As the neighborhood is still reeling from Friday’s tragic shooting on 88th Street, more of the story behind the event is being revealed.
As confirmed by NYPD, two women were killed the morning of July 26 near a car parked outside of 519 East 88th Street, between York and East End avenues.
Per the police, 45-year-old Marisa Galloway was shot twice by 65-year-old Kathleen Leigh before Leigh turned the gun on herself. Galloway had placed her one-year-old daughter in a parked white Honda Civic and was putting a stroller in the trunk when Leigh approached and shot her in the head. When Galloway was on the ground, Leigh shot her again in the back. Leigh then shot herself in the head.
Advertisement
Officers responding to multiple 911 calls declared Leigh dead at the scene. Galloway was transported to Weill Cornell Medical Center where she was declared dead as well. Galloway’s one-year-old daughter was found unharmed in the car.
After the shooting, NYPD officials revealed that Kathleen Leigh was the grandmother of Marisa Galloway’s four-year-old daughter. Galloway lived nearby at 445 East 86th Street. Leigh was listed as living in Chicago, where she had worked as a Cook County Parole Officer until her retirement, but had been living in New York for several years.
Marisa Galloway had previously been married to Kathleen Leigh’s son, Kenny Leigh. The ex-spouses shared custody of their four-year-old daughter–Galloway having custody from Tuesday through Thursday and the father from Friday through Monday. Kathleen had been living with her son on East 79th Street while being treated for cancer, which some reports state was terminal.
The New York Post reports that after the shooting, in addition to two firearms, a note was found with Kathleen Leigh’s body. While the contents of the note have not been shared, it was reportedly marked “For Police.” A bitter custody dispute is apparently the motive behind the shooting.
The Post details that both Kathleen and her son had complained that Marisa Galloway was mistreating her young daughter, and there were five related domestic incidents registered between the parties from July through November 2021. None of the complaints led to an arrest. The two that went to the Administration for Children’s Services were deemed unfounded.
Advertisement
The picture of Marisa Galloway painted by friends and neighbors is quite different. The special education teacher and volunteer Fordham University track coach has been remembered by many as a dedicated mother, friend, and teacher. A GoFundMe campaign started by loved ones states that her “kindness, generosity, and love were unparalleled,” and that she had “devoted her whole life to her two beautiful daughters.” As of writing, the campaign had raised almost $80,000 out of a $100,000 goal.
Neighbors at 445 East 86th were visibly upset upon hearing the news as they returned home throughout the day on Friday. People who knew Marisa reached out to East Side Feed to share how “lovely” and “kind” she was, and to reiterate how much she cared for her two young daughters.
The poor 4-year-old, still caught in the middle of this.
I’m pretty sure that Kathleen Leigh’s son & the father of Marisa’s daughter is Zachariah Reed. It is public record and easy to validate. Also under the impression that Marisa & Zachariah were never married.