Gionni Sellers Previously Convicted by Jury of Murder in the Second Degree
Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler announced that Gionni Sellers, age 26, of Middletown, was sentenced by the Honorable Craig Stephen Brown in the Orange County Court to twenty-five (25) years to life in prison, the maximum sentence permitted by law, after having been convicted by a jury of both charges against him, including Murder in the Second Degree and Manslaughter in the First Degree for having murdered a three (3) year old child in his care.
As alleged at trial, for a period of time in May and June of 2022, Sellers was responsible for watching the three (3) year old son of his girlfriend. In June, police responded to the residence and found the child unresponsive and not breathing. Despite all of the efforts of the first responders, the child was pronounced deceased upon arriving at the hospital. An investigation revealed that in the days leading up to the child’s death, Sellers inflicted blunt force trauma about the child’s head and torso. The devastating injuries caused grievous harm throughout the child’s body, including severe trauma to the child’s brain, which ultimately caused his death. A review of Sellers’s phone revealed internet searches including “why do younger men want to hurt baby” and “baby breathing heavy after being shook.” The jury unanimously concluded, after less than an hour of deliberations, that the People proved, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Sellers had recklessly engaged in conduct which created a grave risk of death to the child, under circumstances evincing a depraved indifference to human life, and thereby caused the death of the child.
The investigation was conducted by the Town of Wallkill Police Department, assisted by the New York State Police, the Hudson Valley Crime Analysis Center and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
District Attorney Hoovler thanked all the law enforcement agencies involved for the investigation which led to the arrest and conviction of Sellers.
“This defendant’s proven depraved and wicked conduct deserved nothing short of the maximum sentence permitted by law,” said District Attorney David M. Hoovler. “We worked together with our law enforcement partners to give voice to the voiceless. While the verdict and sentence cannot return what the defendant has taken from our community, I hope that it will offer a degree of closure to the friends and family of the victim. I commend the dedication of the police and prosecutors responsible for holding this defendant accountable for his unspeakable crimes.”
The case is being prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Tanja Beemer and Assistant District Attorney Peter Fernandez.
This criminal charge is merely an allegation that a defendant has committed a violation of the criminal law, and it is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the State of New York’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
