People v. Studer

• Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York
• Decided: March 27, 2026
• Docket: 136 KA 23-00669
• Status: Published

Opinion

People v Studer (2026 NY Slip Op 01885)

People v Studer

2026 NY Slip Op 01885

Decided on March 27, 2026

Appellate Division, Fourth Department

Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431.

This opinion is uncorrected and subject to revision before publication in the Official Reports.

Decided on March 27, 2026 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK Appellate Division, Fourth Judicial Department
PRESENT: WHALEN, P.J., LINDLEY, CURRAN, SMITH, AND DELCONTE, JJ.

136 KA 23-00669

[*1]THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, RESPONDENT,

v

JERRY STUDER, DEFENDANT-APPELLANT.

TINA L. HARTWELL, PUBLIC DEFENDER, UTICA (DAVID A. COOKE OF COUNSEL), FOR DEFENDANT-APPELLANT.

TODD C. CARVILLE, DISTRICT ATTORNEY, UTICA (MICHAEL A. LABELLA OF COUNSEL), FOR RESPONDENT.

Appeal from a judgment of the Oneida County Court (Robert Bauer, J.), rendered January 27, 2023. The judgment convicted defendant, upon a guilty plea, of rape in the first degree.

It is hereby ORDERED that the judgment so appealed from is unanimously affirmed.

Memorandum: Defendant appeals from a judgment convicting him, upon a plea of guilty, of rape in the first degree (Penal Law § 130.35 [former (4)]). Even assuming, arguendo, that defendant's waiver of the right to appeal is invalid (see People v Simmonds, 239 AD3d 1326, 1326 [4th Dept 2025]; see generally People v Thomas, 34 NY3d 545, 564-566 [2019], cert denied 589 US 1302 [2020]) and thus does not preclude our review of his challenge to the severity of the sentence (see People v Mendoza, 37 NY3d 1075, 1076 [2021]), we nevertheless conclude that the sentence is not unduly harsh or severe.

Entered: March 27, 2026

Ann Dillon Flynn

Clerk of the Court