People v. Rodriguez - Criminal Possession of a Weapon Conviction
Summary
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York affirmed a conviction for criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree. The court addressed the defendant's Second Amendment claim, finding it did not render the state's firearm licensing scheme unconstitutional.
What changed
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, First Department, affirmed the conviction of Aldo Jorge Rodriguez for criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree, with sentencing to one year of probation. The court considered the defendant's Second Amendment claim, specifically challenging New York's firearm licensing scheme in light of New York State Rifle & Pistol Assn., Inc. v. Bruen. Despite the defendant's waiver of appeal, the court found he had standing to raise the constitutional challenge.
The court ultimately rejected the defendant's argument, holding that he failed to establish the unconstitutionality of the indictment under the Bruen decision. This ruling affirms the existing firearm licensing framework in New York. No new compliance actions are required for regulated entities based on this specific opinion, as it pertains to an individual defendant's appeal.
Source document (simplified)
Jump To
Support FLP
CourtListener is a project of Free
Law Project, a federally-recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit. Members help support our work and get special access to features.
Please become a member today.
March 3, 2026 Get Citation Alerts Add Note
People v. Rodriguez
Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York
- Citations: 2026 NY Slip Op 01167
Docket Number: Ind. No. 74794/22; Appeal No. 5974; Case No. 2024-05340
Combined Opinion
People v Rodriguez (2026 NY Slip Op 01167)
| People v Rodriguez |
| 2026 NY Slip Op 01167 |
| Decided on March 03, 2026 |
| Appellate Division, First Department |
| Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431. |
| This opinion is uncorrected and subject to revision before publication in the Official Reports. |
Decided and Entered: March 03, 2026
Before: Webber, J.P., Shulman, Higgitt, Rosado, Hagler, JJ.
Ind. No. 74794/22|Appeal No. 5974|Case No. 2024-05340|
*[1]The People of the State of New York, Respondent,
v
Aldo Jorge Rodriguez, Defendant-Appellant.**
Jenay Nurse Guilford, Center for Appellate Litigation, New York (Leanna J. Duncan of counsel), for appellant.
Darcel D. Clark, District Attorney, Bronx (Maria I. Wager of counsel), for respondent.
Judgment, Supreme Court, Bronx County (Albert Lorenzo, J. on motion to dismiss; Alvin Yearwood, J. at plea; Seth Steed, J. at sentencing), rendered August 8, 2024, convicting defendant of criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree, and sentencing him to one year of probation, unanimously affirmed.
Even assuming the validity of defendant's waiver of appeal, it would not foreclose from review his Second Amendment claim, and he has standing to raise his facial challenge to the constitutionality of New York's firearm licensing scheme, notwithstanding that he never applied to obtain a firearm license (see People v Johnson, — NY3d —, —, 2025 NY Slip Op 06528, *2 [2025]). However, defendant has failed to establish that the instant indictment is unconstitutional under New York State Rifle & *Pistol Assn., Inc. v Bruen* (597 US 1 [2022]; see e.g. Johnson, 2025 NY Slip Op 06528, *3; People v Rosavong, - AD3d -, 2026 NY Slip Op 00096 [1st Dept 2026]; People v Balogh - AD3d -, 2026 NY Slip Op 00323 [1st Dept 2026]).
THIS CONSTITUTES THE DECISION AND ORDER OF THE SUPREME COURT, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT.
ENTERED: March 3, 2026
Related changes
Source
Classification
Who this affects
Taxonomy
Browse Categories
Get State Courts alerts
Weekly digest. AI-summarized, no noise.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime.
Get alerts for this source
We'll email you when New York Appellate Division publishes new changes.