Witness's Death Prompts Police Investigation
A 29-year-old woman scheduled to testify in a kidnapping case today was possibly thrown from a Harlem building yesterday morning. Joy Blackman, who was a witness to a kidnapping and was also a witness against her accused rapist in a separate case, was found dead in an alleyway at 145 West 145th Street.
The building's roof alarm had been triggered between 1:15 a.m. and 2:15 a.m., Newsday reports no one seemed to check the roof. Around 8:45 a.m., a super found Blackman's body. It is believed Blackman, described as a drug addict, had broken into one of the building's apartments, later locked herself out and tried to re-enter the apartment by climbing down from the roof. According to the NY Times, police think she was "holding on to some wires, but instead fell. Loose wires were found dangling near the roof."
However, police are investigating Blackman's death as a homicide - she apparently told friends she was worried for her safety. The ME's office is conducting an autopsy. A sourced told Newsday today's case was a "nasty domestic violence kidnapping in which [Blackman] was a Good Samaritan."
