Jack the Ripper

[Tiller]

Since their was some interest in it from the "mystery" file, I figured we'd have a little talk about one of the most famous serial killers of all time. I know it's a little older then the golden age, but I still think it would be a good story.

Jacob Levy my personal choice.

So what are my main points against Levy?

1. He was a butcher. Meaning that not only did he have a general knowledge of anatomy, he also wouldn't cause to many heads to turn if he was seen with blood on his clothing. Also their is the testimony of Doctor Fredrick Gordon Brown who believed that the murder of Catherine Eddowes, had the knowledge of anatomy possessed by someone who would often cut up animals.

2. He knew the area.

3. His wife's claim that

he also feels that if he is not restrained he will do some violence to someone; he complains about hearing strange noises; cries for no reason; feels compelled to do acts that his conscience cannot stand; and has a conscience of a feeling of exaltation"

4. His wife also claimed that he

"he does not sleep at nights and wanders around aimlessly for hours".

Perhaps many individuals in the area wouldn't have found it odd to see Levy in the streets late at night walking around.

5. Levy suffered from syphilis. A disease that he likely got well sleeping with prostitutes. One thing that the Ripper did do as his killings went on, was remove the nose of his victims, in the same way that people who suffered from congenital syphilis do. Could Levy had had a syphilis infected child who was scarred in such a way? As the casebook link puts it...

Jacob may very well have blamed prostitutes for the cause of his illness together with the impending failure of his once successful family butchering business, and he may also have believed, or assumed, that his children were now syphilitic.

which brings me too..

6. Blame. Many aspects of Levy's life was destroyed because of his syphilis, from his family business, to his family period.

7.

If Jacob Levy was not related to Joseph Hyam Levy then they would undoubtedly have known one another, either by sight or by acquaintance.

Could Joseph have seen Jacob with Catharine Eddowes ? Knowing that Jacob was not only a married man, but perhaps outright related to Jacob, could this be the reason that Joseph acted the way he did when pressed? Not to mention that Joseph knew that Jacob's was Jewish. The antisemitic Victorian pulp press wrote many 'Leather Apron' stories, which was still fresh in many individuals mind. What would a Jewish man do, if he believed that indeed a fellow Jew was the Ripper? Would he try to stay silent in order to see less bloodshed towards his brother and sisters? Which may further explain...

"Mr Levy is absolutely obstinate and refuses to give the slightest information and he leaves one to infer that he knows something but that he is afraid to be called on the inquest. At the inquest Levy admitted observing a man and a woman at the entrance to Church Passage though he did not take any particular notice of them although he described the man as having been three inches taller than the woman (Eddowes and Jacob Levy stood 5'0" and 5'3" tall respectively) and when pressed under cross examination he denied thinking her appearance as `terrible' and went on to add that he was not exactly afraid for himself".

Is it possible that Joseph recognized his neighbor and possible relation Jacob? Is it why Joseph remarked to Harry Harris that "I don't like going home by myself when I see these sort of characters about... I'm off!" A neighbor, a possible relative, a member of the faith, with a prostitute? Was Jacob Levy's former stint in a mental asylum known by Joseph?

Joseph Levy would have reasons to fear coming forward and fingering his neighbor and possible relative with the crime. Perhaps it is why Jacob's family finally sent him to the asylum again. Could Joseph and leaders of the Jewish community fear that they would be violent reprisal from the English mob, if Jack the Ripper had been exposed as a mad Jew like the pulp press at the time, in their antisemitic rage were saying? Antisemitism was on the rise in East London at the time, because of the press, it would have been a rational fear for Joseph if he was afraid that his people would be attacked.

8. Jacob Levy died in 1891, the same year the Ripper case was closed.

Also let's not forget that Police Commissioner Charles Warren feared antisemitic riots, which is why he ordered the Goulston Street graffito to be washed away.

Another thing that I just found out was the Jacob's Mother died in 1888, a few weeks before the murders began.

 

[Sam Craig]

Colin Wilson, who has passed away, I believe, was a great Ripperologist in England in the years leading up to the centennial of the killings.
He once commented that at the end of all things, when all questions are answered, someone will step forward ... someone who was completely anonymous, some nobody who would make a very uninspired suspect, but it will be him.

Evil is not always exciting.

Sam

 

[Atomic Age]

My favorite suspect is James Kelly, who it is suspected traveled to America and killed in an almost identical manor in a number of American cities.

http://www.casebook.org/suspects/jameskelly.html

http://hubpages.com/hub/Jack-The-Ripper-In-America

Doug

 

[Tiller]

Colin Wilson, who has passed away, I believe, was a great Ripperologist in England in the years leading up to the centennial of the killings.
He once commented that at the end of all things, when all questions are answered, someone will step forward ... someone who was completely anonymous, some nobody who would make a very uninspired suspect, but it will be him.

Evil is not always exciting.

Oh I agree. Even if Levy isn't the Ripper I believe it was someone similar to him. Mankind sometimes falls under the false pretense, that a great act has to be attributed to an equally great man. In other words someone such as the Ripper must be a powerful, resourceful, and cunning individual for committing the crime and getting away with it. Reality tend to be a little different, sometimes small men can create huge events.

