Mae and Anne Rubenstein

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1:40Voices for Justice is a podcast that uses adult language and discusses sensitive and potentially triggering topics including violence, abuse, and murder. This podcast may not be appropriate for younger audiences. All parties are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Some names have been changed or omitted per their request or for safety purposes. Listener discretion is advised. My name is Sarah Turney, and this is Voices for Justice.

2:13Today, I'm discussing the case of May and Ann Rubenstein. It was an ordinary Saturday in Highland Park, New Jersey in 1965. On South 3rd Avenue, the Rubenstein home wouldn't have looked unusual to anyone passing by. A family lived there. A mother, a daughter, a husband, a son. But for a little while that afternoon, it was just 11-year-old May at home. Her father and older brother were at work. Her mother Anne was out grocery shopping. It was the kind of normal family rhythm that doesn't stand out at all. Until something happens that makes every small detail feel important later. And that's part of what makes this case so haunting.

2:55Because nothing about the setup sounds remarkable. A mom running errands, a child at home, a quiet neighborhood in a small New Jersey borough, a winter Saturday, the day before Valentine's Day. It should have been forgettable. Instead, something happened inside that house that would leave a family shattered, and a mystery that still hasn't been resolved over 60 years later. This is the case of May and Ann Rubenstein. It's Saturday, February 13, 1965, in Highland Park, New Jersey, and 11-year-old Mae Rubenstein is home alone. Kind of. She and her family live in a two-story home that's been converted into a multifamily residence.

3:42So her family lives on the ground floor, and another family lives on the second floor with their own separate entrance. The tenants upstairs are home, but May's alone in her family's apartment. Her father, 42-year-old Robert, and her older brother, 16-year-old Elihu, left for work at about 8 a.m. They work together at the family business, Star Lumber Co., about seven miles away in Piscataway, New Jersey. May's mother, Anne, is 41, and that morning she left to do some grocery shopping. So by about mid-morning, it's just May at home while her mom's grabbing food for the family. May's in the sixth grade at Lafayette School, and is looking forward to attending a birthday party that night.

4:23So naturally, she takes advantage of being home alone to hog the phone and talk to a friend. Maybe they discuss school or going to the party later. Unfortunately, the reporting around this isn't very detailed. We just know that at about 12.30 p.m., May's on the phone with a friend when she tells them, quote, I have to go now. I think my mother's coming in. End quote. Then the call ends. Now, Anne's nephew, 9-year-old Maurice Feller, lives nearby. Reporting does vary a bit, but most sources say he lived about a block away. At about 2.30 p.m., he stops by for a drink of water. This was pretty normal for him.

5:04But what happened next was anything but. Maurice let himself into the house as he usually did. The door was unlocked. And as he opens it, right there in the foyer of the home was his Aunt Anne lying in a pool of blood. It's obviously just a very horrific scene. And Maurice is only nine, so he immediately runs out of the house and upstairs to ask for help. According to reporting by the Central New Jersey Home News, he tells one of the upstairs neighbors, 20-year-old Diane O 'Connor, quote, Something has happened to my aunt. She's bleeding. I think she fell down, end quote. When Diane goes downstairs to see what's going on, she too sees Anne in the foyer, but she also sees something Maurice didn't.

5:5511-year-old May was just 15 feet away, lying face down in another pool of blood in the kitchen. Diane immediately calls the Highland Park Police, and not long after, the Middlesex County Medical Examiner pronounces both Ann and May deceased at the scene. According to reporting by the Star-Ledger, Robert and his son were called home from work. As Robert walked into their home, he was told what happened to his wife and daughter and collapsed from shock. He and his son were taken to a friend's house, and in a move that's been described as an act of catastrophic, misguided compassion, officers, friends, and family clean up the scene.

