Andrew and zachary bagby book

On november 6, 2001, andrew bagby s body was found, shot five. Andrew bagby reminded me in so many ways of my friend sean, it was hard to watch at first. California filmmaker remasters documentary on the lives. In november 2001, the body of a young doctor named andrew bagby was discovered in keystone state park outside latrobe, pennsylvania, five bullet wounds in his. It is gut wrenching to read the details and to hear how much both andrew and david were loved by both david and his wife. With kurt kuenne, andrew bagby, david bagby, kathleen bagby. At the time, turner had been released on bail and awarded custody of the infant, even though she was in the process of being. Andrew s parents, david and kate bagby, quit their jobs and moved to newfoundland, canada, to oversee the criminal proceedings against turner and to try to get custody of andrew s child. Its best to watch kuennes documentary without too much background, but the basic setup is this.

Although i loved the film, i felt like not enough time was spent discussing the harrowing case of andrew s murder. Made in 2008, it begins as a memoir for a baby son to be shown the outstanding character of his deceased father, dr. But, when parents fail, the government is supposed to make sure that that child will be protected. He was an instant success and quickly become a favorite among his patients.

A letter to a son about his father, sees him return to nonfiction with one of the most searingly personal films in recent memory. David bagby penned a book about the case titled dance with the devil. Instead, it veers more towards the role zachary s mother played in all of this, and andrew s parents, and the court systems, and the fight for the last living vestige of andrew on earth. This is a heartbreaking book written about andrew bagby and also about his son zachary by andrews dad david bagby.

As the criminal trial dragged on, zachary was finally born on july 18, 2002. What begins as a poignant tribute to filmmaker kurt kuennes dead best friend snowballs into a gutwrenching truecrime story in dear zachary. Directed by kurt kuenne, the film begins as a portrait of kuennes murdered best friend andrew bagby so that bagby s newborn son, zachary, can watch it when hes older. A filmmaker decides to memorialize a murdered friend when his friends exgirlfriend announces she is expecting his son. With the devil, david bagbys book which im about half way into. Bagbys remember their grandson in touching memoriam. Andrew bagby, a lifelong friend of kuennes who was killed in 2001, and follows the bagby familys quest for justice after the prime suspect bagby s exgirlfriend, dr. Andrew bagby was murdered in a parking lot in western pennsylvania. Nearly 2 decades after the murder of a physician and his son a. Andrew bagby s friend mack janke killed in snow plow accident monday february 15, 2012 at 11. The film is about kuennes close friend andrew bagby, who was murdered after bagby ended a relationship with a woman named shirley jane turner. Although i loved the film, i felt like not enough time was spent discussing the harrowing. Johns, canada, where she announced that she was pregnant with andrew s child.

Shirley turner, filmmaker kurt kuenne was shocked to learn that turner was pregnant with bagby s unborn child. Dr andrew david bagby 19732001 find a grave memorial. Immortalized in the spellbinding documentary dear zachary, this angry, raw, and. Its a howl of grief, a devastating memoir of the effects of their if youve seen dear zachary, youll already know of the harrowing case that is contained within this book. A letter to a son about his father, director kurt kuenne pays tribute to his murdered friend, dr. Andrew bagby, and later with the murder of andrew s son, monthold zachary. No one can tell the story as clearly and with as much emotion as his father does in this book.

Johns, newfoundland and labrador, canada who was killed by his mother, shirley jane turner, in a murdersuicide on 18 august 2003. The murder of andrew bagby was an event of terrible shock and grief for the loved ones he left behind, especially his mother and father. While andrew was a resident intern of a medical practice in pennsylvania, he was the victim of a murder most foul at the hand of dr. Dear zachary is a haunting tribute to a fallen friend, andrew bagby, which highlights failures within canadas legal system.

This documentary tells the tale of andrew bagby, a man murdered by an exgirlfriend, shirley turner, who was revealed to be pregnant with andrew s child. It pains me to award only two stars to a book written by david bagby, but i want to. In the early years, that included david writing a book, dance with the devil. Shirley turner, promptly fled the united states for st. Turner drugged the infant and jumped into the atlantic ocean. David and kate bagby know all about the unlikely power of love funneled through rage.

