Buffalo Woman To Spend 10 Years In Prison For Murdering Boyfriend

A Buffalo woman has been sentenced to spend 10 years in prison for killing her boyfriend. Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn announced that the 25-year-old woman was sentenced on Friday, January 14, 2022, before State Supreme Court Justice M. William Boller. Nateonna J. Roland will serve a decade behind bars, followed by 5 years of supervised release. She pleaded guilty to one count of Manslaughter in the First Degree.

At around 11:30 am on Wednesday, July 24, 2019, she and her boyfriend, 21-year-old Brendan T. Benjamin, got into an argument outside of their home on Eagle Street in Buffalo and she stabbed him. He was transported to Buffalo General Medical Center, where he died from the stab wound. Her attorney told the court that she was a victim of domestic violence and filed a Penal Law 60.12 motion, which offers special sentencing provisions for domestic violence victims who committed a crime.  The judge denied her Penal Law 60.12 motion,

Prosecutors submitted written statements to the Court from numerous witnesses, stating that the defendant should not be granted a reduced sentence under Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act. The witnesses cited numerous incidents where the defendant was the abuser and the aggressor in her relationship with the deceased and other individuals.

Roland is also facing a separate charge for allegedly assaulting a deputy at the Erie County Holding Center.

Domestic violence involving an intimate partner and/or a family member is really high in some New York cities and counties.  These 11 counties across the state have the most reported incidents as of 2020.  Some of the areas with the highest number of total incidents are the most populated, but others, like Erie County, beat counties with more residents.  Home to Buffalo, the second-largest city in New York State, Erie County outranked both New York County (Manhattan) and Richmond County (Staten Island), which are both in the New York City metro area.

The total below represent all reported incidents - both male and female victims who were intimate partners, as well as other family members, as defined by NYS,

Intimate Partner (Female/Male) – Includes spouse, ex-spouse, and those in an intimate relationship (including dating or formerly dating relationships, whether or not the intimate partners had ever lived together).

 

Other Family – Includes sibling, child, grandparent, grandchild, in-law, stepparent, stepsibling, and other blood and in-law relationships.

Erie County (Buffalo) - 5,153 Total Incidents

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