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THE WIFE of accused Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann may miss out on a $1 million check if lawmakers get their way.
Asa Ellerup is estranged from her husband who has been charged with murdering at least three women in late 2010 on Long Island.
Heuermann has pleaded not guilty to all counts.
The father-of-two is also a prime suspect in the murder of a fourth woman and is currently under investigation in connection with at least six additional unsolved killings in the area.
As public interest in the Gilgo Beach killings increases, documentary makers are looking to feed the huge appetite for true crime content.
Ellerup agreed to take part in an access-all-areas Peacock docu-series about her husband’s trial, in an alleged $1 million deal.
Last month the 59-year-old, arrived at her husband’s trial at the Suffolk County Superior Court in Long Island, New York with a documentary crew from Peacock.
News of her work with the company sparked outrage among the families of Heuermann’s alleged victims and with lawmakers.
“The amount of money that’s being thrown here while victims’ families get nothing is just horrible,” Senator Kevin Thomas, of Garden City, Albany, told CBS News New York.
“They’re just exploiting their pain for profit,” said Sen. Kevin Thomas, of Garden City.
Thomas’s bill is one of two aiming to amend the Son of Sam law in New York to prevent family members of accused criminals from profiting off their alleged crimes.
In New York the Son of Sam law was passed in 1978 preventing criminals from making money off their crimes by selling stories to the media.
Variations of the legislation have been passed in over 40 states and in the Federal Government.
As Thomas’s bill seeks to amend the loophole in the legislation by blocking relatives, the same bill is in the Assembly.
“Why should the family or the former spouse profit from this crime either? It’s an insult, I think, to the victim,” said Sen. Fred Thiele Jr., of Sag Harbor told the news outlet.
The family of two women who were found dead near Gilgo Beach and maybe victims of the same serial killer have condemned the idea that the suspect’s family could profit from the alleged crimes.
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Shannan Gilbert and Jessica Taylor’s bodies were discovered in the early 2000’s.
Taylor’s body was discovered by a dog walker on July 26, 2003, on a secluded road in Manorville, New York.
Her death was investigated alongside the Gilgo Beach murders in 2011, but Heuermann has not been charged with her murder.
Taylor’s cousin, Jasmine Robinson, slammed the news surrounding Heuermann’s wife’s alleged pay from Peacock.
Robinson posted on X, formerly Twitter, and said: “I haven’t stopped shaking all morning.
“I’m so f**king disgusted to see that RH’s family will become rich off of the suffering of victims and their families.”
Attorney John Ray who is representing the families of the victims whose deaths Heuermann has been charged with has backed the move to amend legislation.
“[Ellerup] is a ghoul and she’s feeding on the dead by using their memory and the circumstances that her husband caused and she may have a part in,” he told CBS News.
A cheek-swab DNA sample has left lawyers asking questions about her innocence after a match was found on and near some of the victims.
Via her attorney Robert Macadonio, Ellerup has denied having any part in the crimes that her husband is charged with.
Macadonio responded to Ray’s claims saying: “It’s a sad day in America when people are willing to trample on the constitution to get press coverage.
“The next thing they will attempt to control media coverage.”
Dating back to the 1970s when the Son of Sam law was introduced, lawmakers noted issues with First Amendment rights.
Hofstra law professor told the news outlet: “To the extent that the law is going to apply to a family member, who may not have done anything wrong, you’ve probably got a significant First Amendment problem there.”
If the bill is passed, it would be effective immediately and could impact Ellerup’s alleged payment.
A Peacock spokesperson told the news outlet that Ellerup “was not paid for her participation, but was paid a licensing fee for use of her archive materials,” none of which can be given to Heuermann or his defense team.