Andrew s murderer had fled from america to canada to evade the law. A letter to a son about his father is a 2008 american documentary film written, produced, edited and directed by kurt kuenne. Andrew bagby, was slain by jealous exgirlfriend dr. Dear zachary is the tragic story of andrew bagby who was killed by his psychotic exgirlfriend. The woman who killed bagby was pregnant with bagby s son, zachary, at the time of his murder, and kuenne realized his film would likely be the only way that little zachary could one. Contributed by richard kuenne dear zachary tells the story of kuennes road trip to newfoundland to meet the baby in the summer of 2003. After four years of being out of print, david bagby s book dance with the devil andrew bagby s fathers powerful memoir of the events depicted in dear zachary is finally available in paperback and e book. Andrew bagbys friend mack janke killed in snow plow.

Zachary andrew turner 18 july 2002 18 august 2003 was a boy from st. Perhaps the reason it is so is because its director, kurt kuenne, was at the heart of the documentary the subject of the documentary, the late dr. Theres a physical resemblance, but the personality, my god hes the guy everyone loves. Filmmaker kurt kuenne, andrew s childhood friend, originally began this. Filmmaker kurt kuennes poignant tribute to his murdered childhood friend, andrew bagby, tells the story of a child custody battle between the babys grieving grandparents and shirley turner, bagby s pregnant exgirlfriend and suspected killer. The murder of andrew bagby was an event of terrible shock and grief for. As turner fought her extradition on murder charges, the bagbys fought for custody of their grandchild. Hoping to create a film that would serve as both a memorial to bagby and an introduction to the. While this is a sad enough story that grieved friends, colleagues, acquaintances, and andrew s family, the horror continued.

A letter to a son about his father was made by andrew s. Andrew bagby, father of zachary turner, who also was murdered by shirley j. This is not a criticism of kurt kuennes film, which set out to detail the short but. On a shelf in the california home of david and kate bagby, sitting inconspicuously. Immortalized in the spellbinding documentary dear zachary, this angry, raw, and brutally honest memoir of murder and loss chronicles a systems failure to prevent the death of a child. After four years of being out of print, david bagbys book dance with the devil andrew bagbys fathers powerful memoir of the events depicted in dear. A letter to a son about his father was made by andrew s longtime friend kurt kuenne in 2008, with the bagbys participation. In november 2001, the body of a young doctor named andrew bagby was. Filmmaker kurt kuennes poignant tribute to his murdered childhood friend, andrew bagby, tells the story of a child custody battle between bagby s grieving parents and shirley turner, bagby s pregnant exgirlfriend and suspected killer. This book give you a rollercoaster of emotions, you feel anger at shirley for killing andrew, you feel sadness and grief for andrew and his family, you feel happiness when the baby zachary is with the bagbys and is happy as a little baby boy should be. After newfoundland woman killed their son and grandson, california. The bagbys, who recently marked their 50th wedding anniversary, say it sustained them for nearly a decade as they struggled to come to terms first with the 2001 slaying of their 28yearold son, dr.

Andrew bagby, left, and kurt kuenne pose for a photo at bagby s graduation from the university of california, irvine in june 1995. True crime enthusiasts like me will know the name andrew bagby from a 2008 documentary called dear zachary. Both andrew and zachary live on, as a memory that friends and family will treasure and foster for a lifetime. Louis sequence, who brought laughs and tears to audiences of the film everywhere pictured. A letter to a son about his father, had been intended as a tribute to andrew bagby that zachary could appreciate when he got older. Andrew bagby project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. Johns, newfoundland where she announced that she was pregnant with andrew s child. And even though kurts documentary is a heartbreaking work of art, it still brought so much joy.

In 2001, bagby quit his surgical residency and transferred to a family practice in latrobe, pennsylvania, and with the move, it seems he finally found his calling. Shirley turner, an exlover thirteen years his senior. The obituary was featured in mercury news on september 25, 2011. And what an absolute crime and miscarriage of cosmic and human justice andrew and zachary didnt get to know each other. Andrew bagby, featured in dear zachary during the st. David and kate bagby know all about the unlikely power of love funneled. This is a heartbreaking book written about andrew bagby and also about his son zachary by andrew s dad david bagby. David bagby wouldnt mind a trip back to newfoundland, but said his wife has more emotions about the. Hes everyones best friend, best man, mentor, and brother. Kuennes oldest friend from childhood, andrew bagby, a doctor doing his residency in latrobe, pa. For the bagbys, zachary s birth was the start of more than a year of renewed joy and incomprehensible pain. Dance with the devil is the memoir of david bagby, father to andrew and grandfather to zachary, whose lives were both cruelly stolen by dr shirley turner. Bagby know how inspiring, wonderful, strong, and courageous, they truly are.