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THE PEOPLE’S FAILURE TO TURN OVER TO THE DEFENSE A VIDEO CONTAINING IMPEACHMENT MATERIAL PRIOR TO FILING A CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE RENDERED THE CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE AND THE STATEMENT OF READINESS ILLUSORY; INDICTMENT DISMISSED (THIRD DEPT).

The Third Department, reversing defendant’s conviction and dismissing the indictment on speedy trial grounds, in a full-fledged opinion by Justice Pritzker, determined the People were required to turn over a child advocacy center (CAC) video before filing a certificate of compliance (COC) and statement of readiness (SOR). The CAC video was not turned over until 20 days before trial:

… [T]he People conceded that the CAC video contained impeachment evidence based upon certain statements made by the victim … , and also that the CAC video had been turned over by the CAC to law enforcement and, as such, was in the People’s possession as of January 22, 2020 … . Despite this, the CAC video was not turned over to defendant until September 1, 2021, 20 days before trial, even though the People filed an earlier COC and SOR in October 2020. Specifically, the COC dated October 16, 2020 referenced an index detailing the materials that had been disclosed to defendant as of that date. This index reveals two compliance reports, one dated February 28, 2020 and the other dated October 1, 2020. As relevant here, the February 28, 2020 compliance report lists a document titled “CAC Chain of Custody – 01.22.2020.pdf” as having been turned over to defendant. There is no dispute that, while this chain of custody form for the CAC video was included in discovery, the video itself was not. * * *

… [H]ere, we are faced with a situation where the People certified, allegedly in good faith, that “the prosecutor has disclosed and made available all known material and information subject to discovery” … , despite knowing full well that they were intentionally withholding the CAC video. As such, we find that the People did not file the October 2020 COC in good faith as they did not make “all known material and information subject to discovery” available to defendant … . Further compounding their error, the People did not give defendant any notice of this withholding, either by withholding the CAC video and requesting a protective order … in the first instance, or, later, giving defendant notice that the CAC video was purportedly being withheld so as not to disclose any identifying information of the victim … . … [B]ecause we find that the October 2020 COC and SOR were illusory, the People did not validly announce readiness for trial until September 2021, which the People concede would be outside of the applicable six-month CPL 30.30 time frame. Thus, this Court must dismiss the indictment … . People v Mazelie, 2025 NY Slip Op 05849, Third Dept 10-23-25

Practice Point: Here the People’s failure to turn over impeachment evidence before filing the certificate of compliance rendered the certificate illusory and required dismissal of the indictment.

 

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DEFENDANT RAISED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE VOLUNTARINESS OF HIS PLEA TO FIRST DEGREE MURDER SUFFICIENT TO WARRANT A HEARING ON HIS MOTION TO VACATE THE JUDGMENT OF CONVICTION (THIRD DEPT).

The Third Department, reversing County Court, determined defendant had raised questions about the voluntariness of his plea to first degree murder (for killing his parents) which required a hearing on his motion to vacate his plea. Defendant was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole. In his motion to vacate his plea, defendant alleged his attorneys told him that the death penalty for first degree murder was going to be overturned and thereafter his sentence could be reduced. Defendant also alleged his guilty plea was induced in part by his cousin’s offer to pay him $10,000 if he pled guilty and renounced any claim to his parents’ estate:

According to defendant, after he had received the offer of payment, he remained reticent to accept the plea offer; however, by his telling, consideration of that payment together with his averment as to trial counsel’s misadvice of a potential reduced sentence ultimately persuaded him to accept the offer to plead guilty and be sentenced to life without parole. In support of that account, motion counsel and defendant’s investigator recounted trial counsel’s representation that defendant’s initial objection to accepting the plea offer diminished once the $10,000 payment had been offered. In support of defendant’s motion, he presented further evidence that $10,000 was paid to him after he entered his plea by way of two separate $5,000 checks, one of which was provided by his cousin. The evidence of that payment and the corresponding account that it influenced defendant’s deliberations as to whether to accept the plea, considered alongside the misadvice that he was purportedly provided, create an issue of fact as to whether he was subjected to something more “than the type of situational coercion faced by many defendants who are offered a plea deal” … .

