Marty Tankleff

My parents were friendly with Marty Tankleff’s aunt and uncle; my parents were convinced of his innocence simply because his relatives were so convinced. That was a decade and a half ago. Since then so much new evidence has come out, it’s impossible to believe that’s he is guilty.

The detective who interrogated him thought that he didn’t look broken up enough; Marty’s adopted and we all know how often adopted children murder their parents. Especially when a large inheritance is involved. Only Marty was 17, and he wouldn’t be eligible for the inheritance until he was 25. As I remember 17, the wait to 25 seemed a life time away.

There had been a large stake poker game at the Tankleff’s house the night of the murders; the mayor of Belle Harbor was there as was Jerry Steurman a bagel shop owner who owed much money to Seymour Tankelff, and later changed his identity and disapeared.

Marty Tankleff had just turned 17 when he was arrested for killing his parents, Seymour and Arlene Tankleff, in their home on Long Island, NY. Based on a dubious, unsigned “confession” extracted from him following hours of interrogation by a detective with a questionable background, Marty was convicted and sentenced to 50 years to life, and has already served 14 years in maximum security prisons for a crime he did not commit. Now, based on new evidence tracked down by a private investigator, a court hearing is underway that could free Marty. But can Marty ever find justice in Suffolk County? Click here for the full story.

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It feels as if Suffolk County prosecutors and police are doing everything possible to keep Marty in prison, and the real killer out. Why they just don’t have any new DNA evidence. I watch CSI the original; that doesn’t mean I believe that only scientific evidence can ferret out a killer. Personally I believe that DNA evidence can be tampered with. Just because somethings “science” doesn’t make it next to G-d.

That mindset can do much to hold back justice.

Joey “Guns” Creedon’s son: “My Father Told Me That He Killed Marty Tankleff’s Parents.” Click here to read his affidavit, filed today along with a motion to vacate Marty’s conviction or reopen the hearing.

My parents made me aware of this miscarriage of justice. Okay, Marty being adopted might have had a bit to do with it; as we tired of hearing that word used in conjuction with children gone astray. And we were tired of hearing the word adopted being used to describe a child’s relationship with his/her parents. Once an adoption is final; an adopted child is just another child.

More than that my parents not only liked but very much respected Marty Tankleff’s aunt and uncle. Most of his family has stood by him, and help pay for the costs. Family loyalty only extends so far; who would risk so much for somebody that they thought might be guilty?

This case has been gnawing at me for years. It’s something that I have long thought I should have taken a more active role in. Evidence keeps growing and pointing away from Marty who only confessed after many hours; and was told that his father had come out of his coma for awhile and said that Marty did it.

Seymour never came out of his coma; Marty was just seventeen and had no lawyer present. While it’s legal to lie to a possible defendent, Marty was too young and unsophisticated to know enough to tell the police he wouldn’t talk without legal representation. As he hadn’t yet been arrested, the police didn’t have to read him his Miranda rights. He hadn’t been arrested because there was no evidence against him.

The confession wasn’t recorded. Marty easily could have had a lawyer present as the family lawyer went to his house upon hearing about the murders. The police kept him from speaking to Marty. Really, read the documents.

We live in a world where we want the police to be heros. How can they be when we allow police to coerce false confessions from minors? Nassau and Suffolk counties were a Northern judical Redneck joke when I was growing up. I had hoped that it would have changed. But the police and legal authorities in Suffolk are acting like corrupt Keystone cops.

Though Steurman had an obvious real motive he was never considered a suspect; nobody was but Marty. I don’t know how many other Marty Tankleffs are languishing in jail, but I do know that Marty is.

Some of my last memories of my dad are of him talking about this case. My dad might have been a raging Reaganite, but when it came to social issues and justice, I never met a more compassionate person. As the years went on, my mom found it more and more difficult to talk about this case. I have a need to do something in honor of my parents memory; something real; something that can help a person or people.

Helping spread the word about Marty Tankleff is one thing that I can do. Please read the documents. It’s heartbreaking.

Hey, the Tankleff family even has a blog.

I had many fights with my parents; I was adopted. I wanted to kill them at times. Sure that they felt the same as I did. That doesn’t mean that our love for each other was any less than if had I been born to them. Don’t write about being adopted much. If I mention it, it’s usually in passing because it’s the only word that fits

Marty Tankleff was adopted; he didn’t show the right emotions, whatever they were supposed to be; his family was rich. He slept through the murders; therefore he was the murderer. (I had read about his “lack of effect” in prior articles.)

If you think that this is good reasoning than you deserve to live in a country where the police can act like the Gestapo. No, you don’t; I get caught up, in the moment and subject, when I write.

On another subject entirely, I’m taking the rest of the weekend off from blogging;
I have one four hour dentist appointment on Monday, and one two hour one on Tuesday. Will have the best looking mouth in town, but it might need a rest from everything. If I haven’t commented on your blogs, you know that I will. And thanks all. Once more I’m overwhelmed by your belief in me. Many people have told me lately that I’m obsessive. Have a need to write and like to fuel that compulsion. So…