The Truth About Geraldine Gates

[msmart112]

"THEIR STORY" TEASER featuring Geraldine Gates and Roger Nonnewitz. As you will see in Shattered, while there are those who claim Geraldine is a fraud, you will find that for someone who is making up a story, her accounts meshes DETAIL FOR DETAIL with those whom we KNOW was present.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FhZYD0d9JcU

Instead of playing silly games by "matching details"...especially since everything that Geraldine states could have simply been fed to her by Ronnie...I wonder if Ryan asked Mr. Nonnewitz if he knew Geraldine back in the early-seventies?

Since Mr. Nonnewitz referred to his late wife Linnea as "like a sister" to Louise DeFeo...then SURELY Mrs. Nonnewitz would have known all about Geraldine...as well as Jill, Stacy, and Stephanie.

Yet here we have this interesting letter that Linnea Nonnewitz wrote to a judge in 2003 where she states that she FIRST met Geraldine in 1985...and that Geraldine informed her that Stephanie was Ronnie's daughter...which is something that Mrs. Nonnewitz would have ALREADY known if Geraldine had truly been married to Ronnie in 1974...

[Dan the Damned]

And I'll bet ya that this letter is never mentioned or shown in Ryan's all-encompassing "trilogy"...

[msmart112]

From March of 2003...

Gates, in recent years, has claimed she was married to Ronald DeFeo Jr. at the time of the murders. In fact, the couple, she says, had married more than five years before the murders in 1969. In the last year, Gates credibility has been attacked by those who claim she is fraud only hoping to gain notariety and fame. However, as a Publisher and former journalist, it is the view of Katco that Geraldine Gates is indeed very real and credible based on the testimony she offers as well as documentation.

...so Geraldine told Ryan that she and Ronnie had gotten married in 1969?

Interesting.

In 1986...Geraldine told Bob Keeler of Newsday that she and Ronnie had been married in 1974...

"The marriage supposedly took place on Oct. 17, 1974, at the Garfield Grant Hotel in Long Branch, not far from her home in Elberon, N.J. Geraldine produced a photocopy that she says is their marriage certificate, but no such certificate is on file in the records maintained by the City of Long Branch or the State of New Jersey. The city magistrate whose name appears on the photocopy, Thomas J. Baldino Jr., said in a telephone interview that he left the city's service in 1964 and stopped acting as a justice of the peace. "I did not perform any {marriages} after 1964," he said.”

...then in 2000/2001...Geraldine told Ric Osuna that she and Ronnie had been married in 1970...as this is what we got in TNTDD...

"Nevertheless, in October 1970, Butch and Geraldine eloped in New Jersey.”

"To help alleviate any concerns about her authenticity, she immediately showed me a sheriff’s identification card once I arrived. Mrs. DeFeo claimed she had obtained the ID through fingerprinting and a valid marriage license. Even though the card seemed genuine, I still took it to the Cayuga County Sheriff’s office, where it had been issued in 1985, to have it verified."

...but then in 2003...Geraldine told Ryan that she and Ronnie had been married in 1969...

"In fact, the couple, she says, had married more than five years before the murders in 1969.”

...OK...so why did Geraldine give THREE different people THREE different years for the marriage?

And if the mafia had destroyed ALL marriage records...how was Geraldine able to provide the Cayuga County Sheriff's office with a valid marriage license in 1985...

"To help alleviate any concerns about her authenticity, she immediately showed me a sheriff’s identification card once I arrived. Mrs. DeFeo claimed she had obtained the ID through fingerprinting and a valid marriage license.”

...and if the mafia had destroyed ALL marriage records...how was Geraldine able to provide Bob Keeler with a marriage certificate in 1986...

"Geraldine produced a photocopy that she says is their marriage certificate, but no such certificate is on file in the records maintained by the City of Long Branch or the State of New Jersey.”

...and if Geraldine still had this proof of her pre-1975 marriage to Ronnie well into the eighties...why didn't she ever provide it to Ric or Ryan?

Maybe it was accidentally destroyed in her burn pit?

[Dan the Damned]

Yep, Geraldine really f*cked up giving so many different dates for their marriage. I remember this being explained away as "the later dates were when they simply renewed their vows." But apart from the fact that Geraldine is a liar, even if I try to suspend disbelief, this explanation makes me wonder:

1) Just when did the practice of renewing wedding vows become in vogue in this country? I seem to remember it being popular in the 80s or so (but I could be wrong -- maybe I was too young to pay attention in the 70s).

