PEOPLE v. WATKINS (1998)

Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department, New York.

The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Peter WATKINS, Defendant-Appellant.

Decided: December 15, 1998

Before ELLERIN, J.P., and NARDELLI, RUBIN and SAXE, JJ.

Gregory H. Mansfield, for Respondent. Neil A. Steiner, for Defendant-Appellant.

Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Nicholas Figueroa, J.), rendered April 11, 1996, convicting defendant, after a jury trial, of attempted burglary in the third degree and possession of burglar's tools, and sentencing him, as a second felony offender, to concurrent terms of 2 to 4 years and 1 year, respectively, unanimously affirmed.

The motion court properly concluded that the search of defendant's bag was proper as incident to a lawful arrest since it was conducted simultaneously with defendant being handcuffed (see, People v. Wylie, 244 A.D.2d 247, 666 N.Y.S.2d 1, lv. denied 91 N.Y.2d 946, 671 N.Y.S.2d 726, 694 N.E.2d 895), and defendant's property had not yet been reduced to the exclusive control of the police. Contrary to defendant's arguments, the requisite exigency was readily inferable from the officer's testimony (People v. Moore, 32 N.Y.2d 67, 72, 343 N.Y.S.2d 107, 295 N.E.2d 780, cert. denied 414 U.S. 1011, 94 S.Ct. 376, 38 L.Ed.2d 249).

MEMORANDUM DECISION.

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