Judge Astacio must wait to see if probation will be overturned

A judge on Friday withheld ruling on an appeal made by Rochester City Court Judge Leticia Astacio that seeks, in part, to overturn her probation.

Following a brief court appearance in which a lawyer for Astacio and a prosecutor laid out their cases, Ontario County Court Judge William Kocher said he anticipated rendering a decision within 10 days.

The arguments were made in the Hall of Justice in downtown Rochester, but, like all of the proceedings in Astacio's drunken driving case, the matter was heard by a judge from outside Monroe County in an effort to counter any conflict of interest.

Astacio was sentenced to three years of probation on July 6 after being found to have violated terms of the original sentence to her drunken driving conviction, which was a one-year conditional discharge.

She has since appealed that decision by Judge Stephen Aronson, who has presided over the bulk of her case, on 12 separate grounds.

Many of her points are procedural in nature, but a finding in her favor on any number of them could result in her probation being reversed and her returning to her original sentence of a conditional discharge.

The crux of her appeal hinges mostly on the timing of a drug test and summons for her to appear in court that Aronson ordered in May.

Astacio's lawyer, Bridget Field, argued that Aronson failed to give Astacio adequate notice under criminal procedure law to take the drug test and appear in court. Astacio was vacationing in Thailand when she was notified of the orders.

By the time she arrived in court and took the test, Aronson had already found her in violation of her conditional discharge, which demanded she submit to court-ordered drug tests, and sentenced her to 60 days in jail along with probation.

Field also argued that Aronson broke with the law in failing to present to Astacio the terms of her probation upon sentencing. Astacio was not given the paperwork outlining the terms until July 13, at which time she signed the document.

Other points of Astacio's appeal include an argument that she was ineffectively represented by her lawyer at the time, Ed Fiandach.

Reached by phone, Fiandach said he did everything he could for Astacio, noting that he represented her over last winter when she beat multiple charges that she violated the terms of of her conditional discharge.

"It's not uncommon to see people lodge that type of complaint," Fiandach said. "But I have no doubt that she was adequately represented to the best of my ability or anyone else's."

Astacio and Field declined to answer reporters' questions following the court appearance.

The prosecution opposed each of the dozen arguments in a written response filed with the court.

"The people have opposed each and every one of the 12 points," said prosecutor Zach Maurer. "We don't believe there are any grounds to reverse the finding that she violated the terms of her conditional discharge."

DANDREATTA@Gannett.com