2) They sure renewed their vows a lot. And why did they do the first one just a year after their original marriage?

3) If someone asked you what year you were married, you wouldn't answer with the year you renewed your vows. So how is this a plausible explanation for the apparent gaffe?

Now I suppose Clarice will curse me out in Italian (even though she's supposedly not Geraldine). And even though she is facebook friends with Stephanie Pisani, who is supposedly not the real Stephanie Pisani...

[TigresMeow]

The only time I've heard of people renewing their wedding vows is like on their 25th or 50th wedding anniversary. While people usually have some form of party/celebration for those anniversaries, they don't necessarily renew their vows.

Geraldine has stated things, then signed a statement saying she lied, then went back to saying different things again. Either way, she has lied about things, whether it was her first statements or the statement she signed stating she lied. How can anyone expect to believe anything she says?

I also wonder how many people, who knew the DeFeo's, verified that they also knew Geraldine?

[Victoria Principles]

The only time I've heart of people renewing their wedding vows is like on their 25th or 50th wedding anniversary. While people usually have some form of party/celebration for those anniversaries, they don't necessarily renew their vows.

Geraldine has stated things, then signed a statement saying she lied, then went back to saying different things again. Either way, she has lied about things, whether it was her first statements or the statement she signed stating she lied. How can anyone expect to believe anything she says?

I also wonder how many people, who knew the DeFeo's, verified that they also knew Geraldine?

It is possible that people who knew the DeFeos knew Geraldine, but the key is whether they were married then. Ronnie lived at home and not with his wife? No one at the dealership or his buddies knew that he was married at the time of the murders.

[msmart112]

This is from TNTDD...

Allison’s reply not only infuriated her father, but brought out his paranoia. He accused his daughter saying, "You’ve been talking in school, haven’t you? You’ve been telling everyone our business, haven’t you?"

Allison replied, "No, daddy. I am ashamed to. Daddy, nobody comes here because you and mommy are like animals. We don’t have any friends."

...and a year later...in 2003...Geraldine said (the caps are hers)...

Louise had two friends only Lyn and Kathy Irland,when Kathy divorced Refus
she moved right down the street a few houses.
Louise went to her house she never came to the Defeo house.
Grace would come over the house she would even hang out with Dawn and stay over night.
But no one else.
That weird kid John who lived a few houses away from the Defeos came and played with Allison and the two boys.
The cop Pat Comoroto or how ever you spell his name
His daughter was friends with Allison in school. But she saw a nasty fight at the house one day, told her father about all the cussing and was told she could not go to the house any more.
So THE ONLY CHILDREN WHO WENT TO THAT HOUSE ARE
LYN'S DAUGHTERS

...but NOW...we have Ryan saying...

That's why we figure that Louise always wanted other people's kids in the house all the time....

[sherbetbizarre]

Another discrepancy found.

And we haven't even seen it yet.

[Dan the Damned]

And we haven't even seen it yet.

Yeah, just wait 'til we finally see this. Ryan will love our reviews (though I doubt they'll be featured on his website).

BTW, what's up with GoonieNick? I thought this would be up on ebay or demonoid by now...

[sherbetbizarre]

GoonieNick is waiting for all three parts, so he can burn them onto one cd-r for 100 bucks on ebay.

And for those following at home....Geraldine IS Clarice and Clarice is Geraldine. She hid her identity so people wouldn't bug her with questions and friend requests. But, I guess the cat is out of the bag.

Rubbish. She loves people "bugging" her with DeFeo questions. She lives for it.

[Victoria Principles]

The cop Pat Comoroto or how ever you spell his name
His daughter was friends with Allison in school. But she saw a nasty fight at the house one day, told her father about all the cussing and was told she could not go to the house any more.

Perhaps that may explain this quote by Officer Cammaroto:

"The guy was a scumbag," says Pat Cammaroto, "Anybody who can kill his family, brothers and sisters. The father, I can understand, 'cause he was a scumbag, too."

[TigresMeow]

And for those following at home....Geraldine IS Clarice and Clarice is Geraldine. She hid her identity so people wouldn't bug her with questions and friend requests. But, I guess the cat is out of the bag.

