Kitty Genovese: A True Account of a Public Murder and Its Private Consequences (47 page)

It was proof by assertion, flourishing freely now without fear of meddlesome rebuttals from people who could have proved otherwise.
Enough time had passed, and enough people had died. The deniers had finally found a receptive audience.

Some forty-five years after the murder of Kitty Genovese, the story transformed from an account of a horrendous crime to a tale of wicked yellow journalism, “a stubborn and intractable urban myth,” as it was called in a 2007 article published in, of all places,
American Psychologist
.

Thirty-eight witnesses had somehow reduced to six or seven. The original accounts had presumably been malicious exaggerations calculated to harm an anonymous little community in Queens; a massive conspiracy carried out by the cooperative efforts of the
New York Times
, the NYPD, the District Attorney’s Office, the
New York Journal-American
, the
Long Island Star-Journal
, the
Long Island Press
,
LIFE
magazine, et al., feeding the public lies and distortions about Kew Gardens.

chapter 22

TELLING OF HOW
much he had suffered since he had committed his crimes, Winston Moseley once explained to a parole board, “For a victim outside, it’s a one-time or one-hour or one-minute affair, but for the person who’s caught, it’s forever.”

Apparently Moseley defined his victims strictly in terms of the individuals he had physically traumatized or killed. For the people who had loved Kitty Genovese, the suffering had certainly not been a one-time, one-hour, or one-minute affair.

In 2004, Mary Ann Zielonko spoke publicly for the first time about her love affair with Kitty Genovese, “the most wonderful person I’ve ever known.” In the years following Kitty’s death, Mary Ann had rebuilt her life. She had earned a master’s degree in statistical analysis and had retired in 1997 after a long career. At the time of her 2004 interviews, she was living in comfortable retirement with her partner. She discussed the lingering pain of her loss, still with her after forty years. She spoke adoringly of Kitty, the great love of her youth.

AT THE CATHERINE
Genovese Memorial Conference held at Fordham University in 2009, a member of Kitty’s family attended for the first time. Bill Genovese sat unobtrusively in the audience, listening to the speakers talk about his sister and the legacy of her murder case. At the program’s conclusion, he was given a warm introduction by the
conference organizer, Professor Harold Takooshian, who had devoted himself these many years to honoring the memory of a young woman he had never met but who had forever touched his own life.

AROUND THIS SAME
time, a woman in her early seventies named May Sisk had occasion to think back about a girlhood friend of hers. May Sisk, now a grandmother, had once been May Trezza, a girl who grew up in Park Slope, Brooklyn. Someone asked May about her childhood friend, Kitty Genovese. May talked about the times way back in elementary school when she and Kitty played dolls on the stoops of brownstones on St. Johns Place, roller-skated on the sidewalks, and walked up to a candy store on 5th Avenue. She talked about Kitty in high school—how very,
very
funny she was, always cutting up, making everybody smile and laugh with her silly jokes, running up out of a subway singing at the top of her lungs, “
New York, New York! It’s a wonderful town!”

May still saw her old friend’s name and picture in the newspapers. Every so often, there would be a story about Kitty Genovese in the paper, and May would look at it and read it and remember the Kitty she knew. May really never got emotional or sad when she thought about Kitty now. It had all been so long ago. There were many things she remembered about Kitty, but surely also many things that she must have forgotten as the years had passed.

May grabbed her high school yearbook. She flipped through the pages, refreshing her memory. The person May was speaking with asked if Kitty had signed her yearbook. May answered, “Let me check . . . yes. Yes, she did.”

There was a pause. Suddenly, unexpectedly, there was a little catch in May’s voice as she read the words that an excited teenage girl had written more than fifty years ago.

“Forget me not.”

THE END

EPILOGUE

IN THE YEARS
after earning his college degree, Winston Moseley worked as a teaching assistant in prison, helping other inmates learn to read, write, and further their educations. As of this writing, he is seventy-eight years old. He is currently the longest-serving inmate in the New York State correctional system.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

DURING THE YEARS
I spent researching this book, I had the good fortune of receiving assistance from dozens of people connected to the story told here as well as others who provided assistance in a variety of ways. I am very grateful to each and every person who helped bring this book to life. I would like to mention a few here whose help and/or contributions proved particularly valuable. First and foremost, I thank my good friend Joseph De May, whose website on the Kitty Genovese case first inspired me to seek the facts and write this book. I thank Joe for his steadfast support and commitment, particularly when the facts revealed were ugly and disconcerting. Joe never wavered in his principled belief that truth should come before all other considerations, even if it conflicted with his own initial assumptions about the case, and for this I respect and admire him more than I can express.

