Austin Lynch, Nesconset teen charged with killing ex-girlfriend, wanted to show Emily Finn 'how angry he was' for breaking up with him, prosecutor says

A Nesconset teen told a friend he wanted to show his former girlfriend "how angry he was" for breaking up with him and that he planned to end his life the day before his 18th birthday, a Suffolk prosecutor said at his arraignment for second-degree murder Thursday.

Austin Lynch then loaded just two shots into his shotgun and allegedly killed Emily Finn feet from the entryway inside his home before turning the gun on himself Nov. 26, Assistant Suffolk County District Attorney Dena Rizopoulos told acting Suffolk Supreme Court Justice Philip Goglas.

"The evidence indicates a clear intent to murder his ex-girlfriend, a pre-meditated intention," Rizopoulos told the judge.

Lynch, who turned 18 the day after the shooting, pleaded not guilty to a grand jury indictment and was ordered held without bail. He entered the courtroom with a bandage between his eyes from his forehead to his nose, where prosecutors say he shot himself.

Lynch looked out across the courtroom, which was filled with Finn's family and supporters who wore pink ribbons and photos of her affixed to their clothing. Her mother, seated in the second row, sobbed more loudly as he scanned the faces in the crowd while being escorted to his attorney. His family members did not appear to be present.

Finn, 18, of West Sayville, had come home from college and gone to Lynch's home on Shenandoah Boulevard North in Nesconset Nov. 26 to return his belongings after their three-year relationship ended two weeks earlier, Rizopoulos said.

Friends told investigators the young couple's relationship had broken down after Finn left to attend college at SUNY Oneonta in the fall and Lynch, who had enlisted in the Marines but not yet reported to boot camp, became "possessive, accusatory and overbearing."

On two visits he made to her school in October, the last one on Halloween, the couple fought, witnesses told police.

When they broke up in November, Finn blocked Lynch's number because he was "texting [her] incessantly," Rizopoulos said. He also tried contacting her repeatedly through social media and by using his mother's phone, the prosecutor said.

"When unable to access the victim, [Lynch] began regularly calling one of her best friends," Rizopoulos told the judge. "He told this friend he wanted to die and he was going to kill himself."

The friend told investigators Lynch told others in recent conversations he had no friends he could speak to.

"The defendant shifted to anger," Rizopoulos said of his mood after he could no longer reach Finn.

The prosecutor said a string of messages sent by Lynch to Finn's friend between Nov. 12 and Nov. 20 outlined his intentions for the Thanksgiving-eve killing.

"'I have set my mind on leaving this place the day before my 18th birthday," one message read aloud by the prosecutor said. "I [expletive] hate her."

Friends told investigators Finn was scared of Lynch because he was acting "crazy," but met up with him to return his belongings anyway. She arrived at the home at 9:50 a.m. intent on meeting with him "face to face," seeking closure, Rizopoulos said.

Lynch's parents, Jason and Melissa Lynch, were home at the time of the shooting, but were cleaning out a hot tub in the backyard, the prosecutor said. His father called 911 to report the shooting at 11:11 a.m.

When police arrived they found the two parents had moved the shotgun from the floor near where he lay bleeding from his face to a counter in the kitchen, Rizopoulos said. 

The Suffolk County Medical Examiner's Office determined Finn suffered a close contact injury to the base of her skull. A gunshot wound to the head was the cause of death, Rizopoulos said.

There was "no domestic history" between the victim and the teen and no previous 911 calls regarding the young couple, police previously said.

Lynch had enlisted in the Marines and was set to attend boot camp at Parris Island, S.C. in February, his attorney William Wexler said. The defense attorney had asked for "reasonable bail" before the judge remanded his client.

Finn's parents, visibly shaken throughout the proceeding, declined to speak with reporters following the arraignment. A family member shouted at a row of cameras in the hallway, calling a photographer "heartless" for capturing images of the grieving family.

Wexler declined to comment outside the courtroom.

Lynch is scheduled to return to court Monday to appear before acting Supreme Court Justice Anthony Senft, who oversees adolescent felony offender cases in Riverhead.

Adolescent offenders, aged 16 and 17, are treated as adults in court, according to state law, but a judge may consider their age at sentencing.