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Murder of Karina Vetrano

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Karina Vetrano
Born
Karina Anne Vetrano

(1986-07-12)July 12, 1986
DiedAugust 2, 2016(2016-08-02) (aged 30)
Queens, New York, U.S.
Cause of deathStrangulation
Height151 cm (4 ft 11 in)[1]
Parent(s)Phillip Vetrano (father)
Cathie Vetrano (mother)
Chanel Lewis
Conviction(s)1 count of first-degree murder
2 counts of second-degree murder
1 count of sexual abuse
(convicted April 1, 2019)
Criminal penaltyLife imprisonment without the possibility of parole
Details
VictimsKarina Vetrano
Date(2016-08-02)August 2, 2016
Date apprehended
February 4, 2017

Karina Anne Vetrano (July 12, 1986 – August 2, 2016) was a 30-year-old American woman who was attacked, sexually assaulted, and murdered while running in Spring Creek Park in the Howard Beach neighborhood of Queens, New York City. The case attracted national media attention, partially due to how it went unsolved for nearly six months. A suspect, Chanel Lewis, was arrested and charged with her murder in February 2017 after being linked by DNA evidence.[2] Lewis' trial began on November 5, 2018, and ended in a mistrial on November 21, 2018. A retrial took place in March 2019.[3] On April 1, 2019, Lewis was found guilty on three counts of murder and one count of sexual abuse; he was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Following the sentencing, there was discourse on whether or not Lewis' conviction and punishment in retrial was racially motivated.

Background

Karina Anne Vetrano was born July 12, 1986, in New York to Phillip and Cathie Vetrano.[citation needed] She had two siblings; a brother and a sister. Her father, a New York City Fire Department retiree, was one of the emergency workers at at the Twin Towers after the September 11 attacks. She attended Archbishop Molloy High School in Queens and graduated from St. John's University with a master's degree in speech pathology. An aspiring writer, she appeared in a 2013 short film inspired by her writings and directed by her screenwriter friend Petros Georgiadis.[4] She lived in the same Queens neighborhood as her parents and worked with children with autism in Manhattan as a speech pathologist.[5][6]

Murder

On August 2, 2016, in the late afternoon, Vetrano went for a run in Spring Creek Park, less than a block away from her home. She ran alone, despite the expressed concerns of her father, her usual running partner, who was suffering from a back injury. She was last seen alive after 5 p.m, just before she entered the park.[6]

After she failed to return repeated calls and texts, Vetrano's father notified a neighbor, a New York City Police Department (NYPD) police chief, who launched a search.[7] Around 11 p.m. her father found her body face-down about 15 feet off the trail.[7] Karina was found with her sports bra pulled down that revealed her breasts. Her underwear and shorts were rolled around her left thigh. They were pulled off her right leg, which was covered with scratches and bruises. An autopsy the next day confirmed that Vetrano had died from strangulation, and her death was ruled a homicide.[8] Detectives said it appeared that she had been struck in the back of the head with a rock. She then put up a "ferocious fight" against her attacker, biting him so hard her teeth cracked. Her hands were found clutching grass from when she was dragged off the trail.[9][10] She had been strangled so tightly a hand-print was found on her neck. The DNA of her attacker was also found under her fingernails, on her back, and on her phone, which was found thrown in the weeds several feet away.[11][12]

Police officials announced a $10,000 reward for information leading up to the arrest of her killer.[8]

Despite the recovery of DNA at the crime scene, it initially failed to produce any leads, even after being run through local and national databases. Over 600 DNA samples were examined over the course of the investigation, with none coming up a positive match. Additionally, the NYPD checked over 1,700 investigative reports and followed over 250 leads.[13]

Chanel Lewis was arrested six months later, after authorities matched his DNA to that which had been found on the victim.[14]

Investigation and media coverage

A reward poster for information on the case on Pennsylvania Avenue in nearby Starrett City, Brooklyn

