| People v Caba |
| 2010 NY Slip Op 08129 [78 AD3d 857] |
| November 9, 2010 |
| Appellate Division, Second Department |
| The People of the State of New York, Appellant, v Alexis Cabaet al., Respondents. |
—[*1] Edwin Ira Schulman, Kew Gardens, N.Y., for respondents.
Appeal by the People from an order of the Supreme Court, Kings County (Ingram, J.), datedDecember 14, 2009, which, after a hearing, granted those branches of the defendants' omnibus motionswhich were to suppress physical evidence.
Ordered that the order is reversed, on the law, those branches of the defendants' omnibus motionswhich were to suppress physical evidence are denied, and the matter is remitted to the Supreme Court,Kings County, for further proceedings on the indictment.
The Supreme Court improperly granted those branches of the defendants' omnibus motions whichwere to suppress physical evidence on the ground that the police officers did not have probable causeto pursue and arrest them. Contrary to the Supreme Court's determination, once the police officerswitnessed the defendants trespassing into a park owned and operated by the City of New York, theentrance of which had a posted sign indicating that the park closed several hours earlier at dusk, theyhad probable cause to issue them summonses for committing a violation and/or arrest them formisdemeanors (see 56 RCNY 1-03 [a] [3]; 1-07 [a], [c]). The officers were thus entitled topursue and arrest the defendants when they fled after trespassing into the park in the officers' presence(see CPL 140.10 [1] [a]; People vCanty, 55 AD3d 330 [2008]; People v Simms, 25 AD3d 425 [2006]). Since the pursuit was justified,the defendants' abandonment of weapons during the pursuit was not precipitated by any illegal policeconduct (see People v Martinez, 80 NY2d 444, 448-449 [1992]; People v Shippy, 53 AD3d 590[2008]; People v Woods, 281 AD2d 570 [2001], affd 98 NY2d 627 [2002]; seealso People v Ramirez-Portoreal, 88 NY2d 99, 110 [1996]). Consequently, the hearing courterred in granting those branches of the defendants' omnibus motions which were to suppress theweapons. Prudenti, P.J., Covello, Florio and Belen, JJ., concur.