Episode 135: The Murder of Kitty Genovese Part 2

A horrific murder ripped through a Queens neighborhood and the killer was finally caught. After a failed defense, the murderer was sentenced to death, but that was not the end for him or for Kitty’s story. The case would go down in history, but did the newspapers and textbooks get the facts right? This story’s legacy was more than what was initially reported. This week’s episode is The Murder of Kitty Genovese Part 2.

BYSTANDER TRAINING

If you want to equip yourself to be more than just a bystander, you can sign up for intervention training with Hollaback!, a global, people-powered movement to end harassment that trains people to take action and to reach across their own identities to ally with others and establish a united front against harassment each time we witness it. They currently offer free trainings on:

  • Bystander Intervention to Stop Street Harassment,

  • Bystander Intervention to Stop Anti-Asian American Harassment and Xenophobia, and

  • Bystander Intervention to Stop Police Sponsored Violence and Anti-Black Racist Harassment.

You can learn more at ihollaback.org.

TIKTOKS

SOURCES

Kitty Genovese: A True Account of a Public Murder and Its Private Consequences by Catherine Pelonero: https://amzn.to/3sDjRq3

The Witness, produced by Bill Genovese: Click here

Reviving Kitty Genovese Case, and Its Passions, The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/1995/07/25/nyregion/reviving-kitty-genovese-case-and-its-passions.html

Killer of Kitty Genovese Is Denied a New Trial, The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/1995/11/14/nyregion/killer-of-kitty-genovese-is-denied-a-new-trial.html

The Urban Legend of Kitty Genovese and the 38 Witnesses who Ignored her Blood-Curdling Screams, The Los Angeles Times: https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-09-10/urban-legend-kitty-genovese-38-people

MOSELEY RECALLS 3 QUEENS KILLINGS; Tells Court He Got Urges to Slay and Hunted Victims, The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/1964/06/11/archives/moseley-recalls-3-queens-killings-tells-court-he-got-urges-to-slay.html

LOOKING BACK — 1964: How Many Witnessed the Murder of Kitty Genovese? The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/06/insider/1964-how-many-witnessed-the-murder-of-kitty-genovese.html

37 Who Saw Murder Didn't Call the Police; Apathy at Stabbing of Queens Woman Shocks Inspector (1964 Article), The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/1964/03/27/archives/37-who-saw-murder-didnt-call-the-police-apathy-at-stabbing-of.html

Bystander Effect, Psychology Today: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/bystander-effect

‘Kitty Genovese: The Murder, the Bystanders, the Crime that Changed America’ by Kevin Cook and Kitty Genovese: A True Account of a Public Murder and Its Private Consequences’ by Catherine Pelonero, The Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/kitty-genovese-the-murder-the-bystanders-the-crime-that-changed-america-by-kevin-cook-and-kitty-genovese-a-true-account-of-a-public-murder-and-its-private-consequences-by-catherine-pelonero/2014/03/14/f0a7ca6e-a3a5-11e3-a5fa-55f0c77bf39c_story.html

How The Murder Of Kitty Genovese Created The Bystander Effect, All That’s Interesting: https://allthatsinteresting.com/kitty-genovese

Missing the Story: How turning the Murder of Kitty Genovese into a parable erased its particulars, The Nation: https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/missing-story/

Winston Moseley, Who Killed Kitty Genovese, Dies in Prison at 81, The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/05/nyregion/winston-moseley-81-killer-of-kitty-genovese-dies-in-prison.html

SLAYING IS DENIED BY QUEENS YOUTH; Mitchell, on Stand in Kralik Case, Disavows Confession, The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/1964/06/25/archives/slaying-is-denied-by-queens-youth-mitchell-on-stand-in-kralik-case.html

Trial of Mitchell Ends in Hung Jury, The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/1964/06/27/archives/trial-of-mitchell-ends-in-hung-jury.html

Moseley v. Scully, 908 F. Supp. 1120 (E.D.N.Y. 1995): https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/FSupp/908/1120/1457458/

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Episode 136: The Disappearance of Kristin Smart

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Episode 134: The Murder of Kitty Genovese Part 1