Agony of father torn over clashing trials over deaths of his sister 'strangled by Whitey Bulger' and his daughter killed in DUI car crash
A tragic father is torn between attending court proceedings for either his sister or his daughter, who died 27 years apart.
Steve Davis, 55, of Boston, has to choose between the trial of James 'Whitey' Bulger, accused of murdering his 26-year-old sister Debra Davis in 1981, or the wrongful-death suit over the car crash that killed his daughter, 20, also called Debra, in 2008.
Davis filed a $2.5 million civil case against the Kraft group after the death of his daughter after tailgating at the Gilette Stadium. On Wednesday that trial was postponed to June 3, just a day before Bulger's hearing begins in Boston.
Bulger is accused of strangling Debra Davies after she apparently sought to end her relationship with his long-term sidekick Stephen 'The Rifleman' Flemmi.
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'My daughter’s my life. My sister’s my sister. I don’t know what to do,' Davis told the Boston Herald yesterday. 'You don’t even know the stress I’m going through.'
The father is pursuing the suit against the Krafts after the younger Debra died in a drunk driving accident following tailgating outside the Gillette Stadium before the New England Country Music Festival on July 26, 2008.
According to Wbur.org, Debra and two friends paid $40 to park their minivan outside the stadium. They didn't have tickets for the event and after a day of partying drove away from the area.
Davis and 19-year-old friend Alexa Latteo, who was driving, died after hitting a tree on Route 1 in Wrentham. The third girl, Nina Houlihan, survived and is a co-plaintiff in the case, suing the Krafts for $250,000.
Steve Davis accuses the Kraft Group of failing to properly police the parking lots at Gillette Stadium for underage drinkers during the event.
His sister Debra was 26 when she died. Notorious mobster James 'Whitey' Bulger, 83, is accused of strangling and mutilating her in 1981. He will face 19 counts of murder in June.
Debra was the girlfriend of Bulger's sidekick Stephen Flemmi since the age of 17. On September 17, 1981, she was allegedly lured to a basement where Bulger strangled her.
Bulger then allegedly told Flemmi to remove her teeth before burying Davis's body by the Neponset River in eastern Massachusetts.
As reported by Wcvbc.com, Flemmi alleged he and Bulger killed the woman as she knew about their relationship with FBI Agent John Connolly.
Steve Davis told the Boston Herald that to him the Bulger trial is 'like a fight I’ve been in training for for 30 years and I’m finally going to get into the ring.'
Davis said: 'I can’t throw in the towel now. But then, my daughter. I’d die for her. Why it (the civil trial) would be pushed off until June is beyond me.'
Steve Davis, 55, of Boston, has to choose between the trial of James 'Whitey' Bulger, accused of murdering his 26-year-old sister Debra Davis in 1981, or the wrongful-death suit over the car crash that killed his daughter, 20, also called Debra, in 2008.
Davis filed a $2.5 million civil case against the Kraft group after the death of his daughter after tailgating at the Gilette Stadium. On Wednesday that trial was postponed to June 3, just a day before Bulger's hearing begins in Boston.
Bulger is accused of strangling Debra Davies after she apparently sought to end her relationship with his long-term sidekick Stephen 'The Rifleman' Flemmi.
Scroll down for video
Agonizing: Steve Davis must choose between court
proceedings relating to the death of either his sister or his daughter,
who died 27 years apart
Namesakes: Steve's sister (left) and daughter (right0 never met as they died 27 years apart
The father is pursuing the suit against the Krafts after the younger Debra died in a drunk driving accident following tailgating outside the Gillette Stadium before the New England Country Music Festival on July 26, 2008.
According to Wbur.org, Debra and two friends paid $40 to park their minivan outside the stadium. They didn't have tickets for the event and after a day of partying drove away from the area.
Davis and 19-year-old friend Alexa Latteo, who was driving, died after hitting a tree on Route 1 in Wrentham. The third girl, Nina Houlihan, survived and is a co-plaintiff in the case, suing the Krafts for $250,000.
Steve Davis accuses the Kraft Group of failing to properly police the parking lots at Gillette Stadium for underage drinkers during the event.
Video: Steve Davis explains the cruel court clash
Accident: Debra Davis, pictured (right) at the
event Alexa Latteo (left) who also died, was killed in a car crash after
tailgating at the Gillette Stadium (pictured in a file photo)
Debra was the girlfriend of Bulger's sidekick Stephen Flemmi since the age of 17. On September 17, 1981, she was allegedly lured to a basement where Bulger strangled her.
Bulger then allegedly told Flemmi to remove her teeth before burying Davis's body by the Neponset River in eastern Massachusetts.
As reported by Wcvbc.com, Flemmi alleged he and Bulger killed the woman as she knew about their relationship with FBI Agent John Connolly.
Steve Davis told the Boston Herald that to him the Bulger trial is 'like a fight I’ve been in training for for 30 years and I’m finally going to get into the ring.'
Davis said: 'I can’t throw in the towel now. But then, my daughter. I’d die for her. Why it (the civil trial) would be pushed off until June is beyond me.'
Accused: James 'Whitey' Bulger will stand trial on 19 counts of murder in June
THE MURDERED NINETEEN: WHITEY'S ALLEGED HIT LIST
March and April 1973: Rival gang members Michael Milano, Al Plummer, William O'Brien, James Leary and Joseph Notorangeli
December 1973: McLaughlin gang associate James O'Toole
February 1974: Rival gang leader Al Notorangeli
October 1974: Criminal associate James Sousa, a potential witness of a botched robbery
November 1974: Paul McGonagle, member of the Mullins gang
June 1975: Edward Connors, a potential witness to the murder of O'Toole
November 1975: Thomas King, a member of Bulger's gang who was seen as a threat, and Francis Leonard said to have been killed as a diversion
December 1976: FBI informant Richard Castucci
May 1981: Tulsa casino owner Roger Wheeler
Late 1981: Debra Davis, girlfriend of Bulger associate Stephen Flemmi
May 1982: Brian Halloran, an FBI informant on Wheeler's killing, and Michael Donahue
August 1982: Potential witness in Wheeler murder, John B. Callahan
July 1983: Alleged bank robber Arthur Barrett
November 1984: Informant John McIntyre, said to have information on Bulger's gang's involvement in shipping arms to the IRA
Early 1985: Flemmi's stepdaughter Deborah Hussey
December 1973: McLaughlin gang associate James O'Toole
February 1974: Rival gang leader Al Notorangeli
October 1974: Criminal associate James Sousa, a potential witness of a botched robbery
November 1974: Paul McGonagle, member of the Mullins gang
June 1975: Edward Connors, a potential witness to the murder of O'Toole
November 1975: Thomas King, a member of Bulger's gang who was seen as a threat, and Francis Leonard said to have been killed as a diversion
December 1976: FBI informant Richard Castucci
May 1981: Tulsa casino owner Roger Wheeler
Late 1981: Debra Davis, girlfriend of Bulger associate Stephen Flemmi
May 1982: Brian Halloran, an FBI informant on Wheeler's killing, and Michael Donahue
August 1982: Potential witness in Wheeler murder, John B. Callahan
July 1983: Alleged bank robber Arthur Barrett
November 1984: Informant John McIntyre, said to have information on Bulger's gang's involvement in shipping arms to the IRA
Early 1985: Flemmi's stepdaughter Deborah Hussey