KINGSTON – The Appellate Division, Third Department of State Supreme Court has affirmed the October 2017 Ulster County Court conviction of a former Ellenville man on a charge of felony burglary.
Stephen Drake broke into a Wawarsing home on September 1, 2016 looking for property he could sell or pawn for cash to buy heroin, but also ransacked it before leaving with items including two .22 caliber pistols.
Drake pled guilty to burglary and waived his right to appeal in exchange for a six-year state prison term followed by five years of post release supervision and restitution of $7,865.
On appeal, he challenged the validity of his appeal waiver, but also the severity of the negotiated sentence including the amount of restitution imposed and claimed his plea was not knowing or voluntary.
He also claimed he was denied meaningful representation.
The appellate court upheld the validity of his waiver of appeal and found the remainder of his arguments were either precluded by his appeal waiver or unpreserved for appellate review.
