People v. Mox

Smith, J. (dissenting).

This Court, speaking through Judge Breitel, observed 45 years ago that plea allocutions are best evaluated through “a sound discretion exercised in cases on an individual basis” rather than by “a uniform procedure which, like as not, would become a purely ritualistic device” (People v Nixon, 21 NY2d 338, 355 [1967]). The majority today forgets this wise admonition and erects the rule of People v Lopez (71 NY2d 662 [1988]) into a rigid requirement that a guilty plea must be vacated when the words spoken in the allocution leave significant doubt as to the defendant’s…