CHICOPEE – The community room at the Chicopee Public Library was standing room only for a presentation about an unsolved crime that obviously still fascinates and concerns area residents.

Connecticut-based writer E. J. Fleming – an East Longmeadow native – came to the library to discuss his newest book, “Death of an Altar Boy: The Unsolved Murder of Danny Croteau and the Culture of Abuse of the Catholic Church.”

Croteau, a resident of Springfield, was found dead in the Chicopee River on April 15, 1972. He was 14 years old and to this day his murderer has never been found.

Father Richard Lavigne, who had been Croteau’s priest, emerged as a significant suspect in the murder investigation. He pled guilty in 1992 of two counts of child sexual abuse. DNA testing done in 1994 did not provide any link between the victim and Lavigne. Removed as a priest in 2003 by the Vatican, Lavigne is a registered level three sex offender who lives in Chicopee.

Fleming said his book that researches the Croteau case has not received any reaction from either Lavigne or the Springfield Diocese.

The author of nine other books, Fleming said his interest in writing was, until recently, centering on classic Hollywood and stories involving Golden Age stars. Prior to finishing his book on Croteau, Fleming wrote a book about Phoebe Prince, the South Hadley teen who committed suicide called “Tread Softly: Bullying and the Death of Phoebe Prince.”

He said all of his books have a common theme of “debunking a myth and getting to the real story.” This book has received largely good reviews on the author’s Amazon page.

Fleming said the Croteau book was first started in 2005 when he saw a story in the Boston Globe about the investigation. He then contacted Bill Zajak, a reporter for The Republican who had written extensively about the case.

He began work on the book in 2005 and worked on it about a year and half before stopping his efforts. His mother, who he described as “terminally Catholic,” didn’t want him to write the book. His parents were both long-time Springfield residents who “knew everyone.”

His mother passed away and he asked his father in 2011 if he should continue working on the book and his father told him, “I think you should write it.”

Fleming spent years researching it by interviewing people and going through court records. He spoke to 18 victims of abuse, to the detectives originally on the case and to some priests as well.

The subject matter deeply affected him, he recalled. He said he could only write about an hour at a time without taking a break because the story was “bad stuff.”

He said that he was a “very dedicated Catholic” who started his day for about 20 years by going to morning Mass. While he still prays and carries a rosary, Fleming said, “You couldn’t get me into a Mass.”

The growing revelations about pedophilia in the church bothered him as well as the attitude of many Catholics.

“It really bothered me that the faithful, the flock blew it off for so long,” he said.

Fleming added, “I was really shocked to realize just how ugly the Vatican is and has been for the past 30 to 40 years.”

During the question and answer period, many people asked about the Croteau case and it became very clear the murder still troubles many people.

One woman did challenge Fleming about his assertion in the book that there was a ring of pedophile priests who were associated with one local parish. She noted Fleming did not name the parish in the book. He declined to name it at his presentation.

Noting that new cases of abuse are being reported, Fleming said, “It’s crazy it’s still going on.”