13-Year-Old Charged in Newburgh Child's Murder Returns to Court Over Discovery

A 13-year-old defendant charged with second-degree murder in the Oct. 9, 2025, shooting that killed an 11-year-old inside a home on North Miller Street near South Street in the City of Newburgh returned to Orange County court on March 4, 2026, where defense attorneys and prosecutors again sparred over evidence and discovery.

Police recovered a firearm at the scene and took the teenager into custody within 12 hours of the shooting, police and CBS New York reported. Newburgh officials told reporters that “Three juveniles of interest were identified and quickly located by police,” and investigators said the two children involved were not relatives, with CBS noting, “Police have not released either child's name, but said they are not relatives.”

Courtroom proceedings on March 4 focused on competing discovery claims; the original report summary states defense counsel and prosecutors “again sparred over evidence,” though the filings and specifics of which items are contested were not detailed in the public summaries available after the hearing. A separate video excerpt posted to a social video platform noted, “A judge set bail Monday for a 13-year-old charged in the shooting death of an 11-year-old boy in Newburgh and imposed strict limits on who” could be present in court, but that excerpt is truncated and does not supply the bail amount, the exact Monday date referred to, or the content of the attendance limits.

Family and community accounts have been part of the public record since the October incident. Relatives issued a statement to News12 Westchester that read, “On behalf of our family, we want to thank the City of Newburgh and all police agencies involved in the apprehension of the shooter,” and News12 identified the victim in that statement as Matthew Degroat. An earlier excerpted report used the spelling Matthew DeGroat; media records in circulation therefore show conflicting spellings of the victim’s surname across outlets.

Neighbors and strangers held a candlelight memorial outside the North Miller Street home after the boy was found dead from a gunshot wound, CBS reported. Community members quoted in republished coverage described shock and grief: Tamie Hollins said, “I'm heartbroken. My community is heartbroken. We're talking about kids,” Melanie Gonzalez said, “A lot of things came through my head. I wanted to go to school and pick up my child. It was horrible,” and Glenn Pugh, a nearby coffee shop owner, said, “It broke me. I was inconsolable ... Who would want to hurt an 11-year-old?” and, “He was the sweetest kid you'd ever want to meet. I know it's cliché to say that he was a good kid, but he was a great kid. Very, very well-mannered. Very well spoken.”

Court records available in public reporting do not yet show whether prosecutors will seek to transfer the case out of the family court framework or whether any additional juveniles will be charged; the March 4 appearance left discovery disputes unresolved. The case remains active in Orange County court as attorneys continue to litigate access to evidence and the conditions under which further hearings will proceed.