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MIDDLETOWN, N.Y. – The 20-year-old victim of a homicide at a New Year's house party on Paddock Drive in the town of Crawford in Orange County has been identified.
Justin Speights, a former scholar-athlete at Pine Bush High School, was stabbed to death after he tried to break up a fight at a party of between approximately 80 and 100 current Pine Bush students and graduates, according to police.
Speights, a Town of Wallkill resident, was a tight end/defensive end for Pine Bush HS who graduated in 2014.
"In his humble demeanor, Justin would always be one of the first to step up to the plate no matter what the task was," read a statement by the Silver Lake Fire Department in Middletown, where Speights worked as a firefighter.
State police in Middletown, the Crawford Police Department and the Orange County District Attorney's Office are collaborating on the investigation.
Anyone who may have information or video can call the state police office in Middletown at (845) 344-5300.
Speights is survived by his parents, a brother and a sister, the Silver Lake Fire Department said in its statement.
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