Opinion
11-16-2017
The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Nyguel WILLIAMS, Appellant.
Carolyn B. George, Albany, for appellant. P. David Soares, District Attorney, Albany (Emily Schultz of counsel), for respondent.
Carolyn B. George, Albany, for appellant.
P. David Soares, District Attorney, Albany (Emily Schultz of counsel), for respondent.
Before: GARRY, J.P., DEVINE, MULVEY, AARONS and RUMSEY, JJ.
RUMSEY, J.Defendant, who was 18 years old at the time of the crime, pleaded guilty to criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree, stemming from his possession and discharge of a semiautomatic weapon on the street in the City of Albany. County Court sentenced defendant to a prison term of seven years followed by five years of postrelease supervision. Defendant appeals, contending that County Court abused its discretion in denying him youthful offender status and that the sentence was harsh and excessive.
We affirm. Because defendant was convicted of an armed felony offense, as relevant here, he was required to demonstrate "mitigating circumstances that bear directly upon the manner in which the crime was committed" in order to be eligible for youthful offender status ( CPL 720.10[3][i] ; see People v. Butler, 126 A.D.3d 1122, 1124, 4 N.Y.S.3d 751 [2015], lv. denied 25 N.Y.3d 1199, 16 N.Y.S.3d 521, 37 N.E.3d 1164 [2015] ; People v. Brodhead, 106 A.D.3d 1337, 1337, 965 N.Y.S.2d 250 [2013], lv. denied 22 N.Y.3d 1087, 981 N.Y.S.2d 672, 4 N.E.3d 974 [2014] ). As a review of the record reflects that defendant failed to establish the existence of any mitigating factors, we find no abuse of discretion in County Court's denial of youthful offender status (see People v. Middlebrooks,
25 N.Y.3d 516, 526–527, 14 N.Y.S.3d 296, 35 N.E.3d 464 [2015] ; People v. Butler, 126 A.D.3d at 1124, 4 N.Y.S.3d 751 ). Furthermore, we have reviewed defendant's contention that the sentence imposed, which was less than the statutory maximum (see Penal Law §§ 70.02 [3][b] ; 265.03[3] ), was harsh and excessive and find no abuse of discretion or extraordinary circumstances warranting a reduction of the sentence in the interest of justice (see People v. Brodhead, 106 A.D.3d at 1337, 965 N.Y.S.2d 250 ).
ORDERED that the judgment is affirmed.
GARRY, J.P., DEVINE, MULVEY and AARONS, JJ., concur.