The People &c.,
Respondent,
v.
Antonio McClemore,
Appellant.
2005 NY Int. 50
MEMORANDUM:
The order of the Appellate Division should be affirmed.
CPL 530.13(4) provides a court with discretion to enter
an order of protection "[u]pon conviction of any offense." When
a defendant is convicted of a felony, "[t]he duration of such an
order shall be fixed by the court and . . . shall not exceed the
greater of: (i) five years from the date of such conviction, or
(ii) three years from the date of the expiration of the maximum
Here, defendant pleaded guilty to the felony of first- degree kidnapping ( see Penal Law 135.25). County Court imposed an indeterminate term of imprisonment of 15 years to life, and also entered an order of protection in favor of the kidnapping victim. The trial court wanted the order to remain in effect for the maximum duration permitted by CPL 530.13(4) -- three years from the date of expiration of defendant's life sentence -- but obviously could not know how long defendant would live. County Court resolved this dilemma by setting an expiration date of July 25, 2101, or 100 years after the date of sentencing. We reject defendant's claim that County Court erred in so doing.
As we have previously observed, the purpose of fixing
expiration dates in orders of protection is "to provide certainty
for defendants, the protected victims and witnesses, and law
enforcement authorities who may be called to enforce" the orders
( People v Nieves, 2 NY3d 310, 317 [2004]). The expiration date
established here fulfills that purpose, while allowing County
Court to exercise its discretion to issue what is, in effect, a
lifetime order of protection, which affords the kidnapping victim
the utmost safety and peace of mind.[1]
1 After the sentencing proceeding in this case, the Legislature amended CPL 530.13 to provide explicitly that "[a]n order of protection issued under this section shall plainly state the date that such order expires" ( see CPL 530.13[5]; L 2002, ch 462).