| People v Wighfall |
| 2008 NY Slip Op 07592 [55 AD3d 347] |
| October 7, 2008 |
| Appellate Division, First Department |
| The People of the State of New York, Respondent, v KevinWighfall, Appellant. |
—[*1] Robert T. Johnson, District Attorney, Bronx (Marc A. Sherman of counsel), forrespondent.
Judgment, Supreme Court, Bronx County (Seth L. Marvin, J., at hearing; Robert G. Seewald,J., at plea and sentence), rendered June 14, 2006, convicting defendant of attempted criminalpossession of a controlled substance in the fourth degree, and sentencing him, as a second felonyoffender, to a term of 2½ to 5 years, unanimously affirmed.
The record does not establish that defendant made a valid waiver of his right to appeal (see People v Moyett, 7 NY3d 892[2006]). Nevertheless, the court properly denied defendant's suppression motion. The policeobserved defendant in a New York City Housing Authority building, to which access wasrestricted to residents and guests. Defendant was standing in the lobby for approximately twominutes for no apparent reason, looking at mailboxes. This behavior was sufficiently suspicious,and inconsistent with that of a resident or guest, to provide the police with an objective crediblereason to ask defendant why he was in the building. Defendant's admission that he did not knowanyone in the building and had no legitimate reason to be there raised the level of suspicion,justifying, at least, a further inquiry. The further inquiry produced an inconsistent anddemonstrably false response about visiting a nonexistent tenant, and provided probable cause toarrest defendant for criminal trespass. Concur—Tom, J.P., Friedman, Buckley, Acosta andFreedman, JJ.