NYPD Psychologist Says She Was Unconscious When Husband Was Shot

— -- A New York City Police Department psychologist says she was knocked unconscious by an intruder on the night her husband was shot in the head, according to newly-revealed police documents.

Emily Dearden, 46, of Yonkers faced arraignment Thursday, pleading not guilty to attempted murder, assault and weapons charges in the shooting of her husband, real estate developer Kenneth Dearden.

If convicted, she could be sentenced to as many as 25 years in prison.

According to a police transcript made public Thursday, Emily Dearden said she awoke at 3:30 a.m. on Nov. 14, 2013 and went downstairs to the kitchen to get a drink and pet the family cat. But before she could go back to bed with her husband, she said, she was knocked unconscious, telling police “I never saw it coming.”

The next thing she remembers, she said, is her wounded husband shaking her and asking her what happened.

At first, Kenneth Dearden stood by his wife, believing her claims that an intruder knocked her out and shot him. But in a civil lawsuit he later filed against her, he said police were skeptical because they found no forced entry, the home’s alarm did not sound, and the family’s Rottweiler did not react.

He also claimed in the lawsuit that she had a motive to kill -- a lover who pressured her to end their marriage so they could be together and avoid a contentious divorce.

According to the newly-released police documents, Emily Dearden admitted she was having an affair with a man named David, but said her husband was also seeing someone else, a woman named Candy.

“I don’t believe that David had anything to do with this. I can’t speak for Candy,” she told police, according to the documents.

Kenneth Dearden has undergone three surgeries following the shooting.

Emily Dearden did not speak during her arraignment, and neither she nor her lawyer, Paul Bergman, would comment on the statements as they left the courthouse. In previous interviews, Bergman expressed confidence that his client would be acquitted.

“With every fiber of her body and every resource she has, she’s going to fight these baseless charges,” Bergman previously said.

Emily Dearden is due back in court on July 30.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.