So far, five murders have been committed. In four of these cases, an arrest has been made. In one case, the investigation is still ongoing.

According to the New York State Crime Index, Chautauqua County has averaged 2.5 murders per year since 2000.

At least one murder has been recorded in the county every year since 2000. The highest number was in 2008, when there were six homicides, one fewer than this year.

After Darius Kadenhead of Buffalo was charged in July with the Jan. 22 killing at the Parkview Apartments in Jamestown, Chautauqua County Prosecutor Jason Schmidt noted the spike in homicides. “Mr. (Marlon) Clay’s death was our first homicide of 2024. In the three months since, before the end of April, there have been a total of five confirmed homicides in our relatively small community. That’s more than the number of homicides in the city of Boston, Massachusetts, through June, if you can believe it,” he said.

The death of 12-year-old Mya Smith has been ruled suspicious.

In a follow-up interview, Schmidt said it was difficult to say why there was such a jump.

He did not speculate on the motive for Kadenhead’s death or that of Trevon D. Tripp, 26, of Dunkirk. He was shot and killed at 839 Prendergast Ave. in Jamestown.

William Hernandez, 53, and Juan C. Rivera, 35, of Jamestown, are expected to be indicted by a Chautauqua County grand jury in connection with Tripp’s death. Both men were arrested in unrelated incidents.

Schmidt also noted that of the five homicides that occurred in 2024, three of the victims were children.

On April 13, Matthew E. Nuttall, 26, allegedly caused the death of 16-month-old Isaac Benton by blunt force trauma.

Nuttall allegedly threw the child into a Pack-and-Play portable crib because he was frustrated that the baby would not stop crying. The child’s spinal cord was severed, resulting in his death.

In a separate case, Sean Thomas, 26, was charged with second-degree murder and other crimes in the death of Aniyah Turk.

Thomas is accused of intentionally strangling and shaking Aniyah on and before April 22, causing catastrophic and irreparable injuries that required her to be hospitalized on life support until she ultimately succumbed to her injuries in May.

The third case involves a Silver Creek child who died in April. No arrests have been made in that case, but Schmidt said his office is actively investigating.

On April 30, the Silver Creek Central School District announced it was mourning the death of seventh-grader Mya Smith, who died the day before.

At a press conference on August 2, Schmidt noted that the three child deaths all occurred in April. “April, by the way, was National (Child) Abuse Awareness and Prevention Month, which is a horrible irony for all of us,” he said.

The only good news is that no murders have been reported in Chautauqua County in the last three months. All five murders occurred before May 1.

Chautauqua County

Homicides 2024

— Jan. 22 — Marlon Clay, 28, shot and killed at Parkview Apartments in Jamestown. Darius Kadenhead of Buffalo is charged.

— March 18 – Trevon D. Tripp, 26, of Dunkirk, shot and killed at 839 Prendergast Ave. in Jamestown. William Hernandez, 53, and Juan C. Rivera, 35, of Jamestown were arrested.

— April 13 – Isaac Benton, 16 months, of Jamestown, is killed by blunt force trauma. Matthew E. Nuttall, 26, is charged.

— April 22 – Eight-month-old Aniyah Turk of Jamestown was killed after being shaken and strangled, causing catastrophic and irreparable injuries that required her to be hospitalized on life support until she finally succumbed to her injuries in May.

— April 29 – Mya Smith, of Silver Creek 12, dies. The case is being treated as suspicious. No arrests have been made. The investigation is ongoing.