Remembering Holly Branagan: A Neighbor's Fond Reflections

The black and white photograph captures the essence of a seemingly ordinary porch, accessed by a sliding glass door from the back of a house. However, your gaze quickly descends to the bench next to the door where a dog bowl rests. The bowl belonged to Clancy, the beloved pet of Moria 'Holly' Branagan. To the left of the bowl in the photo, something strange and unnatural peeks out from the other side of the glass door leading into the kitchen.

"It was the first funeral I ever attended," recalls Kathy Elek, now Kathy Chouteau. "Back then, Holly was my babysitter. I was 10 years old, almost 11, when it happened. Holly was such a beautiful and caring person. It really shocked me. I started writing about it in my journal, and that's what led me to become the writer I am today," she continued.

Holly Branagan resided on Pine Top Trail in Bethlehem, PA and was murdered on Wednesday, March 28th, 1979. Forty-four years later, her murder remains unsolved, though the case remains actively open in the hands of the Bethlehem Police Department's Criminal Investigation Division. Captain Nicholas Lechman from the Professional Standards Division informed CCM that the District Attorney is reopening the investigation into Holly's case. However, we are still awaiting further information that Captain Lechman can share with us. Sergeant Thomas Galloway, who previously oversaw the case, is the next contact we are trying to reach in order to confirm the specifics of Holly's case.

Our PROCESS!

During our research into Holly's case and our conversation with Kathy regarding her memories of Holly and the incident, several names were repeatedly mentioned. Sean, Holly's older brother, had several friends whom Holly associated with, including one she briefly dated. On the night of Holly's murder, Sean was at the house of his friend Mark Viola, while Holly had plans to have dinner with her friend Sally Hancox. However, prior to their meeting, someone interrupted Holly's telephone conversation with Cynthia Bove, another friend of hers. Aside from the murderer, Holly and her dog Clancy were alone in the house that evening, making Sally's and Cynthia's accounts the only ones the police had to base their investigation on.

Our next step will be reaching out to Sally, Mark, and Cynthia to gather their recollections of the incident and Sean's death six months later.

We would like to know what specific aspects of Holly's life you would like us to ask them about. 

Your input can assist us in uncovering further details about Holly's story.