Hempstead man to serve 25-to-life in Elmont murder

A Hempstead man who shot and killed an Elmont resident last year was given 25 years to life in prison on Friday, Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice announced last week.

Rashawn Pender, 21, was convicted of second degree murder, attempted robbery and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon by a jury and issued his sentence by Nassau Judge Tammy Robbins at Nassau County Criminal Court in Mineola.

Pender was arrested in October of last year after he tried to rob, and subsequently shot and killed, 23-year-old Andre Scott, an Elmont man and father of one who was attending a birthday party at an apartment complex in Hempstead. Two other people were injured in the incident, a 19-year-old man and a 9-year-old girl. According to news reports published after the attack, many of the people at the party were young children.

Pender and two friends, Theron Rhodes, 18, of Hempstead, and Derek Cullum, 20, from Roosevelt, approached Scott with the intention of robbing him. When Scott tried to run, Pender fired at him with a hand gun and struck him in the neck.

Scott, mortally wounded, stumbled head first down the stairs of the building and tried to make it outside to find help. He collapsed at the bottom of the stairwell, where he was found by emergency crews, who declared him dead at the scene.

The incident was a testament to the violence that still haunts many Long Island neighborhoods.

“We’ve made some incredible progress in this neighborhood, but this isolated incident is evidence of the fact that our work here is far from over,” Rice said in a statement at the time of the attack. “We remain committed to improving the quality of life for the residents of this neighborhood.”

According to published reports, the arraignment and trial were incredibly emotional for the family of Scott, who had a one-year-old son at the time of the shooting. Scott’s mother was quoted in several stories screaming at her son’s killer in the courtroom.

“I hope that Mr. Scott’s family can find some solace in this sentence,” Rice said. “This senseless act of violence deserved the harshest sentence possible, and I will do everything in my power to ensure that Mr. Pender spends the rest of his life in prison.”

Rhodes and Cullum already pleaded guilty in their respective trials. Each of them is already serving sentences of seven and 13 years, respectively.