Megan McDonald murder: State Police boss honors investigators who cracked the case
The investigators whose efforts cracked the Megan McDonald murder case in Orange County and led to an arrest after 20 years have been honored by the New York State Police superintendent.
Lt. Brad Natalizio and Investigator Michael Corletta were among 18 members of the state police to receive commendation awards from Superintendent Steven G. James at a ceremony at the New York State Police Academy in Albany on Thursday.
The awards "recognize the recipients’ outstanding performance of duty and exceptional contribution to the New York State Police," according to a news release.
Teamwork cited
Megan McDonald was 20 years old on March 15, 2003, when her beaten body was discovered on a trail off Bowser Road in Wallkill. The cause of her death was ruled blunt-force trauma. For decades, teams of investigators pored over the details without an arrest.
Natalizio and Corletta, from Troop F in Middletown, worked the McDonald case for years. Natalizio became the lead investigator in 2017, was later joined by Corletta. When Natalizio was transferred to the troop's major crimes division, the case became Corletta's in 2019, but they worked it together.
It was their teamwork, the citation read, that helped bring the case across the finish line.
"They created a team-oriented environment including numerous State Police units and outside agencies, who all worked together with the same vision of solving the case," the commendation read. "During their time working the case, hundreds of interviews were conducted. Many of these interviews were with individuals who were interviewed for the first time in reference to the case. The investigators also coordinated several large-scale initiatives, consisting of simultaneous interviews in several different states."
BAD BLOOD: See all of our Megan McDonald NY cold case homicide coverage here
The citation lauded Natalizio and Corletta, who "displayed creativity, innovation, demonstrated leadership, and displayed a remarkable ability to manage a large-scale case."
Their efforts led to the arrest of Edward Holley, McDonald's ex-boyfriend, on April 20, 2023. Within days, Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler recused himself and his office from the case. Special Prosecutor Julia Cornachio put the case before an Orange County grand jury, which on Jan. 29, 2024, indicted Holly on one count of second-degree murder.
Holley, who has maintained his innocence, is due back in court on July 15 for pre-trial motions.
The McDonald family, through their spokesperson, Megan's sister, Karen, praised the investigators for never giving up on the chase for answers.
"This is a tremendous honor, and it’s incredibly gratifying to see them recognized," Whalen said. "They worked so hard and what they did to solve Megan’s case was truly miraculous and will have impacts on future cold cases. They didn’t exactly get the recognition they deserved at the time of the arrest, so the fact that they got this incredible honor is just wonderful."
Reach Peter D. Kramer at pkramer@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Megan McDonald murder: NYS Police honor investigators who cracked case
