'Unspeakable Violence': Judge Hands Down Maximum Sentence In Cold-Blooded 2024 Shooting

CRAWFORD, NY — A callus disregard for human life was met with a stiff sentence in an Orange County courtroom.

A Middletown man convicted in the 2024 shooting of a Town of Crawford resident was sentenced Tuesday to 40 years in prison, followed by five years of post-release supervision, according to Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler. Anthony Parrish, 56, was sentenced Nov. 10, by Orange County Court Judge Craig Stephen Brown after a jury convicted him in September on all counts charged.

Those convictions included attempted murder in the second degree, assault in the first degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree, criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree, criminal possession of a controlled substance in the fourth degree and two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the fifth degree.

"The maximum sentence imposed is the only appropriate sentence for the unspeakable violence perpetrated by this defendant," Hoovler said. "Despite the defendant’s best efforts to abscond from the jurisdiction before being caught, the hard work of multiple police agencies ensured that this violent offender was located and brought to justice. Thankfully, the victim survived the ordeal and was able to bravely speak at the sentencing. We remain committed to the pursuit of violent crimes and the criminals who perpetrate them."

Parrish went to the victim’s home in the Town of Crawford on June 6, 2024, at about 8 a.m. and shot him twice in the head before fleeing. The victim, despite what were described as grievous injuries, crawled from the home to a main road and flagged down another person, who called 911.

A Town of Crawford police sergeant had been at the property the day before on an unrelated matter, when Parrish was also there on a motorbike. The victim was able to indicate to the officer that the shooter was the man on the motorbike from the previous day. The sergeant then reviewed body-worn camera footage from that earlier visit, identified the plate on the motorbike and identified Parrish.

Police then issued a be-on-the-lookout alert, and a City of Middletown police officer saw Parrish at a bus stop in Middletown. After he was detained, police recovered a duffle bag containing a loaded firearm later discovered to be the gun used in the shooting, along with quantities of narcotics. Parrish’s DNA was located on both the gun and the drug packaging.

Hoovler also thanked the Town of Crawford Police, the City of Middletown Police Department and the New York State Police for their roles in the investigation.