Then there were Snukas shifting renditions of what led to Argentinos demise. He was to re-examine the evidence after Argentinos death and try to persuade then-District Attorney William Platt that this was not an accident. It also chillingly recontextualizes something that, according to Muchnicks reporting, McMahon told the Argentino familys initial attorney, Richard Cushing, in 1983. Can we still appreciate the mans huge contributions to wrestling, knowing that it is possible that he had a hand in Nancy Argentinos death? Yeah, there was some excitement. I enjoy them. Bronstad would add that Argentino complained of neck, head, back and hand injuries. Per a separate statement from Deputy Lawrence Witter, those were diagnosed as a bruised right thumb, contusion to the neck, possible fractured ribs and injury to the lower back., Snuka, in his ghostwritten memoir, brazenly claimed, We were drinking and having a good time when all of a sudden, the police burst into our room. He added, I dont know why they chose my room maybe mine was the first one they passed but they did. In point of fact, they were there because of a call from Thomas Donovan, the motels night manager. I just look at the whole thing as a shame because theres a loss of human life there.. Cushing spent weeks in Allentown, Pennsylvania, visiting scenes, studying the case records, and interviewing witnesses. (It would not be the first time that outrageous rumors have swirled aboutwrestling mogul McMahon.). On top of that, according to her sisters, Nancy also had her own specific value to McMahon: With Snuka being illiterate and without a drivers license, McMahon needed a driver to get him to and from shows, but with his increasingly problematic drug use and erratic behavior, other wrestlers now refused to chauffeur him around, Speculation has long swirled around McMahons involvement in the murder investigation, specifically his presence during Snukas last police interview, the contents of which unlike every other interview summary in the Whitehall file are notoriously not described in the report at all (a fact that then-Chief Frederic Conjour wrote off as nothing in the, documentary). Some additional context is needed here to truly understand where both Snuka and McMahon stood at the time. Author Irvin Muchnick's 1992 article about the incident (later collected in his 2007 book WRESTLING BABYLON) is the most authoritative account of what happened. For 30 years, Snuka continued with his life as if nothing had happened. Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka (center) arrives with his wife Carole (right) for day four of his competency hearing at the Lehigh County Courthouse in Allentown on June 1, 2016. Yeah, there was some excitement. Also, to reinforce the aforementioned, Dr. Manish Fozdar, a Raleigh, North Carolina expert in Neuropsychiatry and forensic psychiatry, said, "There are no cause-effect relationships as Snukas defense attorney argued. The former was from Dr. Isidore Mihalakis autopsy report in 1983, which also urged, "this case should be investigated as a homicide until proven otherwise. All royalties from Irvin Muchnicks 1992 book JUSTICE DENIED: The Untold Story of Nancy Argentinos Death in Jimmy Superfly Snukas Motel Room are donated to organizations fighting domestic violence. And of course, as noted earlier, Mihalikis ruled the death a homicide, not an accident. Twenty-three year old Nancy Argentino found herself traveling the country with her new boyfriend, wrestling superstar Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka. Snukas wife, Carole Snuka, told the producers of Dark Side of the Ring that her husband told her that McMahon came into town with his briefcase and told him it was done., Her family claimed that WWE offered them $25K following her death. And the way its in the book is the way it was told to me.. All in all, there were at least a few entities that failed Nancy Argentino in 1983: The motel clerk who let things escalate in January by not calling the police earlier; the majority of the media coverage of her initial beating at Snukas hands, which minimized her suffering to present a somehow breezier narrative of a wrestler fighting off police dogs; and the district attorneys office who, in spite of having multiple strong witnesses confirming the abuse even after Argentino recanted, basically waved Snukas actions aside to avoid risk to his green card. On September 1st, 2015: After a grand jurys recommendation, Martin proceeds to charge Snuka with third-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter. PWSTees.com Your favorite Pro Wrestling Stories, on a tee! Three weeks after The Morning Call published the story recalling the death of Nancy Argentino and revealing an autopsy report and police interviews never seen by the public, Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin asked Chief Deputy District Attorney Charles Gallagher and Detective Gerry Procanyn "if theres anything to be gained by opening a grand jury investigation." The donation, though, was often conflated with the sentence as if they were related, and none of the articles contained actual details of what happened in the courtroom beyond the disposition. Adding to the controversy was that Snuka was married to another woman whom he had children with at the time of his relationship with Argentino. I felt bad about it brother. Conjour insistedthe case was investigated the best it could have been investigated. Thats to say nothing of any potential reputational harm to the organization. Indeed, the champion grappler gained infamy by soaring like human ammo. , obtained from U.S. She moved away as he strode toward her. Authorities even tossed the WWE Hall of Famers tell-all autobiography as the cherry on top of the mountain of facts. In his autobiography, Jimmy Snuka publicly admitted to drinking heavily, smoking tobacco, liberal marijuana use, ingesting cocaine and using anabolic steroids throughout his adult life. Nancy Argentino, in happier times. His widow, Carol, claims that he died of CTE, not cancer. As the docuseries points out, there was another passenger in the car with them who