The Boston Stranglers

“This book is, quite simply, remarkable journalism and remarkable writing.”

 

“Impressive ... raises disturbing questions about one of our nation's most notorious crime sprees.”

 

“Taut with suspense ... crackles like a bestselling novel.”

 

“It's been half a century, but no one who lived through it will ever forget it. The Boston Strangler stalked the streets, and a whole city, a whole region, lived in fear. Then they caught him and put him away.
Or did they
? That's the question Susan Kelly asks in this meticulously researched, compulsively readable return to those bad old days in Boston. It's terrific true crime and much, much more. It's also first-rate history, and it has all the drama of fine fiction. It's a classic of the genre.”

 

“In beginning her prodigious research for this volume, Kelly talked to local police officers, most of whom were convinced that DeSalvo was not the killer. She offers logical conjectures about some of the other suspects, proceeding on the assumption that several slayers were involved.”

 

“The narration is engrossing as Kelly lays out the gruesome particulars of each of the 13 murders alleged to be the Strangler's.”

—
AudioFile
(review of the audio edition)

 

 

 

 

 

PINNACLE BOOKS
Kensington Publishing Corp.

 

All copyrighted material within is Attributor Protected.

Since it was members past and present of the Cambridge (Massachusetts) Police Department who put me onto this story, I owe them my first and greatest thanks for all their help, in particular, Superintendent Walter L. Boyle; retired Captain William R. Burke, Jr.; retired Detective Sergeant Fidele Centrella; the late Detective Louise Darling; Lieutenant Michael D. Giacoppo; former Detective M. Michael Giacoppo, now a private investigator; Detective Joseph McCarthy; retired Detective James Roscoe; and Crime Analyst Richard Sevieri. Several other officers contributed to this book; they have requested that their names not be used for reasons of privacy and personal safety, and I respect their wishes. They know who they are and I thank them.

I am more than grateful to Massachusetts Attorney General Scott Harshbarger and former Assistant At torney General Thomas Samoluk, who dug up and put at my disposal more than twenty-five cartons of material relating to the Strangler case—material that until now has never been made public. Without Mr. Harshbarger and Mr. Samoluk, I would not have a book.

My deep thanks also to former United States Senator Edward Brooke; former Governor of Massachusetts Endicott Peabody; and former United States Attorney General Elliot Richardson.

Richard and Rosalie DeSalvo, brother and sister-in-law of the late Albert DeSalvo, offered me not only their help but their kind hospitality while I was gathering information for this book.

Francis C. Newton, Jr., Esq., and Thomas Troy, Esq., counsel for the late Albert DeSalvo, provided me with much important information about their famous and ill-starred client (and wasted a lot of billable hours doing it!). I can say the same of Dr. Ames Robey, whose mordant observations on the criminal justice system may merit a book in themselves.

Former Boston Police Commissioner Edmund McNamara and former Boston Police Department Detective Sergeant James McDonald were kind enough to share with me their invaluable recollections.

Former Lieutenant John Moran of the Salem (Massachusetts) Police Department, who knows more about the murder of Evelyn Corbin than anyone else alive—except for the perpetrator—helped immeasurably, not the least in giving me a guided tour of the murder site.

Novelists and former crime reporters George V. Higgins and Andrew Coburn had riveting reminiscences of the major players in the Strangler drama—and recounted them in fascinating detail. Professor William Russo of Curry College provided valuable information about the making of the movie
The Boston Strangler.

Michael Brady, Ann Marie Barr, Franco Davoli, Bill Martin, Howard Hock, and Winston Alves of the Massachusetts State Record Office made my research there a pleasure.

Middlesex County Courthouse Librarian Sandra Lindheimer went above and beyond the call of bibliographic duty in helping me track down trial manuscripts and appeals briefs. I received similar excellent help from Jeannette Ramos at the United States District Court in Boston.

Jack Reilly, Joy Pratt, and novelist Lee Grove provided me with vivid memories of—and sharp observations about—the Harvard Square scene in the early 1960s.

Gordon Parry, who would have been a great stand-up comic but probably made a better forensic investigator, was enormously helpful to me in re-creating some of the crime scenes.

Reporters William Davis and Stephen Kurkjian of the
Boston Globe
were more than professionally courteous in helping me run down some suspects. Without John Cronin of the
Boston Herald,
this book would lack most of its wonderful illustrations.

I thank Gerold Frank for his kindness in answering my questions.

Diane Sullivan Dodd and Casey Sherman: thanks.

This book grew out of an article of mine published in the April 1992 issue of
Boston Magazine;
for this, I thank former editor Michael Roberts, who knows a thing or two about a hot crime story himself.

I appreciate the kindness of Jack Barry, Dan Doherty, John Donovan, Bill O'Donnell, Kathleen Rogers, Andrew Tuney, James Ward, and Roger Woodworth in sharing with me their memories of the Strangler investigation and its principals.

Thanks to Officers Richard Aumais and David St. Jean of the Andover (Massachusetts) Police Department for their help.

Jeff Klein of Pip Printing in Cambridge did a great job reproducing old photographs.

The following people, who figure prominently in this book, are deceased:

 

John Bottomly

Donald Conn

Phillip DiNatale

George McGrath

Cornelius Moynihan

P. J. Piscitelli

Robert Sheinfeld

Edward Sherry

 

The following people either declined to be interviewed or did not respond to requests for interviews:

 

Charles Burnim

John Collins

George Nassar

Juris Slesers

 

I also interviewed F. Lee Bailey, Esq., and Jon Asgeirsson, Esq., two other of Albert DeSalvo's attorneys. They stopped speaking to me after a while; nonetheless, I appreciate their initial input.

And thanks to those of you who requested anonymity: Your reasons for doing so make a great deal of sense.

Table of Contents