Opinion
10627 SCI 30/14
12-19-2019
The PEOPLE of the State of New York, SCI, Respondent, v. Kenneth CAMPBELL, Defendant–Appellant.
Janet E. Sabel, The Legal Aid Society, New York (Rachel L. Pecker of counsel), for appellant. Darcel D. Clark, District Attorney, Bronx (James J. Wen of counsel), for respondent.
Janet E. Sabel, The Legal Aid Society, New York (Rachel L. Pecker of counsel), for appellant.
Darcel D. Clark, District Attorney, Bronx (James J. Wen of counsel), for respondent.
Friedman, J.P., Webber, Gesmer, Kern, JJ.
Order, Supreme Court, Bronx County (Marc J. Whiten, J.), entered on or about December 16, 2016, which adjudicated defendant a level three sexually violent offender pursuant to the Sex Offender Registration Act (Correction Law art 6–C), unanimously affirmed, without costs.
The record sufficiently establishes that, by refusing to be transported to court from his place of incarceration, defendant waived or forfeited his right to be present at the hearing (see People v. Reid, 49 A.D.3d 338, 339, 852 N.Y.S.2d 763 [1st Dept. 2008], lv denied 10 N.Y.3d 713, 861 N.Y.S.2d 273, 891 N.E.2d 308 [2008] ). The court providently exercised its discretion in declining to adjourn the hearing. Notwithstanding defendant's absence, his counsel was able to litigate the downward departure issue.
Even assuming defendant's correct point score is 115, as he contends, rather than 130, as the court found, defendant remains a level three offender and, given the underlying facts, we perceive no basis for a downward departure or for further proceedings in that regard (see generally People v. Gillotti, 23 N.Y.3d 841, 994 N.Y.S.2d 1, 18 N.E.3d 701 [2014] )
We have considered and rejected defendant's remaining arguments.