appeared to be the original items and had not been repaired. The Cromartys also revealed that the "Red Room" was a small closet in the basement and would have been known to the previous owners of the house (the Lutzes) because it was not concealed in any way. The claim made in Chapter 11 of the book that the house was built on a site where the local Shinnecock Indians had once abandoned the mentally ill and the dying was rejected by local Native American leaders. The claim of cloven hoof prints in the snow on January 1, 1976, was rejected by researchers Rick Moran and Peter Jordan, whose investigation revealed that there had been no snowfall at that time. Neighbors reported nothing unusual during the time that the Lutzes were living there. Police officers are depicted visiting the house in the book and 1979 film, but records showed that the Lutzes did not call the police during the period that they were living on Ocean Avenue. There was no bar in Amityville called The Witches' Brew at the time. Critics including Stephen Kaplan have pointed out that changes were made to the book as it was reprinted in different editions. In the original hardcover edition, Father Pecoraro's car is "an old tan Ford", and he experiences an incident in which the hood flies up against the windshield while he is driving it. In later editions, the car is described as a Chevrolet Vega, before reverting to a Ford. In May 1977, George and Kathy Lutz filed a lawsuit against William Weber (the defense lawyer for Ronald DeFeo, Jr. at his trial), Paul Hoffman (a writer working on an account of the hauntings), Bernard Burton and Frederick Mars (both alleged clairvoyants who had examined the house), along with Good Housekeeping magazine, the New York Sunday News and the Hearst Corporation. The Lutzes alleged misappropriation of names for trade purposes, invasion of privacy and mental distress. The claims against the news corporations were dropped and the remainder of the lawsuit was heard by Brooklyn U.S. District Court judge Jack B. Weinstein. In September 1979, Judge Weinstein dismissed the Lutzes' claims. In the September 17, 1979, issue of People magazine, William Weber wrote: "I know this book is a hoax. We created this horror story over many bottles of wine." This refers to a meeting that Weber is said to have had