Opinion
2014-01-15
The PEOPLE, etc., respondent, v. Steven SOKOLOWSKI, appellant.
Edward M. Gould, Islip, N.Y., for appellant. Thomas J. Spota, District Attorney, Riverhead, N.Y. (Rosalind C. Gray of counsel), for respondent.
Edward M. Gould, Islip, N.Y., for appellant. Thomas J. Spota, District Attorney, Riverhead, N.Y. (Rosalind C. Gray of counsel), for respondent.
Appeal by the defendant from a judgment of the County Court, Suffolk County (Braslow, J.), rendered August 3, 2011, convicting him of criminal facilitation in the second degree and hindering prosecution in the first degree, upon his plea of guilty, and imposing sentence.
ORDERED that the judgment is reversed, on the law, the sentence is vacated, and the matter is remitted to the County Court, Suffolk County, for further proceedings consistent herewith.
The County Court imposed an enhanced sentence based on the fact that the defendant was arrested on unrelated charges after the plea proceeding. However, the transcript of the plea proceeding does not indicate that the defendant was told that, if he were to be arrested on another charge, the County Court might impose a sentence more severe than that to which he had agreed at the time of his plea of guilty. Therefore, an enhanced sentence should not have been imposed without affording the defendant an opportunity to withdraw his plea ( see People v. Newson, 81 A.D.3d 984, 985, 917 N.Y.S.2d 202; People v. Muhammad, 47 A.D.3d 951, 851 N.Y.S.2d 601; People v. Stewart, 32 A.D.3d 403, 820 N.Y.S.2d 606; People v. Ruiz, 309 A.D.2d 883, 766 N.Y.S.2d 57; People v. McKinney, 215 A.D.2d 407, 408, 625 N.Y.S.2d 667). SKELOS, J.P., DICKERSON, LOTT and AUSTIN, JJ., concur.