New Gilgo Theory: One Killer

Today's Newsday headline blasts, "Newsday Exclusive: New Gilgo Theory: One Killer - From LI" with a sub-headline, "Top cop: Police fear serial killer will strike again."

This information surprises me, and then again, it doesn't. The first thing that came to mind is that the Police Commissioner of the past eight years, Richard Dormer, is leaving office soon (as a new County Executive, Steve Bellone, takes office in January, he will choose a new police commissioner). It's conjecture on my part, but it's possible that Newsday wanted to give him a chance to say any last parting words about the case, and he gave it to them (hence the exclusive). The article has been written by Tania Lopez.

It was nearly one year ago that a K-9 cop, conducting a search in the hopes of possibly finding evidence of missing person Shannan Gilbert, came across remains. Subsequent searches turned up multiple remains (eight females, one male, one female toddler); yet none belonged to Shannan. Dormer states in the article that detectives do not think Shannan's case is connected; that it was pure coincidence that she went missing in Oak Beach, and the bodies were found on Gilgo Beach.

I worked on the Crime Stoppers tips line (1-800-220-TIPS) for thirteen years, and spoke with hundreds of people who called with information that lead to arrests for homicide, narcotics, robbery, larceny, and other felonies. This case truly needs the break of someone with information to step forward. If you, or someone you know has information, please consider giving a call, or emailing or texting a tip anonymously. There is a cash reward available via the Crime Stoppers program, a civilian organization, of which I am a volunteer.

The Suffolk County Police Department's website has set up a page with sketches of two unidentified victims, and jewelry recovered with the remains of two victims. Please give it a brief view and see if it looks familiar.

Blast at St. Louis Bouchercon 2011

Bouchercon 2011 at St. Louis was terrific. It is truly amazing to see so many authors all in one place. This was my second Bouchercon. The host hotel, the Renaissance St. Louis Grand, was sold out quickly, so I stayed at the historic St. Louis Union Station Marriott, which was such a treat; it's converted from the original St. Louis railroad station. I shared a room with my fellow New York Sister in Crime, Cathi Stoler, the author of Telling Lies. While attending a paragraph-reading party at Left Bank Books, in which Cathi read a paragraph from Telling Lies, I had the honor of meeting my Twitter friends, Chad Rohrbacher and Ron Earl Phillips.

Lobby of St. Louis Union Station Marriott

L to R, top to bottom: Catriona McPherson, Kathleen A. Ryan, Cathi Stoler, Clare Toohey

Left Bank Books, St. Louis

My New York Sister-in-Crime, Hilary Davidson, Anthony Award winner for Best First Novel, The Damage Done

Duane Swierczynski, Anthony Award Winner for Best Paperback Original, Expiration Date

Reed Farrel Coleman, Three-time Shamus Award winning author and fellow Long Islander!

I was honored to moderate a panel called, "Writing From the Headlines" with authors Pamela Callow, Diane Fanning, Ryan David Jahn, Karen E. Olson, and Rick Reed.

I was thrilled to finally meet in person the fabulous Patti Abbott.

I met a new friend, author Catriona McPherson. What a sweetheart!

Glad to see folks I've had the privilege of meeting before, at last year's Bouchercon in San Francisco, or at book signings in New York City, such as Brad Parks, Joelle Charbonneau, Barb Goffman, and of course seeing another fellow New York Sister in Crime, Clare Toohey.

Plans are underway for Bouchercon 2012 ~ in Cleveland, Ohio, October 4-7.

Bouchercon 2011: St. Louis

I am very excited and thrilled to be a moderator at a terrific panel called, "Writing From the Headlines," with a spectacular line-up of panelists at next month's Bouchercon in St. Louis. Our panel's title is "She's Not There" (all panel titles were taken from True Blood, Wire in the Blood, and various shows written by Robert Crais) and will occur on Friday, September 16, 2011 from 11:30 am - 12:30 p.m. in "Landmark 4" room of the Renaissance St. Louis Grand.

I will have the privilege of introducing and interviewing: Pamela Callow (@PamelaCallow) Diane Fanning (@DianeFanning), Ryan David Jahn (@RyanDavidJahn) Karen E. Olson (@kareneolson) and Rick Reed (@JackMurphy1010).

I am grateful to programming chairs Judy Bobalik and Ruth Jordan for arranging such an awesome group and bestowing upon me the absolute honor of moderating this panel.


If you are attending Bouchercon next month, I hope to see you at our discussion ~ and come prepared with intriguing questions for these talented authors who have written true crime and/or written mystery, thriller, and detective fiction influenced by or based on true crime events.

I will devote blog posts to each of these authors to get to know each one of them better ~ so stay tuned!

