Most readers outside of Northport naively assumed St. Clair’s book to be factual, but David Breskin knew otherwise. He initially considered suing St. Clair for using his material without permission, but Breskin’s literary agent advised him to seek a compensatory settlement from the Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group instead. Breskin agreed, but in a strange twist of fate, he was met at the publishing house by Harriette Dorsen—the lawyer who had successfully helped quash Eric Naiburg’s subpoena for his interview tapes and notes two years earlier. Dorsen, who was now vice president and general counsel for the Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, declined Breskin’s request for compensation, insisting St. Clair’s actions “might not have been nice, but it was legal.” When Breskin challenged Dorsen’s assertion, the forty-five-year-old lawyer told him to sue her if he didn’t like what she had to say. Fed up with the experience, Breskin stormed out of the room, exclaiming, “Long live the First Amendment!”
Breskin quit journalism shortly afterward but continues writing to this day, enjoying a second creative life as a critically acclaimed poet and record producer.
The Northport Public Library, once a refuge for Ricky Kasso’s macabre interests, carries a copy of Say You Love Satan—albeit under lock and key. The book is kept in a fireproof safe behind the reference desk, where readers must leave their driver’s license if they wish to read it within the confines of the library.
No one is permitted to leave the building with the book.
Robert Howard remained Northport Village’s chief of police for another sixteen years after the case that defined his career. After retiring, he went to work part-time as a limousine driver in East Northport. On December 27, 2011, Howard suffered an aortic aneurysm while loading a customer’s bags into the trunk. He was rushed into surgery but died hours later at the age of seventy, surrounded by his wife, Maureen, and his sons, Peter, Michael, and Robert. He left a lasting legacy as one of the village’s most beloved residents.
Kevin James McCready died of lung cancer December 28, 2015, at the age of sixty-eight. His reputation as a Suffolk County detective was left tarnished when it was revealed that he had tricked a teenager, Martin Tankleff, into falsely confessing to the murder of his parents in 1988. After McCready’s death, the Suffolk County Police Department refused to comment on his legacy as a law enforcement officer.
William Keahon and Eric Naiburg, now both in their seventies, continue to practice law on Long Island.
Michelle DeVeau eventually left East Northport and finally made it to Woodstock—just as she said she would.
In the wake of the Northport incident, the Youth Development Agency of Northport/East Northport coordinated with the Huntington Youth Bureau, the Northport–East Northport Union Free School District, and various religious organizations to provide a constructive response to the problems that had largely contributed to the tragedy. Eventually, the Youth Bureau and the Northport–East Northport Union Free School District hired a group of youth street workers to reach out to disaffected children and teenagers in the community, agreeing to split the costs of doing so.
One of these youth street workers was Anthony Zenkus.
“The response from the community was amazing,” says Zenkus, now a licensed social worker and adjunct professor at Adelphi University. “You saw people come together and say, ‘We can’t just allow these kids to be throwaways.’ Our job was to go out and connect with these disaffected kids and try to draw the message to the community that ‘you matter; we’re here for you; we want to help you—but we also think you have something to contribute.’ I did that for two and a half years. I would walk around behind 7-Eleven and places like that. These kids would hang out late at night at the gazebo, or behind it; smoking weed and doing their thing. I would go up and talk to them. I would say, ‘Look, I know you think school is bullshit, and all that kind of stuff, but what do you like to do?’ There was one kid who was sitting there playing guitar, so I said, ‘I sing and play keyboards. Why don’t you come down to the center, and let’s work on songwriting and stuff?’ I put together a songwriter’s workshop for these kids and we recorded a song. Those were the kinds of things that the street workers would try to do. I don’t think it solved all the problems, but I think the response was a very mature response for a community, instead of saying, ‘Oh, we have a drug problem,’ or ‘Oh, it’s just a bad home,’ or whatever. They said, ‘Look, the community has a responsibility.’ And that’s what happened. I thought that was one of the unsung positives of this horrendous thing.”
Despite Northport eventually moving on from the tragedy, the Kasso case went on to significantly influence pop culture, inspiring six feature films, three documentaries, the name of a stoner metal band, and nearly two dozen popular songs.
The well-crafted legend simply refused to die.
Today the only echoes of Ricky Kasso’s and Gary Lauwers’s short lives found inside Cow Harbor Park are a few small examples of crude graffiti scrawled on the rafters of the refurbished gazebo—OZZY, Grateful Dead, LSD—almost certainly left by kids far too young to have known the doomed teenagers in life.
The graffiti-covered wood forest playground was eventually torn down and replaced, and Cow Harbor Park is now safe again for children of all ages. The dealers have left, and the handful of Ricky’s and Gary’s friends who stayed can now let their own kids play in the park that was once deemed a “monster” without any fear of harm coming their way.
