5. Peter Weinberger’s kidnapping in 1956 scarred American society for good, though changes to law enforcement came too late for his family
The kidnapping of Peter Weinberger might not have been the most high-profile crime of the century. The boy’s parents weren’t rich, nor were they famous. In fact, they were a typical middle-class suburban family. However, the 1956 crime was certainly significant in more ways than one. For starters, it shook American society. Almost overnight, people were scared in their own homes and started keeping a close eye on their kids. It also led to a big change in the law. After the Weinberger kidnapping, the FBI would take action within 24 hours – waiting a week to start a search was, tragically, shown to be too long.
It was Independence Day in 1956 and Betty Weinberger left her month-old son Peter in his cot on the porch of the family home in Westbury, New York. When she returned, she found the baby gone. In his place was a ransom note. The kidnapper demanded $2,000 for Peter’s safe return. He warned Betty not to contact the police, though she ignored this. Somehow, the press also got hold of the story. One newspaper put it on the front page, even including details of where the kidnapper demanded the money be dropped off.
The kidnapper didn’t show for the first drop-off. He sent a second note six days later with new instructions. Again, he failed to show. After a week, the FBI stepped in. Their handwriting experts matched the notes with forms filled in by a local taxi dispatcher, Angelo LaMarca. It turned out he had serious money worries. A month later, LaMarca was arrested. He admitted he snatched baby Peter in a moment of desperation. He also claimed he would have stuck to his word but the press attention spooked him.
LaMarca also admitted that he had abandoned the baby, alive, in some parkland. When the FBI managed to find the spot, Peter was dead. For his crime, LaMarca was sentenced to death and executed in Sing Sing Prison in the summer of 1958. President Eisenhower would soon pass a law allowing the FBI to intervene in kidnapping cases after just 24 hours, though this was too little, too late for young Peter Weinberger and his family.