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Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Firearm related (including ammunition) |
Sentence: |
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Years Imprisoned: |
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Year Crime: |
2009 |
Year Convicted: |
2016 |
Year Cleared: |
2019 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
New York |
County or Region of Crime: |
Queens |
City of Crime: |
New York City |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated |
Summary of Case: |
"Eric Smith was wrongly convicted on November 15, 2016 of two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree and two counts of violating Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1110 in Queens County, New York in 2009. Smith's prosecution was based on an incident in which the police, during a traffic stop, allegedly recovered an unlicensed loaded firearm from Smith's waistband. Smith's first trial ended in a mistrial when "on July 22, 2010, at the second day of jury deliberations, after the alternate jurors had been dismissed, two jurors requested permission to speak to the court. The two jurors reported that another juror, juror number 11, told the panel that morning that he had spoken to a "lawyer friend" about a "hypothetical situation concerning a gun" and that the attorney told him that the only thing that they, as a jury, should focus on was whether they believed that a gun was present in the car." The prosecution and Smith's lawyer both agreed juror number 11 had committed juror misconduct and should be discharged. Smith waived his right to a 12 person jury and agreed to continue with the remaining 11 jurors. The prosecution refused to consent to continuing. Over Smith's objection the judge declared a mistrial. Smith filed a petition to prohibit his retrial as a violation of double-jeopardy. The trial judge granted the petition, but the prosecution appealed and the Court of Appeals reversed on procedural grounds without addressing the merits of Smith's petition. (see Matter of Smith v Brown, 24 NY3d 981, revg 105 AD3d 965). Smith was retried and convicted. He appealed. On October 22, 2019 the New York Supreme Court Appellate Div., Second Dept. set-aside Smith's convictions and ordered dismissal of the charges on the basis his retrial was barred by double jeopardy. The Court's ruling stated the trial court in 2010 erred by declaring a mistrial over Smith's objection: "When a mistrial is declared without the consent of or over the objection of a defendant, a retrial is precluded unless "there was manifest necessity for the mistrial or the ends of public justice would be defeated."" ... Here, the People have not met their burden of demonstrating that the declaration of a mistrial was manifestly necessary. ... there was an insufficient basis in the record for the declaration of a mistrial, and thus, a retrial was precluded."" |
Conviction Caused By: |
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Innocence Proved By: |
"On October 22, 2019 the New York Supreme Court Appellate Div., Second Dept. set-aside Smith's convictions and ordered dismissal of the charges on the basis his retrial was barred by double jeopardy." |
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Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
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Age When Released: |
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Sex: |
Male |
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Information Source 1: |
"People v Smith (Eric) 2019 NY Slip Op 07622 (NY Supreme Ct, App Div, Second Dept, 10-23-19)" |
Information Location 1: |
https://law.justia.com/cases/new-york/appellate-division-second-department/2019/2016-12726.html |
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Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org