NEW ROCHELLE, NY (February 1, 2023) — Michael Thunderhorse was transported from Elmira Correctional Facility in upstate Chemung County today to appear before Judge Delores Scott Brathwaite in Greenburgh Town Court for sentencing in a domestic violence case almost a year after Thunderhorse accepted a plea deal.
Thunderhorse had pleaded guilty under a negotiated plea with the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office on February 23, 2022. The case was adjourned for sentencing on May 18, 2022. Thunderhorse was ROR’d.
The following day, on February 24, 2022, Thunderhorse was involved in a road rage incident — a verbal dispute led Thunderhorse to get out of his vehicle and stab the victim in the lower abdomen near the New Rochelle train station.
On March 7, 2022, New Rochelle Detectives, the FBI, and Greenburgh Police located and arrested Thunderhorse. He was charged with Assault — 2nd Degree, a D Felony and Criminal Possession of a Weapon — 3rd Degree, a D Felony and arraigned in New Rochelle City Court.
Unaware Thunderhorse had pleaded guilty to a domestic violence charge in Greenburgh, on March 7, New Rochelle Judge Jared R. Rice set bail for Thunderhorse at $50,000 cash, $100,000 bond or $250,000 partial and given a return date of March 10 in New Rochelle City Court.
On March 8, Thunderhorse appeared virtually before Judge Brathwaite, who, learning of the New Rochelle arraignment, remanded Thunderhorse to the Westchester County Jail.
On March 10, to the surprise of Judge Rice, Thunderhorse appeared virtually in New Rochelle City Court from the Westchester County Jail, where he first learned of the matter in Greenburgh Town Court and the action of Judge Brathwaite.
Michael Thunderhorse, 56, of Greenburgh, NY, was previously arrested in Greenburgh on July 27, 2021, and charged with domestic violence misdemeanor of Criminal Obstruction of Breathing or Blood Circulation. Under the terms of the negotiated plea Thunderhorse agreed on February 23, 2022 to a term of three years domestic violence probation and five years probation.
Because Thunderhorse violated the conditions of his negotiated plea, Judge Brathwaite tacked on just under a year — 364 days — to a four year sentence stemming from the unrelated incident in New Rochelle.
Judge Brathwaite ordered a 5-year Permanent Order of Protection for the woman Thunderhorse strangled in 2021.
On September 20, 2022, Thunderhorse pleaded guilty to Assault — 2nd, a violent D Felony, before Judge Alexandra Murphy in Westchester County Criminal Court. He was sentenced to four years in state prison and three years of supervised release on November 15, 2022.
Thunderhorse has one remaining open docket in Yorktown, NY for Contempt.
Thunderhorse has an extensive violent criminal history. Thunderhorse was previously sentenced to 15 years in prison for Aggravated Assault with Enhancements in Arizona.
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EDITOR’S NOTE: Robert Cox is the last remaining court reporter working in Westchester County. He attends court regularly to monitor progress on dozens of cases; that reporting is included in his weekly Court Reporters Notebook and is often the basis for stories on Talk of the Sound (like this one). To subscribe to his newsletter visit Words in Edgewise on Substack.