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9:29When Middlesex County Chief Examiner Dr. William C. Willans arrived at the Rubenstein crime scene on February 13, 1965, the violence was so extreme that he was quoted as saying that the killer must have been a sadist. So let's break down the scene. I'm looking at a floor plan of their apartment published by the Central New Jersey Home News. It's up on the Voices for Justice website and social media pages if you want to take a look for yourself. As you walk into the house, you enter the foyer. To the left, there are two bedrooms, and directly in front of you is the bathroom. Anne was found between the back bedroom and the bathroom.

10:09She was still wearing her heavy winter coat, and was surrounded by the groceries she'd just bought, now scattered on the floor. There were also visible scuff marks on the floor near Anne's body, leading investigators to believe that she likely fought back against her killer. Now looking at this diagram, it makes sense to me why Maurice didn't immediately see May's body. To the right of the foyer is a third bedroom in the kitchen, and this is not an open floor plan. While the diagram doesn't explicitly show us which rooms have doors, it's clear that the opening to the kitchen from the foyer is small, about the size of a door.

10:48May was found in the corner of the kitchen, immediately to the left as you walk in. So depending on where Maurice was in the foyer, it's possible he couldn't have seen her from the right angle. And if there was a door there, there's just no way he would have seen her. The kitchen acts as the passage to the living room and to the home's second outside entrance through the porch, which leads to 3rd Avenue. We obviously have no idea which way the killer went, but there are two ways in and out of the home. Now let's break down the autopsies You guys know me, I'm gonna try my best to minimize the gore of it all But there's really no way to tell you about how each of them died Without mentioning the brutal way in which they were killed Anne was stabbed 30-35 times in the stomach, chest, heart, and lung May was stabbed 15-20 times Her jugular vein was slashed and she had wounds to her head, throat, and chest.

11:52Neither were sexually assaulted. The cause of death for both was listed as hemorrhaging due to their wounds. Now, investigators searched the house, nearby bushes, and trash cans, but unfortunately, the murder weapon was never found at the scene. But the ME concluded that the likely weapon was a long blade kitchen knife, as well as possibly a fork. Despite never finding the murder weapon and not even being sure exactly what was used, they did take a variety of utensils from the kitchen, including a knife and a fork, for testing. Almost immediately, investigators were left with one of the biggest questions in this case.

12:36Why would someone do something like this? There were no signs of forced entry, and it doesn't appear that anything was taken from the home. In fact, over$100 in cash was left in plain sight on a dresser in one of the bedrooms. Adjusted for inflation, that's about$1 ,000 today. So while a robbery gone wrong was considered as a likely motive for some time, it was eventually ruled out. Here's what investigators theorize happened. May was on the phone with her friend when she heard the killer coming into her home, not her mom. We don't know if the door was locked when Anne left the house, so another big question is whether or not this person had a key or if the door was unlocked.

13:22The phone was found hung on the receiver, so between this and speaking with May's friend, it appears that she did complete her call. Someone comes in the front door, May thinks it's her mother, but instead it's the killer. After May was killed, the perpetrator stayed in the home for some reason. What time Anne came home is unclear. Investigators have never given us a definitive timeline. Most reporting says sometime between 12.30 when May hung up the phone, and about 2.30 when Maurice found them. Now you're probably thinking what I was at this point, but what about the upstairs neighbors? Well, they told police that they didn't hear or see anything suspicious.

14:06We do have two possible witnesses, though. 15-year-old Beth Maroney lived across the street. At about 3 p.m., she and a friend were walking back to her home following an afternoon of shopping in New Brunswick. As they're about to turn into the walkway to her house, they see a man rush past them. Beth described him as white, tall, about 50 years old, with ice blue eyes. He was wearing a long coat and a fedora pulled low over his eyes. In an article Beth wrote for Tapinto.net, she explains that she got a chill when the man walked past them, and when she asked her friend if she noticed him as well, she pulled up her sleeve to show the goosebumps she'd gotten from him.

