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People v. Smith

Court of Appeals of the State of New York
Mar 30, 1989
73 N.Y.2d 961 (N.Y. 1989)

Summary

In Smith, the Court held that because the defendant failed timely to controvert the allegations of the predicate felony statement, "any question concerning whether defendant's prior conviction of kidnapping under 18 USC § 1201 is equivalent to his conviction of a felony in New York has not been preserved for our review" (id. at 963).

Summary of this case from People v. Kelly

Opinion

Argued February 16, 1989

Decided March 30, 1989

Appeal from the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in the Fourth Judicial Department, Eugene W. Bergin, J.

Edward J. Nowak, Public Defender (Howard K. Broder of counsel), for appellant.

Howard R. Relin, District Attorney (Wendy Evans Lehmann of counsel), for respondent.


MEMORANDUM.

The order of the Appellate Division should be affirmed for the reasons stated in that court's memorandum ( 138 A.D.2d 972).

We would only add that defendant failed to timely raise the issue of whether he was properly sentenced as a second felony offender by not controverting the allegations in the predicate felony statement (CPL 400.21). Accordingly, any question concerning whether defendant's prior conviction of kidnapping under 18 U.S.C. § 1201 is equivalent to his conviction of a felony in New York has not been preserved for our review.


I cannot agree with the Appellate Division that People v Hicks ( 68 N.Y.2d 234) permitted the police, without probable cause, to use aggressive force to detain defendant for the purpose of transporting him to the victim's home for identification (contrast, People v Battaglia, 56 N.Y.2d 558, revg on dissent below 82 A.D.2d 389 [illegal seizure, absent probable cause, to handcuff defendant and place him in police vehicle while attempting to establish probable cause]; and People v Henley, 53 N.Y.2d 403 [illegal seizure, absent probable cause, to confront defendant with gun, handcuff him, and transport him to crime scene to obtain probable cause], with People v Hicks, supra, at 240 [distinguishing Battaglia and Henley, and holding that there was a legal seizure, absent probable cause, only because "Defendant was not handcuffed, there was no show of force, he was permitted to park the car nearby before accompanying the police, he was not taken to the police station, the total time and distance involved were very brief, he was told the specific, limited purpose of the detention, and no information was asked of him after the initial inquiry"]). I concur, however, with the result because, although not argued before the suppression court, the circumstances here (see, 138 A.D.2d 972, 973) created a level of suspicion which, in my view, constituted probable cause, as a matter of law, so as to justify the intrusion.

Chief Judge WACHTLER and Judges SIMONS, KAYE, ALEXANDER and BELLACOSA concur; Judge HANCOCK, JR., concurs in result in an opinion in which Judge TITONE concurs.

Order affirmed in a memorandum.


Summaries of

People v. Smith

Court of Appeals of the State of New York
Mar 30, 1989
73 N.Y.2d 961 (N.Y. 1989)

In Smith, the Court held that because the defendant failed timely to controvert the allegations of the predicate felony statement, "any question concerning whether defendant's prior conviction of kidnapping under 18 USC § 1201 is equivalent to his conviction of a felony in New York has not been preserved for our review" (id. at 963).

Summary of this case from People v. Kelly

In People v. Smith (73 N.Y.2d 961), the Court of Appeals case most nearly on point, it was held that the defendant had failed to preserve the argument that his adjudication as a second felony offender was illegal because the prior felony relied upon by the sentencing court (kidnapping in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1201) did not constitute a predicate felony within the meaning of Penal Law § 70.06 (1) (b).

Summary of this case from People v. Sullivan
Case details for

People v. Smith

Case Details

Full title:THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, Respondent, v. BENJAMIN KOU SMITH…

Court:Court of Appeals of the State of New York

Date published: Mar 30, 1989

Citations

73 N.Y.2d 961 (N.Y. 1989)
540 N.Y.S.2d 987
538 N.E.2d 339

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