Who killed Martha Moxley?

 

Growing up in Connecticut, I have heard of this case before I can remember. Not only because it happened in an affluent town, and further more in a gated community, but it also had to do with relatives of the Kennedy's. One of the most powerful and well known families in the country. The Skakel family was related to the Kennedy's through Ethel, who was once married to RFK. RFK was the US Attorney General who appointed while his brother JFK was President of the United States. JFK was assassinated in 1963. RFK was killed while running for president in 1968. Their brother Ted Kennedy was also involved in an incident in 1969 where his car went off a bridge. While Ted lived, his passenger was killed. All that being said, in 1975 when Martha Moxley was murdered, Kennedy was more of a household name than the Obama's during Barack's tenure as president. So when it became public that a Kennedy cousin might have been involved in the murder, in the gated community of Bell Haven, which is on of the most affluent towns in the country, it became national news.

1974-1975 

Sometime during the mid 1970s, the Moxley family moved from San Francisco, California to the Bell Haven section of Greenwich, Ct. They moved to 38 Walsh Lane, which is directly across the street from the Skakel home. It was said that Martha got to know the Skakel's over the summer of 1975. While there were 7 siblings in the Skakel family that lived in Bell Haven, Martha knew Tommy 17, and Micheal 15 more than anyone. Probably because of the closeness in age. Martha was 15 at the time.

From the outside looking in, the Skakel's seemed to be having a tough time. Anne (Reynolds) Skakel died of brain cancer in 1973. The Skakels father Rushton is said to not be much of a home keeper. So after Anne passed away, he would hire live in nanny's and tutors to help with the kids and around the house. At the time that Martha was murdered, Ken Littleton was the live-in tutor. He started working for the Skakel's the day that Martha was murdered.

This in an Ariel photograph of the section of Bell Haven 
where Martha Moxley lived. Across the street is the Skakel
property. It looks as though the Skakel's property goes all
the way back to the tennis court. The tennis court and the end
of the Moxley's horseshoe shaped driveway are across the
street from each other.

October 30th, 1975. Mischief Night.

This Link will take you to a Tap talk page where someone has mapped out the details of the movements of as many people as they can the day and night Martha was murdered. While I understand the relevance of this, I chose not to include it because it strains the continuity of the post. Also, much of it doesn't seem relevant to the events that are around the time of her murder, in my opinion. 

At about 6:30 Martha left the house to meet her friend Helen. Shortly there after the met up with Jeffery Byrne 11, and Jackie Wettenhall. This group would stop by the Skakel household a few times that night. The first few times they stopped by, the Skakel children were not home. They were with Ken Littleton at the Bell Haven Club having dinner. Also at dinner at the Bell Haven club was James Terrien (Skakel cousin), and Andrea Shakespeare. 

At around 9pm, Martha, Helen and Jeffery Byrne again went to the Skakel house and met up with Michael Skakel. According to court documents, (see resources at the bottom of the page This is from Michael Skakels 2007 appeal for a new trial that was filed in Stamford.) The four of them sat in a Lincoln Continental on the side of the house, listening to music. (While I won't argue with the court documents, I also suspect the reason they sat in the car that night was because it was cold. Coldest day in October so far that year. It was 32 or so degrees, and it was 10 to 20 mph winds, and wind gusts. With the windchill, it must have seemed like it was in the 20s that night.)

According to court documents, Micheal Skakel considered this moment with Martha a "moment of closeness." Not long after, Tommy Skakel would join them in the car. At about 9:30 the elder Skakel boys Rushton Jr, John came out to the car with James Treeien. They told the teens in the car that they were taking it to give James a ride home.

When the 5 of them got out of the car so that the elder boys could give James a ride home, Helen stated that Tommy and Martha were engaged in horse play. She stated that she felt a little embarrassed about the flirting. Helen also stated that her and Jeffery Byrnes left together. 

Dorothy Moxley, Martha's mother, had been painting the trim that night in one of the rooms of the house. She stated to police that she heard a commotion around 9:30 or 10. Then decided to clean up the paint and take a shower. She was waiting up when Martha's brother came home. Then fell asleep while waiting for Martha to get home. When Dorothy woke in the middle of the night and Martha still wasn't home, she made some calls. First to the Skakel house, then to the Terrien house, and to the Byrnes house. After failing to find Martha, she called the police. After some searching, the police assured her that Martha was probably out and would come home in the morning. When morning came around and still no Martha, Dorthy knew something was really wrong.

