People v. Goodman

80 A.D.2d 836, 436 N.Y.S.2d 335, 1981 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 10658

This text of 80 A.D.2d 836 (People v. Goodman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Goodman, 80 A.D.2d 836, 436 N.Y.S.2d 335, 1981 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 10658 (N.Y. Ct. App. 1981).

Opinion

Appeal by defendant from a judgment of the Supreme Court, Westchester County, rendered January 25, 1980, convicting him of grand larceny in the second degree, upon a jury verdict, and imposing sentence. The appeal brings up for review the denial, after a hearing, of the defendant’s motion to suppress a statement made on January 25, 1978. Judgment affirmed. Although we find that the statement made by the defendant to the police at the station house on January 25, 1978 was improperly obtained (see Dunaway v New York, 442 US 200; Brown v Illinois, 422 US 590; People v Calhoun, 73 AD2d 972), we conclude that the court’s failure to suppress the statement does not require reversal under the facts of this case. The defendant’s guilt was established by overwhelming evidence. His statement was entirely exculpatory and, indeed, constituted the only exculpatory evidence offered at trial. In our view, therefore, the erroneous introduction of the statement was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. (See People v Crimmins, 36 NY2d 230; cf. People v Pierce, 71 AD2d 931.) Mollen, P. J., Titone, O’Connor and Weinstein, JJ., concur.

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Related

Brown v. Illinois
422 U.S. 590 (Supreme Court, 1975)
Dunaway v. New York
442 U.S. 200 (Supreme Court, 1979)
People v. Crimmins
326 N.E.2d 787 (New York Court of Appeals, 1975)
People v. Pierce
71 A.D.2d 931 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 1979)
People v. Calhoun
73 A.D.2d 972 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 1980)

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Bluebook (online)
80 A.D.2d 836, 436 N.Y.S.2d 335, 1981 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 10658, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-goodman-nyappdiv-1981.