Before the sensational cases of Amanda Knox and Casey Anthony—before even Lizzie Borden—there was Polly Bodine, the first American woman put on trial for capital murder in our nation’s debut media circus. Between June 1844 and April 1846, the nation was enthralled by her three trials—in Staten Island, Manhattan, and Newburgh.

The Witch of New York vividly reconstructs an epic mystery from Old New York—and uses the Bodine case to challenge our system of tabloid justice of today.

Join the Historical Society of Newburgh Bay and the Highlands and the Newburgh Free Library for a a visit with Alex Hortis, lawyer, criminal historian and author of The Witch of New York: The Trials of Polly Bodine and the Cursed Birth of Tabloid Justice. Copies of the book will be available for purchase and signing from Golden Hour Books.

This event is at the Old Courthouse at 123 Grand Street.