| People v Bush |
| 2015 NY Slip Op 07285 [132 AD3d 691] |
| October 7, 2015 |
| Appellate Division, Second Department |
[*1]
| The People of the State of New York,Respondent, v Anthony D. Bush, Appellant. |
Janet A. Gandolfo, Sleepy Hollow, N.Y., for appellant.
Janet DiFiore, District Attorney, White Plains, N.Y. (Laurie Sapakoff and Steven A.Bender of counsel), for respondent.
Appeal by the defendant from a judgment of the County Court, Westchester County(Zambelli, J.), rendered August 14, 2012, convicting him of robbery in the first degree,upon his plea of guilty, and imposing sentence.
Ordered that the judgment is affirmed.
The decision to permit a defendant to withdraw a previously entered plea of guiltyrests within the sound discretion of the County Court, and generally will not be disturbedabsent an improvident exercise of discretion (see CPL 220.60 [3]; People vAlexander, 97 NY2d 482, 483-484 [2002]; People v Bennett, 115 AD3d 973, 973-974 [2014]; People v Howard, 109 AD3d487 [2013]).
The defendant's contentions that he did not understand that he had the right not toplead guilty and that he was coerced into pleading guilty by his attorney are belied by hisstatements during the plea proceeding, in which he acknowledged under oath that heunderstood that he had the right to remain silent and not incriminate himself, that he wassatisfied with his counsel's representation, that no one had threatened, coerced, or forcedhim in any way to plead guilty, and that he was entering the plea freely and voluntarily(see People v Bennett, 115 AD3d at 974; People v Howard, 109 AD3d at488; People v Perez, 51AD3d 1043 [2008]). The mere fact that defense counsel may have advised thedefendant as to the risks of trial, including the possible maximum sentence if he were tobe convicted, is insufficient to establish coercion (see People v Solis, 111 AD3d 654, 655 [2013]; People v Mann, 32 AD3d865, 866 [2006]; People vElting, 18 AD3d 770, 771 [2005]). The defendant's postplea assertion ofinnocence is unsupported by the record, and did not afford a basis for withdrawal of theplea of guilty (see People v Bennett, 115 AD3d at 974; People v Douglas, 83 AD3d1092, 1093 [2011]; People v Mann, 32 AD3d at 866). As the defendant'splea of guilty was knowing, voluntary, and intelligent, and his allegations wereunsubstantiated and conclusory, the County Court properly denied the motion withoutconducting a hearing (see People v Bennett, 115 AD3d at 974; People v Elmendorf, 45 AD3d858, 859 [2007]).
The defendant's contention that he was deprived of the effective assistance ofcounsel at sentencing is without merit. Specifically, we reject the defendant's contentionthat he was deprived of the effective assistance of counsel by his attorney's failure tofully articulate the basis [*2]for his pro se motion towithdraw his plea of guilty. The defendant's assigned counsel had no duty to participatein the defendant's pro se motion, since it had little or no chance of success (see People v Stultz, 2 NY3d277, 287 [2004]; People vBruno, 73 AD3d 941, 942 [2010]; People v Taylor, 60 AD3d 708, 709 [2009]). Balkin, J.P.,Chambers, Cohen and Hinds-Radix, JJ., concur.