Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney today announced that a 46-year-old West Babylon man1 was sentenced to 25 years in prison followed by five years of post-release supervision after a jury found him guilty last month of attempted murder and other related charges, for stabbing his wife multiple times in front of their two young daughters.
“The trauma this defendant inflicted on his wife and children is unimaginable,” said District Attorney Tierney. “We are satisfied with this sentence, but we also understand it won’t take away the damage this defendant has irreversibly inflicted on his family.”
The evidence at trial established that on the morning of June 14, 2023, the victim was sleeping in the bedroom of their five and 11-year-old daughters after telling the defendant that she wanted to end the marriage. The defendant began knocking on the door, telling the victim that he wanted to speak with her in their bedroom, but the victim refused. The defendant pushed his way inside the children’s bedroom while holding a knife.
The District Attorney’s Office is not naming the defendant in order to protect the identities of the victim and the child witnesses.
The defendant then stabbed the victim three times with a large kitchen knife while yelling that he was going to kill her and then kill himself because she was ruining his family. Their oldest daughter pleaded with the defendant to stop, and he told the children to go to another room. The defendant also took the victim’s phone so that she couldn’t call 911.
Although the victim was in and out of consciousness due to blood loss, she managed to leave the house to seek help from her neighbor. When the defendant realized the victim had left the home, he chased after her and began kicking her in the face. Their neighbor called 911 after hearing the commotion, and the defendant fled. A Suffolk County Police Department K9 located the defendant in the rear of a commercial building a short distance away from the home. The victim was transported to Good Samaritan Hospital where she underwent blood transfusions and surgery to repair the injuries she sustained to her arm, hip, and buttocks.
On February 5, 2024, the defendant was convicted of the following charges after a jury trial heard before Supreme Court Justice Timothy P. Mazzei:
- One count of Attempted Murder in the Second Degree, a Class B violent felony;
- One count of Assault in the First Degree, a Class B violent felony;
- Two counts of Endangering the Welfare of a Child, Class A misdemeanors; and
- One count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Fourth Degree, a Class A misdemeanor.
On March 11, 2024, the defendant was sentenced to 25 years in prison followed by five years of post-release supervision. He was represented by Scott Zerner, Esq.
If you or anyone you know is a victim of domestic violence, please contact the Suffolk County Police Department. Additionally, to contact the 24-hour hotline for Long Island Against Domestic Violence, please call 631-666-8833. To contact the 24-hour Crisis Hopeline for ECLI VIBES, please call 631-360-3606.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Zachary Kelly of the Child Abuse and Domestic Violence Bureau and Veronica McMahon of the Major Crime Bureau, and the investigation was conducted by Detective Cory Malinowski of the Suffolk County Police Department’s First Squad.
Criminal complaints and indictments are merely accusatory instruments. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. No one is above the law.