An Appeal for Justice and Support
FOIA/FOIL Request for Information DENIED—67 Years of Silence

Today, our family’s FOIA/FOIL request for any information regarding my Aunt Rosetta “Pie” Westbrook Edwards’ 1957 murder was denied. The reason? “Ongoing investigation.”

Let that sink in—67 years, and we have not received a single update, not one shred of evidence, not even basic answers. My aunt’s coroner’s report is missing. Despite our family presenting new leads and information to the Albany Police, we’ve been given nothing in return.

Family members recall that Willie Thomas (alias Wesley Mallory), one of the suspects, was said to have been found with scratches on his face. If the police questioned him and released him, it suggests they either weren’t aware of this detail, or they ignored it. Perhaps they were also unaware that Mallory strangled a white woman unconscious, fractured her skull, and broke her finger in Alabama in 1934. Or maybe they were too close to the case.

After all, John P. Tuffey—the venerable “Prince of Albany”—was directly involved in Mallory’s 1951 extradition trial. Tuffey personally handed clemency papers from then-New York Governor Dewey to the judge. Mallory’s release from Alabama Governor Gordon Persons wasn’t an act of justice—it was a political stunt aimed at tarnishing the NAACP and other so-called “leftist” organizations. Wesley Mallory—alias Willie Thomas—was ultimately a bad seed, and, as fate would have it, the step-grandfather of Rosetta’s brother-in-law.

Here’s where the story becomes even more entangled: Rosetta’s brother-in-law, John Thomas, and Mallory shared the same surname, but they were unrelated. Irene, John’s mother, had married two men who both happened to have the surname Thomas. Irene later confessed that the police HAD interviewed Mallory in the wake of Rosetta’s murder, yet nothing came of it. According to our family’s recollection, there were clear signs of forced entry, and the children in the house were in danger. I don’t want to get into the specifics right now, but these details were omitted by the press. The police told our family to keep these facts quiet until they got back to us. They never did.

I WILL NOT REST until our family receives answers.

Rosetta’s sister, Lorraine Westbrook, served as the personal assistant to Rev. Jesse Jackson for over 30 years, and the silence from even his Rainbow PUSH Coalition has been deafening. This story could very well rewrite the history of the NAACP in a favorable light, yet… they too are giving us radio silence.

Rosetta’s siblings deserve answers. No—I am demanding that authorities begin sharing what they know. 67 years of silence, disrespect, and misdirection is enough.

What are you hiding, Albany Police Department?