Massapequa Woman Pleads Not Guilty To Murder, Claims Man Who Died In Father’s Arms Assaulted Her: Attorney

MINEOLA, NY — 22-year-old Massapequa native Kristin Sculley pleaded not guilty to the murder of Robert Carragher III in court Wednesday.

In an announcement of Sculley's indictment, prosecutors said Sculley had stabbed Carragher in the neck while he was asleep.

Sculley appeared in court Wednesday, was read her rights and entered her not guilty plea.

Prosecutors said Sculley had a history of drug use and had known Carragher for several years before his death. According to the prosecution, Sculley and Carragher had used drugs together and had been using drugs on the night of the fatal stabbing. The prosecution also claimed that a romantic relationship was beginning between the two — a statement her attorney Dennis Lemke disputed.

As for the fatal stabbing, the prosecution said Sculley had spent several hours in Carragher’s bedroom the night the stabbing occurred.

At some point in the night, the prosecution said, Sculley, “left [Carragher's] bedroom to retrieve a knife from her purse, which was located in an adjacent room,” and stabbed him with it one time, causing him to climb the stairs to the first floor of his parents’ home and call for help.

In a briefing earlier this month, Nassau County police said Carragher died in his father's arms after his parents tried to stop the bleeding.

Defense attorney speaks out

Sculley's defense attorney, Dennis Lemke, said Carragher had drugged and sexually assaulted her on the night he was fatally stabbed.

Speaking to the press, Lemke said there were differing accounts of what had happened the night of the stabbing. Lemke said Sculley had been at Carragher’s house the night of the fatal stabbing to buy drugs from him.

Sculley, Lemke said in court, had told police at her arrest that she had been sexually assaulted after using a vape with an unidentified substance in it. The vape, Lemke said, made her feel “basically paralyzed” after use.

“There’s a difference as to what occurred. She gave a statement to the police…in which, right away, she had indicated that she had been sexually assaulted, that she was given some type of drug,” Lemke said. “She felt very loopy, she passed out, she woke up, he was on top of her, trying to abuse her, sexually. That’s when she grabbed a knife that was there and stabbed him one time.”

In court and in comments, Lemke said Sculley was not taken to a hospital for treatment, photographs or the administration of a rape kit after her arrest.

The prosecution denied the story of sexual assault, saying, “the evidence in this case shows otherwise.” Sculley, the prosecution said, had previously lied to police about where the knife used in the stabbing had come from. The prosecution added that Sculley, “had every opportunity to leave” the house the night of the stabbing.

“A 28-year-old man lost his life, and that can’t be swept under the table or anything else," Lemke told the press after the court appearance. "Obviously, my client, Ms. Sculley, is involved in that death. But it’s now a matter of what circumstances caused [her] to take a life."

To that end, Lemke said his client was “loopy” after the stabbing, and that she passed out in the house.

“This isn’t a rage, this isn’t an anger, where [the victim] was stabbed five, six, 10, 15, 16 times,” Lemke said. “At that point, she still was very loopy, she went and passed out only 15 feet away. She told the detectives what had occurred…It comes down to whether she was justified, and that’s it. But, again, someone lost their life.”

In an announcement of Sculley's indictment, the district attorney's office said, "Police located [Sculley] hiding in the basement laundry room, which is located in the basement near the victim’s bedroom, with blood on her clothing. A knife was also recovered in the laundry room."

As for his client’s condition, Lemke said Sculley was, “very upset, emotionally, because she was involved with taking the life of another individual, as well as dealing with what had occurred.”

Sculley was remanded behind bars by Judge Robert Bogle Wednesday, a decision that was met with applause from the gallery of the courtroom.

Speaking outside the court, Michael DePalma, identifying himself as a family friend, said “a small bit of justice” had been served when Sculley was remanded.

Sculley is due back in court July 24, and faces up to 25 years to life in prison if found guilty, prosecutors said.

"No family should ever have to endure the nightmare that the victim’s parents experienced as their son died in their arms," district attorney Anne Donnelly said Wednesday.