I would like to give special thanks to Dan Austin of the Retired Detectives of New York for his invaluable help in patiently answering my endless questions, and putting me in touch with others directly connected to the story told here. Many thanks to all the police officers and detectives who generously gave me their time and recollections, especially retired detectives Charles Prestia and Frank Frezza, who spent hours recalling details of the 1964 investigation for me. From the Queens County District Attorney’s Office, I thank Jaclyn Belson, and especially Gene Reibstein, retired assistant district attorney, whose recollections of the 1995 hearing and pre-hearing preparations proved invaluable. From the office of the Erie County district attorney in Buffalo, I am very grateful to Michael Felicetta for his great help with
information on Moseley’s 1968 escape and its aftermath. Thank you to James Watson, former crime reporter for the
Buffalo Courier-Express
. Thanks also to the staff of the Butler Library Archives at Buffalo State College for providing me with a wealth of news clippings.

This book would not have been what I wanted it to be without the help of those who knew Kitty Genovese personally. My eternal gratitude goes to all of them who took the time to share their memories with me. I am especially grateful to Mary Ann Zielonko, both for her help, and for her bravery in recalling incidents that still caused her pain and sadness, even decades hence. She is indeed a woman of great character and courage. Special thanks to Victor Horan, Kitty’s friend and coworker, and to Kitty’s childhood and school friends, especially May Trezza Sisk and Peggy Hallinan Wilburn.

I also wish to acknowledge and thank the following persons for their contributions: Alan Gansberg, Judy Gansberg, Larry Gross, Michael Titowsky, Candace Henschel, Lenny Bloch, Peter Mueller, Wally Brosnan, Michael Hoffman, Arlene Heilbrunn, and particularly Professor Harold Takooshian of Fordham University. Thanks also to Dave Sagarin for the use of his haunting photograph of the Tudor building hallway.

My editor, Julie Ganz, championed this book and provided the type of editorial support that any writer would feel blessed to have. On that note, I thank my friend and fellow author, Brian Kennedy, for introducing me to Julie. For their encouragement and feedback on early drafts, I also thank my family and friends, particularly my husband, Josh Brewster; my mother and my sisters; as well as Frances Kleese, Shirl Hendryx, Jack Hunter, Scott Sandoe, and Brad Schreiber. Finally, thanks to my attorney, Donald Smiley, whose wise counsel helped guide me through the publication process.

SOURCES AND REFERENCES

IN ADDITION TO
the interviews I conducted, I consulted a variety of sources in the writing of this book in an effort to present an account of events that is as complete and as thoroughly researched and corroborated as possible. The narrative is based on firsthand interviews, archival documents, reports, memoirs, legal transcripts, news and magazine articles, and law enforcement records. As noted in the text, accounts of the police investigation came directly from the police reports. All of the courtroom dialogue is taken directly from the transcripts of the proceedings. Many of the references on the following list are quoted in the text, as noted. Books are listed alphabetically by author. Because of the great number of articles from periodicals and newspapers, I have arranged the list of publications alphabetically and then listed the articles in order of publication date.

BOOKS

Rosenthal, A. M.
Thirty-eight Witnesses: The Kitty Genovese Case
. California: University of California Press, 1999. Originally published: [1st ed.] New York: McGraw-Hill, 1964.

Seedman, Albert A., and Peter Hellman.
Chief!
New York: Arthur Fields Books, Inc., 1974.

Skoller, Charles.
Twisted Confessions: The True Story Behind the Kitty Genovese and Barbara Kralik Murder Trials
. Austin, TX: Bridgeway Books, 2008.

Welch, Neil J., and David W. Marston.
Inside Hoover’s FBI: The Top Field Chief Reports
. New York: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1984.

PERIODICALS, ARTICLES, AND REPORTS

American Heritage
(magazine):

“Nightmare on Austin Street.” By Jim Rasenberger. October 2006. Volume 57, issue 5.

American Psychologist
(journal of the American Psychological Association):

“The Kitty Genovese Murder and the Social Psychology of Helping: The Parable of the 38 Witnesses.” By Rachel Manning, Mark Levine, and Alan Collins. September 2007. Vol. 62., No. 6.

Buffalo Evening News:

“Area Search Widens For Convicted Slayer Who Fled Hospital.” March 19, 1968.

