| People v Thomas |
| 2021 NY Slip Op 02923 [194 AD3d 1405] |
| May 7, 2021 |
| Appellate Division, Fourth Department |
[*1]
| The People of the State of New York,Respondent, v Leon Thomas, Appellant. |
Green & Brenneck, Syracuse (Melissa K. Swartz of counsel), fordefendant-appellant.
William J. Fitzpatrick, District Attorney, Syracuse (Kenneth H. Tyler, Jr., of counsel), forrespondent.
Appeal from a judgment of the Onondaga County Court (Thomas J. Miller, J.), rendered May14, 2019. The judgment convicted defendant, upon a plea of guilty, of attempted murder in thesecond degree (two counts).
It is hereby ordered that the judgment so appealed from is unanimously affirmed.
Memorandum: Defendant appeals from a judgment convicting him, upon his plea of guilty,of two counts of attempted murder in the second degree (Penal Law §§ 110.00,125.25 [1]). The People correctly concede that defendant did not validly waive his right to appeal(see People v Thomas, 34 NY3d545, 565-566 [2019], cert denied 589 US &mdash, 140 S Ct 2634 [2020]). Contraryto defendant's contention, however, the sentence is not unduly harsh or severe. In that regard, wenote that any psychosis or other mental disturbance that defendant was experiencing during theunderlying criminal episode was induced by his voluntary ingestion of illegal drugs. Finally, weare "compelled to emphasize once again" that, contrary to the People's assertion, a criminaldefendant need not show extraordinary circumstances or an abuse of discretion by the sentencingcourt in order to obtain a sentence reduction under CPL 470.15 (6) (b) (People v Cutaia, 167 AD3d 1534,1535 [4th Dept 2018], lv denied 33 NY3d 947 [2019]). Present—Carni, J.P.,Lindley, NeMoyer, Curran and Bannister, JJ.