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Pennsylvania Grand Jury decision imminent in 1983 Jimmy Snuka homicide investigation

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Nerdkiller

Membeur
http://concussioninc.net/?p=10210

Irvin Muchnick said:
A final disposition is expected this week in the 18-month-old reexamination by the Lehigh County (Pennsylvania) Seventh Investigating Grand Jury of the 32-year-old mysterious death of Nancy Argentino in the hotel room of WWE Hall of Famer Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka.

Following 30th anniversary coverage of the controversial 1983 episode by the Allentown Morning Call — in turn was spurred by Concussion Inc.’s coverage, including in a chapter of my 2007 book Wrestling Babylon — county district attorney James Martin referred the dormant homicide file to the grand jury. Martin has told Nancy Argentino’s surviving family members that he will inform them of the grand jury’s decision by the expiration of its term (now set for the end of July after the court last year granted a six-month extension).

The Argentino sisters’ ebook through Concussion Inc., JUSTICE DENIED: The Untold Story of Nancy Argentino’s Death in Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka’s Hotel Room, has benefited charities associated with Nancy’s memory. The family now donates 100 percent of the ebook proceeds to Salerno, Italy, church Centro Evangelical dei Fratelli, which is developing a shelter for battered women,, among many other programs under its “Project Avalanche” umbrella.
As bad as Hogan's bigotry may have been, I doubt that it'll ever compare to the potential PR nightmare WWE will have to endure if they find out that not only did one of their Hall of Famers kill someone, Vince may have also aided and abetted him, while continuing to let him work for the company.
 
This is pretty fucking huge. Depending on the verdict, I'd be surprised if the WWE survives. 2015 has been full of turmoil for WWE, lol. If they say he's guilty though, I wouldn't feel too sorry if the company collapsed.
 

Savitar

Member
If you had put WWE or Vince McMahon in the title it would have got more attention.

And yeah it's almost absolute certain he did it.

The face Vince covered it up should have him paying a price as well.
 

The Llama

Member
I didn't even know we used grand juries in Pennsylvania (and I've practiced criminal law here)! So that was the most interesting part to me.
turns out us and Connecticut are the only two states to abolish them, though we use them sometimes for something I'm not even sure about.
 

Nerdkiller

Membeur
If you had put WWE or Vince McMahon in the title it would have got more attention.

And yeah it's almost absolute certain he did it.

The face Vince covered it up should have him paying a price as well.
I would have run out of space if I put in "WWE Hall of Famer", while Vince was only a potential accessory in all this, so I thought it would be best if I made it all clear.

Still, I can only hope that justice will be served to those involved and that the family will get their closure.
 

dream

Member
Good lord...this is a crazy time for wrestling. You can't hide the past for so long....

Isn't it wonderful? If there's an industry that deserves to be brought to its knees, it's pro wrestling. Vince has dodged many bullets in his life, including his unfathomable acquittal in 1993, along with a number of rape allegations in the 80s. Luckily, this guy has done so many scummy things, all in the service of his company, that he's inevitably going to get nailed for something.
 

Kaladin

Member
Yeah, the only real thing that would come out of this is if Vince is indited for his role in the cover-up. I don't know if there is enough evidence there to do so or not.

Most we'll see though if Snuka is indited is that part of Tamina's character will never be mentioned again.
 

gdt

Member
Heh I live in Allentown. There's an amateur wrestling venue not too far from me that advertises matches and stuff.
 

Nerdkiller

Membeur
What is this about Vince aiding in a cover up?
It's possible that he had a hand in getting him off the case.

http://pwtorch.com/artman2/publish/WWE_News_3/article_71180.shtml#.VbloXfk1yUk

- June 1, 1983: Snuka and WWE head Vince McMahon met with Platt, then-Assistant District Attorney Robert Steinberg, Dr. Mihalakis, and Whitehall Police detectives for a follow-up interview about the events surrounding Nancy's death.

McMahon, who Snuka noted in his recent autobiography brought a briefcase with him to the meeting, "did all the talking," according to Steinberg.

"I remember Vince McMahon being what Vince McMahon has always been - very effusive," said Steinberg. "He was very protective, a showman. He was the mouthpiece, trying to direct the conversation."

Steinberg noted he "couldn't recall specifics of the conversation," there is no record of the content of the conversation, Snuka said in his book that he doesn't remember much of the conversation, and Platt said he is "not permitted to discuss this matter."



- June 1, 1983: The local police investigation effectively went cold after the follow-up interview with Snuka, who was represented by McMahon. The case remains open today and there is no record of Snuka being interviewed on the case ever again. Snuka wrote about the meeting in his book: "All I remember is McMahon had a briefcase with him. I don't know what happened. ... The only thing I know for sure is I didn't hurt Nancy."

Wrestling author Irv Muchnick, who published an e-book on the case called "Justice Denied," analyzed this piece of the story and speculated on the events surrounding the meeting in a new blog at ConcussionInc.net:

"All the evidence is that McMahon didn’t give the Argentinos any money; Nancy’s sisters say their mother would hang up on a WWF representative who called to offer her $25,000. Whether McMahon gave the family any money is a non sequitur. The question raised and unanswered by Snuka’s tantalizing quote is something entirely different: whether WWF, in protecting one of its most popular stars from a homicide indictment, handed out strategic cash to anyone else."

The involved parties in the investigation maintain today that there were too many "missing pieces" to put together the forensics, but Nancy's family believes the police did not do enough to determine how Nancy died.

"Nobody to this day really actually knows what happened," said sister Lorraine Salome. "It's just like they squashed it somehow. I don't know how they did it. I don't know what they did, but it was just like they squashed it."

"We still look at that case," said Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin. "I'm not going to elaborate on it because it's an open case. Maybe one day, something will happen with it."
 

darkside31337

Tomodachi wa Mahou
Yeah, the only real thing that would come out of this is if Vince is indited for his role in the cover-up. I don't know if there is enough evidence there to do so or not.

Most we'll see though if Snuka is indited is that part of Tamina's character will never be mentioned again.

To be honest I'm surprised they ever brought her back. This grand jury has been going on forever, figured if they were worried at all they would have just future endeavored her after her injury last year
 
If they keep loosing legends to shit like this... all we will be able to watch are old replays of doink the clown versus Dusty Rhodes.
 

IronRinn

Member
I didn't even know we used grand juries in Pennsylvania (and I've practiced criminal law here)! So that was the most interesting part to me.
turns out us and Connecticut are the only two states to abolish them, though we use them sometimes for something I'm not even sure about.

My girlfriend just got done serving on one a few months ago. Had to go in once a month for 2 years.
 
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