Without getting into another event that sometimes goes into the realm of conspiracy theory, sometimes it is a character like Charles Guiteau who kills a man like James Garfield. People don't see a balance their, Guiteau was nowhere near the same category as President Garfield, so how could he have committed the murder? So they try to balance it out, by making the individual who perpetrated the crime measure up to the crime he committed. The truth is though their are times when small stones can create such large ripples, that we have a hard time believing that such a insignificant thing could create such grand events.

 

[Tiller]

http://hubpages.com/hub/Jack-The-Ripper-In-America

I always assumed that those crimes were from a copycat. The reason? I've never believed that the original Ripper actually wrote the "Dear Boss" letters. The only letter that may be plausible in my opinion is the "From Hell/Lusk Letter", but I'm not convinced that even that is real.

Kelly has always been an interesting suspect though, and even if he didn't commit any crimes well he was in America, it doesn't mean he wasn't the original.

 

[ukali1066]

My friend Paul has done independant research and his favourite theory is a ships Doctor/Surgeon, [ away from land for periods of time ]
He just has to find shipping records so he can link dates....

But we'll never know now will we....

 

[bashfulbrother]

I've studied these murders for over 20 years. I have found some interesting tidbits.
Approaching it forensically:
Signature-All of the victims, except Kelly, were found lying in front of a gated area.
As this dictates some forethought and prior planning, our killer is not disorganized.
In addition, the actions and words of some of the victims seem to suggest an appointment.
Mary Nichols "I'll soon get my doss money. See what a jolly bonnet I have now?" When she is next seen, she is quite a distance from her home area. Her response to Emily Holland was that she would have her doss money very shortly and then she would be back to Flower & Dean St.
Two interesting things here.
1.) She is wearing a new bonnet. She told Emily that she had drank her doss money away twice during the day leaving her broke both times.
Well, then, where did she get the money for the new bonnet? This is a common factor in the murders, they were all wearing new bonnets.
Catharine Eddowes had her old one pinned to her under skirt and one on her head.
2) Why was she hooking so far from her normal area? She seemed to be waiting for somebody. Liz Stride acted the same way. Look at her responses to men trying to get her to go with them. She is very agitated and keeps saying "not tonight". Later Matt Packer sells a man with her grapes. It is pouring rain out, yet they don't seek shelter, they stand across the street for half an hour eating the grapes. If she was hooking why would she spend all that time talking to this guy, and why didn't they go find shelter? These ladies liked to get it done and move on. This was the way they made their livelihood. They wouldn't stand there and chat. They were obviously either waiting for someone else or she was engaged in conversation with this man that had nothing to do with sex.
If the ripper made appts with these women earlier, then that would explain a lot of the behaviors that they engaged in immediately prior to the killings. It also adds to the conclusion that JTR was organized.
This then leads to purpose far different than spur of the moment exercise of anger.

 

[I Adore Film Noir]

Ready for a great book on the subject?

Portrait of a Killer, Jack the Ripper - Case Closed by Patricia Cornwell.

 

[Sam Craig]

For the centennial there was a great FBI profile done on the case.
I presume you could still find it if you searched

It's an interesting case because of its place in history, but so many of the theories are just too over the top

Sam

 

[bashfulbrother]

Yeah, Patricia Cromwell had a neat book. It pointed to Walter Sickert. His "son" was the one who came out with theory of the involvement of the Royal Family. One thing seems to be obvious. Walter Sickert had inside knowledge of the crimes.

 

[Seraph1227]

Ready for a great book on the subject?

Portrait of a Killer, Jack the Ripper - Case Closed by Patricia Cornwell.

I have that book, she makes a compelling case.

 

[Stanley Doble]

The Sickert theory has been debunked, I am not enough of an expert to say how successfully. But there were a lot of people who found the Ripper case fascinating at the time, and followed all the newspaper reports. There was also a book on the Ripper killings published in France, with forensic pictures that were not published in England at the time. This was the source for the Ripper like images that Sickert used in some pictures.

 

[Edward]

I have that book, she makes a compelling case.

Yeah, Patricia Cromwell had a neat book. It pointed to Walter Sickert. His "son" was the one who came out with theory of the involvement of the Royal Family. One thing seems to be obvious. Walter Sickert had inside knowledge of the crimes.

It was interesting when the son provided the forward to another book making an opposing case. Cornell's book is a cracking yarn, but is very far indeed from closing the case. In the end (and after having destroyed two of Sickert's original paintings with her analysis techniques), she does nothing more than outline what vaguely appears to be a plausible case for him being a suspect, but she brings absolutely nothing to the table that gives any suggestion at all as to why he shoud be considred any more likely to be the killer than any one of the dozens of other suspects.

Myself I have always found the notion of a royal or other aristocratic involvement (and, indeed, the Masonic connection) rather compelling, partly on the basis that given the nature of society at the time it is very easy to conceive of a cover up designed to protect Those At Or Near The Top. I can't imagine we'll ever truly know, though. Much unlike today: the same case in 2014 would undoubtedly be solved rather quickly, what with advances in DNA evidence and the likes, not to mention London's position now as, I believe, the world city with the highest number of CCTV cameras per head of population.

 

[Seraph1227]

I recently read a book that points to a friend and former roomate of Oscar Wilde. He was an artist, a la Sickert. The author claims that " The Portrait of Dorian Grey" was Wilde's attempt to out him. Lily Langtree was involved too. Great story, but I can't remember the author, or the title.