On August 7, less than a week after Vetrano's murder, another New York City resident, 27-year-old Vanessa Marcotte, was found slain on a rural stretch of road in Princeton, Massachusetts. Marcotte was also killed during a run, and much of the news reporting on the crime compared it to Vetrano's murder.[15] However, DNA and other evidence proved the murders to have been committed by different men. Vetrano and Marcotte's deaths have led to narratives and discussions about the safety of women who exercise alone.[16][17]

On August 31, police released a sketch of a "person of interest", a man who had been seen in near Spring Creek around the time Vetrano was killed. A utility worker had seen the man coming out of the weeds and running on a path by Belt Parkway.[18][19] On September 12, the TV show Crime Watch Daily released a home surveillance video of Vetrano running near Spring Creek Park, minutes before she was killed. It is the last known footage of her alive.[20]

In December 2016, the FBI and the NYPD developed and shared a suspect profile of who may have killed Vetrano.[21]

A GoFundMe page created by Vetrano's family, originally meant as a $250,000 reward fund for anyone with information about the killer, reached over $290,000, with the extra money to be donated to charity.[22] Following the murder, the family had become outspoken proponents for familial DNA testing, pushing lawmakers to pass laws to authorize use of the practice.[23] Despite the homicide being solved without it, they continue to advocate its benefits.[24][25]

Suspect

On February 4, 2017, the police announced that a suspect for the murder had been taken into questioning, later adding that Lewis, a black 20-year-old Brooklyn resident, had been arrested and charged with one count of second-degree murder.[26]

Lewis was unemployed and lived with his mother, three sisters and their children in a low-income housing project in East New York, fewer than 3 miles (4.8 km) away from the park where Vetrano was found dead. As well, Lewis gave statements to police, including describing a peculiar puddle of muddy water that detectives had seen near Vetrano's body.[27][28] Although he had no criminal record, he reportedly had a "hatred for women" and once told a teacher's aide he wanted to "stab all the girls" at his school several years earlier. He had been taken into protective custody numerous times and was described as a loner and mentally unstable.[29]

Lewis also had several run-ins with police in the years before the murder, including three summons in 2013: two for violating rules in Spring Creek Park and one for urinating in public. An additional incident occurred in May 2016 when a 9-1-1 caller reported a suspicious male with a crowbar in the backyards of several homes. An NYPD lieutenant who lived in Howard Beach also remembered him lurking around in the area looking into cars and traced him from when Lewis's name and address had been taken by police during a stop-and-frisk report.[30]

According to investigators, on August 2, Lewis had left his home after arguing with his family and walked over to the park, where he came across and then attacked Vetrano. While it is believed to have been a completely random encounter it is not definitively known if Lewis had ever seen Vetrano before, or premeditated the attack.[30]

His mother recalled that upon returning home that night, he was looking "disheveled" with his clothes torn. Lewis claimed he had been mugged by a group of men, although there was no evidence of such an attack, and a police report was never filed. The next day, August 3, Lewis's father, a former school principal, took him to a local emergency room for treatment of scratches and cuts on Lewis's upper body. Hospital records confirmed that Lewis was treated by doctors the day after the murder, and that he had also suffered a hand injury. Lewis's family continued to deny his involvement in the homicide. His father claimed he had not heard of or read about Vetrano's death until after his son was arrested for it.[31][32]

Murder trials

The first murder trial began on November 5, 2018. Lewis had pleaded not guilty to murder and sex abuse charges, and faced a sentence of either 25 years or life in prison.[33] On November 7, Phil Vetrano testified in court on how he created a search party to find his daughter's body.[34] Two days later, jurors watched a video tape of Lewis' confession to the murder. The tape had been previously played at a 2017 pretrial hearing in Queens Supreme Court.[35] On November 14, forensic biologist Linda Razzano testified that Lewis' DNA had a one in 6 trillion chance of someone else sharing a genetic profile. Dr. Margaret Prial, who performed Vetrano's autopsy, described her injuries, including a compressed carotid artery in her neck.[36] The next day, Assistant District Attorney Brad Leventhal asked Judge Michael Aloise to dismiss nine of the counts against Lewis. Four counts remained in the indictment: one of first-degree murder, two of second-degree murder, and one of first-degree sexual abuse.[37] The first trial ended with a hung jury due to defensive arguments as well as claims that the DNA evidence was contaminated.[38]

