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New Castle's Kadunce Murders: Mystery and the Devil in Northwest Pennsylvania
Author Dale Richard Perelman tells the tragic story of the 1978 murders and the mystery surrounding them.
In the summer of 1978, a mother and her four-year-old were stabbed to death in the quiet town of New Castle. Police suspected the husband, Lou Kadunce, but were unable to find either a weapon or a motive. Sitting in a Lawrence County jail in 1981, convicted serial killer Michael Atkinson accused Frank Costal - a carny, petty thief and Satanist - of having an affair with the Kadunce husband and participating in the murder. A series of intense trials ensued as Costal was convicted of the homicides and a jury found the husband not guilty. Questions surrounding the case gripped the region and grabbed headlines in the Pittsburgh Press.
In the summer of 1978, a mother and her four-year-old were stabbed to death in the quiet town of New Castle. Police suspected the husband, Lou Kadunce, but were unable to find either a weapon or a motive. Sitting in a Lawrence County jail in 1981, convicted serial killer Michael Atkinson accused Frank Costal - a carny, petty thief and Satanist - of having an affair with the Kadunce husband and participating in the murder. A series of intense trials ensued as Costal was convicted of the homicides and a jury found the husband not guilty. Questions surrounding the case gripped the region and grabbed headlines in the Pittsburgh Press.
- GenresTrue CrimeCrime
211 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 5, 2011
112 people are currently reading
70 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 13, 2020
I remember when this happened in New Castle in the late 1970s. I was a child, and I was scared...what with all the talk of murder and satanism. I enjoyed reading this book and learning about the murders and the trials from an adult perspective. On the bright side, I also enjoyed a trip back to 1970s New Castle...the mentions of Burger Chef, the Towne Mall, Medures, and Mr. Pizza all brought back memories. I also wondered if I ever saw Costal walking down Highland Avenue, which we seemed to travel daily to our home in Neshannock Township. For those not from New Castle, PA who may be interested in reading this book, I think you will like it if you enjoy police procedurals. The layout of this book reminded me of Law and Order. First we had the story from the police perspective, and then the author presented a very thorough look at the trials. This is a true-crime good read.
November 18, 2022
A great one for any true crime fan.
January 12, 2023
When I saw this cover, I thought, "Oh, that guy's definitely guilty." I don't know why, just the disgruntled look on his face at being caught, I guess. Turns out, it's the photo of Lawrence "Lou/Larry" Kadunce being escorted out of court. Interesting. Reading this book made me think of the phrase "colorful cast of characters" because that's what this book was about. Only they were more than just "colorful": everyone that wasn't a cop was a criminal druggie. Most of the witnesses were on drugs or inmates. In court, these people are looked at as unreliable witnesses.
Mike Atkinson told one version of the story, and then told pretty much the same version at Frank Costal's trial. But because he told at least 3 different versions in between, he was definitely pinned (correctly) as a big liar. He was a career criminal, a drug addict, and he was gay, all severely frowned upon in court in the late 70s. But all 3 things were true & proven, so "clearly" he was guilty of at least being present at the scene. Frank Costal was a psychopath. He believed he was a shepherd for the devil, and all in his cult and/or his orbit definitely believed him. Didn't help that he only dealt with highly uneducated, often mentally delayed, drug addicts who were also petty criminals. Being a gay, Satan worshipping, drug addicted, ex-carnie who clearly was a control freak with anger issues. He had to be the ringleader, right?
Unfortunately, IMO, the DA decided not to go into the 3rd trial of Lou Kadunce. A new DA was elected, but then offered the former DA $10K to handle the case for him. "Panella rarely litigated his own cases..." then why run for election? DA Williams, who was quite capable, said he'd had enough of the whole lot of the criminal case, but looking back I think his pride was stung at losing the election, only to be begged to be the prosecutor again. I think that was an issue because the new attorney wasn't very effective at proving that all 3 of these men were most definitely connected. People other than Atkinson saw and/or knew that Kadunce & Costal were lovers. The prosecuting attorney obviously didn't have all of the same witnesses testify, and the defense was able to find plenty of people who knew nothing about Kadunce's other life (apparently he & Costal were still "together" even after the murder) so they all spoke highly of him. That was all it took for the jury to find him not guilty. It really didn't help that the cops did kind of a shoddy job with the investigation in some places. So I believe Kathy & Dawn Kadunce only got partial justice.
Great photos, which added a lot to the story, but there is a photo of the deceased toddler (why not the wife as well?) It's not gory at all, just moreso sad. The story is pretty well written and put together, although there were so many minor characters it can be hard keeping the names straight, let alone putting together & keeping in mind who's essential to the case. But it was still a decent read.
Mike Atkinson told one version of the story, and then told pretty much the same version at Frank Costal's trial. But because he told at least 3 different versions in between, he was definitely pinned (correctly) as a big liar. He was a career criminal, a drug addict, and he was gay, all severely frowned upon in court in the late 70s. But all 3 things were true & proven, so "clearly" he was guilty of at least being present at the scene. Frank Costal was a psychopath. He believed he was a shepherd for the devil, and all in his cult and/or his orbit definitely believed him. Didn't help that he only dealt with highly uneducated, often mentally delayed, drug addicts who were also petty criminals. Being a gay, Satan worshipping, drug addicted, ex-carnie who clearly was a control freak with anger issues. He had to be the ringleader, right?
Unfortunately, IMO, the DA decided not to go into the 3rd trial of Lou Kadunce. A new DA was elected, but then offered the former DA $10K to handle the case for him. "Panella rarely litigated his own cases..." then why run for election? DA Williams, who was quite capable, said he'd had enough of the whole lot of the criminal case, but looking back I think his pride was stung at losing the election, only to be begged to be the prosecutor again. I think that was an issue because the new attorney wasn't very effective at proving that all 3 of these men were most definitely connected. People other than Atkinson saw and/or knew that Kadunce & Costal were lovers. The prosecuting attorney obviously didn't have all of the same witnesses testify, and the defense was able to find plenty of people who knew nothing about Kadunce's other life (apparently he & Costal were still "together" even after the murder) so they all spoke highly of him. That was all it took for the jury to find him not guilty. It really didn't help that the cops did kind of a shoddy job with the investigation in some places. So I believe Kathy & Dawn Kadunce only got partial justice.
Great photos, which added a lot to the story, but there is a photo of the deceased toddler (why not the wife as well?) It's not gory at all, just moreso sad. The story is pretty well written and put together, although there were so many minor characters it can be hard keeping the names straight, let alone putting together & keeping in mind who's essential to the case. But it was still a decent read.
May 12, 2025
Very confusing book, terrible crime, strange investigation. I don’t think the victims really got justice. It seems like they were an afterthought, everything revolved around the perpetrators, no one stood up for the mother or the innocent child. No family member or friends seemed to care when they victim blamed the mother, they let her be blamed for what happened to her or the little girl. The husband seemed like a waste of time, he never seemed to grieve, the baby was like a footnote.
November 11, 2022
Straight forward true crime. Not many twists and turns.
November 22, 2022
crazy times in New Castle
This was in my early 20’s, New Castle was a tough town with a lot of personalities.
This book was filled with some great examples.
This was in my early 20’s, New Castle was a tough town with a lot of personalities.
This book was filled with some great examples.
October 16, 2024
Really weird but true!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews