Orange County man indicted for attempted murder after 'brutal stabbing' in Ramapo

RAMAPO - A 23-year-old Orange County man has been indicted for attempted murder in connection with the stabbing of a man outside his house.

Elijah Dean is accused of stabbing an Orthodox Jewish man who had been walking down his driveway on Trailside Place on the night of April 11. The man is recovering from multiple wounds to his body, head, and neck. He had been taken by ambulance to Westchester Medical Center in serious condition.

Ramapo police have said the initial investigation determined the attack appeared random and there was no evidence to support a hate crime charge based on the person's religion or other factors.

Dean pleaded not guilty on Friday through his attorney in County Court to felony counts of second-degree attempted murder, two counts of first-degree assault, and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon. The attempted murder charge carries a prison sentence of up to 25 years if convicted.

Ramapo: Knife attack appears random, not hate crime: police

Dean, once a running back for Spring Valley High School, has been scheduled for psychiatric evaluations to determine his mental fitness to understand the charges and assist in his defense.

Dean is being held in the Rockland County Jail on $1 million cash bail, $5 million secured bond or $10 million partially secured bond at 10%. His next scheduled court appearance is June 18 before County Court Judge Anne Bianchi at the County Courthouse in New City.

Rockland District Attorney Thomas Walsh called the stabbing brutal.

“As alleged, this brutal act of apparently random violence is completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated in Rockland County," Walsh said in a news release on Monday.

The unidentified man stabbed had been walking down his Trailside Place driveway at 8:37 p.m. April 11 when he was attacked by a knife-wielding suspect, Ramapo police said.

Ramapo Police Detective Lt. Chris Franklin has said, "There has been no established motive for the stabbing, and it appears to be random. There are no grounds at this time to charge the incident as a hate crime."

The Ramapo police and other agencies arrested Dean on April 13 within 48 hours of the attack. The police have not release the details of what led them to arrest Dean.

The attack is reminiscent of a 2019 knifing and beating of a Hasidic Jewish rabbi walking to synagogue on Howard Drive in the early morning in November 2019.

A month later in late December, an Orange County man wielding a machete seriously injured six Orthodox Jewish men attending a Hanukkah party at a rabbi's home on Forshay Road. Joseph Neumann, 72, later died after months in a coma.

Grafton Thomas remains in a psychiatric facility after being found mentally unfit to understand the charges of murder and assault and assist in his defense. Thomas has been a police suspect in the predawn on the 30-year-old rabbi on Howard Drive. No arrests or charges have ever been made.

Executive Assistant District Attorney Kristin Tirino and Assistant District Attorney John Longo are prosecuting the case involving Dean. Attorney Yvonne Garbett represents Dean.

Steve Lieberman covers government, breaking news, courts, police, and investigations. Reach him at slieberm@lohud.com Twitter: @lohudlegal

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This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Orange County man indicted for attempted murder in Ramapo stabbing