Ordered that the matter is remitted to the County Court, Nassau County, for further proceedings consistent herewith and to report the results thereof to this court with all convenient speed, and the appeal is held in abeyance in the interim.
It is well established that when a defendant makes a timely application to withdraw a plea of guilty, "the court should, except under special circumstances, either grant the application or else make reasonable inquiry to determine whether the application has merit (see, People v Frederick, 45 N.Y.2d 520 ; People v Rodriquez, 90 A.D.2d 489)" (People v Jenkins, 90 A.D.2d 854). Only in rare instances will an evidentiary hearing be required (see, People v Tinsley, 35 N.Y.2d 926). In the case at bar, the defendant made a motion at sentencing to withdraw his guilty plea. The sentencing court denied the application without conducting any inquiry whatsoever into the basis of the defendant's application and proceeded to sentence the defendant in accordance with the plea agreement. We conclude that the court committed error in summarily denying the defendant's application. Accordingly, we remit the matter to the County Court for a reasonable inquiry into the basis of the defendant's application and we direct the County Court to report the results thereof to this court with all convenient speed. Mollen, P.J., Brown, Kunzeman, Eiber and Miller, JJ., concur.