Justia New York Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

Defendant was charged with various sex crimes pertaining to separate incidents involving two twelve-year-old girls. During the trial, the People presented the testimony of an expert witness on the subject of child sexual abuse accommodation syndrome (CSAAS). The Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction, holding (1) the expert's testimony exceeded permissible bounds when the prosecutor tailored hypothetical questions to include facts concerning the abuse that occurred in this case, which improperly bolstered the People's proof that Defendant was the perpetrator; but (2) the error was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt because the evidence of Defendant's guilt was overwhelming. View "People v. Williams" on Justia Law

After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of course of sexual conduct against a child in the second degree and endangering the welfare of a child. The appellate division reversed and remitted the matter for a new trial, concluding that the trial court committed prejudicial error in (1) precluding the testimony of a witness who had previously been accused by complainant of sexual abuse, and (2) permitting the prosecutor to adduce testimony from the People's child abuse expert, improperly bolstering the complainant's credibility. The Court of Appeals affirmed, holding (1) it was not an abuse of discretion for the trial court to permit expert testimony regarding the behavior of sexual abusers; but (2) the proffered testimony of the witness should have been permitted at trial, as the proposed testimony went to a material issue of Defendant's defense, and the trial court's error in excluding the testimony was not harmless. View "People v. Diaz" on Justia Law

Pursuant to a warrant executed in May 2009, law enforcement found a single pornographic image of a child on Defendant's computer. In September 2009, Defendant pled guilty to possessing a sexual performance of a child. In January 2010, the forensic examination of a memory card and other media devices seized pursuant to the warrant was performed and resulted in the discovery of hundreds of still-frame digital images depicting Defendant engaged in a sexual act with a child. Defendant subsequently entered a plea to predatory sexual assault in the first degree. Defendant appealed the denial of his suppression motion, concluding that by the time of the forensic examination yielding the inculpatory still-frame images took place, the authority provided by the warrant had lapsed, and therefore the search was illegal and the evidence obtained from it inadmissible. The appellate division affirmed. The Court of Appeals affirmed, holding (1) Defendant had no relevant expectation of privacy in the seized items to ground a Fourth Amendment-based suppression claim; and (2) even so, the claim would not be viable in light of the warrant's continued validity. View "People v. DeProspero" on Justia Law

After a joint trial with his co-defendant, Defendant was convicted on an accomplice theory of reckless endangerment in the first degree and attempted murder in the first degree. The appellate division affirmed. The Court of Appeals affirmed, holding (1) the evidence presented at trial was legally sufficient to support the conviction; and (2) Defendant was not entitled to a reversal of his conviction and a new trial based on the ineffective assistance of trial counsel, as (i) trial counsel was not ineffective for failing to raise the sufficiency arguments identified on appeal because they were not fairly characterized as dispositive in Defendant's favor, and (ii) Defendant's remaining ineffective assistance of counsel contentions were similarly unavailing. View "People v. McGee" on Justia Law

After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of attempted robbery, menacing, and possession of a weapon. Defendant appealed, arguing that the People violated N.Y. Crim. Proc. 710.30, which Defendant argued entitled him to the suppression of testimony about the victim's post-arrest identification. Defendant also argued that trial counsel's failure to raise that issue deprived him of the effective assistance of counsel. The Court of Appeals affirmed, holding that, assuming there was a section 710.30, if defense counsel did make a mistake in failing to object to the evidence, the mistake was not so egregious and prejudicial as to deprive Defendant of a fair trial. View "People v. Vasquez" on Justia Law

Defendant and three codefendants - Eric Young, Marvin Howard and Nathaniel Williams - were jointly indicted on a theory of accomplice liability for second-degree murder and second-degree weapon possession. Young and Howard waived their right to a jury, and Defendant and Williams were tried jointly. Howard testified during the trial. Defendant and Williams were convicted of both crimes, and the judge acquitted Howard. Defendant appealed on the ground that the judge's refusal to direct Howard to testify outside the jury's presence deprived him of his right to a fair trial. The appellate division agreed and reversed the judgment of conviction and sentence. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Defendant was prejudiced by the judge's decision to allow the jury to hear Howard's defense. View "People v. Warren" on Justia Law

Defendant was charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance in the first and third degrees and criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree. Defendant pleaded guilty to all three counts. At the time of the guilty plea, Defendant had a prior undischarged state sentence stemming from a felony drug conviction and also faced a federal violation of supervised release in connection with two prior federal felonies. Defendant was later sentenced to a determinate prison term of twelve years. The sentencing court stated that the sentence would be concurrent to the federal sentence. In addition, as a second felony drug offender, N.Y. Penal Law 70.25(2-a) required Defendant's twelve-year prison term to run consecutively to his prior undischarged state sentence. Defendant appealed, asserting that his guilty plea was involuntary because the trial court did not advise him of the consequence of his plea. The Court of Appeals affirmed, holding that the failure of the trial court to address the impact of section 70.25(2-a) during the plea colloquy did not require vacatur of the plea. View "People v. Belliard" on Justia Law

Following a verbal exchange between Defendant and a police officer in which Defendant swore at the officer and accused the officer of harassing him, Defendant was arrested for disorderly conduct. In a search incident to arrest, the police discovered Defendant was in possession of twenty-five bags of cocaine. Defendant moved to suppress the drugs found on his person, contending that the arrest for disorderly conduct was illegal, rendering the contraband fruit of the poisonous tree. After the motion was denied, Defendant pleaded guilty to criminal possession of a controlled substance third degree and assault second degree. The Court of Appeals reversed, vacated Defendant's guilty plea, and granted Defendant's motion to suppress, holding (1) Defendant's arrest for disorderly conduct was not supported by probable cause due to insufficient proof on the public harm element; and (2) because the arrest was unlawful, the cocaine seized during the search incident to that arrest should have been suppressed. View "People v. Baker" on Justia Law

Three police officers pulled over Defendant's vehicle because of a defective rear brake light. While the vehicle was stopped, one of the officers asked the vehicle's occupants if they possessed any weapons. The offices subsequently discovered weapons in the vehicle. An ensuing misdemeanor information charged Defendant with two counts of misdemeanor possession of an air pistol or rifle. Supreme Court granted Defendant's motion to suppress the air rifles recovered from his vehicle, holding that the officer's inquiry into the presence of weapons required suspicion of criminality and that mere nervousness on the part of occupants did not give rise to such suspicion. Upon reargument, Supreme Court reversed its prior order, finding that the officer's inquiry was permissible even though the officer lacked a foundation of criminality. The Appellate Division reversed, granted Defendant's suppression motion, and dismissed the information. The Court of Appeals affirmed as modified, holding (1) the appellate division did not err in suppressing the air guns; but (2) the case should be remitted for consideration of the People's alternative claim that officers would have inevitably discovered the disputed physical evidence. View "People v. Garcia" on Justia Law

Defendant was indicted for criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree, among other charges. At his initial trial, the jury deadlocked on that charge but rendered a partial verdict convicting Defendant of the lesser included offense of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree. Prior to the second trial, defense counsel moved to dismiss the count of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree, arguing that reprosecution for that offense would violate double jeopardy. The court denied the motion and proceeded to trial, convicting Defendant of third degree criminal possession. The appellate division reversed and dismissed the count of the indictment charging Defendant with third degree criminal possession, finding that Defendant's conviction of the lesser included offense of seventh degree criminal possession was deemed an acquittal of third degree possession and that double jeopardy barred Defendant's retrial for the greater offense. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that by opting for a mistrial and a retrial on the remaining counts, Defendant could not now claim his retrial was barred. View "People v. McFadden" on Justia Law