Verdict Still Pending in Jenkins Murder Trial

Jury returns Monday, Nov. 3

The jury resumes deliberations at the White Plains courthouse on Monday, Nov. 3, at 9:30 a.m.

By Jim Roberts, [email protected]

November 1, 2025

WHITE PLAINS — Jurors in the murder trial of Hasseem Jenkins went home for the weekend on Friday, Oct. 31, after deliberating for a day and a half without reaching a verdict.

Late Friday afternoon a message was sent to Judge George Fufidio that the jurors wanted 10 more minutes to deliberate, but shortly afterward they decided to go home. Deliberations will resume Monday, Nov. 3, at 9:30 a.m. in White Plains.

Jenkins attacked social worker Maria Coto on May 14, 2024, at an apartment on South Street. She died several weeks later. Notes sent from the jury seem to indicate they are trying to decide whether Jenkins intended to attack Coto and if the illegal hallucinogenic drug PCP caused him to kick her repeatedly with his boots.

The top charge of second-degree murder carries a term of 25 years to life. Lesser charges that Jenkins faces are first-degree manslaughter (5 to 25 years) and second-degree manslaughter (3 to 15 years).

About the Contributors

Jim Roberts, Reporter

Jim Roberts has been in this business for more than 35 years (hard to believe) and still learning every day. A third-generation Peekskill resident, he started as a lowly researcher at the Westchester Business Journal in 1986 and learned how to be a reporter from many veterans in the field. He’s worked in private companies, Connecticut state government and wrote for the Co-op City Times for 10 years before retiring from full-time work in 2019. Roberts wants to contribute to building the Herald into a news website for residents who care about what’s happening in Peekskill.

Jeffrey Merchan, Sports Reporter

Peekskill native Jeffrey Merchan is a 2022 graduate of Peekskill High School. He is the Collegiate Journalist at Peekskill Herald, funded by a grant from the DJ McManus Foundation. He is currently enrolled at Westchester Community College where he is studying journalism. As the inaugural recipient of the McManus grant, he will be covering city government, schools and feature stories with a focus on Peekskill’s growing Hispanic community.