A Picture History of Kew Gardens, NY - What you think you know about the Kitty Genovese case might not be true

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Illustration by Bill Rose. This image did not appear in the original Times article. Click to enlarge.]

"Today, the specifics of the neighborhood's reaction to the murder are in dispute, and several residents who were alive at the time of the attack maintained yesterday that the screams were not that easy to hear and that in fact, some people did call for help or seek to find out what was going on."

[Quote from: Joe Sexton, "A Request Revives Passions in the Kitty Genovese Case", The New York Times, p. B4 (July 25, 1995).]

Disclaimer

Throughout this page, I will cite to various media accounts of the case. I do so only for the factual statements they contain and not because the authors of those accounts agree with the opinions I express here.

In the Public Domain

My thoughts, comments and opinions about this case along with all images created by or for me are dedicated to the public domain. They may be copied and used without credit or compensation to me. I claim no rights in the trial transcript and briefs included here.

This page was created on January 14 2004 and revised on February 29, 2004.

Kitty Genovese

What you think you know about the case might not be true.

According to the March 27, 1964 New York Times:

"For more than half an hour thirty-eight respectable, law-abiding citizens in Queens watched a killer stalk and stab a woman in three separate attacks in Kew Gardens. Twice the sound of their voices and the sudden glow of their bedroom lights interrupted him and frightened him off. Each time he returned, sought her out and stabbed her again. Not one person telephoned the police during the assault; one witness called after the woman was dead."

The story became a cultural landmark, making infamous the phrase, "We didn't want to get involved." However, the undisputed evidence from the killer's trial and other sources shows that the Times account is mostly wrong.

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