CT teen charged in student’s fatal stabbing identified
A fight at one Shelton house party Saturday night led to murder at another about a mile away, according to an arrest warrant charging a 16-year-old Milford teen in the stabbing death of Fairfield Prep student James McGrath.
The suspect, Raul Valle, was identified Thursday in court documents and at state Superior Court in Derby following his appearance on charges of murder and three counts of first-degree assault.
Outside the courthouse, Valle's lawyer, Jake Donovan, said he hadn't yet reviewed the case against his client, who a judge ordered held in lieu of $2 million bond.
“Obviously, this is an unspeakable tragedy for everyone involved and it would be irresponsible for me to make any comment before I had a chance to examine all the evidence in the case,” Donovan told reporters.
According to the warrant, witnesses told police that Valle was at a party on Shelton's Lazy Brook Road Saturday night for students of St.
Joseph High School in Trumbull.
At some point, a group of kids from Shelton High School arrived and an altercation occurred between two groups from the opposing schools.
The fight broke up and the Shelton High kids left — some going to another house party on Laurel Glen Drive — but the two groups “were bad mouthing each other” in a group chat, one witness said.
Valle and several others then drove to the Laurel Glen Drive home, were told to leave, and another fight began on the lawn of the property, the warrant states. Several teens were stabbed during the scuffle.
According to one witness, the fight stopped, and the Shelton High group let Valle get up. He started to walk to his car “and everyone was leaving him alone,” the witness told police. McGrath was standing nearby, though “no one was going after” Valle, the warrant states.
“He stated (Valle) then turns around and takes his knife and stabs (McGrath) right in the stomach and pulls it out,” the warrant, written by Detective Richard Bango, quotes the witness as saying.
McGrath was rushed to Bridgeport Hospital but died about an hour later. Three others were also stabbed, according to the warrant, but have since been released from the hospital.
The warrant did not indicate whether McGrath knew Valle or any of the other suspects, who drove away from the party after the fight.
The warrant said Valle was identified by several witnesses and arrested Wednesday in connection with the incident.
He appeared before Judge H. Gordon Hall at state Superior Court in Derby Thursday morning in a hearing that was closed to the public. The judge ordered Valle held on $2 million bond and transferred the case to Milford Superior Court, with the next hearing scheduled for June 7.
Valle's family members declined to comment.
According to the warrant, more than 50 teenagers attended the house party at Laurel Glen Drive where police found “multiple people” on the front lawn suffering from stab wounds after being called to the scene shortly before midnight.
An autopsy revealed McGrath had been stabbed once in the left side of his chest, the warrant stated. The puncture went several inches deep and “through the rib and the heart.”
In a letter to the school community, St. Joseph President David J. Klein said social workers and counselors would be available for students as “they grieve and attempt to process the widereaching impact of this incident.”
“Our entire school community is horrified and deeply saddened by the tragic death of James ‘Jimmy' McGrath,” Klein wrote in the letter. “We are all still shocked by this heartbreaking situation.”
McGrath, a Fairfield Prep lacrosse player, was honored Wednesday night before a game against Shelton High.
In a prepared statement Fairfield Prep said the school community “mourns the loss of junior Jimmy McGrath and we extend our deepest sympathies to the McGrath family.
“Jimmy was a beloved student and athlete on the football and lacrosse teams, and will forever be a member of the Prep Brotherhood,” the school's statement said.
More than 1,000 people gathered at a private prayer service on campus Sunday, the school said, followed by a service Monday where President Christian Cashman addressed students, faculty, and staff.
“May God bless Jimmy McGrath, Class of 2023, forever a man for others, forever a son of Fairfield Prep,” Cashman said.
The school said students and faculty have the support of the school's leadership team, Jesuit priests, campus ministers, counselors from Prep and Fairfield University to offer help while grieving this tragic loss.
In a prepared statement earlier this week, Bridgeport Diocese Bishop Frank Caggiano offered condolences to McGrath's family “at this most troubling and distressing moment.”
The bishop asked for prayers “for all those affected by this sudden loss and unthinkable tragedy.”
“The incident is under investigation, and there is much we do not know about the circumstances,” he said. “However, we do know it has left a deep and lasting trauma for the families and for the Fairfield Prep students and many others who must deal with their grief and shock in the coming day.”
In a statement posted on the St. Joseph High Facebook page, the school also offered its support to the Fairfield Prep community.
“St. Joseph High School holds the Fairfield Prep School Community close to our hearts and in our prayers,” the post said. “There are no words to properly describe such sadness in the wake of this devastating and profound loss of young life filled with such great promise. We call upon our community to offer prayers for the Fairfield Prep Community and the McGrath family as they grieve the death of a student and cherished classmate.”