People v. Pickard
Opinion
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Bureau Thomas J.K. Smith, State Reporter
People v Pickard
2026 NY Slip Op 04344
July 9, 2026
Appellate Division, Third Department
Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431.
This decision is uncorrected and subject to revision before publication in the Official Reports.
The People of the State of New York, Respondent,
v
Charles F. Pickard, Appellant.
Decided and Entered:July 9, 2026
CR-24-1156
Calendar Date: May 29, 2026
Before: Clark, J.P., Aarons, Ceresia, Mcshan And Powers, JJ.
Veronica Reed, Schenectady, for appellant.
Robert A. Mascari, District Attorney, Wampsville (J. Scott Porter of counsel), for respondent.
Powers, J.
Appeal from a judgment of the County Court of Madison County (Michael St. Leger, J.), rendered December 20, 2023, convicting defendant upon his plea of guilty of the crime of burglary in the first degree.
Defendant was charged in a nine-count indictment with various offenses, with the top count being burglary in the first degree. Defendant's omnibus motion sought, among other things, to reduce the first-degree burglary charge to burglary in the second degree, alleging that the evidence before the grand jury did not legally establish that the victim suffered a physical injury. County Court denied the motion, finding that the grand jury evidence was legally sufficient. Defendant thereafter pleaded guilty to burglary in the first degree and agreed to waive his right to appeal. At sentencing, the court denied defendant's pro se motion to withdraw his plea and sentenced him in accordance with the terms of the plea agreement to a prison term of nine years, to be followed by five years of postrelease supervision. Defendant appeals.
Defendant contends that the indictment was jurisdictionally defective because the evidence presented to the grand jury was insufficient to establish that the victim sustained a physical injury to support the requisite elements of burglary in the first degree. Such challenge is "fundamentally inconsistent with the plea of guilty . . . because . . . the claim essentially relates to the quantum of proof required to satisfy the factual elements of the crime[ ] considered by the [g]rand [j]ury" (People v Hansen, 95 NY2d 227, 232 [2000]). Defendant's guilty plea forecloses his assertion that the evidence presented to the grand jury was not legally sufficient (see People v Guerrero, 28 NY3d 110, 116 [2016]; People v Hansen, 95 NY2d at 233; People v Kelly, 221 AD3d 1265, 1266 [3d Dept 2023]; People v Wilburn, 158 AD3d 894, 895 [3d Dept 2018], lv denied 31 NY3d 1123 [2018]).
Defendant also contends that his appeal waiver is invalid. We disagree. The record reflects that County Court informed defendant that the waiver of his right to appeal was separate and distinct from the rights forfeited by the guilty plea and advised defendant that, despite the waiver of appeal, some appellate rights nevertheless survived, which defendant assured the court he understood. In addition, defendant executed a written appeal waiver after reviewing it with counsel. Upon our review of the record, we are satisfied that the totality of the circumstances reflects that defendant knowingly, voluntarily and intelligently waived his right to appeal (see People v Thomas, 34 NY3d 545, 546 [2019]; People v Lesson, 241 AD3d 1051, 1055 [3d Dept 2025], lv denied 44 NY3d 1028 [2025]). Given the valid appeal waiver, defendant's challenge to the perceived severity of the sentence imposed is precluded (see People v Sweeney, 246 AD3d 1163, 1165 [3d Dept 2026]; People v DeCutler, 245 AD3d 1111, 1112 [3d Dept 2026]).
Clark, J.P., Aarons, Ceresia and McShan, JJ., concur.
ORDERED that the judgment is affirmed.
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