NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A152
SPONSOR: Cruz
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to facilitating
appellate review of rulings that implicate issues of public concern
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
The purpose of the Act is to require the court to review a denial of a
motion to suppress evidence on appeal. By ensuring that a court review
such denials, the legislative intent of section 710.70 will be
furthered, and defendants can properly challenge the validity of an
order denying their motion. Additionally, such review of an order deny-
ing a motion to suppress evidence will take place regardless of whether
a defendant waives their right to appeal on that issue.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section (1) amends CPL 710.70 by replacing the term "may" with "shall"
and allows an appellate review of an order finally denying a motion to
suppress evidence, regardless of a defendant's waiver of their right to
appeal.
Section (2) provides that this act will take effect sixteen days after
becoming law.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
The purpose of the proposed amendment is to further the legislative
intent of section 710.70. Currently, the law gives defendants little
recourse to challenge a final order denying a motion to suppress
evidence when a plea bargain is accepted.
Defendants traditionally face additional hardships during criminal
proceedings such as false confessions, unreliable identification proce-
dures, stop and frisk, racial profiling, and police perjury. Given the
prioritization of judicial efficiency, defendants are put at a disadvan-
tage and are often at the mercy of the judicial system. By providing
defendants with an additional level of review on crucial orders regard-
ing the suppression of evidence, the rights of a defendant can be
enforced properly under this section.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
This is a new bill.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have
become law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
152
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY(Prefiled)
January 4, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CRUZ, L. ROSENTHAL, JACKSON -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Codes
AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to facilitating
appellate review of rulings that implicate issues of public concern
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 710.70 of the criminal procedure
2 law is amended to read as follows:
3 2. An order finally denying a motion to suppress evidence [may] shall
4 be reviewed upon an appeal from an ensuing judgment of conviction
5 notwithstanding the fact that such judgment is entered upon a plea of
6 guilty and not withstanding an otherwise enforceable waiver of the right
7 to appeal.
8 § 2. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall
9 have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02005-01-3