Westchester County District Attorney Susan Cacace announced Friday, May 2, that Noel Thomas, 30, of Yonkers, was convicted at trial this week of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree and separately in the third degree for which he could face life in prison due to previous felony offenses. The announcement follows the Trump administration’s commitment since inauguration to curb repeat offenders of felony crimes.

 

She said this represents Thomas’ third such conviction for a designated felony offense, rendering him a “persistent violent felony offender,” and that 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. “The defendant has had ample opportunity during the course of his life to find a better path,” Cacace said. “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.”

 

She continued, “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, according to Westchester County prosecutors, members of the NYS 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’ home. They said Thomas had been on parole for an attempted criminal possession of a weapon conviction from 2018, and said a Taurus 9 mm semi-automatic pistol loaded with nine cartridges was discovered during the search.

 

We asked the Westchester DA’s office for details of Thomas’s prior arrests/convictions and will share any additional information we receive.

 

On April 9, a White House proclamation to mark National Crime Victims’ Rights Week from the Office of the President read in part, “To aid the righteous mission of the men and women in blue, my Administration is committed to enhancing legal protections for law enforcement officers. I am also asking the Congress for a new crime bill that will get tough on repeat offenders while enhancing protection for our law enforcement officials, so they can do their jobs without fear of their lives being destroyed.”

 

It continued, “Under my leadership, America will soon, once again, be a country where the blessings of life and peace exist freely in our homes, at places of work and worship, and throughout our cities, streets, and neighborhoods. Our citizens will be able to live without the threat of getting robbed, assaulted, or shot. This week, as we honor the lives of victims and their families, I reaffirm my solemn pledge to build a safer, stronger, and more secure Nation for citizens of every race, religion, color, and creed.”

 

Cacace thanked 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 the case, which is being prosecuted by Senior Trial Counsel Brian Bendish and Assistant District Attorney Celia Curtis.