How Quickly Life Changes

Life changed completely and unexpectedly in my family on July 7, 2011. My 40-year-old sister-in-law, Irene, died suddenly. It is believed she suffered a massive heart attack. She was my brother's widow. My brother was killed ten years ago in a motorcycle crash, four days before their fifth wedding anniversary. 

Their ten-year-old son is now an orphan. I hope to become his legal guardian, as I've been close with him since he was born, and began watching him on Saturdays when he was three months old when his mom returned to work. 

After my brother's death, I proposed the following to Irene, the single parent of a five-month-old boy: that I take him at least once a month, overnight, to give her a break; and to allow him to grow up knowing the love of his father's family. This way, if she ever needed to travel, attend an event, etc., she would always have a place for her son to stay ~ somewhere he'd already be familiar with; a place she could count on as a safe, loving environment. 

We had this arrangement for the past ten years. Hours before she died, she wrote me an e-mail asking for certain dates in July and August for my nephew to sleepover. This has been his second home his entire life. 

It's as if I was preparing for this role for ten years and didn't know it. 

We hope and pray that all goes well and my nephew will become a permanent member of our immediate family. He's been growing up with my two children more as siblings than cousins. We love him dearly. 

When a tragedy like this strikes ~ it serves as a reminder to review how prepared you and/or your family members are, regarding your wishes. Are wills completed, or do they need updating? Does someone in your family know your wishes? Do they know whom your attorney is, whom to contact, where important documents are, etc? A sudden, unexpected tragedy is difficult enough to deal with; but preparations done in advance certainly helps those left behind. 

Do the right thing ~ make sure your family knows your wishes; have a will made; maintain of list of where important documents are kept; keep a list of those to contact in case tragedy strikes ~ which I pray never does ~ but at least you'll have peace of mind knowing you've made your wishes known and have eased the burden on your loved ones. 

Here's a list of 12 Easy Steps to Preparing Your Estate Plan. Also, check out Emergencies: Are You Prepared? Your Personal Checklist of Important Documents. 

Marilyn Levinson, Author of A MURDERER AMONG US

I'm thrilled to have Mystery & Children's Books Author Marilyn Levinson, the President of Long Island Sisters in Crime, as my guest blogger today. 
Congratulations, Marilyn, and much success on the release of your latest novel, A Murderer Among Us. 

Kathy, I’m happy to be your guest blogger today.  I was fortunate to meet Kathy when she joined the Long Island chapter of Sisters in Crime that I co-founded last summer with my friend and fellow writer, Bernardine Fagan.  Kathy became a valuable asset -- helping us with all things police-related, PR, Facebook, and Twitter.  We’re a friendly, informal group of mystery writers who meet in various libraries around Long Island.  Our meetings vary from month to month.  We’ve been fortunate to have two wonderful writer guests so far -- Hank Phillippi Ryan and Reed Farrel Coleman.  We critique, try to fathom the mystery of writing mysteries, publishing, and marketing, and support one another wholeheartedly.  We welcome all Long Island mystery writers to come and join us.

My mystery novel, A MURDERER AMONG US, debuted on June first.  My sleuth, Lydia Krause, has moved to Twin Lakes, an upscale retirement community on Long Island, to start a new life.  Lydia’s appalled when her neighbor introduces her to the community’s financial advisor, a convicted embezzler whom Lydia holds responsible for having driven her sister to suicide. She exposes the man in public and exchanges heated words with his wife, who is discovered the following morning, mowed down by Lydia’s Lexus. Suddenly, Lydia is Suspect Number One. Employing the many skills she’s honed as CEO of her own company, Lydia undertakes an investigation to prove her innocence.

The book is about new beginnings.  Widowed and no longer in charge of her company, Lydia forges new friendships.  Her relationships with her grown daughters take unexpected turns.  She even finds herself in a budding romance.  Life, Lydia learns, marches on.

A MURDERER AMONG US is available at Wings ePress in print and eBook format. will soon be available on Amazon.com, Kindle, and Fictionwise.com

Visit my website at: http://www.marilynlevinson.com. 

If you’d like to know more about Long Island Sisters in Crime, feel free to contact me at Marilev4 (at) optonline (dot) net. 

***

Thanks, Marilyn, for visiting today, and your very kind words. I enjoy being a member of Long Island Sisters in Crime. As a relatively new group, I think we're off to a smashing start, if I say so myself!

Visitors: If you have a question or comment for Marilyn, leave a comment ~ and thanks for stopping by!

Beach House Noir at Do Some Damage

Steve Weddle at Do Some Damage offered up a summertime flash fiction challenge for some Beach House Noir, 500 to 5,000 words. I'm a little late to the game, but I finished a story to add to the mix, called "Wanderlust," which clocks in just under 630 words. 


The awesome stories are up at Do Some Damage. Congrats to Thomas Pluck, the winner of Duane Swiercyznki's Fun and Games. 

