The Real Amityville Horror - The DeFeo Murders

Many, especially those who reside in New York, are familiar with the notorious Amityville house in Long Island. The house and the events that occurred in it are infamous: George and Kathy Lutz moved in with their children soon after a grisly slew of murders took place there. Twenty-eight days later, they fled the house in terror, leaving behind all of their possessions. Among their recollections of their stay in the house were tales of demonic possession, ghostly presences and strange occurrences that ultimately drove them from their home. Their version of events was told in a non-fiction novel written by Jay Anson entitled "The Amityville Horror." A movie by the same title was released in 1979, followed by several sequels and a re-make in 2005. To this day it is unknown whether or not these events were true or a hoax, however the chilling murders that occurred before the Lutz family moved in are unfortunately very true.

From an outsider's perspective, the DeFeos were living the American dream. Ronald DeFeo worked at his father-in-law's car dealership while his wife, Louise, cared for their five children. After years of hard work, they became very wealthy and purchased a beautiful waterfront Dutch colonial in Amityville, Long Island. The house was stunning; it was everything they had ever wanted and more. Unbeknownst to them, it was also where all but one of them would be savagely murdered by someone they knew and loved.

While financially and materially they were extremely fortunate, they were not so lucky in other aspects. Ronald DeFeo was a belligerent man who often abused and terrorized his wife and children. The eldest son, Ronald junior (aka "Butch") got the worst of his father's abuse. The two locked horns quite frequently. As Butch got older, the altercations between him and his father escalated and became more violent. It was not uncommon for the two to get into physical brawls.

Butch quickly developed a temper even worse than his father's. His parents sent him to a therapist, but nothing came of it. At a loss for a solution, Ronald and Louise placated their son with expensive gifts including a $14,000 speedboat. Despite their efforts, their son's behavior worsened. At 17, Butch was kicked out of his high school for drug use and petty theft.

Butch became increasingly more violent and hostile. While on a hunting trip with some of his peers, he held a shotgun to his friend's head and stared blankly as his friend fled in terror. He saw his friend later that day and acted as if nothing had happened. During one of the frequent fights between his mother and father, Butch loaded a shotgun and pointed it at his father's head. He pulled the trigger, but for an unknown reason the gun did not fire. He then turned around and walked out of the room without saying a word. This incident foreshadowed the events to come.

Butch got a job at his grandfather's car dealership and received a hefty allowance from his father whether or not he showed up for work. All of his money went towards his car, drugs and alcohol. Although he had more money than most people his age ever dreamed of, Butch stole from his family. A couple of weeks before the killings, he was supposed to deposit $21,800 in the bank for his grandfather. Instead, he staged a fake robbery and split the money with the associate that he had hired to pretend to rob him. When the police questioned him about the alleged thief, he became irrational and violent. It was not long before Ronald became wise to what had really happened. Several days before the murders, Ronald confronted his son about not cooperating with the police. Butch threatened to kill his father and drove off angrily.

In the early morning hours of November 14, 1974, everyone in the house was fast asleep with the exception of Butch. He was the only child in the family to have his own room: A luxury that he used to house his collection of guns. He picked up a .35-caliber rifle and headed to his parents' room. He stood at the foot of the bed and shot his father twice in the back. The first shot went through his kidney and left through his chest; the second hit his spine and became lodged in his neck. Louise awoke just seconds before her eldest son fired two shots at her, collapsing her right lung. As the two laid on their bed in a pool of their own blood, Butch proceeded to his brothers' room. Oddly enough, no one in the house was awoken by the very loud shots that were fired. Butch stood above his little brothers' beds as they slept and fired one shot into each of them. After he had killed John and Mark (his brothers), he headed to his sisters' room. Allison was the second eldest child. She stirred from her sleep to find her big brother pointing a gun at her face. After he shot her, he shot his other sister, Dawn in the head. In less than 15 minutes, Butch savagely murdered his whole family.

He took a shower, shaved and hid his bloody clothing in a pillowcase. He put the pillowcase and his rifle in the trunk of his car and drove to Brooklyn where he disposed of the evidence in a storm drain. At 6:00 in the morning, Butch went to work as if nothing had happened. He left around noon to visit his girlfriend Sherry Klein. He told her that he had tried calling his house several times, but no one answered. He demonstrated by calling his house in front of her and getting the same predictable result. He seemed baffled, but not particularly concerned that he could not reach his family. He and Sherry went shopping and then they went to see his friend Bobby Kelske. Butch tried once more to call his family from Bobby's house, but still got no answer. The rest of his day was spent visiting friends and using drugs. He met Bobby at a bar around 6:00 in the evening and soon left for home. He quickly returned to the bar frantically reporting that his parents were shot. He, Bobby and a few others quickly drove over to the DeFeo house. Upon arriving there and seeing the bodies, one of the young men promptly called the police.

Officer Kenneth Geguski was the first officer to arrive at the scene. He and fellow officer Edwin Tyndall searched the house to find the five dead bodies. Detective Gaspar Randazzo questioned Butch about possible culprits. Butch implicated mafia hit man Louis Falini in the killing of his family. He was taken to a police station where Gerard Gozaloff and Joseph Napolitano continued the questioning. Butch gave a written statement claiming the following: he was home on the night in question watching television until 2:00 in the morning; at 4:00 a.m. he heard someone flush the toilet; he left early for work because he could not sleep; he visited his friends and girlfriend; he went home to check on his family and found them dead. He embellished his Falini story and did not evoke any suspicion from the detectives.

At 2:30 a.m. on the fifteenth of November, Detective John Shirvell discovered two cardboard boxes in Butch's room. The boxes were both labeled "Marlin Rifles" and under the label ".22" and ".35" were written. Shirvell spoke with Bobby and found out that Butch collected guns. The discovery did not strike the detective as odd until the forensic examiners revealed that a .35-caliber Marlin rifle was used in all of the killings.

By 8:45 that same morning, Detective George Harrison placed Butch under arrest. Lieutenant Robert Dunn and Detective Dennis Rafferty interrogated him about the murder of his family. The officers confronted him on the many inconsistencies between the evidence and his story. After continuing to blame Louis Falini for the murder of his family, Butch finally confessed. His trial began on October 14, 1975. Heclaimed to have killed his family in self-defense and then admitted that he enjoyed killing them. At some point during the trial, he threatened the life of the prosecutor. On November 21, 1975 Ronald DeFeo, Jr. was found guilty of six counts of second-degree murder. Two weeks later, he received six sentences of 25 years to life in prison. He remains incarcerated in Green Haven Correctional Facility in New York today.

Recommended books for those interested:
"The Amityville Horror" by Jay Anson and "The Night the DeFeos Died: Reinvestigating the Amityville Murders" by Ric Osuna.