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| Alice Faye Ettinger pictured in 2013 after weight reduction surgery. |
Alice Faye Ettinger is a daughter of Howard Melvin Ettinger and Doris Marie Wilson.
Alice was born October 17th, 1950 in Batavia, Genesee, New York. She married 3 times. Her first marriage was to Gerald Wilkes. Together they had one daughter, Marjorie Anne Wilkes. Even though the marriage did not last, their love did cast a shadow over the following decade.The second marriage of Alice Faye Ettinger was to Gerald A. Chapell. That marriage occurred in April 1970, around the time of the birth of her second child. During the time of her second marriage, Wilkes agreed that Marjorie could be adopted by Chapell. The adoption turned out to be a very good thing for Alice, when the issue of child support was addressed during her second divorce.The third marriage was in 1981 to Jeffrey Whipple. The Whipple marriage also ended in 1981. Alice legally changed her last name to Chapell after a legal settlement was reached ending the marriage to Whipple.
The children of Alice Faye Ettinger are:
- Marjorie Anne Wilkes b. December 22nd, 1967
- Todd Jeremy Chapell b. April 29th, 1970
For at time Gerald Wilkes was incarcerated at the Attica Correctional Facility. The Attica Correctional Facility is a maximum security/supermax New York State prison located in the town of Attica, New York, operated by the New York State Department of Correctional Services. It was constructed in the 1930s on land once owned by the Spring family and held many of the most dangerous criminals of the time. A tear gas system is installed in the mess hall and industry areas and has been used to quell conflicts in these areas. The prison now holds many inmates who are serving various types of sentences (short-term to life), and who are usually sent to the facility because of disciplinary problems in other facilities.
Attica was the site of a prison riot in 1971 which resulted in 39 deaths, of which 29 were convicts and ten were guards held hostage. One guard died by the hands of the rioting convicts in the early stages of the riot. The rest died by gunfire from state troopers and other retired guards. One of the biggest reasons for the riot was the fact of overcrowding, but to this day Attica Correctional Facility is still over maximum capacity by double bunking a small portion of their population in the small cells which are designed to house only one inmate.
While Gerald Wilkes was serving time in Attica, he looked forward to visits from his daughter, Marjorie. The visit's reminded him of a happier time with Alice. Today the former husband and love of Alice Chapell, is incarcerated at the Great Meadow Correctional Facility, located in Comstock, New York. His next parole hearing date is in August of 2014.
Below is a court document from the time showing a motion that was filed by Wilkes requesting a change of venue due to the heavy press coverage of the time:
PEOPLE v. WILKES
71 A.D.2d 811 (1979)
The People of the State of New York, Plaintiff,
v.
Gerald Wilkes, Defendant
Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Fourth Department.
July 6, 1979
Memorandum:
We conclude that defendant has not on this application met his burden of demonstrating that there is "reasonable cause to believe that a fair and impartial trial cannot be had" in Genesee County (CPL 230.20, subd 2). If it develops during the voir dire that a fair and impartial jury cannot be drawn, an appropriate application may then be made. The relief requested in the application before us now is premature. (See People v Di Piazza, 24 N.Y.2d 342; People v Hatch, 46 A.D.2d 721; People v Sekou, 45 A.D.2d 982, app dsmd 35 N.Y.2d 844.)