14:50Beth would later describe the vibe she got from this man as evil. Within the hour, she found out that May and Anne had both been killed. Realizing that they may have seen the man who did this, Beth and her friend go to the police to provide a description. Police are also able to speak with other neighbors who they say provided an accurate description of a suspicious man seen loitering in the area between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. Those descriptions have not been provided to the public, though. So, as far as witnesses at the scene that day, we don't have many. By 6 p.m., Ann and May are removed from the home by the Jackie Funeral Home as neighbors and friends gathered around.

15:34Like I told you earlier, the police, along with friends and family, cleaned up the scene that night. It really was a kind gesture that not all families are given with the intention of sparing Robert from having to do it himself, but it did destroy any potential DNA evidence. A joint funeral was held for Anne and May the following day, Valentine's Day. Hundreds of people attended the 20-minute service. The funeral procession consisted of two hearses, the family car, and about 35 additional cars traveling to Mount Lebanon Cemetery. This family was well known in their community, and was described as a good, wholesome family.

16:18They were very loved. Once the crime scene was cleaned up and the funeral was over, the investigation really began that Monday, February 15th. The first thing Highland Park Police Chief Alfred T. Smalley did was add an additional 15 police reserves to the 22-member force to patrol the neighborhood on foot. Those reserve officers worked up to 20 hours a day without pay. They went door-to-door conducting searches, and specifically looking for, quote, disturbed men or individuals with fresh scratches on their faces. Officers also patrolled the area in their squad cars to increase police presence and to quell the fears of local residents Some patrolled the area in their private vehicles as well to watch more covertly A special tip line was also established at the police headquarters By the end of the week, police and community members pieced together a reward of$8 ,000 Adjusted for inflation, that's about$83 ,000 today So it was sizable larger than most rewards we see even today.

17:28On Friday the 19th, two detectives flew to Chicago to investigate what county prosecutor Edward J. Dolan described as a good lead. In his interview with Arnold Markowitz for the Star-Ledger, he wouldn't give many details beyond that, though. Despite these efforts, however, the detectives returned empty-handed the following day after verifying the potential suspect's alibi and clearing them completely in this case. The three-day weekend for George Washington's birthday was canceled for detectives working at the prosecutor's office. They were instead ordered to work around the clock on the Rubenstein case.

18:05By April, detectives had questioned more than 500 people, or about 4 % of the population of Highland Park at the time. They also scoured through photos and records of known criminals who had committed similar crimes. About six weeks in, they didn't have much. They didn't know who did this or why. They consulted with leading psychiatrists to get a better understanding of the type of person they should be looking for. They were told that whoever did this was likely a psychopath. But that's really all they had. 15-year-old Beth Maroney said that police really just wrote her and her friend's statements off.

18:43She says she doesn't think that they ever took them seriously. A sketch of the man she saw was never created. The timeline was never changed to reflect their statements, and this potential lead really just sat. Meanwhile, Beth was riddled with fear. She had nightmares of testifying against the man that were so intense, she would wake up screaming at times. And she wasn't alone in being afraid. There are about half a dozen articles outlining the fear of local residents following the murders. They outlined stories of women carrying hat pins and police whistles for protection. of wives asking their husbands to call before leaving work to ensure that they knew who was coming through the front door.

19:25An anonymous resident told the Central New Jersey Home News, quote, My wife used to open the door without looking to see if it was me. She quit doing that. Now she locks the storm door, the front door, and she peeks out from behind the curtain before she goes near the door. End quote. A manager at a local animal shelter said that while they normally adopt out their small dogs first, they'd adopted over 30 large dogs to local residents and had a waiting list for more. Local hardware stores were running out of chain locks and other secondary door locks. This city of 12 ,000 people was mostly terrified, and the Highland Park police didn't have any answers for them.

20:08In July, there was a lot of noise around a 17-year-old boy police question, though. He hasn't been named in the media, but police say that he knew May and Ann and had been in their home previously. He's described as a probation violator and an awful liar. He was arrested the previous October after using a rifle to fire across the Raritan River at a hotel and a county administration building. By July, he was out on probation, and officers wanted to ask him about this case. There was just one little problem. His family had moved shortly after he was released and never provided a forwarding address to the court, so they didn't know where he was at.

