Ronald “Butch” DeFeo Jr. goes on trial for the murders of his parents and four siblings in the Amityville, N.Y., killings that inspired “The Amityville Horror” book and movies.
Ronald DeFeo Sr., 43, his wife, Louise, 42, and four of their children were shot dead in their beds at 112 Ocean Ave.
One puzzling aspect of the crime was that all six victims appeared to have died in their sleep, without struggle, and neighbors didn’t hear any gunshots, despite the fact that the rifle DeFeo used didn’t have a silencer. Ronald DeFeo Jr., 22, unsuccessfully claimed an insanity defense, and he was convicted and sentenced to life.
Thirteen months after the killings, George Lutz bought the six-bedroom Dutch Colonial house on Long Island for the bargain price of $80,000. After deciding something was wrong with their house that they could not explain, George and Kathy Lutz carried out a blessing.
While George held a silver crucifix, they both recited the Lord’s Prayer, and George allegedly heard a chorus of voices telling them, “Will you stop?!” The new owners fled after 28 days.
The debate about the accuracy of “The Amityville Horror” continues, and remains one of the most popular haunting accounts in American folklore.
