⚖️ The Gutter Report: Wendell Belle, a 1998 New York Conviction — and an Arrest the Courts Never Fully Examined
Serving a 42–50 year sentence, a New York man raises jurisdictional challenges and constitutional questions that remain unresolved.
New York, NY — Wendell Belle has been incarcerated in New York State custody since December 1998.
According to official Department of Corrections records, Belle is currently housed at Sing Sing Correctional Facility, serving an aggregate sentence of 42 years, 10 months to 50 years following a New York County conviction.
🧱 Sing Sing Correctional Facility, where Belle has been held in state custody since 1998.
Belle, now 61 years old, was convicted in 1998 of Robbery in the First Degree, along with Attempted Robbery in the First Degree, Attempted Rape in the First Degree, and Attempted Sodomy in the First Degree. Under current sentencing calculations, his earliest parole eligibility date is November 19, 2040, with a maximum expiration date in 2048.
That is the official public record.
Belle disputes the foundation of that record entirely.
🗣️ A Claim of Innocence — and an Arrest He Says Was Illegal
In correspondence with The Gutter Report, Belle maintains his innocence and asserts that his conviction stems from what he describes as an illegal arrest and unlawful entry that violated fundamental constitutional protections.
According to Belle, on January 15, 1998, detectives from the Manhattan Robbery Squad entered Bronx County and arrested him without probable cause, an arrest warrant, exigent circumstances, or lawful jurisdiction.
⚖️ Symbolic courtroom imagery representing the legal foundation Belle says was never lawfully established.
Belle states that the detectives were operating outside their legal authority and that this jurisdictional defect was never cured. He characterizes the arrest as extra-judicial, arguing that the illegality tainted the entire prosecution that followed.
“These are facts,” Belle wrote, stating that he can substantiate his claims with legal documents.
📜 A 440.10 Motion the Courts Never Reached
Belle says he later raised these issues in a post-conviction motion under New York Criminal Procedure Law § 440.10, but that the court declined to reach the merits of his claim due to what it described as a procedural error.
According to Belle, the Appellate Division acknowledged that his claims were substantiated, but declined review because of how the argument was framed — not because the underlying facts were false.
Belle explains that he initially framed the issue as detectives acting outside their geographical area of employment, when the true defect, he says, was a lack of jurisdiction altogether.
“That was the critical error,” Belle wrote.
🏛️ A courtroom inside New York’s appellate system, where Belle says the merits of his claims were never fully heard.
🔄 A Second Motion — Correcting the Record
Belle states that he has since completed a second CPL 440.10 motion, correcting that error and properly presenting the issue as a jurisdictional violation.
At the time of publication, there is no publicly available ruling on this second motion. Belle says he is seeking legal representation upon resubmission and maintains that the constitutional issues at the center of his case have still never been substantively reviewed.
⏳ Twenty-Six Years In — and the Question That Remains
Wendell Belle has been incarcerated for more than 26 years.
The conviction stands.
The sentence stands.
What remains contested — and unresolved — is whether the constitutional violations Belle describes were ever meaningfully heard at all.
The Gutter Report will continue reviewing court filings and legal records related to this case as they become available.
Not for clicks — for clarity.
— Elliott Carterr, LFTG Radio
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