cnn
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Here’s a look at the life of Michael Skakel, Ethel Kennedy’s nephew. Skakel was convicted in 2002 of the 1975 murder of his neighbor, Martha Moxley. Skakel’s conviction was overturned by the Connecticut Supreme Court in 2018. In October 2020, the Connecticut State Attorney announced that Skakel would not be retried.
Birthdate: September 19, 1960
Place of birth: Greenwich, Connecticut
Birth name: Michael Skakel
Father: Rushton Skakel Sr.
Mother: Anne Skakel
Marriage: Margot Sheridan (1991-2001, divorced)
Children: Jorge, 1999
Education: Curry College, Milton, Massachusetts, B.A., 1993
Both Skakel and victim Martha Moxley were 15 years old at the time and lived near each other in Greenwich, Connecticut.
His older brother, Tommy, and his guardian, Kenneth Littleton, were also suspects.
Prosecutors claimed that Skakel killed Moxley in a jealous rage.
Dominick Dunne’s 1993 best-selling novel, “A Season in Purgatory,” is based on the case.
October 30, 1975 – Martha Moxley does not return home after her evening concludes with a stop at the Skakel home to visit Tommy and Michael Skakel, Kennedy’s nephews by marriage.
October 31, 1975 – Martha’s body is discovered. It is believed that she was beaten to death with a golf club, which was found near her body. Tommy Skakel is questioned by the police.
1978 – Michael Skakel is charged with driving while intoxicated. To avoid prosecution, the Skakel family’s lawyers make a deal with police: Skakel will go to the Elan School in Poland Spring, Maine, for treatment for alcohol addiction, and the state will not press charges.
1994 – Skakel works as an aide on Senator Edward Kennedy’s re-election campaign.
1998 – Two books based on the crime are published: “Greentown”, by Timothy Dumas, and “Murder in Greenwich”, by Mark Fuhrman.
June 1998 – Superior Court Judge George Thim begins an 18-month, one-man review of information collected by investigators.
January 19, 2000 – An arrest warrant is issued for an unnamed individual for Moxley’s murder. Later that day, Skakel turns himself in to police and is released on $500,000 bail.
June 21, 2000 – In a pretrial hearing, two of Skakel’s former classmates at the Elan School in Maine testify that he had confessed to them back in the 1970s: “I’m going to get away with murder. “I’m a Kennedy.”
May 7, 2002 – The testimony begins in the case.
June 7, 2002 – Skakel is condemned.
August 29, 2002 – Skakel is sentenced to between 20 years and life in prison.
November 24, 2003 – Lawyers file an appeal to overturn his murder conviction.
January 13, 2006 – The conviction is confirmed by the Connecticut Supreme Court.
November 13, 2006 – The US Supreme Court refuses to hear Skakel’s appeal, meaning his conviction stands.
April 17, 2007 – Skakel’s motion for a new trial is filed. Former high school classmate Gitano “Tony” Bryant says two of his friends were involved in the murder, not Skakel.
October 25, 2007 – The request for a new trial is denied because the judge considers not credible the statements that Bryant and his two friends, all African-American, could go unnoticed in the majority white neighborhood.
November 6, 2007 – Skakel’s attorneys file a writ of habeas corpus and a petition for a new trial in federal district court.
September 27, 2010 – Skakel’s attorneys file a new appeal, claiming that his trial attorney, Mickey Sherman, was incompetent in failing to obtain evidence from prosecutors pointing to other suspects, and that Sherman’s own financial problems diverted his attention from the case. Sherman had pleaded guilty in June to failing to pay $400,000 in federal income taxes.
February 8, 2011 – Skakel testifies at his appeal hearing, the fourth attempt to overturn his conviction.
March 6, 2012 – His appeal is denied by a three-judge panel of the Connecticut Supreme Court.
October 24, 2012 – The state parole board in Suffield, Connecticut, denies Skakel parole.
October 23, 2013 – A Connecticut appeals judge orders a new trial for Skakel, saying defense attorney Mickey Sherman’s representation of Skakel was “constitutionally deficient.”
November 21, 2013 – Skakel is released after his bail is posted. Superior Court Judge Gary White sets several bail conditions, including prohibiting Skakel from leaving Connecticut without court approval, ordering him to wear a GPS tracking device and requiring him to appear before a bail commissioner. .
August 8, 2014 – Prosecutors are filing an appeal to reinstate Skakel’s conviction for killing Moxley in 1975. If the appeal fails, prosecutors say they will retry Skakel.
December 30, 2016 – The Connecticut Supreme Court reinstates Skakel’s 2002 murder conviction in a 4-3 decision, overturning the appeals court’s order for a new trial in 2013. The final version of the court’s decision is released May 8 of 2017.
January 6, 2017 – Skakel’s attorneys file a motion to reconsider the Connecticut Supreme Court’s ruling and ask that a seven-member judicial panel hear the motion to ensure a “full and fair determination.” The argument raises an unprecedented issue, since the judge who authored the majority decision has retired from the court and cannot participate in any future decisions.
May 4, 2018 – Connecticut Supreme Court overturns Skakel’s conviction. Prosecutors may choose to retry Skakel, but did not immediately comment after the decision.
August 8, 2018 – Connecticut files a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court to review the Connecticut high court’s decision to overturn Skakel’s conviction based on inadequate counsel. Skakel files a brief in response to Connecticut’s petition approximately three months later.
January 7, 2019 – The United States Supreme Court rejects Connecticut’s petition for review.
July 24, 2020 – Federal Judge Michael Shea rules that Connecticut officials cannot keep court records and court proceedings secret in cases involving teenagers accused of serious crimes, a ruling that will reopen Skakel’s case to the public if he is retried .
October 30, 2020 – Chief State Attorney Richard Colangelo Jr. announces that Connecticut state prosecutors will not retry Skakel for Moxley’s death. Addressing Stamford Superior Court, Colangelo confirms that after “looking at the evidence, your honor, looking at the state of the case, I believe the state cannot prove this case beyond a reasonable doubt.”
January 3, 2024 – Skakel files lawsuits against the case’s lead police investigator and the city of Greenwich, alleging malicious prosecution, violation of his constitutional rights and other claims.