On November 21, 2018, a judge declared a mistrial, and tentatively scheduled a retrial for January 22, 2019;[39] the retrial was later rescheduled for March 2019. In the retrial, Lewis was found guilty on two counts of second-degree murder, one count of first-degree murder, and one count of sexual abuse on April 1, 2019, after five hours of deliberation.[40] The sentencing hearing was initially scheduled for April 17, with expectations of a sentence to the maximum penalty of life in prison without the possibility of parole.[41] A few days before the scheduled sentencing, however, Lewis's attorneys requested and received a delay, so they could introduce allegations of misconduct among several members of the jury which convicted him.[42] On April 23, 2019, Lewis was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.[43]

With the final ruling, Lewis maintained that he was innocent, as did various news outlets following the case, reasoning such with the idea of a racially motivated ruling and potential tampering of DNA evidence. Outlets also stated that the judge refused to proceed with the case until the juror retracted their conclusion that the defendant was innocent. Opponents of the ruling compared the incident to lynching.[44][45][46][47]

References

  1. ^ Height; URL accessed January 21, 2020.
  2. ^ Associated Press (February 5, 2017). "Brooklyn man nabbed in slay of Queens jogger Karina Vetrano after cops link suspect to DNA found on victim's body". NY Daily News. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  3. ^ Kanno-Youngs, Zolan (November 21, 2018). "Mistrial Declared in Queens Jogger Killing". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved November 21, 2018.
  4. ^ Rosenbaum, Sophia (August 4, 2016). "Slain jogger played troubled woman in short film". New York Post. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  5. ^ Associated Press (August 3, 2016). "Karina Górka Obituary". Legacy.com. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  6. ^ a b Associated Press (August 3, 2016). "Retired FDNY firefighter finds daughter, 30, strangled in Howard Beach park hours after she went jogging". NY Daily News. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  7. ^ a b Associated Press (August 4, 2016). "Jogger Karina Vetrano was brutally beaten and raped before a stranger strangled her in Queens park". NY Daily News. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  8. ^ a b Kilgannon, Corey; Schweber, Nate (August 4, 2016). "Grieving and Hunting for an 'Evil Person' After a Jogger Is Killed". NY Times. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  9. ^ Robbins, Liz (August 5, 2016). "Where a Queens Jogger Died, Residents Warn: Don't Go There Alone". NY Times. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  10. ^ Associated Press (August 5, 2016). "Karina Vetrano "put up a ferocious fight" during her murder, NYPD Says". CBS News. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  11. ^ Associated Press (August 4, 2016). "Slain jogger fought for her life during gruesome attack". NY Post. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  12. ^ Goldstein, Joseph; Baker, Al (August 22, 2016). "New York Police Struggle to Generate Leads in Murder of Queens Jogger". New York Times. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  13. ^ Wilson, Michael (February 6, 2017). "Evidence Points to One Person in Karina Vetrano's Murder, Police Say". New York Times. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  14. ^ "Man convicted of killing woman out running, found dead by father in NYC park". USA TODAY. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  15. ^ Schmidt, Samantha (August 9, 2016). "'It Absolutely Has Created Fear': 2 Killings Prompt Female Joggers to Alter Routines". New York Times. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  16. ^ Springer, Shira (April 11, 2017). "The real dangers of running while female". Boston Globe. Archived from the original on April 12, 2017. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  17. ^ Hamilton, Michelle (November 1, 2016). "Running While Female". Runner's World. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  18. ^ Associated Press (August 31, 2016). "Sketch released of person police 'need to talk to' in killing of Karina Vetrano". Pix 11. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  19. ^ Rojas, Rick (August 31, 2016). "Officials Release Sketch of Possible Witness in Queens Jogger's Killing". New York Times. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  20. ^ Allicot, Shirleen (September 12, 2016). "NEW VIDEO SHOWS KARINA VETRANO ON RUN BEFORE HER MURDER IN HOWARD BEACH". ABC 7 New York. