February 17, 2011
By Staff Reporter
At his recent arraignment hearing at the State Supreme Court in Queens, Taiquan Williams pleaded not guilty to several charges, including second-degree murder and robbery.
Williams, who claims the shooting was accidental, apologized at the hearing for the death of McMahon, who died from a single gunshot wound three days after a botched robbery that took place in the early hours of Aug. 9, 2002.
But the apology was immediately rejected by McMahon’s widow.
“Sorry doesn’t cut it when this beautiful Irishman is no longer in our lives,” Maureen McMahon was reported as saying in newspaper reports. “This man was a kind, gentle soul who was in the prime of his life.”
McMahon, from the Scotstown area of County Monaghan, had lived in Levittown, L.I.
Williams was already serving a 1-to-3 year term at the Coxsackie Correctional Facility near Albany for weapons possession when he was indicted for murdering McMahon. He confessed to his involvement in McMahon’s death when questioned by detectives investigating the robbery, which was carried out by Williams and a second assailant.
McMahon’s cell phone and wallet were stolen after he was shot.
McMahon, who was 46, was working a night shift supervisor for the Department of Environmental Protection’s Bureau of Water and Sewers and was in his official car when he was shot once in the head and mortally wounded.
Evidence in the case points to McMahon resisting his assailants and wrestling with Williams for the gun when the weapon went off.
After being wounded, McMahon attempted to drive away but his car crashed into the wall of a warehouse just a few yards from where he was shot.
McMahon was a family man with a wife and three children whose lives were shattered by his violent and tragic death, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said in announcing the Williams indictment.
Williams is charged with murder in the second degree, robbery in the first degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the second and third degree and tampering with physical evidence. He faces up to 25 years to life if convicted on the most serious charge.
McMahon died three days after the shooting at Elmhurst Hospital. Mayor Michael Bloomberg was at his bedside shortly before he died.
A month prior to the shooting, Williams was released on parole after serving four years for stealing property and drug possession. In late 2003, Williams was back in the penitentiary after being arrested for shooting his gun in the air.
The next scheduled hearing in the case is May 18 when the court will hear prosecution and defense motions.