People v Whitlock, 2020 NY Slip Op 07924 [189 AD3d 1473]

December 23, 2020

Appellate Division, Second Department

[*1]

The People of the State of New York, Respondent,

v

Devin Whitlock, Appellant.

Paul Skip Laisure, New York, NY (Anna Kou of counsel), for appellant.

Eric Gonzalez, District Attorney, Brooklyn, NY (Leonard Joblove and Jean M. Joyce of counsel; Isaac Belenkiy on the memorandum), for respondent.

Appeal by the defendant, as limited by his motion, from a sentence of the Supreme Court, Kings County (John T. Hecht, J.), imposed October 23, 2018, upon his plea of guilty, on the ground that the sentence was excessive.

Ordered that the sentence is affirmed.

The defendant’s waiver of his right to appeal was invalid, since both the oral and written waiver described his conviction and sentence as “final” ( see People v Thomas , 34 NY3d 545, 563-567 [2019]; People v Christopher B. , 184 AD3d 657, 659 [2020]). Thus, the purported waiver does not preclude appellate review of the defendant’s contention that the sentence imposed was excessive.

However, the sentence imposed was not excessive ( see People v Suitte , 90 AD2d 80 [1982]). Dillon, J.P., Chambers, Austin, Hinds-Radix and Christopher, JJ., concur..