All told, we find that defendant’s submissions in support of his motion are sufficient to raise an issue of fact warranting a hearing with respect to deficiencies in his representation … and the effect on the voluntariness of his plea … . …  With respect to both his claims, defendant bears the burden of establishing his entitlement to relief by a preponderance of the evidence (see CPL 440.30 [6]). As to his contention of deficient representation, defendant will bear the burden of proving that he was misadvised about the potential to have his sentence reduced in the future if he took the People’s plea offer and, but for that misadvice, there is a reasonable probability that he would have chosen to proceed to trial … . … [A]t this juncture the question “is whether defendant has made sufficient allegations to warrant an evidentiary hearing, not whether defendant has satisfied his burden of proof” … . People v Mower, 2025 NY Slip Op 05851, Third Dept 10-23-25

Practice Point: Consult this decision for insight into the allegations and proof which will be sufficient to require a hearing on whether defendant’s guilty plea was voluntarily entered in the context of a post-appeal motion to vacate the judgment of conviction.

 

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DEFENDANT WAS NOT NOTIFIED THAT IF HE FAILED TO PAY RESTITUTION HIS SENTENCE WOULD BE ENHANCED; ENHANCED SENTENCE VACATED AND AGREED-UPON SENTENCE IMPOSED (THIRD DEPT).

The Third Department, vacating defendant’s enhanced sentence and imposing the agreed-upon sentence, determined defendant was not given notice that his failure to pay restitution would result in an enhanced sentence. The agreed sentence was 2 to 6 years and the enhanced sentence was 4 to 12 years:

Defendant argues that County Court erred in imposing a prison sentence in excess of that promised in the plea agreement and requests that this Court resentence him to the agreed-upon term of 2 to 6 years in prison, without remanding the matter to County Court. Defendant contends that while payment of restitution was contemplated prior to sentencing, County Court never advised him that if he failed to pay restitution by the sentencing date it could impose an enhanced prison sentence. We agree. Defendant’s argument survives his unchallenged appeal waiver … . However, given that the court’s enhanced sentence was pronounced at the very end of the sentencing proceeding, without advance warning that it was considering an enhanced sentence or even a clear finding that defendant had violated an express condition of the plea agreement, we find that he had no practical ability to raise an objection and, thus, preservation was not required … . Under settled law, “the violation of an explicit and objective plea condition that was accepted by the defendant can result in the imposition of an enhanced sentence, and, conversely, a sentencing court may not impose an enhanced sentence unless it has informed the defendant of specific conditions that the defendant must abide by or risk such enhancement, or give the defendant an opportunity to withdraw his or her plea before the enhanced sentence is imposed” … . People v Nestler, 2025 NY Slip Op 05852, Third Dept 10-23-25

Practice Point: Consult this decision for an explanation of the criteria which allow a judge to ignore an agreed-upon sentence and impose an enhanced sentence.​

 

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THE RECORD DID NOT DEMONSTRATE COMPLIANCE WITH THE WAIVER-OF-INDICTMENT PROCEDURE, A JURISDICTIONAL DEFECT; PLEA VACATED; PLEA TO A SUBSEQUENT INDICTMENT INDUCED BY A CONCURRENT SENTENCE PROMISE VACATED AS WELL (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, reversing defendant’s convictions by guilty pleas, determined the failure to comply with the waiver-of-indictment procedure required vacation of the plea, as well as the vacation of a plea induced by a concurrent sentence promise:

The record fails to demonstrate compliance with CPL 195.20. There is no evidence that defendant signed the indictment waiver in open court when the plea was entered because it is not dated as the same day as the plea. The court’s order affirming compliance with CPL 195.10 and 195.20 is also not dated and the court did not confirm on the record that defendant signed the waiver or make any reference whatsoever to it at the time of the plea. …

The failure to comply with CPL 195.20 is a jurisdictional defect that requires reversal of the judgment of conviction and dismissal of the superior court information … .

… [D]ismissal of the information necessitates dismissal of defendant’s subsequent plea … . Defendant pleaded guilty to first-degree robbery in exchange for a sentence of five years’ incarceration and five years’ postrelease supervision, to run concurrently … . Where, as here, a defendant’s guilty plea is “induced by the understanding that the sentence would be concurrent with the sentence imposed for [the prior] conviction, since set aside, the plea must be vacated” … . People v Smith, 2025 NY Slip Op 05902, First Dept 10-23-25

Practice Point: Failure to comply with the waiver-of-indictment procedure is a jurisdictional defect requiring vacation of the plea. A plea to a subsequent indictment induced by a concurrent sentence promise must also be vacated.

