Man Who Fatally Stabbed Peekskill Teen Sentenced to 20 Years in Jail
A Peekskill man who fatally stabbed a Peekskill High School student in March 2020 and later attacked another prisoner at Westchester County Jail was sentenced September 2 to 20 years in state prison.
Jahliv Niles, 20, also received five years post-release supervision from Judge Barry Warhit in Westchester County Court for stabbing 17-year-old Omarion McKenzie in the chest, stomach and back on Howard Street in Peekskill on March 27, 2020 at about 11:15 a.m.
McKenzie later died at NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital in Cortlandt. Niles fled the scene but was identified and arrested by Peekskill Police. Westchester County Police assisted in the investigation.
Niles pled guilty on May 11, 2021 to manslaughter in the first degree and assault in the second degree, both felonies.
“Family and friends of Omarion McKenzie have been forced to mourn a life that was tragically cut short due to a senseless act of cruelty,” Westchester District Attorney Mimi Rocah said. “This sentence will bring some measure of closure and justice to them and to the Peekskill community.”
On May 19, 2020, Rocah said Niles attacked a fellow detainee at Westchester County Jail, where he had been held since his arrest following the Peekskill incident.
Rick has more than 40 years’ experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, running the gamut from politics and crime to sports and human interest. He has been an editor at Examiner Media since 2012. Read more from Rick’s editor-author bio here. Read Rick’s work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/pezzullo_rick-writer/
