Martha Moxley Murder — Stabbing of 15-Year-Old Girl in Greenwich
The 1975 murder of 15-year-old Martha Moxley in Greenwich, Connecticut, committed on October 30–31, 1975, for which Michael Skakel was later convicted and subsequently had his conviction vacated.
Definition
The Martha Moxley murder refers to the homicide of 15-year-old Martha Moxley, whose body was found on October 31, 1975, beneath a tree on her family's property in the Belle Haven neighborhood of Greenwich, Connecticut. Moxley died from blunt traumatic head injuries inflicted with a Tony Penna 6-iron golf club. The case became one of the most notorious unsolved murders in Connecticut for over two decades due to the victim's age, the wealthy community in which it occurred, and the prolonged investigation that followed.
The case remained cold until 1991, when it was reopened and eventually led to the arrest of Michael Skakel, a nephew of Ethel Kennedy, in January 2000. Skakel, who was 15 years old at the time of the murder and lived near the Moxley family, was charged under Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-54a with murder. He was tried as a juvenile offender but prosecuted as an adult due to the age of the case and changes in Connecticut law. In June 2002, Skakel was convicted of murder and sentenced to 20 years to life in prison.
The conviction was followed by extensive appellate litigation in the Connecticut courts. Skakel's legal team raised numerous challenges, including claims of ineffective assistance of counsel and improper jury instructions. In 2013, a Connecticut Superior Court judge granted Skakel a new trial, citing inadequate legal representation. However, the Connecticut Supreme Court reversed that decision in 2016, reinstating the conviction.
In 2018, the Connecticut Supreme Court ultimately vacated Skakel's murder conviction, ruling that his trial attorney had failed to provide effective assistance by not presenting an alibi witness. The court's decision effectively ended the prosecution, as the state announced in 2020 that it would not retry Skakel due to insufficient evidence and the passage of time. The murder of Martha Moxley remains officially unsolved as a result of these legal developments, though Skakel was the only person ever charged in connection with her death.
