ALBANY – Overturning a 36-year-old precedent, the state Court of Appeals held Thursday that sentencing judges must affirmatively determine if defendants eligible for youthful offender status should receive that benefit.
The court said People v. McGowen, 42 NY2d 905 (1977), was wrongly decided and that courts must determine if youthful offender treatment is warranted, whether the defendant requested it or not. It also held, over the objections of two dissenters, that a young defendant cannot waive youthful offender status as part of a negotiated plea.
