| People v Heidgen |
| 2011 NY Slip Op 06495 [87 AD3d 1035] |
| September 13, 2011 |
| Appellate Division, Second Department |
| The People of the State of New York,Respondent, v Martin Heidgen, Appellant. |
—[*1] Kathleen M. Rice, District Attorney, Mineola, N.Y. (Tammy J. Smiley and Judith R.Sternberg of counsel), for respondent.
Appeal by the defendant from a judgment of the County Court, Nassau County (Jaeger, J.),rendered March 19, 2008, convicting him of tampering with physical evidence, upon his plea ofguilty, and imposing sentence.
Ordered that the judgment is affirmed.
Contrary to the defendant's contention, he failed to preserve for appellate review his claimthat his Alford plea (see North Carolina v Alford, 400 US 25 [1970]) was invalidbecause it was involuntary and because the record did not contain sufficient proof of guilt,insofar as the defendant did not move to withdraw the plea (People v Bunn, 79 AD3d 1143 [2010]; People v Harris, 79 AD3d 1069[2010]; People v Higgs, 266 AD2d 233 [1999]). In any event, the plea was voluntary,inasmuch as the County Court ensured that the defendant discussed the plea with his counsel,understood the ramifications of pleading guilty, and entered the plea for acceptable reasons (see People v Washington, 51 AD3d1223, 1224 [2008]; People vCash, 19 AD3d 934, 935 [2005]). Moreover, the County Court's review of the grandjury minutes prior to the defendant's plea established a basis in the record for finding strongcircumstantial evidence of the defendant's guilt (see People v Rock, 56 AD3d 1053 [2008]; People vWashington, 51 AD3d at 1224). Skelos, J.P., Dickerson, Austin and Cohen, JJ., concur.