And while most have moved on with their lives—more than happy to forget the summer of 1984—some still find themselves roaming their old haunts, looking back on the days of adolescent dreams and the Acid King.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The author wishes to sincerely thank the following:
Mike Acosta, David Ambro, Mara Anastas, Ronni Arden, Dr. Jonathan Arden, Joanne M. Austin, Eric Baird, Russell Barton, Elaine Bennett, David Breskin, Brendan B. Brown, Doug Brueggemann, the staff of the Central Records Section of the Suffolk County Police Department, Dave Cullen, Jonathan de la Rosa, Larry Decker, Sue Decota, Tim Dennis, Michelle DeVeau, Bob Draffin, Nic Edwards, Patrick Edwards, Jamie E. Farrell, Susan Fensten, Rob Figueroa, Peter Filardi, Aurelia Frau, Leo Freire, Jonathan Grioli, Jim Harold, Leslie Hatton, Jeff Heimbuch, Maddy Hilker, Dally Hoover, the Huntington Historical Society, the staff of the John Hay Library of Brown University, Dave Johnson, Daniel Oxford Jones, Brian Kaufman, Janine Keleghan, Grant Koerner, Betty Koerner, Robert Kolker, William Kreth, Billy Leason, Jean Leclerc, the librarians of Northport–East Northport Public Library, Valerie MacKenna, Joe Maddrey, Thomas Maier, Dan Mallory, Tony Mallory, Nick Mamatas, Mary Marshall, Demetri Matas, Jonathan McCuller, Cecily Rappaport McGuckin, Dan McGuigan, Mark J. McGuire, Meghan McKee, Matthew Milligan, Mark Moran, Chelsea Morgan, Amanda Myers, Eric Myers, Eric Naiburg, Robin Wheelwright Ness, Scott Neumeyer, the Northport Historical Society, Ed Opperman, David Oster, Paul Papa, Eve Porinchak, Carol Prevost, Tom Rætz, Elisa M. Rivlin, Eugene S. Robinson, Gene Roemer, Rob Romaniello, Ron Rosenbaum, Tony Ruggi, Dylan Grey Rupp, Mark Sceurman, Grace Schinmann, Richard Schock, David Schrader, Heather Shade, Jacob Shelton, everyone at the Shipwreck, Fiona Simpson, Joanne Slater-Milligan, Rex Smith, Gabrielle Sterbenz, the Suffolk County Police Department, Brian Tane, Mercedes McGrory Tidemann, Tommy Turner, Doug Varley, Alison Velea, Jeff Villasenor, Rue Volley, Glen Wolf, Kyle J. Zalinsky, Anthony Zenkus, and everyone else who helped along the way.
Very special thanks to Wendy Kasso and Nicole Lauwers-Law for their bravery and strength.
Also, my most heartfelt thanks to Mom, Dad, and the village it took—I love you.
SOURCES
Newspaper Articles
Oneonta Star Staff. “Colgate Students Freed of Charges.” The Oneonta Star, May 23, 1960.
Kasso, Richard A., Sr. “Defends CSH Board.” The Long-Islander, November 28, 1974.
Long-Islander Staff. “New Cow Harbor Park.” The Long-Islander, October 7, 1976.
Ambro, David. “Grave Robbe
r Nabbed After Long Investigation.” The Northport Observer, April 23, 1984.
Newsday Staff. “Police/Court Digest: Grave Robbing.” Newsday, April 25, 1984.
Green, Lynn. “Town Created a Monster.” The Long-Islander, May 24, 1984.
Cassidy, Jerry, and Stuart Marques. “Nab Devil Cult Teen in Slaying.” Daily News (New York), July 6, 1984.
Matlick, Maralyn, and Joy Cook. “2 L.I. Teens Seized in Bizarre Devil Cult Slaying.” New York Post, July 6, 1984.
O’Neill, Jim, and Dennis Hevesi. “2 Held in Ritual Killing of Teenager in Northport.” Newsday, July 6, 1984.
Kirkman, Edward, and Stuart Marques. “L.I. ‘Satan Cult.’ ” Daily News (New York), July 7, 1984.
Maher, Thomas J., and Rex Smith. “2 Teens Arraigned in Murder.” Newsday, July 7, 1984.
Matlick, Maralyn. “L.I. Cops Hunt Teenage Devil Worshippers.” New York Post, July 7, 1984.
Kirkman, Edward, and Stuart Marques. “Cult Suspect Hangs Himself in L.I. Jail Cell.” Daily News (New York), July 8, 1984.
Kirkman, Edward, and Stuart Marques. “Where Evil Dwells.” Daily News (New York), July 8, 1984.
Maier, Thomas J. “Odyssey of Drugs, Desperation.” Newsday, July 8, 1984.