 

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THERE WAS NO PROOF THE OFFICER WHO FRISKED THE DEFENDANT AND REMOVED A WALLET FROM DEFENDANT’S POCKET SUSPECTED THE WALLET WAS A WEAPON; THE WALLET, WHICH HAD BEEN STOLEN FROM THE VICTIM, SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUPPRESSED; BECAUSE THE WALLET TENDED TO IDENTIFY DEFENDANT AS THE ROBBER, THE ERROR WAS NOT HARMLESS; NEW TRIAL ORDERED ON THE ROBBERY-RELATED OFFENSES (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing the robbery-related convictions and ordering a new trial, determined the police did not have a lawful basis for removing a wallet from defendant’s pocket and examining its contents. There was no evidence that the lawful frisk of the defendant indicated the presence of a weapon. The wallet, which had been stolen from the victim, should have been suppressed. Because the robber was wearing a mask, finding the wallet on defendant’s person tended to identify defendant as the robber. The error in failing to suppress the wallet, therefore, was not harmless:

… [E]ven assuming that the officers were justified in performing a protective frisk … , there was no justification for searching the defendant’s pants pocket, reaching into it, and removing the wallet. In the course of conducting a protective pat-down based upon reasonable suspicion, “[o]nce an officer has concluded that no weapon is present, the search is over and there is no authority for further intrusion” … . There was no evidence presented at the suppression hearing that, during his frisk of the defendant, Nelson [the police officer] felt anything in the defendant’s pocket that seemed to be a weapon or that could have posed a danger to the officers at the scene. Indeed, Nelson did not testify at the hearing. Accordingly, there was no lawful basis for removing the wallet from the defendant’s pocket … , and that act violated the defendant’s Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures … . The officers committed an additional constitutional violation when, after retrieving the wallet from the defendant’s pocket, they opened it and conducted a warrantless search of its contents … . Since the officers lacked the factual predicate necessary to search the defendant’s pocket and the wallet’s contents, the People failed to satisfy their burden of going forward to establish the legality of the police conduct in the first instance, and thus the wallet and its contents, seized as a result of that search, should have been suppressed … . People v Lewis, 2025 NY Slip Op 05823, Second Dept 10-22-25

Practice Point: If a street frisk does not indicate the presence of a weapon, the seizure and examination of a wallet found in defendant’s pocket has no lawful basis.

 

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DEFENDANT’S CONVICTION WAS REVERSED AND DEFENDANT APPLIED FOR BAIL; SUPREME COURT DENIED THE REQUEST WITHOUT THE REQUIRED EXPLANATION AND WITHOUT MAKING THE REQUIRED FLIGHT RISK DETERMINATION; DEFENDANT FILED A HABEAS CORPUS PETITION; PETITION HELD IN ABEYANCE PENDING THE ISSUANCE OF A NEW SECURING ORDER (CT APP).

The Court of Appeals, reversing the Appellate Division, in a full-fledged opinion by Judge Halligan, over a two-judge concurring opinion, determined the habeas petition should be held in abeyance and a new securing order which complies with Criminal Procedure Law (CPL) 510.10 should be issued:

While awaiting retrial after his criminal conviction was reversed on appeal, defendant Diego Guerra applied for a new securing order under the current version of the bail law. That statute requires a court to “make an individualized determination” as to the defendant’s flight risk and to “explain the basis for its determination and its choice of securing order on the record or in writing” (CPL 510.10 [1]; see also 530.40 [4]). Supreme Court ordered the defendant remanded to custody but neither explained that decision nor made an explicit determination as to flight risk.

Defense counsel filed this habeas petition in the Appellate Division, and we now review that Court’s dismissal of the writ. We conclude that Supreme Court abused its discretion by failing to make an individualized flight risk determination and to explain both the basis for that determination and the choice of securing order, as required by statute. Accordingly, we reverse and remand to the Appellate Division for issuance of a new securing order in compliance with CPL 510.10. People ex rel. Kon v Lynelle Maginley-Liddie, 2025 NY Slip Op 05785, CtApp 10-21-25

Practice Point: Pursuant to CPL 510.10, in denying a request for bail, the judge must make an individualized flight-risk determination and explain the basis of that determination and the choice of securing order. The failure to comply with those statutory requirements is an abuse of discretion.

