A New Yorkwoman who was charged in an Afghanistan War veteran’s murder caught a lucky break Thursday, striking a plea deal that let her off on time served after Manhattan prosecutors claimed they couldn’t prove their case.
41-year-old Mary Saunders pleaded guilty to a downgraded charge of second-degree assault for her role in the 2018 stabbing death of Hason Correa in Harlem.
At the time, authorities alleged Saunders had tried to hold the 35-year-old married dad down as her two brothers repeatedly stabbed him in front of his father Wesley Correa.
But in court Thursday, Assistant District Attorney Dafna Yoran said Saunders only kicked and tried to punch the victim, and that those “did not appear to cause any damage.”
One of her brothers, James Saunders, took out a knife unbeknownst to Mary and stabbed Correa nine times, the prosecutor said.
“The people do not believe that we can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Mary Saunders knew that her brother had a knife, or that she shared the intent to kill Hason Correa.” Yoran told the judge.
Prosecutors said the Oct. 19, 2018 brawl started after Mary Saunders heard the Correas, her neighbors at the time, had beaten up her family friend with a glass bottle.
Mary, James, their brother Christopher Saunders and friend James Stewart confronted the Correas inside the apartment building, and the fight then spilled out into the middle of West 152nd Street.
According to prosecutors, Mary kicked Hason once and tried to hit him with her fist four times — while her brother James allegedly stabbed the vet, who later collapsed and died.
“It is clear from the evidence that Ms. Saunders presence was not a determining factor in causing the fatal injuries to Mr. Correa,” Yoran said.
Saunders turned herself in after the stabbing and was held without bail for 14 months on a charge of murder in the second degree and gang assault.
She was the only one of the four defendants who was freed from jail in 2019 after a Manhattan judge drastically cut her $250,000 cash bail because it was her first arrest and she has children.
On Thursday, Mary was sentenced to one year in jail by Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Gregory Carro under the terms of the plea deal. However, having already spent 14 months behind bars, she will not have to serve any additional jail time.
Prosecutors noted that Hason Correa’s mother Madeline Brame “is not in agreement with this disposition.”
The victim’s mom “is opposed to it and believes Ms. Saunders should be prosecuted for murder … and should be remanded,” Yoran said.
Yoran said that she told Brame that the DA’s office was still moving forward in prosecuting Christopher and James Saunders on murder charges.
The brothers, who went into hiding for almost a year after the stabbing, are both currently being held without bail pending trial.
Stewart – who’s been in jail for four years – pleaded guilty to attempted gang assault Thursday and is slated to be sentenced to seven years behind bars on June 29 under an agreement with the DA’s office.
Prosecutors said that while the 34-year-old had been involved in the fight, he wasn’t part of the brawl when James Saunders allegedly stabbed Hason Correa. Saunders also allegedly stabbed Wesley Correa more than ten times.
“Travis Stewart did not make a meaningful contribution to the fatal injuries. He did not hit Hason Correa and did not hold him while James Saunders stabbed him,” prosecutors said.
During the Thursday hearing, Mary Saunders told the judge, “On Oct. 19, an unfortunate tragedy occurred that not only took a young man’s life but devastated so many others.
“It left a cloud on various families and at this time all I can do is hope that those clouds will clear up and hope that it will mend all that has been broken.”
Her attorney, Laura Stasior, said that, “after a thorough review of the evidence, it became immediately clear that Mary Saunders was overcharged on the initial indictment by the previous administration.”
“Ms. Saunders, who had no criminal convictions prior to this case, has already served over one-year at Rikers Island pre-trial, and this outcome is consistent with her involvement in the incident and will allow her to resume her life as a beloved mother and valued member of her community,” Stasior said in a statement.
Stewart’s lawyer Toni Messina told The Post she thinks her client should have been offered a more lenient plea deal since, “all he did was punch someone.”
“It happened spontaneously, this fight, where the man who died and his father were the actors who initiated it,” Messina said. “The people dragged in all these people who happened to be around and my client has been in jail for four years.”
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