A Death in Belmont
AuthorSebastian Junger
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
SubjectBoston Strangler, Belmont, Massachusetts
GenreCreative nonfiction
PublisherHarper Perennial
Publication date
January 1, 2006
Pages288
ISBN978-0060742690
Preceded byThe Perfect Storm 
Followed byFire 

A Death in Belmont is a creative nonfiction book written by Sebastian Junger and published by Harper Perennial in 2006.

Summary

A Death in Belmont centers on the 1963 rape and murder of Bessie Goldberg. This was during the period from 1962 to 1964 of the infamous Boston Strangler crimes. Junger raises the possibility in his book that the real Strangler was Albert DeSalvo. He eventually confessed to committing several Strangler murders, but not Goldberg's. Roy Smith, an African-American man, was convicted in her death based on circumstantial evidence.[1]

Junger suggests that Smith's conviction for Goldberg's death was influenced by racism. The prosecution called witnesses who remembered seeing Smith chiefly because he was a black man walking in a predominately white neighborhood. (Eyewitness testimony has been shown to be notoriously flawed.) Smith had cleaned Goldberg's house the day she was attacked and left a receipt (for his work) with his name on her kitchen counter. No physical evidence, such as bruises or blood, linked Smith to the crime. In 1976, he was granted commutation of his life sentence. Before he gained release, Smith died of lung cancer.[2][3][4][5]

Junger draws no conclusions about the guilt or innocence of either Smith or DeSalvo.

Criticism

Goldberg's daughter has vigorously disputed Junger's suggestion that Smith may have been innocent.[3]

Defense attorney Alan Dershowitz said in his review of the book: It "must be read with the appropriate caution that should surround any work of nonfiction in which the author is seeking a literary or dramatic payoff." He noted that Junger did not include endnotes or footnotes, and suggested he may have had too much interest in "playing down coincidences and emphasizing connections."[6]

Reception

Alan Dershowitz, writing in the New York Times, called Junger a "first-rate reporter."[7]

Awards

Junger received the 2007 PEN/Winship award for the book.[8]

References

  1. ↑ Sebastian Junger. Sebastian Junger-A Death in Belmont. Archived from the original on 2021-12-12. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
  2. ↑ Krist, Gary (April 23, 2006). "The Burden of Proof (book review)". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
  3. 1 2 Miller, Laura (27 July 2000). "Dead Certainty". Salon. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Scenes from "A Death in Belmont"". Boston.com. April 5, 2006. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
  5. ↑ Gwinn, Mary Ann (April 28, 2006). ""A Death in Belmont": A presumption of guilt (book review)". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
  6. ↑ Alan Dershowitz, "The Belmont Strangler", New York Times, 16 April 2006; accessed 31 October 2018
  7. ↑ Dershowitz, Alan (April 14, 2006). "Review: A Death in Belmont". The New York Times. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Sebastian Junger". Freebase. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
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