Syracuse man gets 40 years to life for killing son, woman

Years of fear, multiple restraining orders and an overnight manhunt ended with a 40-years-to-life sentence in Onondaga County Court on Friday for David Huff, who admitted he shot and killed his 11-year-old son, Jeremiah Huff, and Yeraldith Tschudy, 32, at his stepfather’s Syracuse home on March 27, 2025. The plea agreement also meant Huff was not sentenced on the attempted murder charge tied to his stepfather, who was also shot, and New York State Police took Huff into custody near Upstate Community Hospital the morning after the shooting.

Jeremiah’s mother, Samantha Gallup Peltier, told the court she had lived in fear of Huff’s unpredictable behavior and said multiple restraining orders were already in place because of it. Her account showed how the warning signs were not hidden, even if they were not enough to prevent the killing.

Tschudy’s death widened the case beyond one household and one county line. She was a Rochester woman who died in the same attack that killed Jeremiah, and Onondaga County Chief Assistant District Attorney Robert Moran said Huff killed two of the three people who still showed him grace and tried to kill the third. Judge Robert Julianna told Huff that life in prison was not long enough for his actions.

For Onondaga County, the harder lesson is what can be done before violence turns fatal. The county’s Children’s Division says Child Protective Services investigates reports of suspected abuse and neglect 24 hours a day at 315-422-9701 or 1-800-342-3720, and can arrange preventive services when children are at risk. Vera House offers a 24-hour crisis and support line at 315-468-3260, while the New York State Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-800-942-6906. If a child or adult is in immediate danger, call 911. Teachers, social workers, bus drivers, doctors, nurses and counselors are among the mandated reporters who can make a difference, and the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Abused Persons Unit says it works with Vera House, Child Protective Services, the district attorney’s special victims bureau and other law enforcement agencies on domestic-violence cases. Those are the tools available before another Syracuse home becomes a crime scene.