Ronald DeFeo jr. stumbled into Henry’s Bar on November 13, 1974. He told the patrons that his family had been killed. They were shocked by his claims, and a group agreed to go to 112 Ocean Avenue, the house the family shared, to substantiate the young man’s claims.
Many people in the crowd recoiled at the scene. Parents Louise and Ronald DeFeo Sr., 18-year-old Dawn, 13-year-old Allison, 12-year-old Marc, and nine-year-old John Matthew were all lying face down; each of them had been shot. It was a surreal scene. Before long, they began to wonder who could have done this to the family.
Joe Yeswit, a member of the crowd, called the Suffolk Police Department. After telling them about what had been discovered, they said units were on their way. The crowd broke up when the cops arrived, every one promising to give a statement if necessary.
Officers on the scene noted that Ronald sr. and Louise were shot twice, while the children only received one shot. Each bullet was fatal.
They began questioning Ronald jr. He immediately claimed it was a mob hit on his family, and even named Louis Falini as the murderer. However, he stopped short of giving the investigators a reason why the mafia would be after his kin.
He was ushered to the police station out of an abundance of caution. Officers rationalized that Ronald’s life was still in danger if this was a mob hit.
Mob Ties
Investigators knew the DeFeos were connected with the mob. Ronald jr.’s great-uncle, Peter DeFeo, was a caporegime for the Genovese crime family. It stood to reason that a war between mafia syndicates could break out.
However, the story that Ronald jr. told them soon began to fall apart. Louis Falini had an air-tight alibi; he had been with a lady friend and was out of state at the time of the murders. They began to question the young man more about what he knew about the killing of his family.
As the officers asked more questions, they noted that Ronald grew more agitated, and his story changed. Finally, after hours of interrogation, he confessed to killing his family.
When asked why he did it, Ronald jr. said he didn’t know. He explained that he came out of a trance-like state with a rifle in his hand, then killed his parents. Then he said, “Once I started, I just couldn’t stop. It went so fast.”
After killing his family, he confessed to taking a shower and changing his clothes. Once the evidence was hidden, he went to the bar and got the crowd to come over to his house.
Given he had already lied to the officers once, they were skeptical of his story. They went to the house and found his bloody clothes and rifle exactly where he told them they would be.
They began trying to find a motive for the murder. The DeFeos seemed to be a typical family with some money. Ronald sr. and Ronald jr. had argued in the weeks leading to the killings, but many assumed it was typical father/son machismo that fueled their fights.
Then an investigator found a quote that clarified the motive; Ronald jr. asked about filing for the insurance money on his parents.
Digging Deeper into the Amityville Horror
While money seemed to be a good motive for the murder, not every officer was convinced that Ronald jr. was strapped for cash. They noted he worked with his father in the family business. And while he had been reprimanded a few times for stealing from the company, he was never terminated.
Ronald jr. and his lawyer built a defense upon insanity. They claimed that he heard his mother and father plotting to kill him, so he acted first and got rid of them. Dr. Daniel Schwartz, a forensic psychiatrist, testified that the young man was a paranoid psychotic, and he could not have known what he was doing was wrong because of his mental illness.
Dr. Harold Zolan countered that Ronald jr. knew what he was doing. He admitted that the young man did have an anti-social disorder, but that did not prevent him from knowing right from wrong.
Prosecutors suggested that Ronald jr. was bitter with his father for busting him for the thefts. They also pointed out that he asked police officers when he would get the insurance money from his parents’ deaths. It looked like money was a big factor in this tragedy.
The defense countered that Ronald jr. overheard his parents plotting to kill him. While they likely weren’t, he heard the voices because he wasn’t in his right mind, partly due to the LSD and other drugs he took.
When the case was given to the jurors, it didn’t take them long to convict. They returned their verdict on November 21, 1975, just over a month after the trial began. On December 4, the judge sentenced Ronald jr. to six consecutive sentences of 25 years to life.
Strangely, this was the beginning of the saga.
Ronald Jr., changed his story on the Amityville Horror and what really happened
By 1986, Ronald jr. changed his story about what happened the night his family was murdered. In an interview with Newsday, he claimed his sister, Dawn, killed his father. Their distraught mother killed his siblings, and he killed her as self-defense when she finished.
When the reporter pushed back on this new story, Ronald jr. claimed he took the blame because he didn’t want to say anything negative about his mother. Especially since his great-uncle Peter was watching the trial. He was afraid that if he told the truth, he would be killed by the mob.
Ronald jr. filed a 440 motion in 1990. A 440 motion is different than an appeal as it allows the court to vacate or undo a conviction should the prisoner prove they were wrongly convicted. In the motion, he claimed that Dawn was the sole killer, something his attorney knew.
However, his attorney pressured him into using the insanity defense. Ronald jr. claims he was told it was the best way to ensure an acquittal.
The new story claimed that Dawn and an unknown accomplice committed the murders. He killed his sister in self-defense. Then came the bombshell; Ronald jr. claimed to be married and living in New Jersey at the time and that his brother-in-law could provide him an alibi.
An affidavit was entered into evidence with the name Richard Romondoe.
There was a problem with this new evidence. Richard Romondoe did not exist. And the marriage didn’t occur until 1989. In the summer of 1974, Ronald jr. ran around Amityville with his then-girlfriend and a bunch of his friends.
In his ruling, the judge called out the lies. He said that nothing in the new evidence seemed credible or stood up to scrutiny. The motion was denied.
Wife’s Story
One of the pieces of the new story turned out to be sort of true. Ronald jr. did take a bride. A woman by the name of Geraldine Gates married him in 1989 in anticipation of the 440 motion.
Like her husband, Geraldine seemed to be confused by honesty. She claimed early on that they married in 1974; however, she later changed it to they married in 1970. Divorce papers show that they married in 1989 and ended the union in 1993.
There was a new change to the story that Ronald jr. told. In November 2000, Ric Osuna claims he met with the convict for six hours. During that time, he was told that Dawn and two of her friends committed the murders with him because his parents were plotting to kill him.
Ronald jr. denies meeting with Ric for longer than half an hour, and they didn’t talk about the murders at all.
The new version of the story can be traced to Geraldine. She often recounted it for those who asked, including reporters looking for a scoop on the murders. However, as experts have pointed out, Ronald jr.’s version of the story changed so much that it’s hard to tell what is fact and what is fiction.
Nearly 50 years ago, a tragedy unfurled in the small community of Amityville. Because of it, the residents have to deal with the notoriety that comes from being associated with a subject of a true crime case that many have mixed with a supernatural element.
TCNS is sponsored by Pod Decks. Pod Decks are the hottest new tool for podcasters looking to have more meaningful conversations or gamify their podcast. Simply shuffle up, ask a question, and let the content roll. Order yours today at poddecks.com and use code Larry21 for 10% off your order.
NOTE: This article contains affiliate links, which will earn the site a commission if the product is purchased.
If you enjoy our writing, please consider leaving a small donation. Your support helps keep the lights on and allows us to hire more writers and grow our site.
 |  |  |
