A Message from the District Attorney...

Dear Friends and Neighbors:

Following years of sustained effort from prosecutors and investigators, a month-long trial and an extraordinary devotion of resources from my office and the New Rochelle Police Department, defendant Kenya Tilford was sentenced yesterday to life in prison without the possibility of parole in the first torture-murder trial ever prosecuted in Westchester County history.

There was no road map for this case. Prosecutors in this county had never before prosecuted a Murder in the First Degree case under a torture-murder theory. But we spent months honing a smart trial strategy, decoding key pieces of evidence and piecing together the puzzle of this defendant's horrific predations.

The sentence handed down Thursday is the maximum possible sentence for any crime available under New York State law.

Over a three month period in 2023, the defendant tortured 27-year-old Concetta Morton, a young woman who lived with multiple learning disabilities. The defendant lured Ms. Morton, also known as "Chetta," into her New Rochelle apartment where she subjected her to gruesome, unspeakable abuses before suffocating her to death.

Prior to this homicide, the defendant violently sexually abused two prior intimate partners, preying on their own vulnerabilities to draw them into her orbit.

This remains one of the most challenging, resource-intensive cases this office has ever prosecuted. But there is no expense I would have spared to bring Kenya Tilford to justice.

Vulnerable victims frequently lack the capacity to speak for themselves, which is why we are called upon to do it for them; in cases like these, we are often the only people who can. This is a sacrosanct responsibility that I do not take lightly. As a county, we must do more to see that our most vulnerable residents are shielded from those who would exploit their trusting nature. In Chetta's memory, we can work to help ensure our vulnerable neighbors don't suffer a similar fate.

Please keep the Dunn family and the two surviving victims in your thoughts as they continue to heal from this tragedy.

In friendship,

District Attorney Susan Cacace

Join us tomorrow, Saturday morning, for our inaugural Child Safety Fair at Delfino Park, in White Plains! We will be there, rain or shine, with tons of fun activities for the kids, including food and drink, scavenger hunts, live music, face painting, therapy dogs and much more.

The fair is co-sponsored by the White Plains Department of Public Safety. We look forward to seeing you there!

Being the District Attorney is ruff work!

But it gets easier when Puppies Behind Bars stops by to discuss their pup-ular program pairing dogs with law enforcement agencies, supporting community engagement and helping rehabilitate incarcerated individuals.


Thank you to the White Plains, Tuckahoe and Scarsdale Police Departments for letting us meet Homer, Sushi and Eddie and for sharing with us your experience integrating them into your departments.

National Crime Victims' Rights Week

This week, our office hosted an informational booth at the courthouse in honor of National Crime Victims' Rights Week, distributing literature and resources for crime victims.


Every day, our office stands shoulder to shoulder with crime victims and works tirelessly to deliver them justice through the criminal legal process. We also work to ensure that crime victims are fairly compensated by defendants (through the use of restitution) and are connected with all available financial assistance from local, state and federal government sources.


Crime victims will always have a champion in this office.

Youth Leadership Symposium

Our own Autumn Edwards led a workshop on teen dating and healthy relationships for the Youth Leadership Symposium at My Brother's Keeper, Hudson Valley.

Engaging and inspiring our young residents is a key mission for DA Cacace, and we are proud to help bring educational resources directly to the community wherever we can.

Yom HaShoah Commemoration

DA Cacace was humbled to attend the Westchester Jewish Council's Annual Yom HaShoah Commemoration, at the Garden of Remembrance, in White Plains.


We must never forget the atrocities that took place at the hands of the Nazi regime nearly a century ago: the systematic eradication of six million Jews and millions more from other minority groups, including Jehovah's Witnesses, the Roma, homosexuals, the Polish and other Slavic peoples, people with disabilities, Communists, and Socialists.


May their memories be a blessing.

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