PEOPLE v. FLEMMING (2009)

Defendant appeals from a judgment convicting him upon his plea of guilty of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree (Penal Law § 265.02 [former (4) ] ).   Contrary to defendant's contention, Supreme Court properly refused to suppress evidence, including a handgun, seized by a police officer from defendant's person.   After the vehicle in which defendant was a passenger was lawfully stopped for a traffic violation, defendant refused to move his hands in accordance with the officer's instructions to do so, thereby threatening the safety of the officer.   The officer, who had been told by a fellow officer that defendant had previously carried a handgun, also observed a bulge in defendant's waistband.  “ Considering the totality of the circumstances ․, there was an ample measure of reasonable suspicion necessary to justify” the officer's limited frisk for weapons (People v. Benjamin, 51 N.Y.2d 267, 271, 434 N.Y.S.2d 144, 414 N.E.2d 645;  see People v. Robinson, 278 A.D.2d 808, 809, 718 N.Y.S.2d 524, lv. denied 96 N.Y.2d 787, 725 N.Y.S.2d 651, 749 N.E.2d 220;  see generally People v. Prochilo, 41 N.Y.2d 759, 761-762, 395 N.Y.S.2d 635, 363 N.E.2d 1380).   Contrary to defendant's further contention, “the five-year period of postrelease supervision is mandatory based on defendant's status as a second felony offender” (People v. McQuiller, 19 A.D.3d 1043, 1045, 797 N.Y.S.2d 224, lv. denied 5 N.Y.3d 808, 803 N.Y.S.2d 37, 836 N.E.2d 1160;  see People v. Ware, 28 A.D.3d 1124, 1125, 813 N.Y.S.2d 598, lv. denied 7 N.Y.3d 852, 823 N.Y.S.2d 782, 857 N.E.2d 77), and thus the sentence is not illegal.

It is hereby ORDERED that the judgment so appealed from is unanimously affirmed.

MEMORANDUM: