First Assistant District Attorney Michael J. Flaherty, Jr. announces that 21 year-old Jeffrey Williams was sentenced by State Supreme Court Justice Deborah Haendiges to a term of 12 years’ incarceration for assaulting his ex-girlfriend. Williams previously pleaded guilty as charged to Assault in the First Degree in State Supreme Court. This was the highest charge for which the defendant could have been convicted had he gone to trial. In other words, Williams did not receive a so-called “plea bargain” and was instead prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

The Court learned that on April 14^th of this year, Williams broke into his ex-girlfriend’s residence in a rage and stabbed her multiple times, collapsing her lung and lacerating her liver. He then dragged her half-naked out of the house, forced her into his car, and drove for fifteen minutes while he continued to beat her. Williams eventually returned to the victim’s residence where he kicked her battered body out of his car and onto the front lawn. Witnesses recounted that while the victim lay gasping for breath, and family came to comfort her, Williams said to his victim, “[T]his is what happens when you lie to me.”

Flaherty noted that Williams was arrested only a few hours later due to the outstanding efforts of Buffalo Police Officers Patrick McDonald and Mark Ambellan.

Williams’ illegal conduct did not stop upon arrest, however, as he called the victim twice from jail in violation of a No Contact Order of Protection. Williams used a third party to connect his call to the victim since he was prohibited from dialing her number directly. After Williams spoke to her, the victim fled the state.

With the assistance of New York State Police Senior Investigator Kevin Kendall, in connection with the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department and DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office, the victim was located outside of Atlanta, Georgia, and returned to Buffalo in order to prosecute Williams to the fullest extent of the law.

“While the severity of this assault is, fortunately, rare,” Flaherty observed, “this is but one of too many examples of violence inflicted upon women every day in Erie County. We are fortunate to have such skilled medical professionals at ECMC who probably saved the victim’s life.  The District Attorney’s Office will continue to do all we can to prosecute those who commit these crimes and also we will support their victims.  Once again, the efforts of the patrol officers and detectives from the Buffalo Police Department led to the apprehension and successful prosecution of this defendant and they deserve great praise.”

The case was successfully prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney James Marra, who was assigned to the Erie County District Attorney’s Domestic Violence Bureau.