The following excerpt is from People v. Barry, 58 Misc.3d 144 (A), 93 N.Y.S.3d 627 (Table) (N.Y. App. Term 2017):
People v. Sougou , 26 NY3d 1052, 1055 (2015), which is cited by the majority and affirms a defendant's guilty plea based on competent attorney representation, is distinguishable. In Sougou (26 NY3d at 1055 ), the judge directly addressed the defendant on the record and "asked specifically whether defendant had discussed the plea and the sentence, as described in open court, with his lawyer; whether defendant was pleading voluntarily and of his own free will; and whether defendant understood that he was giving up his right to a trial and to hearings on the search and seizure evidence. Defendant answered yes' to each and every question." Significantly, unlike in Sougou , 26 NY3d 1052, defendant here was unable to provide an answer to each and every question, due, in part, to the inappropriate compound question posed by the court.12
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