POUGHKEEPSIE – Thirty-eight-year-old Paul Senecal, facing a felony murder charge for the May 29, 2022 murder of 29-year-old Melanie Chianese is scheduled for a competency hearing on October 25.
Senecal is accused of slashing Chianese to death in her Town of Wappinger home. Senecal fled the scene before the police arrived. A manhunt resulted in Senecal being found approximately two hours later, on the pedestrian sidewalk of the Mid-Hudson Bridge.
The original account of the murder and arrest can be found here.
Senecal, a Poughkeepsie resident, was arraigned on May 29 and remanded to the Dutchess County Jail without bail.
On October 25, 2022, Dutchess County Court Judge Edward McLoughlin will conduct a competency hearing to determine if the defendant is mentally capable to stand trial. The hearing is conducted to determine if the defendant understands the charges and proceedings and can assist his attorney with his defense.
