Susan Walsh (missing Person)
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Susan Walsh (February 18, 1960 – disappeared July 16, 1996) was an American writer and
freelance journalist ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance ...
who disappeared outside her home in Nutley, New Jersey, on July 16, 1996. Her disappearance was widely publicized into the late 1990s, especially after several newspapers and media outlets published articles implying that it was potentially linked to the
Russian mafia Russian organized crime or Russian mafia (, ), otherwise known as Bratva (), is a collective of various organized crime elements originating in the former Soviet Union. The initialism OPG is Organized Criminal (''prestupnaya'' in Russian) G ...
or New York City's underground vampire community, both subjects that she had investigated while writing for ''
The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, th ...
''. Walsh's case has been profiled on multiple television programs, including ''
Unsolved Mysteries ''Unsolved Mysteries'' is an American mystery documentary television show, created by John Cosgrove and Terry Dunn Meurer. Documenting cold cases and paranormal phenomena, it began as a series of seven specials, presented by Raymond Burr, Ka ...
'' in 1997 and ''
Disappeared An enforced disappearance (or forced disappearance) is the secret abduction or imprisonment of a person by a state or political organization, or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organiz ...
'' in 2012. She was the subject of a 1998 book titled ''Piercing the Darkness: Undercover with Vampires in America Today'' by
Katherine Ramsland Katherine Ramsland (born January 2, 1953) is an American non-fiction author and professor of forensic psychology. Ramsland has written 60 books and more than 1,000 articles, mostly in the genres of crime, forensic science, and the supernatura ...
.


Early life

Susan Walsh was born Susan Young on February 18, 1960. She aspired to be a poet from a young age. Walsh attended
William Paterson University William Paterson University, officially William Paterson University of New Jersey (WPUNJ), is a public university in Wayne, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education. Founded in 1855 and was named after American ju ...
where she studied English and writing; while there, she was employed as a journalist for the university newspaper. Walsh worked intermittently as an
erotic dancer An erotic dance is a dance that provides erotic entertainment and whose objective is the stimulation of erotic or sexual thoughts or actions in viewers. Erotic dance is one of several major dance categories based on purpose, such as ceremo ...
and
stripper A stripper or exotic dancer is a person whose occupation involves performing striptease in a public adult entertainment venue such as a strip club. At times, a stripper may be hired to perform at a bachelor party or other private event. Mo ...
to help pay her tuition. Notwithstanding her struggles with
substance abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...
and alcoholism, she graduated from college with a
bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...
in 1988 and then worked as a writer for engineering and business publications. She was later employed as a writer for ''
Screw A screw and a bolt (see '' Differentiation between bolt and screw'' below) are similar types of fastener typically made of metal and characterized by a helical ridge, called a ''male thread'' (external thread). Screws and bolts are used to fa ...
'' magazine. In 1984, she married Mark Walsh, a brother of musician
Joe Walsh Joseph Fidler Walsh (born November 20, 1947) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In a career spanning over five decades, he has been a member of three successful rock bands: the James Gang, Eagles, and Ringo Starr & His All-Starr ...
. The couple had one son, David, born in 1985.


Disappearance

On July 16, 1996, Walsh left her apartment complex in Nutley, New Jersey, which she shared with her son. Her estranged husband, Mark, lived below them. Walsh had left to run errands and make a telephone call at a
payphone A payphone (alternative spelling: pay phone) is typically a coin-operated public telephone, often located in a telephone booth or in high-traffic outdoor areas, with prepayment by inserting money (usually coins) or by billing a credit or deb ...
across the street, leaving her son with Mark. It was the last time that Walsh was seen. At the time of her disappearance, she had been enrolled in a
Master's program A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.
in English at
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, ...
, which she had halfway completed, while supporting herself and her son by working as a
freelance journalist ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance ...
and in various jobs as a stripper. At the time of her disappearance, her friends had become worried that she had relapsed into her drug addiction, after having maintained 11 years of sobriety.''
Disappeared An enforced disappearance (or forced disappearance) is the secret abduction or imprisonment of a person by a state or political organization, or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organiz ...
''. "Dancing into Darkness".
Investigation Discovery Investigation Discovery (stylized and branded on-air as ID since 2008) is an American multinational pay television network dedicated to true crime documentaries owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. As of February 2015, approximately 86 million Amer ...
Network. September 8, 2012.