"Wanderlust"

After a scorcher on Fire Island during the summer of 1994, Phil and Garrett were about to fall asleep in their upscale cottage rental when a questionable sound of flatulence arose. 

“Was that you?” Phil asked.  

“No,” Garrett said, sitting up. “I was about to ask you the same thing.”

Phil whispered. “Who the hell farted, then — and where did it come from?

Garrett pointed toward the closet. He quietly slipped out of bed and reached under the bed for a bat. He stood near the closet. Phil turned on his bedside lamp. 

“We know you’re in there,” Garrett warned. “I have a weapon, so don’t try anything funny.”  

“I fell asleep — don’t hurt me. Can I come out now?” the burglar asked.

Garrett pulled the closet doors open. A balding man, not yet sixty, struggled to get on his feet. He rubbed his eyes.

“Who the hell are you — and what are you doing here?” Garrett demanded. 

“My name is Tommy Rogers,” the intruder said. He glanced at Phil, who held a cordless phone in his hand. “Please, don’t call the police. I can explain.” 

Garrett loosened his grip on the bat. The paunchy invader appeared harmless. “Let’s hear it — and we’ll decide whether to call the cops or not.”

“This community — well, you know, it’s reputation and all,” Tommy said, gazing back and forth at the startled pair. 

“You’ve got something against gays?”

“No, not at all. It’s the atmosphere of isolated beach communities. Doors are left unlocked. Everyone’s too trusting — which is to my benefit.”

Garrett asked, “And what benefit would that be, Mr. Rogers? Money? Jewelry? Drugs?”  

The disheveled, uninvited man explained, “I look for a wallet on the dresser.” His gaze shifted toward the wallets sitting on their dresser, making his point. “I only remove one credit card, though. I touch nothing else.” 

Phil surmised the rest. “To buy time — until the victim realizes it’s missing, or the credit card company notifies the victim — whichever comes first, but could take a while.”

Tommy nodded. “Exactly. If I get a card, I beat feet; but you guys walked in before I even had a chance to look. I didn’t take anything — we’re all good, I promise. I ducked into the closet, waiting for you to either leave or go to sleep. Guess I’m the one who crapped out. What gave me away? Did I snore?”

“We heard you rip one,” Garrett said. 

“Damn chili dogs,” Tommy muttered, looking down at his feet.

Phil asked, “So what’s your goal with the stolen card?”

“I book a plane ticket and get the hell out of dodge. I fly to the next gay enclave and steal another card. I’ve been all over the world, and no one’s caught up to me yet.”

“Until now, you idiot.”

“Technically, you’re correct; but do you know that when a burglar enters a potentially occupied home, he is mentally prepared to commit homicide?” Tommy asked, but didn’t wait for a response as he pulled a gun from the small of his back. 

He shot Garrett before he could lift the bat. 

Tommy double-tapped Phil before he could dial 911, or any other number. He crumbled to the ground. 

Tommy heard the front screen door slam. 

“Doesn’t anyone ever lock their doors around here?” he grumbled. 

“Phil? Garrett?” You guys setting off fireworks?” a concerned friend asked. When he reached the bedroom door, his eyes met the intruder’s. His mouth fell open, but could form no words.  

“Fireworks,” Tommy sneered. “I got your fireworks right here.” Bang-bang. 

Tommy locked the front door behind him. The drifter strolled down the tree-lined boardwalk, blended in with the crowd, and made his way towards the ferry. 

He had a plane to catch.

Antenna TV

Fans of yesteryear television, rejoice! Antenna TV (shows you used to watch using an antenna) is now available ~ depending on your TV provider and area. Enter your zip code to see if it's available where you live. Sadly, it is not currently available on DISH network or DIRECTV.

We're talking a channel devoted to such shows as All in the Family, Soap, Maude, Good Times, Hazel, The Three Stooges, Dennis The Menace, Three's Company, Here Come The Brides, The Monkees, The Partridge Family, and so many more ~ and movies, too.

To think I gave up ballet lessons on Saturdays so I wouldn't miss The Monkees; certainly no VHS available back then. I just had to wait 40 years to see it on TV on a regular basis again (well, I did buy some DVDs of the shows in recent years, and I've seen The Monkees ~ minus Mike Nesmith ~ in concert several times).

The Network launched on January 1, 2011, with a Three Stooges marathon.

You can follow @AntennaTVOnline on Twitter or "like" Antenna TV on Facebook.

If you have this channel, which show(s) are you interested in seeing? I can't wait to watch Soap again (and Here Come the Brides, and All in the Family).

TV Land, which has been around many years, has quite a line-up of shows, too. Gunsmoke, Bonanza, I Dream of Jeannie, Sanford and Son, and many more. You can also find TV Land on Facebook and Twitter @tvland.