KINGSTON – The Appellate Division of State Supreme Court has affirmed the April 2015 conviction of Johnnie Simpson, also known as Gazoo, his plea of guilty to the crime of felony criminal possession of a controlled substance.
Simpson’s conviction stems from a series of cocaine sales he made to a confidential informant under the supervision of Kingston City Police. After the informant arranged a third buy, Simpson was arrested and found in possession of cocaine. As a result, he pled guilty in Ulster County Court and received a prison sentence of up to six years to be followed by two years of post-release supervision.
On appeal, he argued that his attorney was ineffective and that he had a conflict of interest. Those claims were rejected by the appellate court.