doesnt recall any fall. They are not against the donation, only that it shouldnt be tied in with the case or the Department.. From excessive horseplay amongst them to a lovers quarrel where accidents happen, to her simply slipping and falling. The stakes were high. When we got to the hotel right away I had to call because she wasnt feeling good, he said. The Argentinos have provided high-resolution copies of all four pages to me: It contains some information that wasnt reported in the 1980s, but its importance becomes more clear in light of the paragraph that discusses Argentinos autopsy. In. Due to COVID-19 and current government mandated impacts on WWE and the media business generally, the Company went through an extensive evaluation of its operations over the past several weeks,, from the company reads. Snuka, a native of Fiji who lives in Waterford Township, New Jersey, was charged last year in the death of 23-year-old Nancy Argentino, whose body was found in their Whitehall Township hotel. Nancy was Italian, 5 feet 7 inches tall, 115 pounds with dark, curly hair and brown eyes. The Lehigh County district attorney's office has refused to allow the coroner to release her autopsy report over the past three. I dont know if he gave Nancys family money or anything. They were driving to Allentown in their purple Lincoln carand Argentino needed to relieve herself. Reached by phone yesterday, Sharon Georgi said she was having dinner. A year after Argentino was killed, with her family having retained lawyers from Schonwald, Schaffzin & Mullman, one of the lawyers on the case travelled to Allentown, Pennsylvania, to meet with Lehigh County District Attorney William Platt. Picture made on Wednesday, October 7, 2015. Nothing we could do., And just before Argentinos life was taken, her sister said she had promised to be home for Mothers Day. We are hopeful that justice will prevail.. Though the records check from the Sheriffs Office matched the four known charges, the Certificate of Conviction from the court says he pled guilty to Assault 3rd while being sentenced to his one-year conditional discharge. A follow-up interview with Snuka was conducted by investigatorson June 1. Ultimately, this legal matter will be decided by our judicial system. Does [Snuka] understand whats going on? , which aired April 12. ", Snukas defense attorney Robert Kirwin, who had motioned for the case to be closed once it had been determined in June 2016 that Snuka was mentally unfit to assist his defense, said, "It was time for there to be closure. Coverage of the latest true crime stories and famous cases explained, as well as the best TV shows, movies and podcasts in the genre. According to the Sheriffs Department file for the case, which I obtained via the Argentino familys wrongful death lawsuit against Snuka, at least two officers on the scene witnessed Snuka resuming his attack on Argentino that same night. Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka visits "The Opie & Anthony Show" at SiriusXM studios on January 9, 2013 in New York City. However, I was orally advised that Dr. Mihalikis concluded that death was consistent with a single fall whereby the victim struck her head on a hard substance, such as pavement. Picture made on Wednesday, October 7, 2015. In another version, Snuka claims he called the authorities as soon as they got to the hotel room. . The memo was first published in Justice Denied, an ebook that Argentinos sisters collaborated on with Irvin Muchnick, who had been doing the seminal reporting on the case since 1992, as a benefit for a battered womens shelter. Right on the concrete on the side of the road, she just slipped backwards., The 230-pound grappler scooped her up and according to his testimony slapped her across the face to get her to come to again. But Argentino remained unconscious. We kind of expected it because there were so many ridiculous things going on with the defense. She went on to decry Snukas incompetency defense as "a total act. The case remains open to this day. Specifically, those other incidents of domestic abuse were that of Snuka hospitalizing his then-wife Sharon in September 1983 (no charges filed, but testified to by both Sharon and then-neighbor Debbie Rogers); and Snukas January 18, 1983 arrest for beating Argentino. I could not understand why the district attorney could not see it., 30 years later, the case was still unsolved, but an opportunity for the case to be re-opened presented itself. Other than Snukas constantly shifting story of what happened, the autopsy report, and even his 2012 autobiography helped put pressure on authorities to delve into the case once more. Get all your true crime news from Oxygen. According to the autopsy, Argentino was declared dead hours later at Lehigh Valley Hospital and died of traumatic brain injuries consistent with a moving head striking a stationary object. The George Washington Motor Lodge as seen on April 6, 1993. ", After Snuka was charged with third-degree murder, Jim Cornette questioned, "Why doesnt someone really start investigating more about why nothing got done for 30 years when there was all of this evidence and conflicting stories? He continued, "Where is the line between dementia and normal? When Nancy Argentinos older sister Lorraine Salome was reached by phone, she said she wasnt at all surprised when she got the dreaded call informing her that the judge dismissed charges against the ex-wrestler. I didnt see it happen, but I remember she told me she was jumping over a little stream that was there and she slipped.. According to the complaint, the nurse described the hulkish beau as a tall man with a Hawaiian skirt who refused to go to the waiting room. I respect them. Release Calendar Top 250 Movies Most Popular Movies Browse Movies by Genre Top Box Office Showtimes & Tickets Movie News India Movie Spotlight. Nancy called me at 2 in the morning saying, I have to get out of here, her sister recalled. When Argentino was killed, the WWF had been bringing its TV tapings to Allentown which borders Whitehall every three weeks for several years, making the company key to the local economy. All I remember is he had a briefcase with him. Robert Kirwin, defense attorney of Jimmy Snuka, called Snukas wife Carole with the news and said that she wept with joy and wanted to know if it was truly over. In addition, Mihalikis absolutely, find, bruises, lacerations or other indications of a beating or prior injuries. Over two dozen, to be more specific, to the point that the report states that they could suggest mate abuse., But the revelation that if we take Procanyns contemporaneous interview with Bronstad and Romanenko at face value Vince McMahon may have been one of these failures is something that, in 2020, casts her death in a different light. I met him, and he was the kindest man possible. Procanyn didnt say to me, We didnt have enough evidence to indictwhich at least would have been plausible. Something went on, and something got covered up. Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka arrives for the second day of a competency hearing at the Lehigh County Courthouse on Wednesday, May18, 2016. Snuka definitely says he saw Argentino hit the ground. October 29, 2020. Shawn Michaels And Diesel Good Friends, Better Enemies, Monday Night SmackDown! However, their dream relationship quickly turned to horror. However, by the next day, he apparently changed his story and claimed that. Yes, that Vince McMahon, then Snukas promoter as the owner of Titan Sports d/b/a the World Wrestling Federation, and now the chairman, CEO and owner of the WWFs successor, World Wrestling Entertainment. "I would only say there wasn't anything significantly said or done and that's why there's no record of it,"Frederick Conjour, the former police of police with the Whitehall Township,told the docuseries. She was staying in a motel room with Jimmy Snuka in Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania. On that date, Nancy Argentino, girlfriend of Jimmy Snuka, was declared dead in a Lehigh Valley Hospital. However, he accepted a plea deal that dropped all of those charges. While there has always been debate about what exactly happened to Nancy Argentino on May 10, 1983, some basic facts have been confirmed. Bronstad does remember, though, that someone claiming to be Snukas manager showed up to post bail, going on and on about how he needed to be able to wrestle the next night. And yet the pro wrestler was never charged. These changing stories and the official manner of death werent known publicly until 2013, when the, discovered the autopsy report and a Snuka police interview transcript both previously unavailable due to the case still being open in court records from the Argentino familys later wrongful death lawsuit against Superfly. That, and other provable incidents of domestic abuse. All I remember is he had a briefcase with him. Because of his failing health, however, a judge ruled him mentally unfit to stand trial. Again, speculation has long run rampant about whether or not McMahon swooped in after her death with his briefcase to finagle Snuka out of trouble (which has never been proven, and McMahon has denied doing so through counsel and a company spokesperson). Police say he also battled with responding police. "We never saw a dime, but money was . Investigating the mysterious story of Jimmy Snuka, whose girlfriend Nancy Argentino died in their motel room in 1983, and revealing her family's 30-year stru. Her sisters, Louise Argentino and Lorraine Salome, tell me that they believe that this was the first time Snuka had gotten violent, meaning that Argentinos resolve wouldnt necessarily be worn down yet. Snukas attorney, Robert J. Kirwan, argued that the fliers and videos did not prove anything about Snukas competency. I dont know what happened. It also questions thecontroversial meeting between McMahon and authorities back in 1983, saying perhapsArgentino's death wasn't investigated properly because Snuka was an asset to the company. Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka enters Lehigh County Court to argue he has the right to have a preliminary hearing in the 1983 murder of his girlfriend in a Whitehall Township motel. Today, I bring you the 9th edition of a series looking at the TV show Dark Side of the Ring. He drove his Oldsmobile Delmont 88 off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island, which is near Marthas Vineyard. At one point, I went with Vince McMahon Jr. to either a court or law office, I dont remember which because I was still in shock. Instead, her mother received the phone call that no mother wants to receive. There is no question in my mind that the missing narrative piece coming out of the indictment is the role that officers of the court in Pennsylvania themselves played, Muchnick told The Daily Beast. (Former ADA Plochocki hasnt responded to my requests for an interview as of this writing, while his then-boss, DA Richard Hennessy, is deceased, as is Justice Harding.). The Genius Cast with Lanny Poffo (2018-19), HOMAGE.com Our favorite in retro wrestling attire! In another version Snuka said he called authorities straightaway. However, it is known that Argentino died . I think she died of a fracture to her skull. Menu. https://prowrestlingstories.com/pro-wrestling-stories/life-death-chris-benoit/, All of these wrestlers in the WWE have head trauma, they cant avoid it, its part of their job, Hamilton stated. Dattilio told Judge Kelly L. Banach that tests show Snukas brain is shrinking, causing serious memory loss. Check out his weekly wrestling history podcast, Between The Sheets, on all major podcast platforms, and subscribe to his Substack at BabyfacevHeel.com. She was staying in a motel room with Jimmy Snuka in Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania. The autopsy report told cops to consider Nancy Argentinos death a homicide. Without more details, its still uncertain whether Snuka really copped a plea for assaulting Argentino (since there were still witnesses), or received a reduced charge for hitting Bronstad. Adding to the controversy was that Snuka was married to another woman whom he had children with at the time of his relationship with Argentino. 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