People v. Hermance

• Decision Date: 20 December 1974
• Citation: 35 N.Y.2d 915,364 N.Y.S.2d 900
• Parties: , 324 N.E.2d 367 The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Vincent James HERMANCE, Appellant.
• Court: New York Court of Appeals Court of Appeals

Page 900

364 N.Y.S.2d 900

35 N.Y.2d 915, 324 N.E.2d 367

The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Vincent James HERMANCE, Appellant.

Court of Appeals of New York.

Dec. 20, 1974.

Katheryn D. Katz, Albany, for appellant.

Roger J. Miner, Dist. Atty., for respondent.

MEMORANDUM.

The order of the Appellate Division, 43 A.D.2d 633, 349 N.Y.S.2d 212 should be reversed and the case remanded for a new trial. We find, as a matter of law, that this concededly indigent defendant was not informed of his right to have counsel assigned if he could not afford one and, thus, his subsequent inculpatory statements should have been suppressed (People v. Witenski, 15 N.Y.2d 392, 395, 259 N.Y.S.2d 413, 207 N.E.2d 358; Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 473, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694). This is true despite the fact that defendant had an attorney to represent him in another unrelated criminal matter (cf. People v. Taylor, 27 N.Y.2d 327, 318 N.Y.S.2d 1, 266 N.E.2d 630).

BREITEL, C.J., and JASEN, GABRIELLI, JONES, WACHTLER, SAMUEL RABIN and STEVENS, JJ., concur in memorandum.

Order reversed, etc.