20:51That is, until the end of July, when investigator Charles Amick was driving north on Route 1 and recognized the driver of a vehicle headed in the opposite direction. It was the 17-year-old boy's mother. So he calls it in to the Highland Park Police, and eventually Lieutenant William Cuddy finds and follows the vehicle to a nearby drive-in theater. But when the boy sees the officer, he jumped out of the car and ran into the nearby woods. He completely escapes Lieutenant Cuddy that night. But the following morning, police in Newark found him near his home. So he was finally questioned, but ultimately never considered a prime suspect in this case.

21:36And outside of a few articles outlining what I just told you, it doesn't seem that anything ever came of this. Or like I always say, if it did, investigators didn't tell the media about it. So the case went quiet again until the end of October, when a man in Albany, New York, walked up to two police officers and said he'd killed a mother and daughter in Highland Park. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. In March, we celebrate International Women's Day. It's a moment to celebrate women's strengths and progress, while also recognizing how much we carry every day. Between caring for others and managing unseen responsibilities, women's emotional well-being can easily be overlooked.

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23:11With Emmostache, a taco on one hand and ordering a ride in the other means you're stacking cash back. With Emmostache, get up to 5 % cash back when you pick a bundle of your favorite brands. Earn more cash when you do more with Stash. Venmo Stash Terms and Exclusions apply. Max$100 cashback per month. See terms at Venmo.me slash Stash Terms. Eight months after the murders, there were few viable leads in the case. Investigators still had no idea who killed Ann and May or why. Hundreds of people were questioned, but none were arrested for the crime. Then, at the end of October, about 200 miles away in Albany, New York, a 56-year-old man named John Myers walked up to two police officers and surrendered, saying he killed a mother and daughter in Highland Park.

23:55According to reporting by the Central New Jersey Home News, despite the man claiming to live in North Brunswick, New Jersey, he was promptly arrested on a vagrancy charge and sentenced to 30 days in jail. So police had plenty of time to talk with him. It appears that he did live about five miles away from Highland Park, but that seems to be the best possible connection they could find to the Rubenstein murders. Because when investigators asked Myers to describe how he killed May and Anne, he said he'd strangled them. Which we know isn't how they died. They were stabbed, and the autopsy doesn't make any mention of possible strangulation.

24:34He also described their home as being white and blue, despite it being yellow. Now, he did say that when he saw Anne, she was carrying a bag of groceries. But since that detail was widely reported on, investigators don't consider this to be proof of his claim. They also learned that Myers had a pretty lengthy history of struggling with alcoholism, and that he'd been employed as a mechanic in a bowling alley in the Albany area. So where he was actually residing became increasingly unclear. During the interview, Myers apparently became violently ill, and was taken to the hospital where medical professionals believed he was suffering from a heart attack.

25:14His condition did improve, and he was returned to the jail. But in the end, investigators had little faith that he was telling the truth about killing May and Dan. And while his claims were looked into, he was never arrested, and ultimately not considered to be a prime suspect. I mean, they had nothing in this case. But they were trying. Around this same time, investigators met with Bergen County Prosecutor Guy W. Khaleesi to discuss a possible connection between the Rubenstein murders and the recent killing of 18-year-old Alice Eberhardt about 40 miles away in Fairlawn, New Jersey. Alice was a student nurse at Hackensack Hospital, and on September 24, 1965, she stopped by home after work to get ready to attend her aunt's funeral when she was brutally attacked.

26:05She was stabbed 60 times and suffered a double skull fracture from a blunt instrument. She was not sexually assaulted and nothing was missing from the home. It was actually her dad who found her in the living room of their home when he came to pick her up for the funeral. So we have two very tragic cases with no apparent motive. Both crimes happened in the afternoon. There was no sign of forced entry at either scene, with both killers essentially disappearing into the residential neighborhood shortly after. The cases seem so similar, but it appears that whatever came from this meeting didn't lead either agency to officially link the cases to the same person.