United States ex rel. Kling v. La Vallee

188 F. Supp. 470, 1960 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3295
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. New York
DecidedOctober 10, 1960
DocketCiv. No. 8174
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 188 F. Supp. 470 (United States ex rel. Kling v. La Vallee) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States ex rel. Kling v. La Vallee, 188 F. Supp. 470, 1960 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3295 (N.D.N.Y. 1960).

Opinion

JAMES T. FOLEY, District Judge.

The relator was convicted in Queens County, New York, after a jury trial, of' burglary third degree, robbery first de— [471]*471■gree and assault second degree, and on May 2, 1952 was sentenced by Queens •County Judge Farrell as a fourth felony offender to a term of from thirty years to life. He was resentenced on April 28, 1958 as a third offender to a term of not less than twenty nor more than sixty .years after a 1926 conviction used against him previously was vacated. At the trial in 1952, he was a co-defendant with the notorious Willie Sutton, who took such pride in his preparation, technique and accomplishment of his lifetime trade as a bank robber that he was the subject of a biography, “I, Willie Sutton”, as described to and written by ■Quentin Reynolds. The third alleged participant in the spectacular, armed bank robbery of the Manufacturers Trust Company in Sunnyside, New York, ■on March 9, 1950, for which relator was ■convicted and sentenced was one John DeVenuta, who became a state’s witness at the trial. Neither Sutton nor the relator took the stand at the trial. The solving of this brazen, well-planned robbery two years after it was done, again, in my judgment, is a tribute to the alertness, intelligence and perseverance of police officers in the continuous jungle warfare against shrewd, professional criminals in the metropolitan area of New York.

In the handwritten petition for a writ of habeas corpus accompanied by no other supporting affidavits, the claims of ■constitutional violation are that the relator was deprived of his right to- appeal because his assigned counsel did not- file a notice of appeal from the original judgment of conviction, when requested to do so; that the Appellate Division, Second Department, New York, in 1958 and 1959 deprived him of due process by denial of leave to appeal as a poor person from the coram nobis denial in 1958 by the Queens ■County Court; that the suppression of material evidence by the prosecution such being the statement and possible testimony of one Nicholas Sudano, a United States mailman, that “could have caused a different verdict” denied constitutional Tight to a fair trial.

As is my practice in many of these applications, I issued an order to show cause to the Attorney General of New York and the District Attorney of Queens County. Helpful answering affidavits in opposition have been filed in behalf of both. The most extensive is made by Assistant District Attorney Jacobson. Together with his own affidavit covering in fascinating fashion the details and solution of this robbery, there is attached the complete papers filed with Judge Farrell, decidedly interesting reading, on the application for a writ of error coram nobis, the minutes of the arguments of the attorneys on the application and the opinion of Judge Farrell denying the same without a hearing. In a fine spirit of cooperation, there is furnished to me by the County Clerk of Queens County at the request of the District Attorney the minutes of the trial in 1952, discontinued at page 610. The significant reason for the end of the transcript without completion was that Sutton, who had filed a notice of appeal dated May 29, 1952, by stipulation and agreement withdrew and discontinued the notice of appeal in October, 1952.. As stated previously, no appeal was'filed in behalf of the relator and the claim here that his assigned attorney was delinquent in such respect is supported only by his own statement.

The reports of New York show that the Appellate Division, Second Department, denied a motion to dispense with printing, to enlarge time, and for other relief in the appeal from the coram nobis denial in 1958. It is not clear whether or not the relator applied for leave to prosecute such appeal as a poor person although that may be so. Reargument of the same motion was denied. In June, 1959, a motion to dismiss the appeal was granted and the appeal was dismissed. (People v. Kling, (three decisions) 11 A.D.2d 917, 206 N.Y.S.2d 1019). No appeal was taken to the Court of Appeals, New York. A petition for certio-rari was applied for and denied by the U. S. Supreme Court. 361 U.S. 935, 80 S.Ct. 376, 4 L.Ed.2d 356. It should be [472]*472mentioned because the point is made in the relator’s petition that the Clerk of the Supreme Court by direction requested response from the District Attorney “directed to the suppression of evidence allegation, particularly in connection with Mr. Sudano, and whether petitioner was entitled to hearing on that allegation. The District Attorney submitted to our highest court a seventeen-page memorandum, a copy of Sudano’s statement to the postal authorities, a copy of the coram nobis minutes of argument, all much the same as provided here. A letter dated August 22, 1960, from Assistant District Attorney Jacobson clarifies this feature and shall be made part of the record in this Court.

At the threshold there is the serious question as pressed by the Attorney General and the District Attorney whether or not there .has been satisfactory exhaustion of available state remedies. 28 U.S.C.A. § 2254. U. S. ex rel. Marcial v. Fay, 2 Cir., 247 F.2d 662 ruled that the denial for leave to appeal as a poor person by the Appellate Division because the Court of Appeals, New York, had no jurisdiction allowed the state prisoner to catapult to the Supreme Court. It was noted (at page 665) that the Court of Appeals, New York, was adopting a more liberal view toward allowing such appeals, citing People v. Kalan, 1 N.Y.2d 922, 154 N.Y.S.2d 980, 13 N.E.2d 920; People v. Kalan, 2 N.Y.2d 278, 159 N.Y. S.2d 480, 140 N.E.2d 357. To those citations may now be added People v. Pride, 3 N.Y.2d 545, 170 N.Y.S.2d 321, 147 N.E. 2d 719; People v. Pitts, 6 N.Y.2d 288, 189 N.Y.S.2d 650, 160 N.E.2d 523. This again shows the great interest and eagerness of the Court of Appeals in New York to conform to the policy of the highest court in the land when the policy and approach is made clear. There is evident an attitude to give every protection to the indigent even to go beyond the principles of Griffin v. Illinois, 351 U.S. 12, 20, 76 S.Ct. 585, 100 L.Ed. 891. However, here we do have a final order of dismissal by the Appellate Division appeal-able to the Court of Appeals by the Pitts case, supra (July 1959), although it may not have been that clear when the appeal by this relator was dismissed in the Appellate Division. There are strong cases in the Second Circuit that such failure caused by inaction may bar and be fatal to federal relief. U. S. ex rel. Kozicky v.. Fay, 2 Cir., 248 F.2d 520, certiorari denied 356 U.S. 960, 78 S.Ct. 997, 2 L.Ed. 2d 1067; U. S. ex rel. Cuomo v. Fay, 2: Cir., 257 F.2d 438. However, inasmuch as there is some doubt on the question and also because the U. S. Supreme Court, in its request for additional response did not direct it to this question, I shall go to the merits.

At the trial, the relator was assigned two attorneys, Mr. Sheridan and Mr. Gellman.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
188 F. Supp. 470, 1960 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3295, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-ex-rel-kling-v-la-vallee-nynd-1960.