Legal Opinion
People v. Rivera
New York Supreme Court
Decided May 4, 1987PublishedCited by 4 opinions
1Opinion of the Court
OPINION OF THE COURT
Lewis L. Douglass, J.
This is a motion to dismiss the indictment, pursuant to CPL 210.30 on the grounds that the evidence before the Grand *767Jury was not legally sufficient. The question to be resolved is whether the statutory presumption that all occupants of an automobile are in knowing possession of drugs found in the car may be applied when the drugs are found in the trunk of the car.
The issue is particularly troubling since if the presumption is to be routinely applied to anyone who enters a car, innocent people who step into a car, not knowing drugs are in the trunk,…
2Cases cited3 opinions
- County Court of Ulster Cty. v. AllenSupreme Court of the United States · 1979
- People v. LeyvaNew York Court of Appeals · 1975
- People v. BallardNew York Supreme Court · 1986
3Cited by4 opinions
- People v. GlennAppellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York · 1992
- People v. WarringtonAppellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York · 1993
- People v. GonzalesAppellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York · 1997
- People v. Garcia, New York County Courts1994