People v. Carthon

While I agree with the majority opinion, I write separately to discuss what has become a disturbing trend among prosecutors to announce their readiness with no real intent to proceed.

Unlike some other states’ speedy trial statutes, which prescribe a time within which a defendant must be brought to trial, New York’s speedy trial statute sets forth a time within which the People must be “ready” for trial (see Daniel Hamburg, Note, A Broken Clock: Fixing New York’s Speedy Trial Statute, 48 Colum JL & Soc Probs 223, 253 [2015]). A statement of readiness, by itself, is sufficient to satisfy this…