Matteo LaNasa Killed in Desperate Italian Street Fight Submitted by: Larie Tedesco Source: The Daily Picayune Monday, September 21, 1908 Page 3 column 4 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ************************************************ Frank Pusateri, a Neighbor, Admits Firing Fatal Shot From His Open Window Wife of Murdered Man Began Firing and Wounded Bastiano Bomeretto, a Cripple - Sunday of Seven Tragedies, Three Dead, Four Seriously Wounded Mateo LaNasa, an Italian fruit and vegetable dealer, who will be remembered best as on of the members of the firm of LaNasa Brothers & Co., of Decatur Street, made up of seven brothers and their seven brother-in-laws, was shot and killed Sunday afternoon in front of his home on St. Ann and Solomon Streets, by his neighbor, Frank Pusateri, a shoemaker. Besides this tragedy, Bastiano Bomeretto, a cripple, who intended making a call on the Pusateris, was badly wounded by the pistol shots fired by Mrs. LaNasa, who knew how to use a revolver, and only stopped in her work when the trigger of her weapon jammed. For quite a time there was all sorts of stories about the affray and the police and detectives, who hurried to the scene, were confounded with so many tales that they had to take half a dozen or more parties in custody before they beat out the truth that Pusateri killed LaNasa and the widow of that man wounded the crippled Italian, who is now in the hospital. If looked for a time as if there was a Mafia plot back of all of the bloody work, but Chief of Detectives Reynolds concluded with the small volumn of facts in his possession that the tragedy was brought about as a result of a hatred existing beween the LaNasas and the Pusateris, who each occupied a half of a new double cottage on Solomon and St. Ann Streets. Seemingly children brought on all of the trouble. The mothers quarreled with each other and three weeks ago LaNasa, so the story goes, went into the Pusateri home late at night, cursed and abused the man and woman and said that HE WOULD KILL THEM if they ever bothered him again. And the Pusateris even say that he struck his breast and shouted that he would show what the LaNasas are and the LaNasa's could gather a gang who would kill anyone in their way. As it happened that night there was no serious trouble, but whenever the men of the two families met they glared and scowled at each other and the wives anticipated that there would be a vicious clash. Yesterday a little after 2 o'clock in the afternoon, Bomeretto, the cripple of 909 Toulouse street, and Salvadore Seminara, of 407 Burgunday Street, and uncle of Pusateri, were on their way to the Pusateri home, intending to visit the family before going to the picnic of the Italian societies which was being held at City Park. As for the Pusateris, they were in their house, but the man and women differ as to what they were doing. The wife says that they were at the dinner table, while the man declares that he was taking a nap when the ROW FIRST STARTED. As for the LaNasa's they had finished their meal and one of their children, Giovanni, a little boy 3 years of age, was seated on the stoop just as Seminara, the old gray-haired man and Bastiano, the cripple came along. "Oh mamma," cried the child, "here is a cripple and an old man." This angered the cripple and he turned upon the child and cursed him. The swearing attracted the attention of the LaNasas and Mateo, the head of the house, rushed out of the house and demanded to know who had cursed the little one. There was an answer of some kind given, and soon the old man, Seminara, and LaNasa was quarrelling. What was said then is hard to decide for the cripple and the old man offer a similar story, while the widow of LaNasa says that the abuse was heaped upon her husband, herself and the child by both the old man and the cripple. Bastiano, in giving an account of this quarrel, said that the old man was abused by LaNasa, whom he did not know, and Seminara reproached LaNasa for his language, saying that he need not curse him because he had not done LaNasa anything. But LaNasa followed behind them to the very door of the Pusateri house declaring he wanted to fight. Just then Pusateri appeared at the window of his home and fired a shot at LaNasa. The man fell and PUSATERI JUMPED BACK into the house and disappeared, and the old man ran out St. Ann Street. It was then that Mrs. LaNasa came into her doorway, rushed down into the street and began shooting, and two of her bullets struck the man who told the story. The widow insists that when her little 3-year-old son, Giovanni, made that remark that a cripple and an old man were passing, and after she had cautioned the child not to talk that way, the cripple cursed the child, calling him a terrible name. Her husband, hearing this, went to the door and asked who had used the epithet to the child. The cripple seemed to be anxious for trouble, and soon he and her husband were fussing. To prevent any trouble she went out into the street and pulled her husband away. At this juncture she saw Pusateri lean out of the window of his home and deliberately shoot her husband. In her excitement, seeing her husband fall wounded, Mrs. LaNasa, for a second, thought she had been shot, too, and running into the house made a quick examination of herself and finding that she was not hurt, secured her husband's revolver and went out to exchange shots with those who were against her husband. She could not see Pusateri, but the cripple was near by, and she began firing at him and wounding the fellow, but this did not cause him to scamper away. On the contrary, he tried to force his way into her place but the gate was locked. However, the cripple was determined, and he jumped the fence, and finding that her pistol was not working well and she had no extra cartridges, Mrs. LaNasa ran out through the rear door of her home and made her way to the City Park hunting for a policeman. LANASA DROPPED IN THE STREET and died almost instantly. He was shot through the thorax, the bullet entering on the left side of the body, ranged downward and passed out under the right armpit. As for Bastiano, the cripple, he finally made his way to the Pusateri house, but the fellow Pusateri had taken his wife's advice and made his escape. The alarm was sounded and soon Sergeant Wheatly and Corporal Clavin and several officers and Detectives Mouney, Holyland and Brewer and Special Officer Ford made their way