An 18-year-old Syosset man pleaded guilty Thursday, October 15, 2026, to first-degree manslaughter for fatally stabbing a 15-year-old West Babylon boy at a house party packed with as many as 100 teenagers, nearly a year after the killing shocked the South Shore community. Aiden Zachary, who was 17 at the time of the November 2025 stabbing, entered his plea before Acting Supreme Court Justice Karen Kerr and now faces a mandatory prison sentence when he returns to court next month.
Zachary was arrested on November 10, 2025, one week after the stabbing, and was initially charged with second-degree murder before prosecutors agreed to accept the lesser manslaughter plea, according to Patch. As reported by CBS News, the teenager stabbed 15-year-old Liam Delemo in the abdomen and arm after being turned away from the party for not having an invitation, then fled the scene.
Delemo was rushed from the party to a local hospital, where he later died, according to the same outlet's reporting. His parents said they rushed to the scene after being told their son had been stabbed, and his mother said he was conscious and alert when they arrived. According to the report, Delemo told his parents, “I love you. I'm sorry,” before he died.
A Party With Up to 100 Teens Ends in Tragedy
The stabbing happened on November 3, 2025, outside a private home at 813 Carlton Road, at the corner of Avenue C in West Babylon, according to Greater Long Island. Somewhere between 90 and 100 teenagers had gathered at the house that night, the same outlet reports. Zachary tried to get into the party and was asked to leave because he lacked an invitation, which led to a fight with Delemo that ended with the fatal stabbing.
Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney said Zachary escalated a dispute with a deadly weapon, causing the death of a 15-year-old boy, per CBS News's reporting. Tierney said two families were forever changed by the violence and that his office would continue holding people accountable. Delemo was an only child who attended West Babylon High School as an 11th-grade honor roll student, the station reports.
Search Turned Up Clothing and Knives
During earlier court proceedings in November 2025, defense attorney Jacob Kaplan said Zachary was hit, pushed, and physically attacked during a chaotic melee at the party after arriving with out-of-town peers who were denied entry, according to Newsday. Prosecutors told the court that detectives had executed a search warrant at Zachary's Syosset home, recovering clothing and two knives, including one matching the description of the weapon used in the stabbing, Newsday reported at the time.
First-degree manslaughter is a Class B violent felony under New York State Penal Law Section 125.20, carrying a mandatory determinate prison sentence of 5 to 25 years, per Patch's report on the plea. Zachary, now 18, is due back in court for sentencing on November 4, 2026, when the negotiated length of his prison term will be finalized.
Homeowner Still Faces Social Host Charges
Police have also charged 70-year-old homeowner Bonnie Miranda under Suffolk County's Social Host Law and with endangering the welfare of a child, alleging she allowed her grandchild to host the sprawling gathering, according to Newsday's reporting. Under Suffolk County Local Law No. 19-2016, a first offense of the Social Host Law is an unclassified misdemeanor carrying fines up to $500 for adults who knowingly allow minors to consume alcohol on private property, per the Suffolk County Legislature. The outcome of the charges against Miranda has not been reported.
In the days after the stabbing, Delemo was rushed to Good Samaritan University Hospital in West Islip, the South Shore's Level I Adult Trauma Center, according to a Hoodline report. Community members raised more than $28,000 through a GoFundMe campaign for his family, while the regional Promise of Hope Foundation covered all of his funeral expenses, as reported by Daily Voice.
Hoodline previously reported on Zachary's arrest and the initial second-degree murder charge filed against him in the days after the killing. Thursday's guilty plea resolves that charge as Zachary awaits sentencing, while the separate case against the party's host remains unresolved.
