16 N.Y.3d 656 (2011)

Under New York Penal Law § 70.25(2), a defendant cannot be sentenced consecutively for weapon possession and crimes committed with that weapon unless the prosecution proves the defendant possessed the weapon with a purpose independent of the other crimes.

Summary

Defendant Purnell was convicted of manslaughter, assault, weapon possession, and reckless endangerment after shooting two people, killing one. The trial court imposed consecutive sentences for manslaughter and assault, and then added a consecutive sentence for weapon possession. The New York Court of Appeals modified the Appellate Division order, holding that the consecutive sentence for weapon possession was illegal under Penal Law § 70.25(2) because the prosecution failed to prove Purnell possessed the weapon with any intent other than to commit the manslaughter and assault. The case was remitted for resentencing.

Facts

Anthony Smith, Anthony Bunch, and Albert Hale encountered Hubert Roberts on a Bronx street. Purnell, standing in a nearby doorway, went inside a building and quickly returned with a gun. After a verbal exchange with Roberts, Purnell shot Roberts in the head, killing him. Purnell then shot Smith in the back as Smith fled. The prosecution argued Purnell was angry about a missing gun from his cousin’s residence and mistakenly believed Roberts and Smith had stolen it.

Procedural History

A Supreme Court jury found Purnell guilty of manslaughter, assault, weapon possession, and reckless endangerment. The trial court sentenced Purnell to consecutive terms for manslaughter and assault, with the weapon possession sentence running consecutively to both. The Appellate Division affirmed the conviction. The New York Court of Appeals modified the Appellate Division order, vacating the weapon possession sentence and remitting the case for resentencing.

Issue(s)

Whether the trial court erred by imposing a consecutive sentence for second-degree weapon possession when the evidence did not establish that the defendant possessed the weapon with a purpose unrelated to the commission of the manslaughter and assault.

Holding

No, because the prosecution failed to establish that Purnell possessed the pistol with a purpose unrelated to his intent to shoot Roberts and Smith, sentencing him consecutively on the weapon charge violated Penal Law § 70.25(2).

Court’s Reasoning

Penal Law § 70.25(2) mandates concurrent sentences when multiple sentences are imposed for offenses committed through a single act, or when one act constitutes one offense and a material element of another. The Court of Appeals determined that Purnell’s weapon possession charge overlapped with the manslaughter and assault charges. The jury found Purnell guilty of possessing the pistol with the intent to use it unlawfully against another, and the evidence at trial showed he used the same pistol to shoot Roberts and Smith. There was no evidence presented of a separate intent to use the gun unlawfully. The court relied on precedent from People v. Parks, 95 N.Y.2d 811 (2000) and People v. Sturkey, 77 N.Y.2d 979 (1991) in which the Court held that consecutive sentences were impermissible where one crime was not separate and distinct from the other. Because the weapon possession was not separate and distinct from the shootings, the statute prohibits consecutive sentences. The Court quoted the statute directly: “'[w]hen more than one sentence of imprisonment is imposed on a person for two or more offenses committed through a single act or omission, or through an act or omission which in itself constituted one of the offenses and also was a material element of the other, the sentences . . . must run concurrently.’”