McFadden, Robert D. “Youth Found Hanged in L.I. Cell After His Arrest in Ritual Killing.” The New York Times, July 8, 1984.
O’Neill, Jim, and Rex Smith. “Suspect in ‘Cult’ Murder Found Hanged.” Newsday, July 8, 1984.
Dicker, Fredric. “Satan Killer’s Parents Bare Son’s Private Hell.” New York Post, July 9, 1984.
Hanrahan, Michael, and Paul Meskil. “DA Wants Cultists to Describe Killing.” Daily News (New York), July 9, 1984.
Hinckley, David. “No Rock Exorcist Needed.” Daily News (New York), July 9, 1984.
Hornblower, Margot. “Youths’ Deaths Tied to Satanic Rite.” The Washington Post, July 9, 1984.
Naidus, Michael, and Thomas J. Maier. “Parents Tell of Son’s Descent into Own Hell.” Newsday, July 9, 1984.
Pierson, Ransdell. “Stunned Villagers Mourn Victim.” New York Post, July 9, 1984.
Tharp, Paul, and Charles Lachman. “4 Teens Who Saw Ritual Killing Will Face Charges.” New York Post, July 9, 1984.
Washington Post Staff. “Town Shocked by Satanic Slaying.” The Washington Post, July 9, 1984.
Colen, B. D. “The Drug that Triggers Rage.” Newsday, July 10, 1984.
Hanrahan, Michael, Alton Slagle, and Stewart Ain. “Cult-Slay Witness to Talk.” Daily News (New York), July 10, 1984.
Hanrahan, Michael, and Alton Slagle. “Son Spurned Loving Family: Dad.” Daily News (New York), July 10, 1984.
Matlick, Maralyn, and Paul Tharp. “Satan Case Goes to Grand Jury.” New York Post, July 10, 1984.
O’Neill, Jim, and Amy Wilentz. “1 Indictment Seen in Slaying.” Newsday, July 10, 1984.
Pierson, Ransdell. “The Devil Didn’t Make Them Turn to Drugs.” New York Post, July 10, 1984.
Edelson, Edward. “Chemical Theory Lost in the ‘Dust.’ ” Daily News (New York), July 11, 1984.
Kirkman, Edward, Don Flynn, Jerry Cassidy, and Michael Hanrahan. “Says Kasso Boasted of Cult Killing.” Daily News (New York), July 11, 1984.
Matlick, Maralyn, and Joy Cook. “Teenager Indicted in L.I. Satan Cult Murder.” New York Post, July 11, 1984.
Pierson, Ransdell, and Paul Tharp. “Bared—Devil Death Cult HQ.” New York Post, July 11, 1984.
New York Post Staff. “Buddies of Slain Teen Rid Town of Sect Symbols.” New York Post, July 11, 1984.
Naidus, Michael, and Rex Smith. “Northport Still Trying to Pick Up the Pieces.” Newsday, July 11, 1984.
Reinecke, Bill. “Satanic Slaying Rocks a Village.” Philadelphia Daily News, July 11, 1984.
Cassidy, Jerry, Mary Ann Giordano, and Michael Hanrahan. “Cultivating Drugs, Rock.” Daily News (New York), July 12, 1984.
Editorial. “Our Town, Our Tragedy.” The Long-Islander, July 12, 1984.
Green, Lynn. “Brutal Slaying Stuns N’port Village.” The Long-Islander, July 12, 1984.
Kirkman, Edward, Marcia Kramer, and Jerry Cassidy. “Indicted in ‘Bizarre’ Killing.” Daily News (New York), July 12, 1984.
McGuire, Mark, and David Ambro. “Local Police Chief Blasts Cult Claims.” The Northport Observer, July 12, 1984.
McGuire, Mark, and David Ambro. “Northport Youth Found Mutilated in Woods.” The Northport Observer, July 12, 1984.
Smith, Rex, and Thomas J. Maier. “Indictment in Ritual Slaying.” Newsday, July 12, 1984.
Starita, Joe. “Ritual Slaying by Teen-agers Stuns Long Island Community.” The Reading Eagle, July 12, 1984.
Matlick, Maralyn, and Joy Cook. “Lawyer: Accused Cult Killer Is a Sacrificial Lamb.” New York Post, July 13, 1984.
Pierson, Ransdell. “Accused Satan Killer Pins Rap on ‘Third Man.’ ” New York Post, July 14, 1984.
Gruson, Lindsey. “In Northport, A Meeting on Murder.” The New York Times, July 15, 1984.
Smith, Rex. “Northport Searches Itself for an Answer.” Newsday, July 16, 1984.
Ambro, David. “Residents Respond in Aftermath of Murder.” The Northport Observer, July 19, 1984.
Lanctot, Roger C. “Shock, Dismay in Northport.” The Long-Islander, July 19, 1984.