October 31, 1975

Around 12:30 Jackie Wettenhall walked through her backyard to the Moxley's and saw Martha lying face down under a Pine tree. She wasn't moving, and her pants were around her ankles.

Jackie Wettenhalls house compared to others in
Bell Haven. If you follow the link I posted, earlier
it shows the relevance of the people who were involved
in mischief night, and where Martha went over the course
of the afternoon and into the early evening.

The Crime Scene.

Sometime after leaving the Skakel property, Martha walked back towards her house and seemingly went up the right part of her horseshoe shaped driveway. She was attacked by someone with a golf club. The person hitting her 8 or 9 times in the head. Then the killer drove the broken part of the shaft through her neck. Dr. Henry Lee would go on to say that the wound to her neck was either "in extremis" (meaning at the point of death. Clairty, for it is not my wording.) or full deceased. The club was a part of a set that had the Skakel's mother's name embroidered on it. Rushton Sr had bought the set for her, and it was the only set like it in the nieghboorhood. 

At some point, the killer dragged Martha under the pine tree where she was found. It is not know if this was before or after she was stabbed in the neck. According to investigators, she may have been dragged first by the heels, then by the shoulders. He pants were pulled down, but there were no signs of sex assault. (It is my opinion that her pants came down as she was dragged.)

The alibi 1975.

Though I was unable to find out about Ken Littleton's other job, court documents say that when Ken returned from work to the Skakel residence on October 31 it was a scene of "mayhem." Court documents state that Ken was directed by someone who seemed to be an attorney, to take Michael, John, and James Terrien to a house that the Skakels owned in Wyndham, NY.  They left on Saturday and returned on Sunday.

November 1975

On the 14th, Rushton Sr brought his children Julie, Tommy, Michael, and John to the police station to give statements about the night of October 31st. Also with them was James Terrien. 

In the statement given by Michael, he said that he remained in the Lincoln Continental that night and took the ride to bring Jame Terrien home with his brothers Rushton Jr, and John Skakel. Also, the purpose of this trip was so that they could watch "Monty Pythons Flying Circus." Michael Skakel claimed that they returned home around 10:30 and 11. Michael stated that he went to bed and never left the house again that night. 

Tommy would go on to say that Martha left to go home around 9:30 that night. At 10 Tommy was watching TV with Ken Littleton. Ken Littleton confirmed his story.

Issues with the Alibi. 

In 1991 another Kennedy relative, William Kennedy Smith, went on trial for rape. Even though he was acquitted, there surfaced a rumor during the trial that William was at the Skakel house the night that Martha was murdered. While that also proved to be untrue, it renewed interest in Martha's case. So much so that Rushton Sr hired a company called the Sutton Associates to "assess any risks," or something of that manner. 

This report was eventually leaked to the media. Whether the leak was intentional is up in the air. The significant things found in the report were that both Michael and Tommy had changed their stories about what happened the night of October 30, 1975. Tommy was now saying that he was with Martha until 10:30 that night. Michael now stating that after coming home with John and Rushton Jr, he went to bed. Then at some point he got up, snuck over to Martha's house, climbed a tree and threw rocks at her window. Failing to get her attention, he claims he masturbated in the tree. 

This is the location of Martha's bedroom on the 3rd floor of 38 Walsh La.

The window on the third floor in this picture is Maratha's bedroom.

38 Walsh Lane from another angle. The same window is hidden
in this picture, but it shows the trees in the back of the house.

May 7, 2002

Michael Skakel was put on trial for Martha's murder.

June 7, 2002.

Michael Skakel was convicted of murdering Martha Moxley.

October 23, 2013

After numerous appeals, Michael Skakel was granted a new trial based on inadequate representation. On November 21, 2013, Michael Skakel was released on a 1.2 million dollar bond. 

On October 30, 2020

The State of Connecticut publicly stated that they would not be trying Michael Skakel again for her murder, as they are unsure if the can get a conviction. 

Michael Skakel has always maintained his innocence.

As always, thank you for reading. 

Resources

https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/dcj/skakeljuly2007pdf.pdf