Subject: Request for FBI Referral and Formal Request to Amend CPRB Complaint – Case of Rosetta “Pie” Westbrook Edwards
FOIA Request No: W023012-101524
October 24, 2024
Dear Detective Burns,
Thank you for confirming that Lieutenant/Detective/Attorney Jones was indeed taking notes during our October 7th meeting, as my Aunt DD observed. I made it a point to contact you early on the morning of October 23rd to update you on this observation in good faith and withdraw my CPRB complaint, as I did not want to impugn the professionalism of Detective Jones or Commander Cornell. We agreed during that conversation that the miscommunication regarding the referral to Vital Records could have played a role in some of the confusion.
However, by the end of business on October 23rd, I received a flat denial of our FOIA/FOIL request for any information related to my Aunt Rosetta Edwards’ 1957 murder case, citing “an ongoing investigation.” This denial came after six months of communication with your department, and after we traveled over 100 miles to provide your department with new leads, only to leave empty-handed. My cynical side feels that the timing of the FOIA denial was punitive. No information at all after 67 years? This is unacceptable.
While I understand the need to protect the integrity of ongoing cases, releasing information that the family is legally entitled to, along with public information, would seem reasonable given the fact that the case is 67 years old. I had assumed we were both on the side of justice and truth, and that we were acting in good faith.
Conflicts of Interest and Historical Context
As I outlined during our October 7th meeting with Commander Chris Cornell and Lieutenant/Detective/Attorney Josiah Jones, Willie Thomas—also known as Wesley Mallory—was a prime suspect in my aunt’s case. Mallory had been granted clemency in 1951 by then-Governor Dewey, with Chief of Police John P. Tuffey personally hand-delivering clemency papers to the New York judge presiding over Mallory’s trial, in the middle of the trial. This fact was reported by the Albany Times-Union in 1951. Just six years later, Tuffey was not only Chief of Police but also directly involved as an investigator in my aunt’s murder case, presenting a glaring conflict of interest.
Wesley Mallory had a violent past, including strangling a white woman unconscious in Alabama in 1934, breaking her finger, and fracturing her skull. None of this information made it into the press. Our family did not know he was living under an alias, or that he had been a fugitive from an Alabama chain gang. It’s hard to ignore that Tuffey’s direct involvement in both cases represents a glaring conflict of interest, particularly when the APD has never shared any of this with us, the family.
Furthermore, as was reported by the Knickerbocker News, Tuffey personally interviewed 20–40 people who knew Rosetta, but did that include Willie Thomas, who lived an 8-minute walk away? Was he investigated as a suspect, especially after our family was told he had scratches on his face? Similarly, we provided a secondary suspect, Larry Romaine, a bus driver who lived six blocks away and whose description matches the composite sketch from the Segretta murder case. Despite this, we have been given no confirmation that these leads were ever pursued.
Bias and Media Misrepresentation
The media at the time reduced Rosetta to nothing more than a “Negro beauty,” casting aspersions on her virtue and falsely suggesting she had “several boyfriends” when she was, in fact, a grieving widow raising four children while working full-time. By reducing her to a racialized and sexualized caricature, the media and possibly even the police failed to treat her case with the seriousness it deserved.
Adding to the sense of institutional bias, our family was told to keep quiet about key details, such as the signs of forced entry, a struggle, and the endangerment of her children. The promise was that withholding this information would “trick” the murderer, but the APD never got back to us—leaving our family to live in pain and confusion for 67 years. When the press later reported that the police didn’t recognize strangulation until the coroner’s autopsy, my Aunt DD, who saw her sister’s body in the casket, fainted upon seeing the strangulation marks—marks that were clear to a 9-year-old girl but somehow missed by a seasoned detective.
The police also misdirected us to Vital Records for a coroner’s report, which we had already disclosed could not be found by the Coroner’s Office. I gave them the benefit of the doubt that this was likely a simple miscommunication, but in the aggregate, this is not adding up.
The Impact of Bias and Poor Investigation
Rosetta’s murder and its mishandling may have set a dangerous precedent, as noted in the October 15, 1961 article by Phil Joyce in the Albany Times-Union. Joyce pointed out that my aunt’s case shared an M.O. with several other unsolved murders of white women: Dorothy Waterstreet, Beatrice Furbeck, and Carole Segretta. All of these women, like Rosetta, were found strangled, with no sexual assault or robbery involved. Had Rosetta’s case been taken more seriously, perhaps these later murders could have been prevented.
