| People v Jason L. |
| 2011 NY Slip Op 03440 [83 AD3d 1560] |
| April 29, 2011 |
| Appellate Division, Fourth Department |
| Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431. |
| The People of the State of New York, Appellant, v Jason L., Respondent. |
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The Parrinello Law Firm, LLP, Rochester (Bruce F. Freeman of counsel), for
defendant-respondent.
Appeal from an adjudication of the Livingston County Court (Robert B. Wiggins, J.), rendered April 13, 2010. Defendant was adjudicated a youthful offender upon his plea of guilty to burglary in the first degree.
It is hereby ordered that said appeal is unanimously dismissed.
Memorandum: The People purport to appeal from a sentence imposing a term of
incarceration upon defendant's plea of guilty of burglary in the first degree (Penal Law §
140.30 [2]), after County Court found that defendant was a youthful offender. The People
contend that the court abused its discretion in granting defendant youthful offender status and
that, as a result, the sentence imposed is invalid as a matter of law. We conclude that the appeal
must be dismissed. "CPL 450.30 (2) authorizes the People to appeal from a sentence that is
invalid as a matter of law" (People v Cosme, 80 NY2d 790, 792 [1992]), but that statute
does not authorize the People to appeal from a youthful offender finding (see generally
People v Calderon, 79 NY2d 61, 63-64, 67 [1992]). Indeed, upon finding that an individual
is a youthful offender, "the court must direct that the conviction be deemed vacated and replaced
by a youthful offender finding[,] and the court must sentence the defendant pursuant to
section 60.02 of the penal law" (CPL 720.20 [3] [emphasis added]). "[T]he youthful offender
finding and the youthful offender sentence imposed thereupon constitute a 'youthful offender
adjudication' " (Calderon, 79 NY2d at 65). Here, the People do not allege that the
sentence of incarceration of 1