The following excerpt is from Duffy v. Ward, 596 N.Y.S.2d 746, 612 N.E.2d 1213, 81 N.Y.2d 127 (N.Y. 1993):
When an officeholder's termination is premised on a "crime involving a violation of [the] oath of office", two questions are raised. First, should a court, before sustaining a vacatur, look solely to the elements of the crime as set forth in the Penal Law or may it permissibly review the underlying facts of the particular incident leading to the criminal charge (compare, De Paulo v. City of Albany, 49 N.Y.2d 994, 429 N.Y.S.2d 171, 406 N.E.2d 1064 [statutory definition of offense was not related to officer's oath]; and Matter of Sharkey v. Police Dept., 179 A.D.2d 655, 657, 578 N.Y.S.2d 599 ["Resort to the [81 N.Y.2d 132] record is necessary in order to ascertain whether the officer violated his oath of office"]? Second, what type of misdemeanor comes within the terms of the statute?
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