Request for FBI Involvement
Given the Albany Police Department’s 67-year failure to share information, address key leads, or resolve this case, I believe it is time for an impartial investigation. The fact that this case involves not only the local police but also former New York Governor Dewey and Alabama Governor Persons further complicates the situation. With the long-standing legacy of the Tuffey family, which spans at least four generations and 100 years at the Albany Police Department, there is clear potential for bias in handling this case.
I therefore formally request that the Albany Police Department refer Rosetta’s case to the FBI for a full, impartial investigation. This case transcends state boundaries and involves highly influential figures, and as such, only an impartial federal agency like the FBI can properly investigate without conflicts of interest.
FOIA Denial and CPRB Complaint Amendment
Given that our FOIA request (W023012-101524) was flatly denied, I am left with the impression that your department is either unwilling or unable to share the records we are legally entitled to. I would like to formally amend my CPRB complaint to reflect the following:
- Your department’s refusal to release public records, including the missing coroner’s report, police records, or witness lists, despite our rights under FOIL.
- The potential conflicts of interest surrounding Chief of Police John P. Tuffey’s involvement in both my aunt’s murder investigation and the 1951 clemency of Wesley Mallory.
- The systemic bias and neglect our family has experienced for 67 years, compounded by a clear lack of urgency and follow-up from your department.
The fact that Police Chief John P. Tuffey is long dead and that his dynasty is no longer present at the Albany Police Department should not prevent us from reviewing the facts of the case objectively, to see if there was police misconduct then, or if there has been a lack of forthrightness now.
I urge your department to work with our family in the pursuit of justice, rather than resisting us by withholding information. I will be consulting legal counsel to determine whether we will appeal the FOIA/FOIL rejection or if we should proceed with this CPRB complaint. Please consider this a formal request to amend the complaint and to have it proceed.
I look forward to your department’s full cooperation moving forward—or, preferably, a referral to the FBI for a truly impartial investigation.
Respectfully,
Edmund J. Janas, II
https://facebook.com/DiscoveringPie
https://DiscoveringPie.com
Subject: Follow-Up: Clarification on Family Connection to Willie Thomas
Dear Detective Burns,
I would like to clarify an important detail that was omitted in my previous correspondence regarding the connection between Willie Thomas (alias Wesley Mallory) and my Aunt Rosetta Westbrook Edwards. Willie Thomas was the step-grandfather of Rosetta’s brother-in-law, John Thomas. Willie Thomas’s wife, Irene, had married two men who both happened to have the surname Thomas, though they were not related. This made Willie Thomas a direct connection to our family and a crucial suspect in Rosetta’s murder case.
Given this familial link and the fact that Willie Thomas lived just an 8-minute walk from Rosetta at the time, his involvement should have been seriously investigated. As mentioned previously, Willie Thomas had a violent past that included strangling a woman unconscious in 1934. Despite this, it appears he was released after questioning in Rosetta’s case.
I hope this provides more context and underscores why it is imperative to address this lead thoroughly.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter, and I look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Edmund J. Janas, II
Dear Detective Burns,
I wanted to highlight an important detail we previously communicated that may be crucial for the record. Years after the incident, Willie Thomas’ wife, Irene Thomas, approached my Aunt DD and informed her that Willie had been questioned by the police and subsequently cleared in connection with Rosetta’s murder. Given that Willie Thomas was the step-grandfather of John Thomas, Rosetta’s brother-in-law, and that Chief Tuffey was aware of Willie Thomas’ violent history—including his assault and choking of a woman in Alabama—it raises questions as to whether the police fully considered this background when they cleared him.
The fact that Irene Thomas, Willie’s own wife, harbored suspicions strong enough to mention them to my Aunt DD suggests that there may have been a missed opportunity to investigate a key suspect thoroughly. This further highlights potential shortcomings in the initial investigation, especially in light of Chief Tuffey’s direct involvement in both the clemency of Willie Thomas and my aunt’s murder case.
I appreciate your time and attention to this matter, and that’s all for now.
Sincerely,
Edmund J. Janas, II
