| People v Collins |
| 2016 NY Slip Op 05653 [141 AD3d 729] |
| July 27, 2016 |
| Appellate Division, Second Department |
[*1]
| The People of the State of New York,Respondent, v Robert J. Collins, Appellant. |
Lynn W.L. Fahey, New York, NY (David P. Greenberg of counsel), forappellant.
Richard A. Brown, District Attorney, Kew Gardens, NY (John M. Castellano,Johnnette Traill, and Christopher Blira-Koessler of counsel), for respondent.
Appeal by the defendant, as limited by his motion, from a sentence of the SupremeCourt, Queens County (Lewis, J.), imposed February 21, 2014, on the ground that thesentence was excessive.
Ordered that the sentence is affirmed.
A defendant who has validly waived the right to appeal has waived the right toinvoke this Court's interest of justice jurisdiction to reduce the sentence (see People v Lopez, 6 NY3d248, 255 [2006]). Here, however, this Court is not precluded from exercising itsinterest of justice jurisdiction because the defendant's purported waiver of his right toappeal was invalid. The record fails to demonstrate that the defendant understood thenature of the right to appeal and the consequences of waiving that right (see People v Williams, 131AD3d 627, 627-628 [2015]; People v Brown, 122 AD3d 133, 144 [2014]). Althoughthe defendant executed a written waiver of his right to appeal, the Supreme Court'scolloquy amounted to nothing more than a simple confirmation that the defendant signedthe waiver and a conclusory statement that the defendant understood the waiver or wasexecuting it knowingly and voluntarily (see People v Brown, 122 AD3d at 140).Under these circumstances, the defendant did not knowingly, voluntarily, andintelligently waive his right to appeal (see People v Brown, 122 AD3d 133 [2014]; see generally People vBradshaw, 18 NY3d 257, 264-267 [2011]).
Nevertheless, contrary to the defendant's contention, the period of postreleasesupervision imposed was not excessive (see People v Suitte, 90 AD2d 80[1982]). Eng, P.J., Mastro, Hall, Sgroi and Miller, JJ., concur.