She certainly doesn't have to worry about me friend requesting her or asking her any questions.....

[Dan the Damned]

I love it. So if this is true that Gerri was in hiding simply because she didn't want to be bugged with questions and friend requests, then the obvious thing to do is avoid signing up in the first place. But instead she signs up and forces Ryan to lie for her. Although, to be fair, that's probably second-nature to her at this point...

Oh well, just the first of many admissions. I'm sure in time he will also admit that the Stephanie Pisani account is legit as well, followed in short order by:

Ric left the project because we had a falling out over the direction of the film.

As my investigation continued, my belief in Geraldine lessened, but I felt if I cut her out completely then my film would fall apart.

I had 10,000 DVDs made and haven't even sold 100 yet.

I personally don't believe most of the garbage in my film, but dammit, I had the film rights to Ric's book and the story is nothing without all this fake bullsh*t about police corruption and multiple gunmen.

I think Dan the Damned is very handsome, and not a sniveling, self-important, bullying lard-ass at all.

[sherbetbizarre]

Good to see Gerri is relaxed & confident in the knowledge SH will authenticate her in due course...

SORRY i have to say this Dan is a very sick man.....A collection is being taken up to pay for him to get help and his dear friend Sherb.

[Dan the Damned]

About freakin' time. I've been waiting many years for such a collection. Hopefully the funds will be from legitimate sources...

[Shawn]

About freakin' time. I've been waiting many years for such a collection. Hopefully the funds will be from legitimate sources...

Well you're SOL, dude. The funds are directly from the movie proceeds.

[sherbetbizarre]

Geraldine DeFeo-Gates' story is explored in this documentary. And, understandably, there are those who believe that she is a fraud. But, Geraldine's story is but one part of the film.

Geraldine is in the whole movie. She talks more than the narrator Ed Asner.

I REPEAT, GERALDINE IS TELLING HER STORY IN THE WHOLE MOVIE.

If she says she was married and she had a relationship with DeFeo prior to the murders, who really cares, and who are we to argue it? It's purely ancillary to the crime and the court case and if ten years from now someone proves the woman to be an absolute fraud, it in no way diminishes the merits of our film.

Geraldine is the major player in this first part of the documentary trilogy, recounting her years spent with Ronnie and telling stories that remained untold for so many years, wild memories which reveal all kinds of new insights into the case.

They want to try to discredit the film by saying saying "Oh, Gerri the fraud, Gerri's making up lies, Gerri's doing this" But my line is, you know, is that, you know, Gerri does not affect the fronesic, you know, qualities of this case, Gerri was not a witness to the murders, Gerri was not there that night, and so any story that she tells is purely kind of, I don't want to say ancillary or tangential to the overall storyline, but in a way it is...

[sherbetbizarre]

Gerri had to hide her idenity, not out of shame, but for her own protection and that of her family. I hope everyone will respect her privacy and treat her with the love, respect, and kindness that she treats others with.

Same BS when Ric's book was being written... pretending the old guard at Suffolk County were trying to violently threaten her... but somehow the release of the book or movie protects her... Right...

[kathyM]

She treats others with love, kindness and respect?

I am not seeing that. She swears and calls people nasty names if they dont believe or question what she has to say.

What about her problems with hoarding of animals? That is not treating the animals with any love or kindness. Is it? It is a sickness that needs help.

Look at all the documentation or lack of before blindly accepting this woman's story as truth. It could very well have been told to her by Ronnie and not actually lived by her personally.

[Rokiisun]

It could very well have been told to her by Ronnie and not actually lived by her personally.

I agree with you there. If her stories did indeed come from Ronnie you would think that at least there is some legitimacy in what she says,
however, we all know how good a liar Ronnie is but then again, we also know that Ronnie likes referring to himself on the night of the
murders as another 'personality' (Dawn for instance) to shift the blame on other people, not himself for what happened.

Could it be possible that Geraldine's stories are lies on her behalf (but indeed contain parts of the truth) told to her by Ronnie in an attempt
to get people to believe 'her' stories? As people no longer believe what comes out of his own mouth, maybe that's why he's entrusted her to
tell the stories for him (make these stories her own) because people are more likely to believe her word over his?

[sherbetbizarre]

Plus she's on the outside, and he isn't.