Ed Savitz was a Philadelphia actuary and insurance executive arrested in March 1992 on charges that he had sexually abused teenage boys for more than two decades from his apartment near Rittenhouse Square. Known on the streets of South Philadelphia as “Uncle Ed,” “Uncle Eddie,” and “Fast Eddie,” he was infected with HIV at the time of his arrest, prompting an extraordinary public health warning from city officials who feared he had exposed hundreds of young males to AIDS. He died of AIDS-related illness in March 1993, about a week before his trial was to begin, and the case ended without a verdict.
Who Ed Savitz Was
Edward Isadore Savitz was born in Philadelphia on February 22, 1942, the son of Russian immigrants who ran an amusement arcade. He was class valedictorian at West Philadelphia High School, graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1963 on a full scholarship with a degree in economics, and was once voted “most likely to succeed” by his classmates.1The Morning Call. Alleged Child Molester’s Background: Great Expectations Fizzle and Go Awry He dropped out of law school at Penn after two years and later left Temple’s graduate music program without a degree. He eventually went to work as an actuary at the Savitz Organization, an employee-benefits firm run by his older brother Samuel, where he held the title of vice president.2The New York Times. Philadelphia Suspect: A Troubled Life He lived in a 23rd-floor condominium at the Wanamaker House near Rittenhouse Square.3The Washington Post. Arrest Sparks AIDS Scare in Philadelphia
Decades of Abuse in South Philadelphia
Police said their evidence of Savitz’s contact with teenage boys stretched back to 1979, when he was in his thirties. He paid boys for soiled socks, underwear, and feces, and solicited them for sexual acts.2The New York Times. Philadelphia Suspect: A Troubled Life1The Morning Call. Alleged Child Molester’s Background: Great Expectations Fizzle and Go Awry
His activities were an open secret in the Grays Ferry neighborhood. Reporting by the Baltimore Sun described a reputation that was multigenerational: men as old as 35 at the time of his 1992 arrest said they had visited him as children, and some youths reported starting as young as eight. Parents who had known about Savitz when they were students themselves warned their children away, but many boys continued to visit, drawn by the quick cash.4The Baltimore Sun. Generations Said to Visit ‘Fast Eddie’; Youths Say Businessman Was Source of Quick Cash Teenagers spoke openly about the transactions on street corners, and the Washington Post reported that graffiti on the wall of a local Chinese restaurant documented one encounter by name and date.5The Washington Post. Accused Deviate Was a Neighborhood Fixture
Two earlier brushes with the law failed to stop him. In 1978, Philadelphia police arrested Savitz on a charge of indecent assault, and he was ordered into a rehabilitation program rather than prosecuted further. In 1990, he was charged in connection with purchasing a minor’s underwear, but a municipal judge found him not guilty.1The Morning Call. Alleged Child Molester’s Background: Great Expectations Fizzle and Go Awry
The 1992 Arrest
Philadelphia’s sex-crime unit built the case against Savitz through a six-month investigation that included surveillance and videotape of teenage males entering and leaving his condominium.6Time. Investigations: Uncle Ed’s Ugly Secret3The Washington Post. Arrest Sparks AIDS Scare in Philadelphia On March 25, 1992, detectives broke down his door and found him with two 15-year-old boys. He was 50.
Prosecutors charged Savitz with involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, sexual abuse of children, indecent assault, corrupting the morals of a minor, and promoting prostitution. Authorities reported finding thousands of photographs of boys and more than 300 bags of soiled underwear in his home and a storage locker.7Philadelphia Magazine. Uncle Eddie Documentary: Ed Savitz8UPI. AIDS Carrier Rearrested, Bail Set at $20 Million9The Washington Post. Philadelphian Faces More Sex Charges
Savitz’s defense attorney, Barnaby Wittels, said his client “never had oral or anal sex with anyone under age 16,” while acknowledging that Savitz had invited between 50 and 100 boys to his apartment.10Deseret News. Philly Police Rearrest ‘Uncle Ed’ After 2 More Teens File Charges District Attorney Lynne Abraham said additional charges were possible but noted that an attempted murder charge for transmitting AIDS would be difficult to pursue because of the high burden of proof required to show intent.8UPI. AIDS Carrier Rearrested, Bail Set at $20 Million
The Philadelphia AIDS Scare
What made the case a citywide emergency was Savitz’s health. On March 27, 1992, the District Attorney and the city’s Health Commissioner issued a public health warning urging anyone who had had contact with Savitz to seek AIDS testing. Officials said he had been infected with HIV for roughly two years before developing the disease and estimated that during that period he may have had sexual contact with several hundred teenage boys.2The New York Times. Philadelphia Suspect: A Troubled Life
The warning set off panic. Hundreds of young people flooded AIDS information hotlines in the Philadelphia area, many of them frightened boys who reported unprotected sex with Savitz.3The Washington Post. Arrest Sparks AIDS Scare in Philadelphia Officials called Savitz an “AIDS time bomb,” and some of the callers said they had since had sexual contact with other partners, raising the specter of secondary transmission.11Time. AIDS Time Bomb
The disclosure itself was legally sensitive. Pennsylvania’s AIDS privacy laws at the time barred prosecutors from revealing a defendant’s HIV status without consent. Abraham said Savitz was “anxious to have his condition divulged” after his arrest, which cleared the way for the public warning.12Newsweek. Newsweek Staff Archive
Why There Was No Trial
Savitz’s health deteriorated as his case moved through the courts. On March 19, 1993, a judge ordered him released from the prison psychiatric facility on humanitarian grounds, and he was transferred to a hospice. He died there on March 27, 1993, one year to the day after the public health warning was issued and about a week before his trial was scheduled to begin.13Los Angeles Times. Edward Savitz Dies Before Trial The pending charges died with him, and the case closed without a conviction or an acquittal. The scale of the allegations, and the fact that neighborhood-wide awareness and two prior arrests had not stopped him, left the case as one of the most disturbing in the city’s recent history.