Defendant Needs to Object to Conflict of Interest
In People v Peterson, 2008 NY Slip Op 03822 [4th Dept 4/25/2008], the Court held that where a defendant contended that County Court failed to engage in a sufficient Gomberg inquiry when the court learned that defendant and a codefendant were represented by the same attorney (see People v Gomberg, 38 NY2d 307, 313-314) the “Defendant failed to preserve that contention for our review (see People v Woods, 6 AD3d 1126, 1127, lv denied...
read moreEvidence of ABSENCE of Sexual Activity Barred by CPL 60.42
The Court in People v Bones, 2008 NY Slip Op 03788 [4th Dept 4/25/2008] held that The court properly determined that CPL 60.42, which concerns the admissibility of evidence of a victim’s past sexual activity, also concerns the admissibility of evidence of the absence of sexual activity on the part of the victim (see generally People v Williams, 81 NY2d 303, 311; People v Nemie, 87 Cal App 3d 926,...
read moreCan Contrary Verdicts For Co-Defendants Be Repugnant?
Although the answer to the question posed by the caption is “yes,” the Court in People v McLaurin, [4th Dept 4/25/2008]rejected a claim that that a verdict convicting a father of resisting arrest was repugnant to the jury’s acquittal of the son on that charge, where they had the same defense – that the son was not present. The Court explained that [A] conviction will be reversed [as repugnant] only in those instances where...
read moreIAC Claims Need To Be Preserved
The Court in People v Hall, 2008 NY Slip Op 03738 [4th Dept 4/25/2008], in rejecting a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, held that To the extent that the contention of defendant that he was denied effective assistance of counsel survives his plea of guilty (see People v Burke, 256 AD2d 1244, lv denied 93 NY2d 851), we note that defendant failed to preserve that contention for our review (see People v Tantao,...
read moreAttack A Plea At Your Peril
In another reminder to counsel of the need to to be cautious in attacking a guilty plea, the Court, in People v Hinckley, 2008 NY Slip Op 03737 [4th Dept 4/25/08], in vacating one of two counts of a plea to CSCS in the third degree on finding that the defendant’s “plea with respect to that count falls within the narrow exception to the preservation requirement (see Lopez, 71 NY2d at 666)” held that...
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