Appeal by man who attacked wife rejected
Adamo stabbed victim more than dozen times in 2014
TROY, N.Y. » A Rensselaer County Court judge has dismissed a motion to vacate the conviction of a Wynantskill man who admitted he tried to kill his wife in 2014.
According to the Rensselaer County District Attorney’s Office, Joseph Adamo Jr. unsuccessfully tried to cite mental health issues in asking the court to vacate the guilty plea he made to a single count of attempted murder under a deal that led to his being sentenced to 18 years in prison by Judge Debra Young in January 2015.
“We are pleased that this decision assures the victim that this dangerous defendant will remain in state prison, where he belongs,” District Attorney Joel Abelove said in a statement.
Adamo, a teacher in the Albany City School District, admitted he stabbed his wife, Gina, multiple times inside their home at 37 Kent Place on March 17, 2014. In making his plea Jan. 16, 2015, Adamo said through his attorney, E. Stewart Jones, that he struggled with mentalhealth issues leading up to the incident, although he added that was not an excuse for his actions.
In asking to overturn the conviction, however, Adamo now says he was incapable of understanding his actions due to mental defect. In rejecting that bid, however, the court ruled he gave sufficient assurances of his ability to understand his actions when he made his guilty plea.
Adamo also argued that forensic DNA testing demonstrates he is not guilty because it proves his attack was not a voluntary act, but instead a side effect of prescription medication he was taking. That argument was also rejected by the court, citing the fact that no testing had been performed since his conviction in 2015.
Police said Gina Adamo was stabbed more than a dozen times and also sustained defensive wounds before the attack was reportedly interrupted by Joseph Adamo’s father, Joseph Sr. Joseph Adamo Jr. was initially charged with second- degree attempted murder, assault and criminal possession of a weapon.
Adamo most recently was housed at the Five Points Correctional Facility in the Finger Lakes region, according to the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. He is not eligible for parole until June 2029.