People v. Davis

51 Misc. 3d 879, 31 N.Y.S.3d 775
CourtNew York County Courts
DecidedMarch 21, 2016
StatusPublished

This text of 51 Misc. 3d 879 (People v. Davis) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York County Courts primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Davis, 51 Misc. 3d 879, 31 N.Y.S.3d 775 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 2016).

Opinion

OPINION OF THE COURT

Peter M. Forman, J.

Defendant seeks an order vacating his judgment of conviction pursuant to CPL 440.10. Defendant makes this motion on the grounds that the judgment was obtained in violation of his right to the effective assistance of counsel, in that his attorney allegedly misrepresented the immigration consequences that would flow from his plea to bail jumping in the first degree. Defendant also asserts that his guilty plea was not knowingly and voluntarily entered because the judge did not advise defendant of the possible deportation consequences associated with his plea. For the reasons stated herein, that motion is denied.

Background

On or about July 20, 1989, defendant was arrested for felony possession of 31 packets of cocaine. According to the Huntley notice that the People filed in that case, defendant admitted that he was selling the drugs out of an apartment located in the City of Poughkeepsie.

On or about May 14, 1990, defendant was arraigned in Dutchess County Court on indictment No. 55/90. The indictment charged defendant with one count of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree, a class B felony, in violation of Penal Law § 220.16 (1), on the theory that defendant possessed the cocaine with the intent to sell it. The indictment also charged defendant with one count of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree, a class B felony, in violation of Penal Law § 220.16 (12), on the theory that defendant possessed a substance containing cocaine with an aggregate weight of more than one-half ounce.

On September 17, 1990, the County Court (Hillery, J.) conducted a Huntley hearing. Upon completion of that hearing, Judge Hillery denied defendant’s motion to suppress his statement, and directed the parties to return to the courtroom the following day for jury selection. Defendant failed to return to [881]*881court on that date, or at any other time over the next 3V2 years. On October 3, 1990, Judge Hillery issued a bench warrant based upon defendant’s failure to appear in court as directed.

On or about July 26, 1994, defendant was arraigned in the Dutchess County Court on indictment No. 115/94. That indictment charged him with one count of bail jumping in the first degree, a class D felony, in violation of Penal Law § 215.57.

On September 14, 1994, defendant entered a plea of guilty to one count of bail jumping in the first degree before County Court Judge George G. Marlow. Defendant entered that plea in satisfaction of all charges pending in both indictments, in return for a promised sentence of 1 to 3 years in state prison. As part of this plea bargain, the People also represented that they had no objection to defendant’s enrollment in the shock incarceration boot camp program while in state prison which, if successfully completed, would lead to defendant’s early release. No appeal was taken from that conviction.

During his plea allocution, defendant stated that he had been provided sufficient time to discuss his guilty plea with his attorney, that he was satisfied with the representation that he had received from his attorney, and that he was convinced that it would be better to plead guilty than to go to trial. Defendant also stated that no one had threatened him or coerced him into pleading guilty, that he was entering the plea of his own free will, and that he did not have any questions for the court or his attorney or anyone else before pleading guilty.

Judge Marlow did not ask defendant whether he was a United States citizen, and did not make any inquiry as to whether defendant understood the potential immigration consequences associated with his plea. The record is silent as to whether defendant and his attorney discussed the potential immigration consequences associated with this plea. To the extent that such a conversation may have occurred, the record does not provide any information as to the contents of that conversation.

Defendant states that he was born in Jamaica, and that he legally entered this country in 1982 on a green card sponsored by his father. Defendant has continuously resided in this country since that time. Defendant married a U.S. citizen in 2002. Defendant and his wife live together in Brooklyn, along with their four children. Defendant also has another child from a previous relationship. That child is a U.S. citizen, and resides with defendant’s parents.

[882]*882Defendant asserts that, when he recently attempted to apply for U.S. citizenship, he was informed that his “prior conviction posed a problem in terms of immigration.” Specifically, defendant asserts that his bail jumping conviction constitutes an “aggravated felony” under the relevant immigration laws. Defendant also asserts that an aggravated felony conviction bars him from obtaining U.S. citizenship, and that such a conviction will also result in his deportation. Therefore, defendant seeks to vacate his judgment of conviction.

Discussion

Defendant has moved to vacate his judgment of conviction on the grounds, inter alia, that it was obtained in violation of his constitutional right to the effective assistance of counsel. (CPL 440.10 [1] [h].) Specifically, defendant alleges that his attorney affirmatively misrepresented the immigration consequences associated with a bail jumping conviction by telling him that a plea to bail jumping in the first degree would not negatively impact his immigration status. Defendant also asserts that he would not have pleaded guilty to this crime if he had understood its negative immigration consequences.

At the time that defendant entered his guilty plea, the failure of a lawyer to advise a defendant of the immigration consequences of pleading guilty did not deprive the defendant of effective assistance of counsel. (People v Ford, 86 NY2d 397 [1995].) However, in 2010, the United States Supreme Court held that the failure to advise a client of the deportation consequences of a guilty plea could support an ineffective assistance of counsel claim (Padilla v Kentucky, 559 US 356 [2010]). Three years later, the Supreme Court held that Padilla broke new ground by announcing a constitutional obligation that had not previously been imposed upon criminal defense attorneys. (Chaidez v United States, 568 US —, —, 133 S Ct 1103, 1110-1111 [2013].) Therefore, the Supreme Court held that Padilla cannot be applied retroactively to convictions that became final prior to March 31, 2010 (i.e., the date Padilla was decided). (568 US at —, 133 S Ct at 1113.)1

Even though Padilla cannot be retroactively applied, defendant argues that his conviction should still be vacated because his attorney affirmatively misrepresented the immigration [883]*883consequences associated with his guilty plea. Specifically, defendant argues that Padilla only announced a new rule as to an attorney’s failure to inform his client of the immigration consequences associated with a particular guilty plea. Defendant also argues that an attorney’s failure to address these immigration concerns is readily distinguishable from an attorney’s affirmative misstatement of the immigration consequences relating to a guilty plea. Therefore, defendant argues that the limits placed on the retroactive application of Padilla should not apply to an ineffective assistance claim grounded upon an alleged affirmative misrepresentation.

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Related

Padilla v. Kentucky
559 U.S. 356 (Supreme Court, 2010)
Chaidez v. United States
133 S. Ct. 1103 (Supreme Court, 2013)
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People v. Berroa
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Bluebook (online)
51 Misc. 3d 879, 31 N.Y.S.3d 775, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-davis-nycountyct-2016.