 

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DEFENDANT TOOK A CELL PHONE PICTURE OF THE VICTIM IN THE SHOWER THROUGH A HIGH WINDOW; HE CLAIMED THE PHOTO WAS TAKEN ACCIDENTALLY WHEN HE WAS TRYING TO PHOTOGRAPH LIGHTNING; DEFENDANT, IN ANSWER TO A QUESTION BY THE POLICE ABOUT WHETHER THIS WAS A “PATTERN,” ADMITTED HE HAD SURREPTITIOUSLY TAKEN SIMILAR PHOTOS OF HIS WIFE; THE PREJUDICIAL EFFECT OF HIS APPARENT ADMISSION TO A “PATTERN” OF SIMILAR BEHAVIOR OUTWEIGHED ITS PROBATIVE EFFECT; NEW TRIAL ORDERED (THIRD DEPT). ​

The Third Department, reversing defendant’s conviction and ordering a new trial, determined that prior bad act “Molineux” evidence should not have been admitted because its probative value was outweighed by its prejudicial effect. Defendant, using his cell phone, had taken a picture of the victim in the shower through a high window. In his interview with the police defendant admitted taking similar pictures of his wife: “When confronted with a conversation that law enforcement allegedly had with his wife and whether the subject conduct was in fact part of a ‘pattern,’ defendant … admitted that he had previously engaged in similar surreptitious photography of his wife.” Defendant claimed the picture of the victim was taken accidentally when he was trying to photograph lightning:

[From the police interview with defendant:] “Now what’s the deal with when I asked your wife if this has been an issue in the past, she says you’ve done it to her, the exact same thing in the shower, and you guys have had blowouts,” adding, “So this has been a pattern, you know, it’s not like it was an accidental lightning strike thing.” Defendant replied, “I understand that. Yes, it’s my wife. I’m madly in love with her. I think she’s absolutely beautiful. Yeah, I’ve done that to my wife.” * * *

A criminal purpose cannot be readily inferred from the generally equivocal act of taking a photograph, later deleted, in the location where defendant was standing. Thus, defendant’s admission to previously taking surreptitious photographs of another woman while she showered because of his sexual interest in her was directly relevant to that legitimate nonpropensity issue … . Further, by inserting an innocent explanation for the charged conduct into the case, defendant’s prior similar acts had obvious relevance as tending to refute the possibility of mistake or accident … . * * *

… [A]lthough the challenged prior bad act evidence was highly probative with respect to the foregoing legitimate purposes, there is no way around the fact that the gratuitous “pattern” allegation made by law enforcement while questioning defendant substantially tipped the scale. It was an abuse of discretion not to redact that portion of the interview, together with defendant’s ambiguous “I understand that” response, prior to admitting the recording into evidence — particularly in view of how excisable it was. People v Siciliano, 2025 NY Slip Op 05721, Third Dept 10-16-25

Practice Point: Consult this decision for an example of evidence which fits a Molineux category [here a seeming admission to a “pattern” of taking surreptitious photos of women in the shower to counter defendant’s claim the photo of the victim in the shower was taken accidentally], but is inadmissible because the evidence is more prejudicial than probative.

 

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EVIDENCE DEFENDANT’S AND THE CODEFENDANT’S ATTORNEYS SHARED THE SAME OFFICE AND WORKED CLOSELY TOGETHER REQUIRED A HEARING ON DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO VACATE HIS CONVICTION; DEFENDANT ARGUED HE WAS DEPRIVED OF EFFECTIVE ASSISTANCE OF COUNSEL BY A CONFLICT OF INTEREST (THIRD DEPT).

The Third Department, reversing County Court, determined a hearing was required on defendant’s motion to vacate his conviction on the ground that his attorney was ineffective because of a conflict of interest between his attorney and the codefendant’s attorney. The two attorneys (Reilly and Roberts) have the same address and there was evidence that they worked closely together, even if they were not members of the same firm:

… [W]hen “an ineffective assistance of counsel claim is premised upon a perceived conflict of interest, the law draws a distinction between actual and potential conflicts” … . First, “[a]n actual conflict exists if an attorney simultaneously represents clients whose interests are opposed and, in such situations, reversal is required if the defendant does not waive the actual conflict” … . The same is true for attorneys associated with the same firm simultaneously representing clients in a criminal matter … . Alternatively, where a potential conflict exists, reversal is only required where “a defendant shows that a potential conflict actually operated on the conduct of [the] defense” … . * * *

