Mabb enters guilty plea
Defendant admits to killing Brianna Craig
BALLSTON SPA — During a court appearance Thursday afternoon, Sebastian Mabb admitted he killed Brianna Craig earlier this year.
Mabb pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in Saratoga County Criminal Court before Judge James A. Murphy III. Mabb did not speak during the proceeding except to answer Murphy’s questions before admitting his guilt.
Members of Craig’s family sat in the courtroom listening to the proceedings, wearing yellow shirts with a picture of her on them. Several broke down in tears as Mabb admitted his crime.
Afterward, Craig’s mother Helen Travis reiterated her frustration with the plea deal that leaves open the possibility that Mabb could eventually be paroled.
“We were served life, she was served life. He should serve life,” she said. “I’m going to have to be happy with something, it’s better than nothing.”
Mabb, 31, strangled Craig on Feb. 6 at her Vanderbilt Terrace home in Saratoga Springs. City police said she died of asphyxiation, a victim of domestic violence. Mabb and Craig were former intimate partners, residing within walking distance from each other, according to the district attorney’s office.
Police said they went to the retail worker’s home after neighbors called 911. At the time, officers said Mabb was known to them because of earlier domestic violence calls at the complex.
Mabb, who is also the father to Craig’s son, was also charged with criminal contempt for violating a court order that forbade him from contacting Craig. The plea to murder was taken in recognition of both counts of
the indictment filed by the Saratoga County grand jury in March, the district attorney’s office said.
Mabb was sent to Saratoga County jail. He will be sentenced on Sept. 5 when he faces a 23 yearsto-life prison term. Assistant District Attorney Rachael Phelan is prosecuting the case while public defender Michael Dipresso represents Mabb.
“This tragic case demonstrates the profound effect domestic violence has not only on the victims of abuse and murder, but their children and extended families,” District Attorney Karen A. Heggen said in a statement.