Suffolk DA Sini: Man Who Stabbed Police Officer In Face Found Guilty Of Attempted Murder
Riverhead, NY - May 3, 2018 - Suffolk County District Attorney Timothy D. Sini today announced the trial conviction of a man who stabbed a Suffolk County Police officer in the face while the officer was responding to a 911 call at a home in Central Islip on August 13, 2016.
“Police officers put their lives on the line every time they report for duty, and we will not tolerate violence against those who are sworn to keep us safe,” District Attorney Sini said. “I commend Assistant District Attorneys Laura Newcombe and Kathleen Kearon for ensuring that this individual was held accountable for his actions and for delivering justice for the police officers harmed in this attack.”
Mark Caraway, 42, was convicted by a jury of Attempted Aggravated Murder of a Police Officer, a class A felony, and five counts of Aggravated Assault on a Police Officer, a class B felony.
On August 13, 2016 at approximately 1:20 p.m., Suffolk County Police responded to a 911 call requesting a welfare check on Caraway, who was at a residence on Oakland Avenue. Caraway was reportedly acting irrationally, threatening to hurt himself and others in the residence, and had barricaded himself in the basement of the house.
“The officers could hear Caraway throwing things around and making noise in the room,” District Attorney Sini said. “When the noise stopped, police thought the defendant might have injured himself so they entered the barricaded room to check on his wellbeing. It was during this attempt to check on his welfare that the defendant attacked responding officers.”
When police officers entered the room, Caraway, who was armed with two knives, slashed one of the officers in the face several times, nearly severing his nose. The officer, a 24-year veteran of the department who was assigned to the Emergency Services Section at the time of the incident, underwent four hours of surgery for his injuries at Stony Brook University Hospital.
Caraway refused to drop the weapons and officers discharged a Taser in an attempt to subdue him. After multiple attempts to tase the defendant, he continued to be aggressive and another responding officer fired a single shot at Caraway, striking him in the abdomen.
Caraway was treated for his injuries at Southside Hospital in Bay Shore, where he was arraigned on an indictment and remanded without bail on September 12, 2016 by Suffolk County Court Justice Stephen L. Braslow.
The trial began on April 23 and the jury deliberated for approximately six hours before delivering a verdict of guilty on all charges.
Caraway was remanded without bail and is scheduled to be sentenced on June 6 in front of Suffolk County Supreme Court Justice John B. Collins. He faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in prison on the Attempted Murder and a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison determinate on the Assault charges for a total maximum sentence, if run consecutively, of 50 years to life in prison.
“This attack was a stark reminder of the sacrifice our officers make each and every day to protect our communities,” Suffolk County Police Commissioner Geraldine Hart said. “On behalf of the police department, I thank the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office for bringing this perpetrator to justice.”
The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Laura Newcombe with assistance from Assistant District Attorney Kathleen Kearon, both of the Homicide Bureau.