A 20-year-old Coram man has been indicted on a murder charge after prosecutors said he chased a homeless man through heavy Route 112 traffic in Medford and fatally stabbed him in the back.
Joseph Norton was arraigned July 30 on an indictment charging him with second-degree murder, a Class A-I felony, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney.
The victim, 32-year-old Timothy Stark, was homeless and well-known to residents in the area, prosecutors said.
The attack happened at approximately 3:35 p.m. on July 20.
According to the investigation, Norton was driving a 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche on Route 112 when he stopped at a traffic light near Stark.
Prosecutors allege Norton made a U-turn, parked beneath an overpass and began chasing Stark across an intersection and through heavy traffic while repeatedly attempting to stab him.
Norton allegedly pushed Stark’s head toward the ground and stabbed him once in the back before Stark collapsed in the roadway.
Stark was transported to NYU Langone Hospital-Suffolk, where he was pronounced dead.
Prosecutors said Norton ran back to his vehicle and fled. Suffolk County police arrested him a short time later in Yaphank.
Investigators allegedly found a knife beneath the driver’s seat with what appeared to be blood on it.
The chase and stabbing were captured by surveillance cameras, vehicle dashboard cameras and cellphone video, according to prosecutors.
Suffolk County Supreme Court Justice Steven Pilewski ordered Norton held without bail while the case is pending.
Norton is scheduled to return to court Sept. 3. He faces up to 25 years to life in prison if convicted of the top charge.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Sheetal Shetty and Melissa Grier of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office Homicide Bureau.
An indictment is an accusation. Norton is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Photo: SCDA
