People v. Robinson

OPINION OF THE COURT

Ciparick, J.

The issue presented by this appeal is whether the auto stripping statute, which prohibits the removal or intentional destruction or defacing of any part of a vehicle, encompasses defendant’s conduct of breaking a car window in order to steal property within the vehicle. We conclude that it does.

On October 12, 1995, at approximately 9:00 a.m., Police Officer Joseph Coviello was patrolling the area of Riverside Drive between West 163d and 165th Streets in Manhattan when he noticed defendant sitting on a park bench, scanning a group of parked cars. While “still…