The People of the State of New York, Respondent v. Tyrone Mingo, Appellant; the People of the State of New York…

Summary

The Court of Appeals defines what constitutes 'reliable hearsay' admissible at a SORA risk level determination hearing: hearsay is reliable—and therefore admissible under Correction Law § 168-n(3)—if, based on the circumstances surrounding the development of the proof, a reasonable person would deem it trustworthy, judged case-by-case using factors such as the age of the conviction, efforts to locate documents, corroboration, and whether the declarant acted under oath or under a duty to report. In People v Mingo, the Court holds that unsworn, unsigned internal District Attorney's office documents may support a risk assessment but only with proper foundation evidence explaining how they were generated, their preparers, sources, and function; because Supreme Court required no foundation, the level two designation is reversed and remitted. In the companion case People v Balic, the Court affirms, holding that a criminal complaint sworn to by a police officer recounting a child victim's unsworn same-day statements is reliable hearsay—that 'any victim's statement' need not be sworn—and that the People met their clear-and-convincing burden given defendant's uncontroverted allegations and corroborating guilty plea, sustaining the level two designation despite a conceded 35-point overassessment.