… County Court … recognized that it was undisputed that Reilly and Roberts maintained the same address for their law practice. Each of the affidavits in support further reflected that the attorneys gave the impression that they were associated in the same law firm or that they had worked closely with each other. Both defendant and the codefendant acknowledged that they were not advised of a potential conflict of interest, and our review of the record fails to reveal any consent or waiver by defendant for such alleged conflicts. While it is true that defendant failed to provide an affidavit from either attorney, or explain why he was unable to obtain same, this is not automatically fatal to his motion — particularly where many of the facts are corroborated in the record … . This is particularly true considering that the codefendant alleged his speedy trial challenge was waived by Roberts to allow defendant to accept a plea and be sentenced, demonstrating that Reilly and Roberts had been at least aware of each other’s strategy in resolving the charges against their respective client. Yet, there exists a stark contrast of the sentences between defendant, who received 12 years of incarceration with 5 years of postrelease supervision, and the codefendant, who allegedly received time served. These differences are not explained in the record before us, and give rise to questions of fact about whether the relationship between Reilly and Roberts may have operated on the defense by impairing the best strategy for defendant … . People v Rasul, 2025 NY Slip Op 05722, Third Dept 10-16-25

Practice Point: Defendant moved to vacate his conviction on the ground he was deprived effective assistance of counsel because of a conflict of interest. There was evidence his and the codefendant’s attorneys shared the same address and worked closely together. The nonrecord evidence of a potential conflict of interest required a hearing.

 

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THE SEARCH WAS NOT A VALID INVENTORY SEARCH; THE HANDGUN FOUND IN DEFENDANT’S VEHICLE SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUPPRESSED (THIRD DEPT).

The Third Department, reversing County Court’s denial of defendant’s suppression motion, determined the search of defendant’s vehicle was not a valid inventory search and the handgun should have been suppressed:

“To be constitutionally valid, an inventory search must be [reasonable and] conducted according to a familiar routine procedure” … . The established procedure should be designed to “meet the legitimate objectives of the search,” such as protecting the owner’s property and insuring police against claims of lost or stolen property, “while limiting the discretion of the officer in the field”. Here, the second deputy failed to adhere to the requirements set forth in the relevant inventory policy. Namely, he did not obtain the approval of his shift supervisor before beginning the alleged inventory procedure. Further, although not explicitly written in the policy, the second deputy also admitted that he deviated from normal procedure when he failed to complete the inventory report as he conducted the inventory.  People v Grandoit, 2025 NY Slip Op 05720, Third Dept 10-16-25

Practice Point: Consult this decision for insight into how the legitimacy of an inventory search is determined by a reviewing court.​

 

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DEFENSE COUNSEL’S MISUNDERSTANDING OF THE ELEMENTS OF A CHARGED OFFENSE RESULTED IN THE PRESENTATION OF EVIDENCE BY THE DEFENDANT WHICH PROVED THE COMMISSION OF THE OFFENSE; DEFENSE COUNSEL WAS INEFFECTIVE; NEW TRIAL ORDERED (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, reversing defendant’s conviction and ordering a new trial, determined defense counsel was ineffective for failing to understand the nature of one of the criminal charges and presenting evidence which proved defendant’s commission of the charged offense. “Penal Law § 120.05(7) provides that a person is guilty of assault in the second degree when “[h]aving been charged with or convicted of a crime and while confined in a correctional facility, . . . with intent to cause physical injury to another person, he causes such injury to such person or to a third person” … . Defendant presented evidence he intended to punch another inmate but struck a corrections officer, thereby proving all the elements of the offense:

… [T]he record reveals that defense counsel’s trial strategy rested on the erroneous theory that defendant could not be found guilty of the charged offense if it could be proved that the correction officer was not the intended target of the assault. At trial, defense counsel called his client to testify. Defendant testified that while incarcerated, he became involved in an altercation with another inmate. He explained that during the encounter, he threw a “sucker punch” at that inmate, but in so doing, struck the correction officer instead. Defendant averred that the correction officer was not his intended target.

During summation, defense counsel compounded this error by incorrectly stating the required elements of Penal Law § 120.05(7) and declaring that in order to find defendant guilty of the charge, it must be proved that defendant intended to hit the correction officer. However, proving that the intended target of the assault was the correction officer is not a material element of the crime charged. Thus, counsel’s defense strategy constituted an admission to the jury of the elements necessary to prove the assault in the second-degree count (see Penal Law § 120.05[7]). Moreover, defense counsel’s argument to the court that he did not believe that the prosecution could amend its theory based on defendant’s testimony demonstrated yet another critical misunderstanding, of settled New York law that pertained to the entire defense strategy … . People v Calderon, 2025 NY Slip Op 05755, First Dept 10-16-25

Practice Point: Here, defense counsel’s failure to understand the elements of a charged offense constituted ineffective assistance, resulting in reversal and a new trial.​

 

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