Jack the Ripper: Tragedy in London and Triumph for Police Work Xander Marvin Junior Division Paper Word Count: 1,979 Jack the Ripper became so well known for a couple of different reasons. One reason is that in the 1800s there was a great rise in photography and journalism. London was a major city and had at least thirteen daily newspapers that circulated throughout England as well as to the thirteen colonies. Another reason that Jack the Ripper captured people’s attention then and now is due to the gruesomeness of the murders. People had a hard time believing these things could happen. ( Jones) The newspaper reports complete with photos left little doubt in the minds of readers. Jack the Ripper began his killing spree in London starting in 1888. There were five known victims, and there were several other unsolved murders at that time that were also possible victims of his. Life in the 1800s was pretty divided, either you were rich or you were poor. Many women of the lower classes were unable to find work and had to resort to prostitution which was legal at the time. Prostitutes were ready victims for criminals since they were out at night and often did not have family to notice if they were missing. All of Jack the Ripper’s victims were prostitutes, many who were in their late 30 early 40s and well known for drinking heavily. Rings were also taken from the victims that he killed. ( FBI file) The murders struck fear in the women of London, especially those of the lower classes who had to go out at night. The first victim was Mary Ann Nichols. She died on August 31, 1888. Her throat was severely slashed, and she was disemboweled. She was discovered on B uck's Row at 3:45 AM. She had a very faint heartbeat as if she was trying to breathe. The next victim was Annie Chapman. She died on September 8th, 1888. Like Mary Ann, her throat was cut. The murderer also took her womb. Police used the press to see if anyone had knowledge of this murder including a description of the killer or knowledge of his whereabouts. Before the third victim was discovered, the killer wrote a letter to the chief of the police and signed it with his assumed name “Jack the Ripper.” He told police that he would clip the ears of the next victim and send them to the police. The third victim named Elizabeth Stride, and she died on September 30th, 1888. The killer didn’t get ears for police because it is believed the killer was interrupted during the murder. It did appear as if the ears of the victim were in the process of being cut. The police were not completely sure about the interruption, but it is thought to be true because Stride’s throat was cut rather hastily in contrast to the cuts on some of the other victims. On the same night, September 30th, the fourth victim named Catherine Eddowes was killed. Her body was severely mutilated, including her face and her uterus, and her left kidney was removed. Her face was so mutilated that they could only identify her by her apron. The killer ripped a piece from her apron and wiped her blood off his knife and hands on it. This was found by police and told police the escape route he took. Found near the piece of apron was this writing on a wall, “The juwes are the men that will not be blamed for nothing.” Police thought that the message could hint that the killer might be Jewish or anti semitic just by the message. It is also possible that the message was on the wall long before the apron piece was dropped there. After the double murder, the chief of police got a letter from the supposed killer prior to any news release, and it went into lots of detail about the twin killings. It was believed that this must have been the killer. The final victim named Mary Jane Kelly died on November 9th, 1888, in her home. Her body was said to be virtually skinned down. Some of her body parts were removed and placed around in different parts of the room. Some believe that the reason this woman was mutilated this badly was to say that this would be the last murder so it would be the worst out of all of the murders. It is widely recognized that there was great incompetence by the police in the Ripper investigation. One thing that police didn’t do in the 1880s was use the forensic science of the time to help them solve the case. They also didn’t regularly use fingerprinting though it was suggested later that if they had used fingerprints, they would have got a conviction. The police also usually took pictures of the victims. They did not, however, take pictures of the crime scene. They also could have brought bloodhounds to see if they could get a scent for him. (Jones) Additionally, although the killer sent items and letters to the police, they did not use these successfully to any advantage. Nor is it believed that they did a thorough search for possible witnesses that could have provided a good description of a potential killer. ( Casebook, Ryder) The reason why these murders were different was because of how badly he mutilated the bodies. The killer was a person who had anatomical knowledge, knowledge of how to evade the police and became one of the most well known serial killers in history. People at the time thought that Jack the Ripper was a person who was perfectly sane but capable of true evil. The initial investigator on the Ripper case, quit instantly due to the horrors of the first murder. Howard Vincent, the next main investigator,resigned when his home office was blown up. Jack the Ripper inspired the police commissioners to leave after the murder occurred and during the murders as well. ( Jones). Poor investigation tactics and inconsistency in the investigation made it unlikely a perpetrator would be found. Since the 1880s however, people have continued to try to solve this case. Four suspects are most often identified as likely perpetrators. The first suspect was Queen Victoria’s Grandson Prince Albert Victor, a man of high profile. He was not suspected until long after the crimes because his status protected him from accusations. One reason that he is suspected of the killings was that he would have been protected by his servants and family if there was any evidence of his guilt. Another reason he is a likely suspect was that he had a baby with a local woman, and when the Queen heard of this, she said that anyone who knew about the child should be killed. This makes historians suspect that the “canonical five” victims may have been people who knew about the baby. Prince Albert Victor is also a suspect because he contracted syphilis and was suffering its effects including “madness.” Additionally, prostitutes were known for carrying syphilis, a sexually contracted disease. It is believed that his family knew that he was the killer after the second murder but there was no attempt to restrain him from killing until after the double event (Stride and Eddowes), when he was finally put in a mental hospital. Historians have a theory that the Prince later escaped to carry out the final murder because notes were found from his doctor indicating that he had been able to escape from the hospital during this time. The official story from the Queen and Royal family was that the Prince wasn’t in London during the time of the killings. ( Casebook, Ryder) Another possible suspect is Joseph Barnett. He wasn’t suspected of the killings until 1970 when a man named Bruce Paley (an author that had published his book in 1995) told some of his colleagues about him. He fit the profile of Jack the Ripper. He is suspected of the killings because he was in love with Mary Kelley (the final victim) and he used to visit her often and used to live with her. He used to give her money so she didn’t have to go to prostitution. But once he lost in job in June 1888 ,as a fish porter, she had to go to prostitution. So when she had to go to the streets, he wanted to scare her off the streets so he killed all of those prostitutes. But when she kept going to the streets, he went mad and killed her. This is a possible reason the killings stopped ­­ because of his link to her. The police interviewed him for four hours and they seemed satisfied with his testimony and didn’t interview him further. ( Casebook, Ryder) Another suspect is James Maybrick. He was a cotton merchant and he didn’t live in London, but all of the killings happened on a weekend. If you were a cotton merchant you were allowed to travel on the weekends. His diary and his watch were found under the floorboards of his house. "I give my name that all know of me, so history do tell, what love can do to a gentle man born. Yours truly, Jack the Ripper." That is a quote from his diary. It is still believed that this is a hoax because in the diary there is a page about the Mary Kelley murder but some of the details are completely wrong.