Defendant to be Sentenced to 10 Years in State Prison

Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler announced on that on July 21, 2021, Aaron Stone, 34, of Middletown, pleaded guilty before Orange County Court Judge Craig Stephen Brown to Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree. The plea was in connection with his possession of a loaded handgun on January 28, 2020, in the City of Newburgh. Pursuant to the plea agreement placed on the record at the time Stone pleaded guilty, he will receive a sentence of ten years in state prison when he is sentenced on September 1, 2021.

On January 28, 2020, at approximately 6:00 pm, City of Newburgh Police Officers were notified that there had been multiple shots fired in the vicinity of Benkard Avenue. When the police arrived, they found numerous spent bullet casings. Two individuals who had been in the area, including Stone, were treated for gunshot wounds at St. Luke’s Hospital. Police located two semiautomatic handguns in the vicinity of where the shootings had been reported. Those firearms were submitted to the New York State Police Laboratory for testing. At the time that he pleaded guilty, Stone admitted that he had possessed one of the loaded firearms.

District Attorney Hoovler thanked the City of Newburgh Police Department for their investigation, the arrest of Stone, and their assistance in his prosecution.

“As this case demonstrates, those who engage in illegal weapons possession risk not only lengthy incarceration, but being subjected to life-threatening violence themselves,” said District Attorney David M. Hoovler. “We are only too aware of the intolerable level of gun violence plaquing many of our cities. I applaud the City of Newburgh Police Department for the proactive steps that they have taken to decrease gun violence. I am proud to have partnered with them, and our other law enforcement partners, in the Gun Involved Violence Elimination (GIVE) initiative program, but there is obviously much more to do. My office will continue to seek state prison sentences for those who use or possess illegal handguns.”

The case is being prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Janine Kovacs.

This criminal charge is merely an allegation that a defendant has committed a violation of the criminal law, and it is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the State of New York’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.