Opinion
2012-02-23
The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Michael BOONE, Defendant–Appellant.
Robert S. Dean, Center for Appellate Litigation, New York (Jody Ratner of counsel), for appellant. Michael Boone, appellant pro se.
Robert S. Dean, Center for Appellate Litigation, New York (Jody Ratner of counsel), for appellant. Michael Boone, appellant pro se.
Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., District Attorney, New York (John B.F. Martin of counsel), for respondent.
Appeal from the judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Herbert J. Adlerberg, J.H.O. at suppression hearing; Charles H. Solomon, J. at suppression decision and dismissal motion; Maxwell Wiley, J. at plea and sentencing), rendered January 6, 2010, convicting defendant of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree and resisting arrest, and sentencing him to an aggregate term of 1 year, held in abeyance, and the matter remitted to the Supreme Court for a new suppression hearing.
Upon reconsideration, we find that at the time defendant first waived his right to counsel before the suppression hearing, the court did not conduct the requisite “searching inquiry” as to whether he was aware of the dangers and disadvantages of proceeding pro se, nor did the court apprise defendant of the “singular importance of the lawyer in the adversarial system of adjudication” ( People v. Wingate, 17 N.Y.3d 469, 482, 932 N.Y.S.2d 765, 957 N.E.2d 255 [2011]; see also People v. Providence, 2 N.Y.3d 579, 780 N.Y.S.2d 552, 813 N.E.2d 632 [2004] ).
The Decision and Order of this Court entered herein on October 13, 2011 is hereby recalled and vacated ( see M–5397 decided simultaneously herewith).