Investigation

Police were able to eliminate Walsh's ex-husband as a suspect in her disappearance. It was noted later that the page for the entire month of July 1996 was missing from Walsh's calendar in her apartment. Although police had few clues to follow up on in their investigation, rumors circulated that Walsh's disappearance might have been connected to the investigative journalism she had been doing at the time. Walsh had penned an in-depth report published in ''
The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, th ...
'' about a
strip club A strip club is a venue where strippers provide adult entertainment, predominantly in the form of striptease or other erotic or exotic dances. Strip clubs typically adopt a nightclub or bar style, and can also adopt a theatre or cabaret-style. Am ...
ring in which members of the
Russian mafia Russian organized crime or Russian mafia (, ), otherwise known as Bratva (), is a collective of various organized crime elements originating in the former Soviet Union. The initialism OPG is Organized Criminal (''prestupnaya'' in Russian) G ...
were allegedly forcing young girls into the
sex industry The sex industry (also called the sex trade) consists of businesses that either directly or indirectly provide sex-related products and services or adult entertainment. The industry includes activities involving direct provision of sex-related ...
. Following this article, Walsh had also explored an underground vampire community in New York City, but the newspaper did not run the story as it felt Walsh's writing on the matter was not objective. Ultimately, police were unable to establish any connections between Walsh's disappearance and her work on either article. Walsh established a friendship with journalist
James Ridgeway James Fowler Ridgeway (November 1, 1936February 13, 2021) was an American investigative journalist. In a career spanning six decades, he covered many topics including automobile industry safety, American universities, far-right movements includi ...
during her time writing for the ''Voice'', with Ridgeway referring to her as his "most reliable" writer. At the time, Walsh had also participated in a documentary produced by her friend, Jill Morley, titled ''Stripped'', which detailed women working in the sex industry. Walsh was recorded in a group interview for the film on July 14, 1996, two days before her disappearance, during which she made a reference to having a "
stalker Stalking is unwanted and/or repeated surveillance by an individual or group toward another person. Stalking behaviors are interrelated to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person or monitoring them. The term ...
." She had also hired herself out to a German documentary crew making a film about Russian immigrants becoming
go-go dancer Go-go dancers are dancers who are employed to entertain crowds at nightclubs or other venues where music is played. Go-go dancing originated in the early 1960s at the French bar Whisky a Gogo located in Juan-les-Pins. The bar's name was tak ...
s, and was also in the midst of developing a documentary on the subject with the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
shortly before her disappearance. Walsh's last work was her contributions to the book ''Red Light: Inside the Sex Industry'' by Ridgeway and
Sylvia Plachy Sylvia Plachy (born 24 May 1943) is a Hungarian-American photographer. Plachy's work has been featured in many New York city magazines and newspapers and she "was an influential staff photographer for ''The Village Voice''." Biography Plachy w ...
; Walsh served as the
primary research Research is "creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness t ...
er for the book and also contributed photographs and personal writings within a month before her disappearance. In a 2006 article in ''
The New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com. It was established i ...
'', it was noted that Walsh had confided to a former boyfriend that another of her ex-boyfriends had been stalking her; additionally, the article stated that her husband, Mark, had refused to allow police to perform
forensic Forensic science, also known as criminalistics, is the application of science to criminal and civil laws, mainly—on the criminal side—during criminal investigation, as governed by the legal standards of admissible evidence and crimin ...
testing of their home.


Works

;Known bibliography * ''
Screw Magazine ''Screw'' is a pornographic online magazine published in the United States aimed at heterosexual men; it was originally published as a weekly tabloid newspaper. The publication, which was described as "raunchy, obnoxious, usually disgusting, and ...
'' * ''
The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, th ...
'' (2 articles) * ''Red Light: Inside the Sex Industry'' by
James Ridgeway James Fowler Ridgeway (November 1, 1936February 13, 2021) was an American investigative journalist. In a career spanning six decades, he covered many topics including automobile industry safety, American universities, far-right movements includi ...
;
Sylvia Plachy Sylvia Plachy (born 24 May 1943) is a Hungarian-American photographer. Plachy's work has been featured in many New York city magazines and newspapers and she "was an influential staff photographer for ''The Village Voice''." Biography Plachy w ...
(primary researcher, contributor) ;Filmography * ''Stripped'' (2001) as herself


See also

*
List of people who disappeared mysteriously Lists of people who disappeared include those whose current whereabouts are unknown, or whose deaths are unsubstantiated. Many people who disappear are eventually declared dead ''in absentia''. Some of these people were possibly subjected to enfo ...


References


Notes


Sources

*


External links


Susan Walsh
at The Charley Project
Susan Walsh
at Unsolved.com
Susan Walsh Case
at The Doe Network * Piercing the Darkness Book by Katherine Ramsland at
Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walsh, Susan 1960 births 1990s missing person cases American erotic dancers American female erotic dancers American women journalists July 1996 events in the United States Missing people Missing person cases in New Jersey New York University Graduate School of Arts and Science alumni People from Wayne, New Jersey William Paterson University alumni