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Complaint dismissed in fatal bike accident
A complaint against a dump truck driver who hit and killed an adult bicyclist on his way to work in July 2012 has been dismissed. A majority of a divided Appellate Division, Fourth Department panel found James Coffed’s death was the result of his own actions and threw out the complaint of his wife, Susan […]
US appeals court upholds EPA plan for Chesapeake Bay
PHILADELPHIA — A U.S. appeals court on Monday approved a federal plan to limit pollution in the Chesapeake Bay despite objections from farmers, builders and others who accused the Environmental Protection Agency of a power grab. The ruling by the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld restrictions on farm and construction runoff and wastewater […]
Girlfriend beater’s appeals denied
Statements a convicted arsonist gave police at the scene of his crime were admissible at trial because he was not a suspect at the beginning of the investigation into a 2002 fire he set to his home while the girlfriend he had just severely beaten was still inside. The Appellate Division, Fourth Department, on Friday […]
COA: Drug law revisions also apply to parolees
ALBANY — The 2009 revisions in the tough Rockefeller-era drug laws also apply to parolees, who can seek shorter sentences, New York’s highest court ruled Thursday. The Court of Appeals, divided 5-to-2, upheld lower court rulings that Jarrod Brown was eligible for resentencing. Queens prosecutors argued that the amendments to the sentencing laws applied only […]
Appeal arguments center on identification by walk
A poor-quality video used to identify a murder suspect by his walk is the basis for seeking a reversal of his murder conviction. Cameron L. Williams, 25, formerly of Rochester, was convicted in January 2011 of second-degree murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon in connection with the shooting death of 25-year-old Robert Scales […]
Judge erred in denying witness ID expert
An expert on the reliability of eyewitness testimony should have been allowed to testify in a 2010 murder trial in which there was little corroborating evidence to link the defendant to the crime, an appeals court has ruled. Noting that mistaken eyewitness identification plays a significant role in wrongful convictions, the majority of an Appellate […]
Buffalo firefighters claim reverse discrimination
White firefighters in the city of Buffalo believe it was wrong for the city to disregard a Civil Service test in which no black firefighters scored high enough to be promoted to supervisory positions. The city claims its fear of using the test results would disparately impact a protected class justified letting the list expire […]
Father’s Day killer’s conviction upheld
Two first-degree murder convictions of an Albany-area man will stand in the 2010 Father’s Day killings of his infant son and the child’s mother at their home in the Steuben County village of Bath. The Appellate Division, Fourth Department on Friday modified the December 2011 judgment against Bryan M. Ashline, 28, of Watervliet, on legal […]
Fourth Dept.: Any problems with witnesses were harmless
Enough corroborative evidence existed in a 2010 homicide case to convict a Rochester man without giving special instructions to the jury that two witnesses who testified against him might have been accomplices to the crime. The Appellate Division, Fourth Department on Friday unanimously upheld the conviction of Andrew J. Hampton, 22, in connection with the […]
Supreme Court denies gay marriage appeals
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way Monday for an immediate expansion of same-sex marriage by unexpectedly and tersely turning away appeals from five states seeking to prohibit gay and lesbian unions. The court’s order effectively makes gay marriage legal in 30 states. Without comment, the justices brought to an end delays in same-sex […]
Court modifies habeas review in rape case
The reversal of rape, assault and sexual abuse convictions against a former Greece man for alleged incidents involving a 14-year-old girl have been affirmed, but similar convictions in connection with two grown women — his wife and ex-wife — will stand. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on Thursday affirmed a District […]
Sentence of convicted sex offender disputed
A 25-year sentence is not too harsh for a convicted sex offender even though he was offered a two-year term in a proposed plea agreement on the eve of trial, a divided appeals court has ruled. Several arguments of Mathew J. Angona, 29, formerly of Syracuse, were rejected by a majority panel of the Appellate […]
Case Digests
- Second Circuit – Plea agreements: Cook v. United States
- Fourth Department: Statute of limitations: Marino v. Weiler
- Fourth Department – Nail and mail service: Rebutting presumption of service L&W Supply Corporation v. Built-Rite Drywall Corp, et al
- Fourth Department – Mental Hygiene Law: Charles L. v. State of New York
- Second Circuit – Medicaid and Medicare certification: U.S. ex rel. Quartararo v. Cath. Health Sys. Of Long Island Inc.
- Fourth Department – Waiver of indictment: People v. King
- Fourth Department – Speedy trial: People v. Jordan
- Fourth Department – Rosario material: People v. Dennard
- Second Circuit – Magnuson-Stevens Act: State of New York v. Raimondo
- Fourth Department – Plea: People v. Davis
- Second Circuit – Revocation of minimum sentence: Bangs v. Walter William Smith, et al.
- Fourth Department – Relation-back doctrine: CHS Inc. v. Land O’Lakes Purina Feed, et al.
Law News
- Split court affirms gun conviction
- N.Y. Court of Appeals reverses gun conviction
- NY board approves cannabis lawsuit settlements, paves way for retail dispensaries
- NY Court of Appeals reverses murder conviction because of illegal police search
- NY Court of Appeals reverses gun conviction over ineffective counsel
- Split court affirms gun conviction, finding search and arrest were legal
- NY appeals court vacates drug conviction over illegal police search
- Split Court of Appeals strips Police Accountability Board of disciplinary power
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