It was a grim and bloody night at the Sea Cliff
Towers co-op on Staten Island. The New York
Times carried this terse account:
"A fight between two friends who were dating the same woman
ended in the death of one of them, the police said yesterday. On
Wednesday night, Michael Cafferata, 33, was
visiting Michael Kett, 41, in Fort Wadsworth. The
two argued, and Mr. Kett stabbed Mr. Cafferata with a steak knife,
the police said. Mr. Kett fled, but was later arrested and charged
with second-degree murder."
Years after that night of horror, Cafferata's estate sued
the Sea Cliff Towers co-op board and the estate of Michael
Kett's late mother, Barbara, who was the
owner of apartment 3P when the murder occurred
there. The lawsuit claimed that the building had a
defective entry system and that the co-op board
had failed to protect Cafferata from a crime that was
"foreseeable," based on Michael
Kett's prior criminal activities.
