People v. Ellis

I join in the dissent, and would add that the record supports defendant’s claim that he was denied effective assistance of counsel. That counsel failed to provide the constitutionally mandated level of "meaningful representation” (People v Baldi, 54 NY2d 137, 147) is evident at virtually every stage of this trial.

For example, counsel made an opening statement in which he raised the defense of justification for defendant’s use of force and, in so doing, created an expectation that defendant would testify, by assuring the jury that the prosecutor "knows less than I know because I have heard…