East Hampton man pleads guilty to stabbing wife

An East Hampton man who fatally stabbed his estranged wife in front of their two children pleaded guilty Wednesday in Riverhead to first-degree manslaughter.

David Soto, 41, hesitated at first when Assistant District Attorney Kerri Kelly asked him during the plea whether he intended to seriously injure his wife, Blanca, during an argument at their home on July 30.

Asked again by State Supreme Court Justice C. Randall Hinrichs, Soto, through a translator, said, "Yes."

He is expected to be sentenced March 23 to 22 years in prison.

Soto was previously charged with second-degree murder. In pleading guilty to manslaughter, Soto dropped a previous not guilty plea to murder and accepted a potentially lighter prison sentence.

If he had been convicted of murder, Soto faced a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in prison. The maximum sentence for first-degree manslaughter is 25 years in prison.

Prosecutors said Soto and his wife were arguing over his child visitation schedule when he grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed her once in the back.

Blanca Soto, 29, later died at Southampton Hospital.

Soto stabbed himself in the neck after attacking his wife, police said.

The couple's two sons, 11 and 9, were in the home during the attack. The older boy called 911, police said.

Soto hesitated when asked about the attack because he was intoxicated during the altercation and was not sure initially whether he intended to hurt his wife, said his attorney, Jason Bassett of Central Islip.

"His memory is spotty in places," Bassett said.

Soto's family was in court during the plea. They declined to comment outside court.

Soto's sons are in the care of one of his siblings, Bassett said. "They're doing remarkably well," he said. "They're very smart. They're able to express feelings remarkably well for children."