An inaccurate assessment of several crime-scene photos has recently been circulating the Net. It has been alleged that the all-important "bloody shoes" photo that was uncovered in the Suffolk County Police files is a fake because the baseboards behind the shoes do not match the baseboards in the bedrooms. This is an inaccurate assessment of this photo. There are several images at the bottom of this page that show that no one style of baseboard was within the DeFeo house (See the Crime-Scene Gallery for additional crime-scene photos.).

So why is the "bloody shoes" significant?

The photo of the bloody shoes is just one piece of evidence that supports the fact that the DeFeos were not asleep at the time of their murders. It also lends credence to retired New York City police detective Herman Race, who was the expert criminologist hired for the DeFeo defense. Mr. Race told the presiding judge that not all of the DeFeos were shot in their beds. Mr. Race arrived at this conclusion because of bloodstains on the floors of the house (See The Injustice that Followed for more information).

For many years, the Amityville legends have relied on the misconception that the DeFeos were restrained from awakening during their own murders. The "bloody shoes" photo is one simple example of information in The Night the DeFeos Died that shows the DeFeo murders were not as "cut and dry" as originally thought.

Clockwise From Left to Right: Crime-scene photographs taken at 112 Ocean Avenue on November 13, 1974. The "bloody shoes" photo; the baseboard (or lack of) in the master bedroom; the baseboard in the basement; the baseboard in the master bedroom; and the baseboard in the kitchen.