Unofficial Stats: May 2005 Term

Here are my unofficial stats for the Fourth Department's May 2005 term, based on the cases posted on the Court's website:

Total criminal cases decided: 87
Reversals or modifications: 11

Of those reversals/mods, 2 were People's appeals (including the Washington case, which I've discussed here). I've already posted about the two most interesting reversals from the packet here (affidavit of mailing testimonial under Crawford v Washington) and here (doctor-patient privilege must yield to defendant's 6th Amendment confrontation rights). Here's the best of the rest:

People v Lee: reversing pro se defendant's conviction where the "record establishes that the court failed to inquire into defendant's 'age, education, occupation, previous exposure to legal procedures and other relevant factors bearing on a competent, intelligent, voluntary waiver' of the right to counsel." (Lee, 2005 NY Slip Op 04893 [citations omitted].)

People v Schafer: vacating defendant's sentence where trial court's comments revealed "'the failure of the court to apprehend the extent of its [sentencing] discretion.'" (Schafer NY Slip Op 04874.)

People v Kohl: holding Superior Court Information jurisdictionally defective where crime charged in SCI (Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the Fourth Degree) was not a lesser included offense of the indicted crime (Burglary in the Second Degree), and thus not includable in the SCI under CPL 195.20. (Kohl NY Slip Op 04904.)