Police say a 75-year-old woman survived a violent beating inside her Williston Park home and her son now faces attempted murder and other charges.
WILLISTON PARK, NY — A 37-year-old Long Island man is accused of beating and choking his 75-year-old mother inside their home on April 1, leaving her badly injured but alive, in a case that prosecutors say quickly turned from a family argument into an attempted killing.
Authorities say the woman was attacked in the early evening at a house on Broad Street, where she had been arguing with her son, John Strano. Police and prosecutors say the alleged assault was unusually prolonged and violent, and that it ended only after Strano fled and his mother was able to get help. The case matters now because the woman survived severe injuries, Strano has been arraigned on felony charges led by second-degree attempted murder, and the prosecution has signaled that the details of the attack will be central as the case moves forward in Nassau County court.
According to the police account, officers were called to the home at about 5:42 p.m. on April 1 after a report of an assault. Investigators say the argument between Strano and his mother escalated inside the house when he pushed her to the ground and repeatedly slammed her head against the floor. Police said he then punched her in the face many times, struck her in the head with what authorities described as a blunt metal object and choked her before leaving the scene. In court, prosecutors added a sharper detail, saying the object was a metal clamp and that the victim was struck more than three dozen times in the back of the head. Prosecutors also said Strano yelled at his mother during the attack, asking why she was not dying and why she was still breathing.
The woman, whose name has not been released publicly, was found injured when officers arrived. Officials said she had swelling across her face and head, severe lacerations and head trauma, and prosecutors said she lost consciousness during the assault. She was taken to a nearby hospital and was reported in stable condition after treatment, an important fact in a case where the top charge is attempted murder rather than homicide. Police said Strano had already left the home by the time officers got there. He was later found near a nearby elementary school baseball field and taken into custody without incident. Some reports said he was also taken to a hospital for evaluation after his arrest. The public record released so far does not explain what triggered the argument, whether anyone else was in the home, or whether investigators had previously responded to domestic calls at the address.
The attack drew attention in Williston Park not only because of its brutality but also because it happened in a quiet Nassau County village where violent crime of this kind is uncommon and highly visible. Witnesses described a heavy police presence on Broad Street after the assault, with part of the block closed off while detectives worked. That scene became part of the story as neighbors tried to make sense of how a family dispute could erupt into a near-fatal beating. The case also fits into a larger pattern that law enforcement agencies often confront in domestic violence and elder abuse investigations, where the alleged attacker is a relative and the most important witness is also the person recovering from the injuries. In that setting, investigators often rely on medical records, photographs from the scene, victim statements, physical evidence and any admissions made after arrest to build the case.
Strano has been charged with second-degree attempted murder, two counts of second-degree assault, criminal obstruction of breathing and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon. He has pleaded not guilty, according to court coverage published after his arraignment, and was ordered held without bail. That means the immediate next phase is likely to center on routine felony court procedure: the exchange of evidence, review of medical records, possible grand jury action if it has not already occurred, and future appearances in Nassau County court. Prosecutors are expected to keep focusing on the number of blows, the alleged choking, the victim’s loss of consciousness and the statements they say Strano made during the attack. Defense arguments have not yet been laid out in detail in public reporting beyond his not-guilty plea, and no trial date had been publicly reported as of Tuesday.
For residents in the neighborhood, the most striking part of the case has been the gap between the ordinary setting and the violence described by police. The home sits on a residential street, and the arrest happened nearby rather than after a long search, giving the story an immediacy that carried beyond the courtroom summary. The alleged words spoken during the assault have also stood out because they suggest prosecutors may argue intent as strongly as physical force. At the same time, much of the human story remains closely held. The mother survived, but officials have not publicly described the full extent of her recovery, whether she has been discharged from the hospital or whether relatives other than Strano are now involved in her care. Those unanswered questions are likely to remain private unless they emerge in court filings or future hearings.
The case stood Tuesday with Strano jailed without bail, his mother alive and recovering, and Nassau County prosecutors preparing the next court step in an attempted murder prosecution that began with a 911 response on April 1.
Author note: Last updated April 7, 2026.