TO: ALL NEWS MEDIA
FROM: HOLLEY CARNRIGHT, DISTRICT ATTORNEY
DATE: JULY 20, 2017
The
Appellate Division, Third Department has today unanimously affirmed the December
20, 2013 conviction of Gerald Babcock of manslaughter in the first degree, a
class B violent felony.
The
victim of the crime was defendant’s fiancée, age 36, who suffered from multiple
sclerosis. On the morning of March 6, 2013, the defendant beat her about the
head causing severe head trauma, brain swelling and two large subdural
hematomas, strangled her, and then dragged her outside into the freezing Winter
weather, down a set of stairs where he left her, barely conscious and hardly breathing,
to die. The victim died the following
day from multiple blunt force injuries and strangulation.
Following
his conviction of manslaughter in the first degree, the defendant was sentenced
by County Court Judge Donald A. Williams to a 25 year sentence to be followed
by five years of postrelease supervision.
On
appeal, the defendant challenged the Court’s pretrial ruling which allowed
evidence of his prior bad acts of domestic violence against the victim. In addition, the defendant argued that the
verdict, particularly with respect to the element of intent, was against the
weight of the evidence, that the Court’s imposition of the maximum sentence was
unduly harsh and excessive and that County Court erred when it failed to
instruct five courtroom spectators, who were wearing purple ribbons that
signified their opposition to domestic violence, to remove their ribbons. Each of these claims, however, were addressed
at length by the Appellate Division, Third Department and ultimately
rejected.
On
appeal, the defendant is represented by Neal D. Futerfas, Esq. of White Plains,
New York. Assistant District Attorney Joan
Gudesblatt Lamb, Esq. handled the appeal for the District Attorney’s Office.
