--- description: A man is accused of killing his mother in Hempstead, N.Y., with a hammer before doing the same to his sister and his sister's friend title: Man Accused of Beating Mom, Sister and Friend image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt33cb620023e9fd9e/6988d97d97cdff1b696b1ffa/police-tape.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Crime](/tag/crime/) ## Crime Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Man Accused of Beating Mom, Sister and Friend to Death With Hammer by [Lisa Marie Segarra](/author/lisa-marie-segarra/) ## Lisa Marie Segarra Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 12, 2017 9:36 PM CUT  Police tape in neighborhood of Manhattan, New York USA. Police tape in neighborhood of Manhattan, New York USA.Thomas Cristofoletti—Getty Images by [Lisa Marie Segarra](/author/lisa-marie-segarra/) ## Lisa Marie Segarra Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 12, 2017 9:36 PM CUT A man is accused of attacking and killing his mother in her[ Long Island](http://www.thedrive.com/watch-this/12659/small-plane-makes-emergency-landing-on-long-island-highway "undefined") home with a hammer early Saturday morning before doing the same to his sister and his sister’s friend. Nassau County Police said that one friend was attacked but was able to escape, [NBC reported.](http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Three-People-Murdered-in-Hempstead-Long-Island-Home-440013913.html?%5Fosource=SocialFlowTwt%5FNYBrand "undefined") The accused, Bobby Vanderhall, was kicked out of his mother’s house and was homeless at the time, police told NBC. Police said the incident occurred shortly after 1 a.m. Saturday in Hempstead, N.Y., when Vanderhall entered the home through the basement door and beat his mom in the kitchen before finding his sister and her friend on the staircase where he beat them as well, according to NBC. The friend was able to escape and flagged someone for help. The last friend was upstairs and was also killed. According to NBC, Vanderhall was found two miles from the house sleeping in his car. He was charged with three counts of second-degree [murder](http://time.com/4898078/south-carolina-officer-shooting-camera-glasses/ "undefined") and one count of attempted murder. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4898225/triple-homicide-hempstead-long-island/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4898225/triple-homicide-hempstead-long-island/"},"headline":"Man Accused of Beating Mom, Sister and Friend to Death With Hammer","datePublished":"2017-08-12T21:36:49.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T16:57:53.486Z","description":"He was found sleeping in his car two miles from the house","url":"https://time.com/4898225/triple-homicide-hempstead-long-island/","keywords":["Crime","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt33cb620023e9fd9e/6988d97d97cdff1b696b1ffa/police-tape.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Lisa Marie Segarra","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/lisa-marie-segarra/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt33cb620023e9fd9e/6988d97d97cdff1b696b1ffa/police-tape.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Police","caption":"Police","creditText":"Thomas Cristofoletti—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/crime/","name":"Crime"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4898225/triple-homicide-hempstead-long-island/","name":"Man Accused of Beating Mom, Sister and Friend to Death With Hammer"}}]}] ```