Poughkeepsie man arraigned on murder, weapon possession charges, in August shooting death

Mike Randall, Poughkeepsie Journal
·2 min read

A suspect in the shooting death of a man in Poughkeepsie last summer was arraigned in Dutchess County Court on Wednesday.

Dutchess County District Attorney William Grady said Devin A. Taylor, 26 was arraigned on an indictment charging him with second-degree murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, both felonies.

Taylor, whose last known address was in the town of Poughkeepsie, is accused of the murder of Darren J. Villani on Aug. 9, 2022. Villani was found around 1:45 a.m. on that date, lying in the road on Mansion Street next to his car with a gunshot wound to his chest.

He was taken to MidHudson Regional Hospital in Poughkeepsie, where he was pronounced dead.

Dutchess County Court Judge Edward T. McLoughlin ordered that Taylor continue to be held without bail at the Dutchess County Jail, pending a Feb. 22, court appearance.

Taylor has been held at the jail since he was arrested in another case about two months after he allegedly murdered Villani.

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Taylor was one of two suspects arrested following the Oct. 2 shooting at the Courtyard by Marriott in the town of Poughkeepsie, which claimed the life of a parent of a Marist College student, Paul Kutz.

Taylor was charged with second-degree criminal possession of a weapon in that case for having a loaded .223-caliber rifle with no serial number. Another suspect, Roy Johnson, was charged with second-degree murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon in that case.

Taylor faces 25 years to life in prison if he is convicted of the charges in the indictment accusing him of shooting Villani.

Mike Randall covers breaking news for the Times Herald-Record, the Poughkeepsie Journal and the Journal News-lohud. Reach him at mrandall@th-record.com or on Twitter @mikerandall845.

This article originally appeared on Poughkeepsie Journal: Suspect arraigned for murder in Poughkeepsie man's death