Taurus 9 mm semi-automatic pistol
On May 2, Westchester County District Attorney Susan Cacace announced that Noel Thomas, 30, of Yonkers, was convicted at trial this week of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second and Third Degrees.
This represents Thomas’ third such conviction for a designated felony offense, rendering him a persistent violent felony offender. Under the law, he is required to be sentenced to an indeterminate sentence for which the maximum term must be life imprisonment.
Thomas is scheduled to be sentenced on June 27 before Westchester County Court Judge Maurice D. Williams.
DA Cacace said: “The defendant has had ample opportunity during the course of his life to find a better path. Instead, he chose to revert to criminality time and time again. In New York, individuals who repeatedly flout the most serious criminal laws are given carceral penalties that match the severity of their conduct.
“There is no question that gun violence remains among the most persistent problems we face as a society today. We must use every tool at our disposal to protect Westchester residents from its attendant harms.”
On Aug. 24, 2023, members of the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) New Rochelle Office, with assistance from the Yonkers Police Department’s Gang Unit, conducted a search of Thomas’ residence. Thomas had been on parole for an Attempted Criminal Possession of a Weapon conviction from 2018.
A Taurus 9 mm semi-automatic pistol loaded with nine cartridges was discovered during the search.
DA Cacace wishes to thank DOCCS, the Yonkers Police Department, the Westchester County Department of Labs and Research and the Westchester County Department of Public Safety for their work on this case.
The case is being prosecuted by Senior Trial Counsel Brian Bendish and Assistant District Attorney Celia Curtis.
