Twenty-one-year-old Seth Lyons of Kingston was sentenced to 25 years to life in state prison by Judge Williams in Ulster County Court on Monday.

Ulster County District Attorney Holley Carnright's office prosecuted Lyons, who had been charged with murder in the second-degree for the beating death of 49-year-old Anthony Garro, Jr. in 2017. Garro's body was found under the Elmendorf Street bridge in the early morning hours of November 29, 2017 and it triggered an intensive investigation by law enforcement from the City of Kingston and the New York State Police. The investigation led to the arrest of Lyons in Kingston a few hours later.

Lyons' attorney, Brian Rounds of Kingston argued that his client was experiencing an "Extreme Emotional Disturbance" (EED) at the time of the murder. Rounds claimed that it was caused by a combination of mental illness, chronic drug abuse and sleep deprivation which warranted a lesser charge of Manslaughter in the First Degree. The prosecutors countered by offering evidence that Lyons had an acute recollection of the crime, negating the EED defense.

Prior to Monday's sentencing Judge Williams heard from friends and family of Garro who all said that the victim constantly put the needs of others before himself. Judge Williams called the murder "brutal" in nature and chastised Lyons for his lack of remorse, both of which the judge cited as his reasons for handing down the maximum sentence allowable.

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