POUGHKEEPSIE – Paul Senecal, 38, convicted of the brutal murder of his ex-girlfriend’s daughter, was sentenced to life in prison without parole by Dutchess County Court Judge Edward McLoughlin on Monday, April 10, 2023. In addition to the first-degree murder charge, Senecal was also convicted of two charges of murder in the second degree for which he was sentenced to 25-to-life for each count. He was also sentenced to 25-to-life for burglary with five years of post-release supervision. He was also sentenced to one year in the Dutchess County Jail for misdemeanor criminal contempt. All of the sentences will run concurrently (at the same time).
Senecal murdered Melanie Chianese on May 29, 2022. The Mid-Hudson News coverage of the incident can be found here.
Before being sentenced, Senecal was in the courtroom as his ex-girlfriend, Cheryl Chianese, expressed the pain and anguish caused by Senecal when he murdered her 29-year-old daughter Melanie. “Melanie was living her best life and taking care of her three-year-old autistic son, Myles,” she explained. Chianese spoke of the terror Senecal rained down on her family after the two broke up, including constant stalking that resulted in him being arrested seven different times for violating the orders of protection that Cheryl and Melanie had against him.
Chianese told McLoughlin that she feels guilty for “Making a poor choice that put my family in extreme danger and ultimately led to my daughter’s murder.” The victim’s mother told of not being home at the time he attacked her with kitchen knives but watched in horror through her Ring camera app. “I watched the defendant brutally stab my daughter on my Ring camera as she ran for her life, covering her wound to her neck, while soaked in her own blood,” she tearfully explained.
Senecal’s defense attorney, Dutchess County Senior Assistant Public Defender August Dumser encouraged McLoughlin to consider, despite the testimony of experts, that Senecal has a mental illness that should be considered in the sentencing. Senior Assistant District Attorney Lindsey Richards, who prosecuted the case, called Senecal’s actions “calculated and deliberate” in the way he went about the murder. “He butchered Melanie Chianese in the sanctity of her own home.”
McLoughlin, after hearing a nearly inaudible expression of remorse from Senecal said, “My inclination to refer to you as a monster gives you too much credit. You’re not a monster…you are a coward…a vicious coward.” The judge also expressed the need for an extremely harsh sentence due to Senecal’s disregard for restraining orders, saying, “I am absolutely asking for and demanding, begging frankly, for the most restrictive conditions possible by the Department of Corrections.” He also served Senecal with a 99-year restraining order prohibiting him from any contact with Ms. Chianese or her grandson.
Video of Judge Edward McLoughlin sentencing Paul Senecal to life in prison without parole:
