirements is met: (1) if the arbitration clause contains an explicit provision whereby an employee specifically agrees to submit all causes of action arising out of his employment to arbitration; or (2) where the arbitration clause specifically references or incorporates a statute into the agreement to arbitrate disputes” … . “Arbitration clauses that cover any dispute concerning the interpretation, application, or claimed violation of a specific term or provision’ of the collective bargaining agreement do not contain the requisite clear and unmistakable’ waiver because the degree of generality [in the arbitration provision] falls far short of a specific agreement to submit all federal claims to arbitration'”… . Tamburino v Madison Sq Garden LP, 2014 NY Slip Op 0895, 1st Dept 2-11-14

 

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Family Court Should Have Granted an Adjournment in Contemplation of Dismissal as the Least Restrictive Dispositional Alternative in a Juvenile Delinquency Proceeding

In a juvenile delinquency proceeding, the First Department, over a dissent, determined the appellant should have been granted an adjournment of contemplation of dismissal (ACD) as the appropriate least restrictive disposition of the case:

…[W]e conclude that an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal (ACD) would have been the least restrictive dispositional alternative consistent with appellant’s needs and the community’s need for protection … . We note that an ACD could have been made subject to conditions, such as counseling and educational requirements. This was appellant’s first offense, and he had an exemplary academic record, along with strong recommendations from school personnel … . There is no indication that he has unsavory friends or a record of school disciplinary problems, truancy or poor grades … . On the contrary, appellant, who has a strong social support network, received an award for perfect school attendance and, upon graduation from eighth grade, an assemblyman and senator from the area awarded him a certificate of merit for academic achievement. He has also demonstrated leadership in sports. Additionally, appellant participated in a sexual behavior program and expressed remorse for his actions. Furthermore, appellant … stayed out of trouble for the 18 months that the case was pending. Based on all these factors, there is no reason to believe that appellant needed any supervision beyond that which could have been provided under an ACD. Matter of Juan P, 2014 NY Slip Op 00879, 1st Dept 2-11-14

 

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Defense Counsel’s Failure to Move for Suppression Constituted Ineffective Assistance

The Fourth Department determined that the failure of defense counsel to make a suppression argument constituted ineffective assistance of counsel:

The facts of this case are similar to those in People v Clermont (22 NY3d 931), where the Court of Appeals held that the defendant was deprived of effective assistance of counsel at his suppression hearing.  The Court reasoned that defense counsel’s failure to marshal the facts adduced at the hearing, “coupled with his failure to make appropriate argument in his motion papers or to submit a post-hearing memorandum, meant that the defense never supplied the hearing court with any legal rationale for granting suppression” (id. at 933).  * * *

Here, as in Clermont, suppression was the only viable defense strategy.  Nevertheless, defense counsel inexplicably failed to move for suppression of the cocaine or the knife seized by the police from defendant’s vehicle.  Defense counsel also failed to move for suppression of defendant’s incriminating statement to the officer about the knife, which the court thereafter suppressed in response to defendant’s pro se motion.  Like the attorney in Clermont, defense counsel did not marshal the facts for the court, made no legal argument regarding suppression, and submitted no post-hearing memorandum.  In short, as in Clermont, defense counsel “never supplied the hearing court with any legal rationale for granting suppression” (id. at 933).  People v Layou, 1309, 4th Dept 2-7-14

 

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Unlawful Imprisonment Charge Merged With Assault Charge

The Fourth Department determined the doctrine of judicial merger required dismissal of the unlawful imprisonment charge because it merged with the charged assault:

“Under the doctrine of judicial merger, an unlawful imprisonment or kidnapping that is incidental to and inseparable from the commission of another crime merges with such other crime” … .  In determining whether the merger doctrine applies herein, “our guiding principle is whether [defendant’s] restraint [of the victim] was so much the part of another substantive crime [, i.e., the crime of assault,] that the substantive crime could not have been committed without such acts [constituting the crime of unlawful imprisonment] and that independent criminal responsibility may not fairly be attributed to them” … .  Here, the brief “abduction” of the victim, i.e., the moment when defendant grabbed the victim and pulled him outside the dwelling at issue, was “merely ‘preliminary, preparatory, or concurrent action’ in relation to the ultimate crime [of assault]” …, and we thus conclude that the unlawful imprisonment count merged with the assault count… . People v James, 1314, 4th Dept 2-7-14

 

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Verdict Properly Set Aside Based Upon Trial Court’s Own Denial of Defendant’s Request for an Adjournment to Retain New Counsel/Criteria for Trial Court’s Setting Aside a Verdict Explained

The Fourth Department, after explaining the criteria for setting aside a verdict, ruled the trial court had properly set aside the verdict in this case due to the trial court’s own erroneous denial of defendant’s request for an adjournment to seek new counsel:

“Pursuant to CPL 330.30 (1), following the issuance of a verdict and before sentencing a court may set aside a verdict on ‘[a]ny ground appearing in the record which, if raised upon an appeal from a prospective judgment of conviction, would require a reversal or modification of the judgment as a matter of law by an appellate court’ ” … . “The power granted a Trial Judge is, thus, far more limited than that of an intermediate appellate court, which is authorized to determine not only questions of law but issues of fact . . . , to reverse or modify a judgment when the verdict is against the weight of the evidence . . . , and to reverse ‘[a]s a matter of discretion in the interest of justice’ ”… . * * *

In our view, the court’s refusal to grant defendant’s request for an adjournment was “an abuse of discretion as a matter of law” and effectively denied defendant the fundamental right to be represented by counsel of his own choosing …   On the date scheduled for suppression hearings, defense counsel, who had been retained by defendant’s family while defendant was incarcerated, withdrew defendant’s requests for suppression and sought an expedited trial without defendant’s knowledge or consent.  At the next court appearance, defendant requested an adjournment of the expedited trial to afford him time in which to retain another attorney.  The court, in denying that request, did not afford defendant “[a] reasonable time and a fair opportunity to secure counsel of his own choice”…, particularly in view of the fact that the trial was expedited without defendant’s knowledge or consent… .  Inasmuch as we conclude that defendant was denied the fundamental right to be represented by counsel of his own choosing, reversal of the judgment of conviction on that ground would be required as a matter of law upon an appeal therefrom (see CPL 330.30 [1]), and the court therefore properly set aside the verdict. People v Rohadfox, 1367, 4th Dept 2-7-14

 

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