FROM: DA HOLLEY CARNRIGHT
DATE: DECEMBER 12, 2019
The Appellate Division, Third Department has unanimously
affirmed the March 31, 2017 conviction of Carlos Diggs upon his plea of guilty
convicting him of the crime of aggravated criminal contempt in the first
degree, criminal contempt in the first degree, and aggravated family offense.
Defendant pled guilty to aggravated criminal contempt, criminal
contempt in the first degree and aggravated family offense in the Ulster County
Court and waived his right to appeal.
The defendant, a second felony offender, was subsequently
sentenced by County Court Judge Donald Williams to consecutive prison terms of
three and one half to seven years on the aggravated criminal contempt
conviction, two to four years on the criminal contempt in the first degree, and
one and one half to three years on the aggravated family offense conviction. In
addition, on three separate occasions during the sentence proceedings, the
Court found defendant guilty of criminal contempt of court for his conduct
during sentencing and imposed fines totaling $3,000.
On appeal, the defendant challenged the voluntariness of his
plea and claimed that the Court erred in denying his motion to withdraw his
plea. Defendant also claimed that he was denied meaningful representation of
counsel. Finally, defendant challenged his sentence as unduly harsh an
excessive and maintained that the Court improperly found him to be in contempt
of Court. These claims, however, were all rejected by the Appellate Division,
Third Department,
On appeal, defendant is represented by Erin C. Morigerato, Esq.
of Albany, New York. Assistant District Attorney Joan Gudesblatt Lamb handled
the appeal for the District Attorney’s office.
