Monticello Man Convicted of Attempted Murder for Shooting at Sullivan County Sheriff’s Deputy

Monticello, NY — A Sullivan County jury has found a Monticello man guilty of attempted murder and other charges for shooting at a sheriff’s deputy at point-blank range during an April 2025 encounter, prosecutors said Wednesday.

Markell Jarrette, 30, was convicted following an eight-day trial of attempted murder in the first degree, a Class A-I felony; attempted murder in the second degree; two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree; criminal use of a firearm in the first degree; and menacing a police officer.

Prosecutors said the charges stem from an April 10, 2025, incident in which Jarrette fired multiple shots at Sullivan County Sheriff’s Deputy Andrew Foertsch as the deputy responded to a larceny complaint. Authorities said Jarrette pointed a loaded, illegal firearm at Foertsch at close range and discharged it several times.

Foertsch was not struck and suffered minor injuries, according to prosecutors.

During the trial, jurors heard testimony from 24 witnesses and reviewed more than 50 pieces of evidence, including surveillance footage, police radio transmissions, firearms, shell casings, a projectile, DNA evidence and ballistics analysis. Prosecutors said DNA linked Jarrette to the trigger and magazine of the firearm, and ballistics evidence tied shell casings and a projectile to the weapon.

The case was prosecuted by Sullivan County District Attorney Brian P. Conaty, with assistance from Assistant District Attorney James McGlashin. Sullivan County Court Judge James R. Farrell presided.

Jarrette is scheduled to be sentenced April 22. He faces a maximum possible sentence of 63 years to life in state prison.

“This was a cold and calculated attempt to murder a uniformed police officer in the line of duty,” Conaty said in a statement. “Anyone who targets a law enforcement officer is declaring war on the safety and order of our community.”

Conaty thanked the New York State Police, including members of the agency’s Forensic Identification Unit and Collision Reconstruction Unit, for their work on the investigation.

Image: The Sullivan County courthouse in Monticello, NY. (Daniel Case/Wikimedia Commons)