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  21. ^ Chung, Jen (December 15, 2016). "NYPD Shares Profile Of Queens Jogger Karina Vetrano's Likely Killer". Gothamist. Archived from the original on March 25, 2017. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  22. ^ Mascali, Nikki M. (February 7, 2017). "Karina Vetrano's family seeks ideas on donating reward money". Metro. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  23. ^ Rosenburg, Eli (January 27, 2017). "Family DNA Searches Seen as Crime-Solving Tool, and Intrusion on Rights". New York Times. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  24. ^ Rosenburg, Eli (February 9, 2017). "Push for Contentious DNA Method Outlasts the Case Calling for It". New York Times. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  25. ^ Murphy, Mary (February 10, 2017). "Vetrano's mother at DNA hearing: 'No medication will heal my shattered being'". Pix 11. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  26. ^ Croteau, Scott (February 5, 2017). "20-year-old Chanel Lewis arrested in connection with Karina Vetrano's killing in New York". MassLive. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  27. ^ Associated Press (February 5, 2017). "Chanel Lewis admits to killing Queens jogger Karina Vetrano in rage-filled attack; police say he had hatred for women". NY Daily News. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  28. ^ DeStefano, Anthony (February 6, 2017). "Source: Puddle at Karina Vetrano crime scene connected suspect". NewsDay. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  29. ^ Associated Press (February 6, 2017). "Jogger suspect wanted to 'stab all the girls' in his high school". NY Post. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  30. ^ a b Associated Press (February 6, 2017). "POLICE SOURCES: JOGGER'S FIGHT, SUSPECT SIGHTING IN MAY, LED TO ALLEGED KILLER". ABC 7 Chicago. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  31. ^ Associated Press (February 6, 2017). "Noisy Neighbor Sparked Howard Beach Jogger Killer's Rage, Sources Say". DNA Info. Archived from the original on April 18, 2017. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  32. ^ Fenton, Reuven (February 5, 2017). "Jogger murder suspect's dad says son is too peaceful to be killer". NY Post. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  33. ^ "Opening Statements Get Underway In Murder Of Queens Jogger Karina Vetrano". November 5, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  34. ^ Novini, Rana. "NYC Jogger's Dad Breaks Down as He Recalls Finding Her Body". NBC New York. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  35. ^ DeGregory, Priscilla (November 9, 2018). "Jurors watch Karina Vetrano's alleged killer's chilling confession". Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  36. ^ "DNA on slain jogger Vetrano matches defendant: Testimony". am New York. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  37. ^ "Both sides rest in Queens jogger murder case". am New York. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  38. ^ Ransom, Jan (April 1, 2019). "Mystery of Karina Vetrano's Death Ends With Murder Conviction". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  39. ^ Darrah, Nicole (November 20, 2018). "NYC jogger Karina Vetrano murder case declared mistrial by judge". Fox News. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  40. ^ "Jury finds Chanel Lewis guilty in death of Karina Vetrano". am New York. Archived from the original on April 2, 2019. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  41. ^ "'Justice has been served': Man guilty of killing New York City jogger Karina Vetrano". ABC News. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  42. ^ "Sentencing for New York City man convicted of killing jogger Karina Vetrano delayed". ABC News. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  43. ^ Katersky, Aaron; Carrega, Christina (April 23, 2019). "Man who killed New York City jogger Karina Vetrano sentenced to life in prison". ABC News. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
  44. ^ "Family and friends of convicted killer question his link to murdered NYC jogger Karina Vetrano". ABC News. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  45. ^ Brand, David. "EXCLUSIVE: 'It was crazy how fast it went,' Vetrano trial juror tells Eagle". Queens Daily Eagle. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  46. ^ "Karina Vetrano's Killer Is Sentenced to Life, but Maintains 'I Didn't Do This'". The New York Times. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  47. ^ Chung, Jen. "Chanel Lewis Trial Juror Says Judge, Foreman Wanted Quick Verdict". Gothamist. Retrieved June 7, 2021.

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