PEOPLE v. PARKER (2024)

Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Curtis J. Farber, J.), rendered December 18, 2018, convicting defendant, upon his plea of guilty, of criminal sexual act in the first degree and sexual abuse in the first degree, and sentencing him to an aggregate term of 20 years, followed by 15 years of postrelease supervision, unanimously affirmed.

Defendant made a valid waiver of his right to appeal, foreclosing appellate review of the issues raised on appeal (see People v. Thomas, 34 N.Y.3d 545, 122 N.Y.S.3d 226, 144 N.E.3d 970 [2019], cert denied 589 U.S. ––––, 140 S.Ct. 2634, 206 L.Ed.2d 512 [2020]).  Even were we to find that the appeal waiver was invalid, we perceive no basis for reducing the sentence or remanding for a new sentencing proceeding.  Defendant's claim that he could not be sentenced because the Department of Probation did not interview him in preparing the presentence report is unpreserved (see People v. Davis, 145 A.D.3d 623, 624, 42 N.Y.S.3d 823 [1st Dept. 2016], lv denied 28 N.Y.3d 1183, 52 N.Y.S.3d 709, 75 N.E.3d 101 [2017]), and we decline to review it in the interest of justice.  As an alternative holding, we find that a new sentencing proceeding is not warranted because he received the sentence he was promised, and showed no inclination to seek even greater leniency.  Had defendant wished to be interviewed, he could have requested an adjournment for such an interview instead of agreeing, through counsel, to proceed to sentencing without one.  There is no statutory requirement that a defendant be interviewed (People v. Serrano, 158 A.D.3d 467, 468, 70 N.Y.S.3d 494 [1st Dept. 2018] [internal quotation marks and citations omitted], lv denied 31 N.Y.3d 1082, 79 N.Y.S.3d 109, 103 N.E.3d 1256 [2018];  see also People v. Medero, 155 A.D.3d 469, 63 N.Y.S.3d 674 [1st Dept. 2017], lv denied 30 N.Y.3d 1117, 77 N.Y.S.3d 342, 101 N.E.3d 983 [2018]).