Blackburn, John, Charles Montgomery, and David Wright. “Teenage Devil Cult’s Bloody Rampage—The Untold Story.” The National Enquirer, July 31, 1984, pages 48–49.
Smith, Rex, Thomas J. Maier, and Michael Naidus. “A Shared Secret: Murder in Northport.” Newsday, August 12, 1984.
Smith, Don, and Jim Scovel. “4-Hour Release Asked in Slay Case.” Newsday, August 14, 1984.
Smith, Rex. “Suspect’s Visit to Crime Site OKd.” Newsday, September 5, 1984.
Ambro, David. “Murder Suspect and Attorney Tour Village.” The Northport Observer, September 13, 1984.
Gruson, Lindsey. “ ‘Satanic Slaying’ Is Now Ruled Out in June Slaying of Youth in L.I Woods.” The New York Times, December 27, 1984.
Maier, Thomas J. “Reporter’s Notes Sought in Slay Case.” Newsday, January 4, 1985.
Wacker, Bob. “Demand for Reporter’s Notes Delays Troiano Case.” Newsday, January 8, 1985.
Newsday Staff. “Youth’s Statement on Northport Murder.” Newsday, January 11, 1985.
Maier, Thomas J. “Cop Testifies on Teen’s Tip in Slaying.” Newsday, January 15, 1985.
Newsday Staff. “Magazine Snubs Plea for Slay Story Notes.” Newsday, January 17, 1985.
Gruson, Lindsey. “L.I. Murder Trial Opens: Confession Is Described.” The New York Times, April 5, 1985.
Maier, Thomas J. “Witness: Troiano Told Her of Killing.” Newsday, April 5, 1985.
Gruson, Lindsey. “Jury in L.I. Case Is Given Details of Ritual Death.” The New York Times, April 9, 1985.
Maier, Thomas J. “Slaying Witness Says He Lied.” Newsday, April 10, 1985.
Maier, Thomas J. “Troiano Witness Again Contradicts the Prosecution.” Newsday, April 11, 1985.
Maier, Thomas J. “Troiano’s Initial Denial Was Doubted, Cop Says.” Newsday, April 12, 1985.
Gruson, Lindsey. “Court Hears Confession of L.I. Youth.” The New York Times, April 13, 1985.
Maier, Thomas J. “Tour of Slay Site Detailed.” Newsday, April 13, 1985.
Maier, Thomas J. “Detective: Troiano Had No Remorse.” Newsday, April 17, 1985.
Gruson, Lindsey. “Defense Lawyer in L.I. Murder Trial Loves a Good Murder Case.” The New York Times, April 18, 1985.
Maier, Thomas J. “Witness Says He Saw Troiano in Church.” Newsday, April 18, 1985.
Maier, Thomas J. “Troiano Defense Calls Last Witness.” Newsday, April 19, 1985.
Gruson, Lindsey. “Closing Arguments Made in Trial of Youth Accused in Drug-Induced Slaying on L.I.” The New York Times, April 23, 1985.
Maier, Thomas J. “Role of Drugs Key at Slay Trial.” Newsday, April 23, 1985.
Gruson, Lindsey. “L.I.
Jury Acquits Defendant in Killing of Youth in Woods.” The New York Times, April 26, 1985.
Maier, Thomas J., Bob Wacker, and Martin Weston. “Teen Acquitted in Northport Murder.” Newsday, April 26, 1985.
Maier, Thomas J. “Troiano Tells of His Role in Teen’s Slaying.” Newsday, August 21, 1985.
Young, Monte R. “Upstate Suspect Has L.I. Past.” Newsday, January 16, 1993.
Ambro, David. “ ’84 Northport Murder Suspect Charged with Upstate Robbery.” The Northport Observer, January 21, 1993.
Haberman, Michael. “Anniversary of Northport Teen Murder.” The Northport Observer, July 7, 1994.
Magazine Articles
Breskin, David. “Kids in the Dark.” Rolling Stone, November 22, 1984, pages 30–35 and 82–86.
Breskin, David. “Kids in the Dark.” Rolling Stone: The Great Stories, June 11, 1992, pages 129–133.
Rosenbaum, Ron. “The Devil in Long Island.” The New York Times Magazine, August 22, 1993, page 21.
Hanc, John. “Before Salem, There Was the Not-So-Wicked Witch of the Hamptons.” Smithsonian Magazine, October 25, 2012.
Court Documents/Police Files
Christopher Barber’s statement to the Suffolk County Police Department, taken by Officer William R. Petersen, September 10, 1983. Complaint No. 83-308168.
William E. Barber’s statement to the Suffolk County Police Department, taken by Officer William R. Petersen, September 10, 1983. Complaint No. 83-308168.
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