PEOPLE v. DECUTLER (2026)

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

Appeal from a judgment of the County Court of Otsego County (John Lambert, J.), rendered May 8, 2023, convicting defendant upon his plea of guilty of the crime of murder in the second degree.

Defendant was charged by indictment with murder in the second degree stemming from an incident wherein he and the codefendant, his brother, entered an alley to purchase oxycodone from the victim before an altercation ensued.  During said altercation, defendant allegedly disarmed the victim of a knife before he and the codefendant, who also had a knife, each stabbed the victim approximately 30 times, which resulted in the victim's death.  Pursuant to a plea agreement, defendant pleaded guilty to murder in the second degree in satisfaction of the sole charge brought under the indictment, with the understanding that he would be sentenced to a prison term of 20 years to life.  The plea agreement also required defendant to waive his right to appeal.  County Court thereafter sentenced defendant in accordance with the agreed-upon terms.  Defendant appeals.

We affirm.  Preliminarily, although defendant executed a written waiver of appeal at the conclusion of the sentencing proceeding, that belated execution “cannot be relied upon to establish that ‘defendant understood the terms and conditions of the waiver, specifically, the nature and consequences of the rights he was relinquishing at the time he was asked to waive his right to appeal and entered a guilty plea’ ” (People v. Sutton, 237 A.D.3d 1317, 1318, 231 N.Y.S.3d 881 [3d Dept. 2025] [brackets omitted], quoting People v. Spencer, 219 A.D.3d 981, 982–983, 194 N.Y.S.3d 818 [3d Dept. 2023], lv denied 40 N.Y.3d 1041, 200 N.Y.S.3d 770, 223 N.E.3d 1246 [2023];  see People v. Dawson, 235 A.D.3d 1034, 1035 n, 226 N.Y.S.3d 675 [3d Dept. 2025]).  “However, the lack of a valid written waiver is not fatal where, as here, the oral waiver colloquy is sufficient to demonstrate that the defendant knowingly, intelligently and voluntarily waived his or her right to appeal” (People v. Wickwire, 230 A.D.3d 1429, 1430, 218 N.Y.S.3d 494 [3d Dept. 2024] [internal quotation marks and citations omitted];  see People v. Washington, 206 A.D.3d 1278, 1280, 170 N.Y.S.3d 329 [3d Dept. 2022], lv denied 39 N.Y.3d 942, 177 N.Y.S.3d 538, 198 N.E.3d 781 [2022]).  County Court explained that the waiver of appeal was part of defendant's plea agreement, advised defendant that the appeal waiver was separate and distinct from the other rights that he would be forfeiting by pleading guilty and that certain rights, including some specifically enumerated by the court, survived.  Further, County Court ascertained that defendant had conferred with counsel regarding waiving his right to appeal “numerous times” and elicited defendant's assurances that he understood the nature and extent of the waiver.  Under these circumstances, we are satisfied that defendant knowingly, intelligently and voluntarily waived his right to appeal (see People v. Sutton, 237 A.D.3d at 1318, 231 N.Y.S.3d 881;  People v. Soto, 228 A.D.3d 1072, 1073, 213 N.Y.S.3d 497 [3d Dept. 2024];  compare People v. Ruple, 239 A.D.3d 1040, 1041, 235 N.Y.S.3d 725 [3d Dept. 2025], lv denied 44 N.Y.3d 1013, 244 N.Y.S.3d 512, 271 N.E.3d 714 [2025]).  In light of the valid appeal waiver, defendant's challenge to the severity of his sentence is precluded (see People v. Sutton, 237 A.D.3d at 1318, 231 N.Y.S.3d 881;  People v. Sitts, 232 A.D.3d 995, 996, 221 N.Y.S.3d 352 [3d Dept. 2024];  see also People v. Lesson, 241 A.D.3d 1051, 1055, 240 N.Y.S.3d 841 [3d Dept. 2025], lv denied 44 N.Y.3d 1028, ––– N.Y.S.3d ––––, ––– N.E.3d –––– [2025]).

ORDERED that the judgment is affirmed.

Garry, P.J., Clark, Pritzker, Reynolds Fitzgerald and McShan, JJ., concur.