People v Howe |
2008 NY Slip Op 02403 [49 AD3d 1302] |
March 14, 2008 |
Appellate Division, Fourth Department |
Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431. |
The People of the State of New York, Respondent, v Rodney R. Howe, Appellant. |
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R. Michael Tantillo, District Attorney, Canandaigua (Jeffrey L. Taylor of counsel), for respondent.
Appeal from an order of the Ontario County Court (Craig J. Doran, J.), entered November 21, 2006. The order determined that defendant is a level three risk pursuant to the Sex Offender Registration Act.
It is hereby ordered that the order so appealed from is unanimously affirmed without costs.
Memorandum: On appeal from an order determining that he is a level three risk pursuant to the Sex Offender Registration Act (Correction Law § 168 et seq.), defendant contends that County Court's upward departure from his presumptive risk level as a level two risk is not supported by clear and convincing evidence. We reject that contention (see People v Gandy, 35 AD3d 1163 [2006]; People v Seils, 28 AD3d 1158 [2006], lv denied 7 NY3d 709 [2006]). "A court may make an upward departure from a presumptive risk level when, 'after consideration of the indicated factors . . .[,] there exists an aggravating or mitigating factor of a kind, or to a degree, not otherwise adequately taken into account by the [risk assessment] guidelines' " (People v Cruz, 28 AD3d 819, 819 [2006]; see People v Foley, 35 AD3d 1240 [2006]). We agree with defendant that the court erred in considering his "chronic alcoholism" as a factor supporting the upward departure from the presumptive risk level because that factor was already taken into account by the risk assessment instrument (see People v Abraham, 39 AD3d 1208, 1209 [2007]; People v Foley, 35 AD3d 1240 [2006]). Nevertheless, we conclude that the court properly relied upon the case summary prepared by the Board of Examiners of Sex Offenders, which constitutes reliable hearsay (see People v Roman, 41 AD3d 1288 [2007], lv denied 9 NY3d 809 [2007]), together with the facts of the underlying conviction and defendant's prior history of child sexual abuse, in determining that an upward departure to a level three risk was warranted (see Correction Law § 168-l [6] [c]; § 168-n [3]). Present—Martoche, J.P., Smith, Peradotto, Pine and Gorski, JJ.