On a night that would forever haunt the town of Amityville, Long Island, the unthinkable occurred. November 13, 1974, became infamous for the gruesome murders of the Defeo Family. In their seemingly peaceful home, a young man systematically executed his parents, brothers, and sisters, shattering the tranquility of their suburban life and ushering in decades of dark fascination with the DeFeo family name.
Ronald “Butch” DeFeo Jr.’s actions that night ripped through the quiet facade of Amityville. He walked into a local bar claiming his parents had been shot at their residence, a large house marked with a Virgin Mary statue and a “High Hopes” sign – now chillingly iconic as 112 Ocean Avenue. Bar patrons who accompanied him back to the house were confronted with a horrific scene, prompting an immediate call to the Suffolk County police and the grim discovery of the DeFeo family massacre. Initially, 23-year-old Ronald DeFeo attempted to deflect blame, pointing towards the mob, but his facade crumbled, and he confessed to the brutal familicide the very next day.
“Once I started, I just couldn’t stop,” DeFeo chillingly stated, attempting to explain the slaughter of his entire DeFeo family. He offered a disturbing justification, claiming “voices from the house” commanded him to commit the heinous act. Reports of DeFeo’s substance abuse, particularly LSD and heroin, further complicated the already horrific narrative surrounding the DeFeo family tragedy.
The victims of this appalling crime were the six members of the DeFeo family: Ronald DeFeo Sr., a car salesman, and his wife Louise; their daughters Dawn, 18, and Allison, 13; and their sons Mark, 12, and John Matthew, 7. Each member of the DeFeo family was found deceased in their beds, lying face down with hands raised above their heads. Adding to the unsettling nature of the crime, no neighbors reported hearing any gunshots, and the house showed no signs of struggle, deepening the mystery surrounding the DeFeo family murders. Homicide detectives at the time declared it the largest mass killing in a single event on Long Island in recent memory, a grim milestone forever associated with the DeFeo family.
The legal proceedings against Ronald DeFeo Jr. commenced on October 14, 1975, as he went on trial for the murders of the DeFeo family. His defense team opted for an insanity plea, attempting to mitigate his culpability. However, the jury was unconvinced, and Ronald DeFeo Jr. was found guilty on all counts for the murders of the DeFeo family. He received six consecutive sentences of 25 years to life in prison, a punishment meant to reflect the enormity of the DeFeo family tragedy.
The DeFeo family murders unwittingly became the genesis of a supernatural legend. The subsequent narrative of a haunting at 112 Ocean Avenue gave rise to The Amityville Horror book in 1977 and the blockbuster movie adaptation in 1979. This fictionalized account, however, is heavily disputed by Amityville residents. The Lutz family, George and Kathy, who moved into the DeFeo family home after the murders, are accused of fabricating their tales of demonic encounters for profit. Their sensational claims, including green slime, spontaneously shattering windows, levitation, and a “ghost boy” captured in an infrared photo, are widely considered a hoax that exploited the real-life tragedy of the DeFeo family.
Skeptics argue that the true horror of Amityville isn’t supernatural; it’s the stark reality of the DeFeo family murders. The focus, they insist, should remain on the victims and the brutal crime that decimated the DeFeo family, not on fabricated ghost stories.
Even Ronald DeFeo Jr., the man responsible for the DeFeo family’s demise, acknowledged the dark irony. “I guess the Amityville Horror really is supposed to be me, because I’m the one who got convicted of killing my family,” he stated, highlighting the grim truth behind the sensationalized haunting narrative. His words serve as a chilling reminder that the real horror lies in the tragic fate of the DeFeo family.
Ronald DeFeo Jr. spent the remainder of his life incarcerated, dying at the age of 69 in March 2021 while serving his sentence at Sullivan Correctional Facility. Throughout his imprisonment, his multiple parole appeals and attempts to overturn his conviction were consistently rejected. He remained, until his death, inextricably linked to the horrific DeFeo family murders.
The house at 112 Ocean Avenue, forever associated with the DeFeo family and the subsequent “Amityville Horror” phenomenon, continues to draw morbid curiosity. Despite changing ownership and alterations, including the removal of the distinctive quarter-circle windows that once resembled eyes, the former DeFeo family home remains a point of interest for horror enthusiasts, a stark monument to the real-life tragedy that unfolded within its walls and the enduring, albeit often distorted, legacy of the DeFeo family.