“Killer Moseley Evades Police Despite an International Hunt.” March 20, 1968.

“Moseley Captured on Grand Island; Held Two Women, Infant Hostage.” By The News Staff. March 21, 1968.

“Fright, Anger, Calm Courage Marked the Pursuit of Moseley.” By The News Staff. March 22, 1968.

“Moseley Says He Would Escape Again; Recaptured Killer Vows Not To Pass Up A New Opportunity.” By Ray Hill. March 22, 1968.

“Moseley Admits Telephone Call From Hideout.” March 23, 1968.

“Cleaning Woman Held For Failure to Report Moseley Encounter.” By Mike Benevento. March 25, 1968.

“Assistant DA Fired Over Disagreement in Moseley Case.” By Dick Christian. March 26, 1968.

“Moseley to Be Questioned On Where He Got Money.” March 27, 1968.

“DA’s Aide Won’t Fight Dismissal.” March 27, 1968.

“Grand Jury To Get Case Of Woman In House With Moseley.” March 28, 1968.

“Moseley Reveals He Got $20 While In Meyer Hospital.” March 29, 1968.

“Ex-FBI Agent Recalls Face-Off With a Killer.” By Gene Warner. April 3, 1989.

Courier-Express
(Buffalo, New York):

“Police Hunt Escaped Murderer.” March 19, 1968.

“Timing Essential In Moseley Escape.” By John Pauly. March 20, 1968.

“Moseley’s Illness Held Self-Induced.” March 21, 1968.

“FBI Agent Arrests Moseley In House On Grand Island.” By George Halloran and Richard E. Baldwin. March 22, 1968.

“Killer Discussed His Background With 2 Hostages.” By David Prizinsky. March 22, 1968.

“Welch Braves Slayer’s Gun.” March 22, 1968.

“No Security Lapses Reported at Meyer.” By Dale English. March 22, 1968.

“Moseley Returned To Attica Prison.” March 23, 1968.

“Welch’s Badge of Courage Still Glistens With Humility.” By Marshall Brown. March 24, 1968.

“Grand Jury to Hear Cleaning Woman Case.” March 30, 1968.

“Warden Queried on Escape.” October 29, 1968.

“Mosley (sic) Captor Honored As ‘Hero of the Year.’ ” June 29, 1969.

Geneva Times
(Geneva, New York):

“Inside Attica: Prisoners Strike Enters Second Day.” (AP) August 24, 1976.

LIFE
(magazine):

“The View From Here: The Dying Girl That No One Helped.” By Loudon Wainwright. April 10, 1964. Vol. 56, No. 15.

“Homosexuality in America: A secret world grows open and bolder.” By Paul Welch. “Scientists search for some answers.” By Ernest Havemann. Photographed for
LIFE
by William Eppridge. June 26, 1964. Vol. 56, No. 26.

“The View From Here: A Very Special Murderer.” By Loudon Wainwright. July 3, 1964. Vol. 57, No. 1.

Long Island Press:

“Woman, 28, Knifed to Death.” March 13, 1964.

“Kitty Worshipped Life in the City, And Died in Its Lonely Streets.” By Edward Weiland. March 14, 1964.

“Puzzler for Cops: Who Killed Kitty?” March 15, 1964.

“Accused Slayer Shows No Emotion at Court Hearing.” March 20, 1964.

“Grave May Hold Key To a Brutal Murder.” March 27, 1964.

“Austin Street Can’t Forget an Unheeded Cry in the Night.” By Edward Weiland. March 28, 1964.

“Exhume Body, Find Bullets in ‘Knife’ Victim.” March 31, 1964.

“Moseley Lawyer Will Link Him to Kralik Killing.” By Arnold

Bornstein. June 9, 1964.

“Expect Moseley to Testify About the Kralik Murder.” By Arnold Bornstein. June 10, 1964.

Long Island Star-Journal:

“Kitty Knew Her Killer.” March 14, 1964.

“Stab Victim ‘Loved Life.’ ” By Edward Weiland. March 14, 1964.

“Slain Barmaid’s Clothes Torn.” March 17, 1964.

“DA, Police Disagree on Killer.” March 23, 1964.

“Did He Kill Her?” March 23, 1964.

“Link Murder Suspect to 2 More Attacks.” March 24, 1964.

“ ‘Who Knew It Was Murder,’ Say 38.” By Edward Weiland. March 28, 1964.