State v. Blake

I respectfully dissent from part II of the majority decision. Although I agree that the trial court correctly concluded that the defendant, Sadiki Blake, had violated the conditions of his probation, (1) I do not agree that we need not address the merits of his second claim, namely, whether the dispositional phase of his violation of probation hearing should have been continued in order to allow him to meaningfully exercise his right of allocution, and (2) I would address the merits of that claim and hold that because his right of allocution was impaired, he is entitled to another…