Opinion
No. KA 07-00258.
February 11, 2010.
Appeal from a judgment of the Monroe County Court (Patricia D. Marks, J.), rendered September 25, 2006. The judgment convicted defendant, upon his plea of guilty, of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the first degree and criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree (three counts).
TIMOTHY P. DONAHER, PUBLIC DEFENDER, ROCHESTER (JANET C. SOMES OF COUNSEL), FOR DEFENDANT-APPELLANT.
MICHAEL C. GREEN, DISTRICT ATTORNEY, ROCHESTER (PATRICK H. FIERRO OF COUNSEL), FOR RESPONDENT.
Present: Scudder, P.J., Smith, Fahey and Lindley, JJ.
It is hereby ordered that the judgment so appealed from is unanimously affirmed.
Memorandum: On appeal from a judgment convicting him upon his plea of guilty of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the first degree (Penal Law § 220.21) and three counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree (§ 220.16 [1], [12]), defendant contends that County Court erred in refusing to suppress evidence seized as the result of the allegedly illegal stop of his vehicle. We reject that contention. "The officer['s] observation that defendant was not wearing a seatbelt was a sufficient reason to stop the vehicle" driven by defendant ( People v Taylor, 57 AD3d 1504, 1505, lv denied 12 NY3d 788). Once the vehicle was stopped, the officer detected the odor of marihuana and thus had probable cause to search the vehicle ( see People v Cirigliano, 15 AD3d 672, lv denied 5 NY3d 760, 827).