Opinion
04-05-2016
The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. John HOOK, Defendant–Appellant.
Leonard J. Levenson, New York, for appellant. Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., District Attorney, New York (Oliver McDonald of counsel), for respondent.
Leonard J. Levenson, New York, for appellant. Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., District Attorney, New York (Oliver McDonald of counsel), for respondent.
Opinion
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Patricia M. Nunez, J.), rendered September 26, 2013, convicting defendant, upon his plea of guilty, of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree, and sentencing him, as a second drug felony offender, to a term of 5 years, unanimously affirmed.
The court properly found that defendant violated the no-arrest condition of his plea agreement, and thus forfeited the opportunity to have his conviction replaced by a misdemeanor conviction. There was a legitimate basis for the arrest (see People v. Outley, 80 N.Y.2d 702, 712–713, 594 N.Y.S.2d 683, 610 N.E.2d 356 [1993] ), notwithstanding that it resulted in an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal (see People v. Smith, 248 A.D.2d 179, 670 N.Y.S.2d 766 [1st Dept.1998], lv. denied 91 N.Y.2d 1013, 676 N.Y.S.2d 141, 698 N.E.2d 970 [1998] ). The prosecutor's statement indicated that defendant was arrested for assaulting his wife with a hot iron in front of their young son. Defendant conceded his involvement in the incident, but claimed justification. The court had ample basis to reject that defense (see e.g. People v. Redwood, 41 A.D.3d 275, 275, 838 N.Y.S.2d 66 [1st Dept.2007], lv. denied 9 N.Y.3d 880, 842 N.Y.S.2d 792, 874 N.E.2d 759 [2007] ), and in any event defendant was not entitled to a minitrial on the issue of whether the evidence disproved justification (see Outley, 80 N.Y.2d at 712–713, 594 N.Y.S.2d 683, 610 N.E.2d 356). Under the circumstances, the court properly exercised its discretion in declining to conduct a more extensive hearing or to consider police and medical records, and any error in this regard was harmless.
MAZZARELLI, J.P., ANDRIAS, SAXE, MOSKOWITZ, KAHN, JJ., concur.