N.Y. Laws » CHAPTER Criminal Procedure / PART The Principal Proceedings / TITLE Preliminary Proceedings In Superior Court / ARTICLE Waiver of Indictment
New York Consolidated Laws

N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law § 195.20 (2026)

Waiver of indictment; written instrument

✓ current as of May 2026
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section NY-LEGnysenate.gov Justiaon Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar 
§ 195.20  Waiver of indictment; written instrument.
  A waiver of indictment shall be evidenced by a written instrument,
which shall contain the name of the court in which it is executed, the
title of the action, and the name, date and approximate time and place
of each offense to be charged in the superior court information to be
filed by the district attorney pursuant to section 195.40.  The offenses
named may include any offense for which the defendant was held for
action of a grand jury and any offense or offenses properly joinable
therewith pursuant to sections 200.20 and 200.40.  The written waiver
shall also contain a statement by the defendant that he is aware that:
  (a)  under the constitution of the state of New York he has the right
to be prosecuted by indictment filed by a grand jury;
  (b) he waives such right and consents to be prosecuted by superior
court information to be filed by the district attorney;
  (c)  the superior court information to be filed by the district
attorney will charge the offenses named in the written waiver; and
  (d)  the superior court information to be filed by the district
attorney will have the same force and effect as an indictment filed by a
grand jury.
  The written waiver shall be signed by the defendant in open court in
the presence of his attorney.  The consent of the district attorney
shall be endorsed thereon.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 8 cases (5 in the last 5 years), 2010–2025 · leading case: People v. Pierce, 930 N.E.2d 176 (NY 2010).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
People v. Pierce, 930 N.E.2d 176 (NY 2010). “leaded guilty to a superior court information (SCI) charging him with two offenses: grand larceny in the fourth degree, an offense for which he had been held for action by the grand jury in a superior court felony complaint; and criminal possession of stolen property in the…”
People v. Cruz, 2020 NY Slip Op 04961 (N.Y. App. Div. 2020). “The defendant's contention that the written waiver of indictment failed to comply with Criminal Procedure Law § 195.20, in that it does not contain the "approximate time" of the offense to be charged in the SCI, is forfeited by his plea of guilty ( see People v Thomas , 34 NY3d…”
People v. Alvarez, 2021 NY Slip Op 08200 (N.Y. App. Div. 2021). “Moreover, the defendant's contention that the written waiver of indictment failed to comply with Criminal Procedure Law § 195.20 because it does not contain "the name, date and approximate time and place" of the offense to be charged in the SCI is contradicted by the record or…”
People v. Hodges, 2021 NY Slip Op 06626 (N.Y. App. Div. 2021). · cites it 3× “As promised by the County Court at the time of his plea, the defendant was sentenced to consecutive terms of imprisonment upon his convictions of the two crimes.”
People v. Griffin, 2019 NY Slip Op 5148 (N.Y. App. Div. 2019). · cites it 4× “14-01294 violates Criminal Procedure Law § 195.20 and, therefore, is jurisdictionally defective is not forfeited by his plea of guilty to that superior court information or precluded by his valid waiver of his right to appeal, and may be raised for the first time on appeal ( see…”
People v. Salomon, 2025 NY Slip Op 01393 (N.Y. App. Div. 2025). · cites it 3× “After the defendant failed to comply with certain plea conditions, he was sentenced, as promised, on his conviction of attempted assault in the second degree.”
People v. Aquino, 2021 NY Slip Op 01058 (N.Y. App. Div. 2021). “The defendant waived his right to be prosecuted by indictment and agreed to be prosecuted under a superior court information (hereinafter SCI) charging him with attempted burglary in the second degree and petit larceny. The defendant was convicted on both counts, upon his plea…”
People v. Aquino, 2021 NY Slip Op 01057 (N.Y. App. Div. 2021). “The defendant waived his right to be prosecuted by indictment and agreed to be prosecuted under a superior court information (hereinafter SCI) charging him with attempted robbery in the third degree and attempted grand larceny in the fourth degree. The defendant was convicted on…”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.