to the place and took charge of matters. Am ambulance was called and Bastiano, the cripple, who by that time was joined again by Seminara, the old man, was hureied to the hospital. The body of LaNasa, was sent to the Morgue and the police and the detectives took charge of all the actors in the tragedy and the witnesses who saw much of the affair. The cripple seemed anxious to lie about the matter, for in his first story he said that the woman did all of the shooting and at no time did he see Frank Pusateri, whom he did not know, and was on his way to the man's house to be introduced to him. He went on to tell that the woman was shooting at the old man - the uncle of Frank Pusateri - and himself, and she wounded him first, and in shooting again at the old man killed her husband, though he did not know the LaNasas and only heard after he had been wounded that the woman who did the shooting was the wife of LaNasa. When he was in the hospital being attended to for two bullet wounds in the left shoulder and arm and under the right - a grazing shot - he asked of a newspaper man if the strange man was dead. When told that LaNasa had been killed he seemed to feel at ease and exhibited a better frame of mind. CHIEF OF DETECTIVES REYNOLDS did not like the many stories of the affray, and he determined to get the truth of the matter, and an order was sent for all parties to be brought to police headquarters. In the meantime there was a hard hunt being made for Pusateri. The first tale of the cripple was not the truth, and Chief of Detectives Reynolds gave orders that the wounded man be interviewed closely and confonnted with certain facts should he persist in lying. Secretary Vandervoort with Detective Dale and Special Officer Mellen and Special Officer Exnicios, of the District Attorney's office, talked to the wounded cripple, and he gave out a full statement, declaring tha Pusateri had shot and killed LaNasa and LaNasa's widow wounded him. He denied having cursed the child and knew nothing of any previouse trouble between the LaNasa's and the Pusateris. In his long investigation Chief of Detective Reynolds got from Walker Rogers, of St. Ann and Hennessy Streets, a statement to the effect that the cripple was scailing the fence of Louis Demas home when Mrs. LaNasa shot at him. At the time the woman was standing by the body of her husband. John Oldani, of Morgan Boulevard and Dumaine Street, saw Sarah LaNasa, the widow of the murdered man, near the City Park and picked up the empty 38-caliber revolver which she dropped and gave the weapon over to the police. When the body of LaNasa was conveyed to the Morgue, Assistant Coroner Migton held the autopsy. He demonstrated that death was due to a penetrating gunshot wound of left breast. The bullet entered between the sixth and seventh ribs, traveled downward and perforated the apex to the heart and the liver, bringing about internal hemorrhages. In the evening Harry Byers, of 1111 Canal Street, who conducts a shoe concern, in which place Pusateri worked, conducted Pusateri to Police Headquarters and gave him over to Detective Dale and Special Officer Mellen. After the shooting Pusateri escaped from the house because his wife told him that probably the six brothers of LaNasa would make trouble for him. He eluded people and finally made his way to Mr. Byers and told him of all that had occurred and stated that he wanted to surrender to the police. PUSATERI CONFESSES Chief of Detectives Reynolds had a long interview with the fellow Pusateri said that he fired the shot which killed LaNasa. He declared that he was lying on his bed when he heard cursing and going to the window saw LaNasa with a revolver in his hand following Seminara, his uncle. To save the old man's life, he fired the shot which killed LaNasa. When asked what he did with his revolver Pusateri said he had dropped it some place in his excitement, but for the life of him he could not tell where it was. Chief of Detectives Reynolds sent Pusateri to jail and had him charged with murder. As for the woman, Mrs. LaNasa, she was charged in the Surburban Jail with shooting and wounding. However, her bravery was talked about and Judge Aucoin, when he learned the facts of the case, paroled her to appear in court this morning. Besides Pusateri, the police have old man Seminara in jail on the charge of being and accessory to the murder of LaNasa, and the cripple, Bastiano, is being watched in the hospital, and to-day an affidavit will be made against him charging him with being and accessory to the murder. The body of LaNasa was taken in charge by and undertaker and was placed in the Rampart Street home of the father of the LaNasa brothers. STORY OF THE KILLING PUSATERI RELATES HIS SIDE OF THE FATAL ENCOUNTER Frank Pusateri, the prisoner, in telling of the tragedy, said: "About 2:30 o'clock I was in the kitchen of my house, waiting for my uncle, Salvadore Samenara, who promised to make a visit. I heard some one speaking on the outside. You see, I had by that time gone into the bed of my child, which is in the middle room. I got up and started to go to the front door. Before I got there I passed by the window and recognized the voice of LaNasa, whom I had trouble with before. I heard him call my uncle a ______, and he said the same thing to the cripple man who was with my uncle, and he said the same thing about me, saying that "the man who is afraid to come out is a __________," This was meant for me. LaNasa said that if I came out he would kill me like a rat. And he yelled: 'You don't know who LaNasa is? We are several brothers and my wife has several brothers.' All of this was said in Italian: 'They have killed me.' I did not recognize the voice. "I jumped to the window then and I saw LaNasa with a revolver in his hand and he was pointing the pistol at my uncle, I then went to a bureau drawer and got my revolver. I heard another shot then, and I went back to the window and fired a shot at LaNasa. After I shot him I heard another shot outside. Who fired that shot I don't know. I was in my underclothes. "My wife advised me to dress and get away as quickly as possible as it would be dangerous for me to remain in the house, as the dead man had several brothers and they may do me some harm. I dressed myself and left the house by the back way. I went to my boss house and after that surrendered to the police. I don't know what became of the pistol. Wedding Picture of Mateo LaNasa and Wife