People v. Kelly
New York Court of Appeals
POINTS OF COUNSEL The court below erred in dismissing the information before trial, since it had no basis for finding that the loss of the People’s evidence was prejudicial to defendants.
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POINTS OF COUNSEL The court below erred in dismissing the information before trial, since it had no basis for finding that the loss of the People’s evidence was prejudicial to defendants. (United States v Augenblick, 393 US 348; United States v Morrison, 449 US 361; United States v Agurs, 427 US 97; People v Cwikla, 46 NY2d 434; People v Simmons, 36 NY2d 126; United States v Kincaid, 712 F2d 1; United States v Bufal-ino, 576 F2d 446, 439 US 928; People v Watkins, 67 AD2d 741; People v Emmons, 99 Mise 2d 941; People v Aviles, 89 Mise 2d 1.) The Criminal Court correctly dismissed the accusatory…
1Opinion of the Court
OPINION OF THE COURT
Kaye, J.
The question presented on this appeal is whether dismissal of two informations was an appropriate response to the prosecution’s wrongful failure to preserve discoverable evidence. Because less drastic sanctions would have cured *519any prejudice to defendants, we hold that the court abused its discretion in dismissing the charges.
On the evening of March 21,1981 defendants, Nathaniel Kelly and Angel Marrero, acting together, allegedly approached an undercover police officer, struck him, reached into his shoulder bag and removed a wallet containing several bills. Police…
2Cases cited12 opinions
- California v. TrombettaSupreme Court of the United States · 1984
- United States v. AugenblickSupreme Court of the United States · 1969
- People v. SaddyAppellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York · 1981
- People v. LunneyNew York Supreme Court · 1975
- People v. ChurbaCriminal Court of the City of New York · 1974
7 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.
3Cited by282 opinions
- People v. MartinezNew York Court of Appeals · 1988
- People v. BanchNew York Court of Appeals · 1992
- People v. HauptNew York Court of Appeals · 1988
- People v. WallaceNew York Court of Appeals · 1990
- People v. RiceNew York Court of Appeals · 1990
277 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.