Thomas Valva murder: A timeline of the case
Photo of Thomas Valva is next to candles during a ceremony after the boy's death on Jan. 17, 2020. Credit: Howard Simmons
Michael Valva was sentenced Thursday to 25 years to life in prison for the murder of his 8-year-old son Thomas Valva, who died from hypothermia after the ex-NYPD officer forced Thomas to sleep in a freezing garage.
Supreme Court Justice William Condon handed down the sentence to Valva, 43, of Center Moriches, in a Riverhead courtroom packed with spectators – including several of the jurors who decided his fate and teachers – nearly three years after Thomas died on Jan. 17, 2020.
A Suffolk County jury convicted Valva last month of second-degree murder in Thomas’ death and four counts of endangering the welfare of a child for the abuse of Thomas and his then-10-year-old brother Anthony.
His then-fiancee Angela Pollina is slated to go on trial in February on murder and child endangerment charges in Thomas’ death.
Here is a timeline of key events leading up to and including the day Thomas died and how the case has unfolded since.
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