Man convicted in Yonkers murder dies in prison

A Yonkers man sentenced in February to 25 years to life for the murder of a neighbor died this summer in prison.

State prison officials are awaiting the autopsy results from the Chemung County Medical Examiner's Office for 31-year-old Terrence Gonzalez. He was found dead in his cell at Elmira Correctional Facility on June 25, a day before the third anniversary of the killing of Lateef Butler.

Westchester County Judge George Fufidio imposed the maximum prison term on Gonzalez following his conviction for second-degree murder. Gonzalez shot Butler five times outside their apartment building at 354 Nepperhan Ave. and was arrested a short time later in a nearby park after ditching the gun there.

The jury rejected Gonzalez's claim of self-defense.

Gonzalez was sentenced Feb. 16 and sent to the prison in Elmira a week later.

As in most criminal cases, Gonzalez's lawyer filed a notice of intent to appeal. That means the conviction is expected to be abated, or thrown out, as a result of Gonzalez's death because he had not exhausted his appeals.

Five inmates have died at Elmira this year among 66 inmate deaths in the state, including one suicide and one from natural causes, according to records of the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. The cause of death for Gonzalez and two others are currently listed as unknown.

A letter from DOCCS to Westchester County court in July indicated only that Gonzalez had been "released" and that he had paid off just over $250 of the $350 he owed for a mandatory surcharge and the crime-victim assistance fee imposed at sentencing.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Terrence Gonzalez, convicted in Yonkers murder, dies in prison