Steel Notes Magazine
anomie), Gabe Pressman, an NBC reporter who said the Times, the paper of record, would not be
challenged by news organization, and of course the surviving witnesses. One witness, Sophia
Farrar, a close friend of Kitty’s, was there to comfort the dying Kitty in the hallway of the
apartment building. We also learn from a witness who knew Kitty as a young boy that the blood
handprints on the walls were not Kitty’s but his mother Sophia’s, the one who was trying to
comfort Kitty. New York Times would not hear of it, claiming it was Kitty’s and photographs of
the handprints were taken.
Most fascinating is the coverage of Kitty’s life as a celebrated barmaid who was loved by many,
a free spirit who loved life. Kitty was romantically involved with Mary Ann Zielonko and they
were roommates in the Kew Gardens apartment they shared. Kitty is also shown in various
photographs and home movies as an exuberant, spirited woman who longed to spread love
around. In a touchingly tactile way, “The Witness” depicts an angelic presence who was
compassionate and possibly empathetic. This makes her murder that much more disturbing -- a
life taken away without any justification. The murderer, Winston Moseley (who died in prison in
2016), stabbed her repeatedly without any real provocation (allegedly, Kitty used a racial slur
against him), disappeared and then promptly came back to stab her again. It was a vicious crime
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Steel Notes Magazine
www.steelnotesmagazine.com
Spring 2017