Records: James McGoey had problems in prison

The photo on left shows the scene at Charlie's Family... — The photo on left shows the scene at Charlie's Family Pharmacy in Seaford on Dec. 31, 2011. In the photo on right, James McGoey, the alleged robber, is shown in this undated photo from the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. Credit: Kevin P. Coughlin and Handout

By CHAU LAMchau.lam@newsday.comJanuary 2, 2012

In the four and a half months James McGoey had been living as a free man on Long Island, the ex-convict had lived up to the terms of his parole: He had a job and was in a drug treatment and counseling program, a state official said.

The Hampton Bays man had just been released in August after 10 years behind bars and had spent a total of 20 years in prison. He had been convicted of four robberies, three of which were at pharmacies, court records show.

During his most recent stint behind bars, McGoey was disciplined more than a dozen times for having and using drugs, harassment, fighting and disobeying orders, according to his prison records.

Police said on Saturday, McGoey, 43, was shot to death at the pharmacy where he stole money and prescription drugs.

After his release from prison, McGoey worked as a laborer for PAL Environmental Safety Corp., a remediation contracting firm based in Long Island City, Queens, earning upward of $34 an hour when he worked overtime, said Peter K. Cutler, a spokesman for the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.

A PAL representative did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

McGoey's parole officer visited him at his home at least twice, the first time on Aug. 22, soon after he was released from Attica Correctional Facility upstate, Cutler said. The most recent parole officer visit occurred on Dec. 17, two weeks before police said McGoey robbed Charlie's Family Pharmacy in Seaford.

"It appears McGoey was in compliance with the conditions of his parole," before the robbery, Cutler said.

His uncle, Joseph McGoey, of Massapequa, said Sunday his nephew was "a wonderful kid who got into the wrong crowd. Life went in the wrong direction."

According to McGoey's disciplinary record in prison from 2001 to 2011, there was one year, in 2007, when he was working in the furniture shop, that he stayed out of trouble, Cutler said. Each time McGoey violated prison rules, he was punished and also lost his privileges, including making telephone calls and receiving packages.