POUGHKEEPSIE – Robert Buda Jr., 36, pleaded guilty to two counts of murder and one count of criminal possession of a weapon in Dutchess County Court in March and was sentenced to prison on Wednesday. Buda admitted to killing his in-laws, Paul and Jo-Ann Hait, by shooting them multiple times in their Marlorville Road home before setting the house on fire in Wappinger on January 26, 2025. Buda also killed the Hait family dog, Lady Madonna.
On Wednesday, Buda was sentenced to prison by County Court Judge Karen Edelman-Reyes to 20-years-to-life for the murder of Jo-Ann Hait and 20-years-to-life for the murder of Paul Hait. The sentences run consecutively, meaning 40-years-to-life in prison for Buda. He also received a sentence of 15 years in prison and five years of post-release supervision on the criminal possession of a weapon charge. The gun charge will be served concurrently with the second 20-years-to-life sentence.
At the sentencing, Jo-Ann Hait’s brother, Tom Fresenius, addressed the court and spoke of how Buda’s actions were “intentional, vicious murders” that robbed the community of the”peacefulness, joy, and laughter that Jo-Ann and Paul brought to the world.” Buda sat quietly, with his head down, during the Victim Impact Statement from Fresenius.
Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Fluck told the capacity crowd in the courtroom that Buda’s crimes were “intentional, strategic, and premeditated,” before asking for the maximum sentence possible under the law. Fluck’s request was followed by Buda’s attorney, Dutchess County Public Defender Bureau Chief Beth Gibson, who began by saying, “I am tasked with coming up with an explanation for crimes that make no sense,” before telling the court that her client suffered a “severe break with reality” when he drove from Florida to New York to commit the murders.
Gibson said her client entered his guilty plea “to spare the families and the ones he loves from the trauma of a trial.”
Buda broke down in tears when he started to address the court before apologizing to his wife for killing her parents, before blaming the crimes on his mental health issues. “I’m sorry I gave in and believed the delusions that night,” he told the judge.
Judge Edelman-Reyes did not agree with the “delusions,” telling the gallery, “He knew what his diagnosis was, what the treatment was, and what the medication was, and he admitted in court that he ignored all of that,” before reminding the attendees that he admitted in court that he committed the crimes “on purpose.”
“Robert Buda executed two innocent people in an act of unimaginable violence. Today’s sentence ensures that he will never again have the opportunity to threaten another member of our community,” Dutchess County DA Anthony Parisi said. “While justice can never erase the pain suffered by the Hait family, it demands accountability, and that accountability has now been imposed.”
Parisi’s counterpart, Dutchess County Public Defender Margaret Walker said “I hope the fact that Robert took accountability for his actions, spared the family a trial in this case, and his expression of remorse today, can bring some measure of peace.”
.
Comments