# What True Crime Story Fascinates You Most? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 20, 2024, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511 "2024-11-20T15:28:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/61 "2024-11-22T01:21:20Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > The case of Dr. Harvey Crippen is an odd one. It was also featured in an excellent book. > **[Thunderstruck - Erik Larson](https://eriklarsonbooks.com/book/thunderstruck/)** > > The saga of how the lives of the inventor of wireless and of Britain's second most famous murderer (after Jack the Ripper) intersected during one of the greatest criminal chases of all time. The inventor was Guglielmo Marconi, the young Italian... ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/62 "2024-11-22T01:29:21Z")
That was a great book. Because of advances in communication, the whole world knew Crippen was wanted for murder except for Crippen and the other passengers on his ship. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/63 "2024-11-22T02:19:19Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > The Hall-Mills murders. It was the Trial of the Century until the Lindbergh kidnapping became the Trial of the Century. Dead Preacher. Dead choir lady. Pig Woman on a hospital bed. What more do you want? > > [Hall–Mills murder case - Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hall%E2%80%93Mills_murder_case) I also find this fascinating. It really would make a good movie, especially the courtroom circus and the Pig Woman. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/64 "2024-11-22T02:30:20Z")
IIRC, Dr. Steinschneider was also involved in a similar case of misidentification. > **[Marie Noe](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Noe)** > > Marie Noe (August 23, 1928 – May 5, 2016) was an American woman who was convicted in June 1999 of murdering eight of her children. Between 1949 and 1968, eight of the ten Noe children died of mysterious causes which were then attributed to sudden infant death syndrome. All eight children were healthy at birth and were developing normally. Two other children died of natural causes. Noe pleaded guilty in June 1999 to eight counts of second-degree murder, and was sentenced to 20 years' probati Noe w... [/quote] Funny I hadn’t heard of that. Noe was my great-great-grandmother’s name. It’s also my wife’s maiden name. Her grandmother was Marie Noe. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/65 "2024-11-22T02:51:43Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Police searched Crippen’s house and found a body buried in the basement which was identified as that of his wife. A Scotland Yard officer bought a ticket on a faster ship to Canada, arrested him at the dock, and returned him to London where he was found guilty and hanged. > > Flash forward 100 years and DNA testing finds that the body that was found in his basement not only wasn’t his wife, it was that of a man. Except that there are doubters about the validity of that specialized DNA testing protocol on such an old specimen. > [@](#): > > The scientists found hair follicles in the tissue which should not be present in scars, a medical fact which Crippen’s defence used at his trial. Some research has shown that regenerating hair follicles can be found in or around scar tissue, so I’m not sure that the identification of Cora’s supposed abdominal scar was invalid. There are a number of more [modern cases](https://www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com/story/news/local/2014/12/30/dr-john-boyle-murder-case-years-later/21068335/) where killers have been dumb enough to bury corpses of their victims in the basement. Crippen was a little guy - maybe the torso was too big for him to carry out of the house for disposal. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/66 "2024-11-22T03:12:03Z")
> [@zimaane](#): > > I have an interest in the OG of true crime cases, Jack the Ripper. I’ve read a few books about it anyway. And I have played a few games about it. In fact I ran a Pulp Cthulhu by Gaslight campaign, where I explained that of course Sherlock didnt find the killer- as the killer was a supernatural creature, and Sherlock (like most mortals) are blind to them. (It was actually a redcap) What annoys me is all the false or maybe false evidence accepted as canon. One of the first serial killers- look the Municipal and London Police were pretty good at catching killer- they found the motive and the witness, and bingo. But no real motive here is known. > [@Smapti](#): > > Why did they abandon the car? Nobody knows. Panic does weird things to people, especially with hypothermia coming on. A plausible answer, but still… > [@Lucas\_Jackson](#): > > D. B. Cooper - I’m about 90% sure he died in the fall but… He certainly never spent any significant amount of the cash. > [@Lucas\_Jackson](#): > > Lindbergh Kidnapping - some of this story is straightforward but I read a book once that convinced me there was much more to the story than came out. There almost certainly is… or was. Hauptmann was _certainly guilty_- but maybe was only an accomplice. I mean, it is doubtful he did it all himself, right? > [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > After all this time, I’m beginning to think he never jumped. Stayed In the plane?!? > [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > It certainly wasn’t from the FBI BSU profile, which was about as wrong as wrong could be. Profiles are often useless. I have read a few and they are all pretty generic and would account for the average serial killer. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/67 "2024-11-22T03:14:59Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > I have read a few and they are all pretty generic and would account for the average serial killer. I mean, with nine serial killers out of ten it’s a safe bet that they grew up in a single-parent home, were abused by a parent or step-parent, and they have a history of starting fires, killing small animals, social awkwardness, and some kind of sexual perversion. > [@DrDeth](#): > > Panic does weird things to people, especially with hypothermia coming on. My personal guess is that they took a wrong turn somewhere, didn’t realize it until they were way off course and decided that going forward was a better option than turning back, briefly got stuck in the snow, and were spooked by the other man on the mountain to where they ran away, got lost, and then followed the track of a snowplow towards the cabin. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/68 "2024-11-22T03:18:04Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I mean, with nine serial killers out of ten it’s a safe bet that they grew up in a single-parent home, were abused by a parent or step-parent, and they have a history of starting fires, killing small animals, social awkwardness, and some kind of sexual perversion. And always a white male- of 20-40 or something. ---
**Author:** ![Cumberdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8c91f0/32.png) [@Cumberdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cumberdale)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/69 "2024-11-22T04:37:39Z")
Two cases I grew up with in the DFW area. [T. Cullen Davis - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T._Cullen_Davis) In 1976 someone (Davis) broke into his mansion and killed his step daughter. Davis was found not guilty. A side note- during his and Priscillas divorce we were driving near the mansion and were next to the limo with Priscilla inside. My mother commented that “she’s not that attractive” for what it’s worth. The second one was Walker Railey [Walker Railey - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walker_Railey). He was the senior pastor for senior pastor of the First United Methodist Church in Dallas. He couldn’t move up in the church if he got divorced so he strangled his wife and left her in a vegetative state. Shortly after he unsuccessfully tried to kill himself. He was eventually found not guilty. One of the most chilling things to me was he gave custody of his children to some friends, I believe, and while he was on the news he was telling one of his toddler kids to go to “mommy”. Sadly, he’s still alive today. ---
**Author:** ![Newtosite](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/newtosite/32/8623_2.png) [@Newtosite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Newtosite)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/70 "2024-11-22T07:17:26Z")
Do you have any theories about Jennifer Kesse missing? ([Disappearance of Jennifer Kesse - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Jennifer_Kesse)) ---
**Author:** ![Cumberdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8c91f0/32.png) [@Cumberdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cumberdale)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/71 "2024-11-22T12:42:21Z")
The Dorothy Kilgallon case is one I fairly recently got into when I started watching What’s My Line" on Youtube. [Dorothy Kilgallen - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorothy_Kilgallen) I lean towards it being an accidental OD, but it’s still an interesting story. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/72 "2024-11-22T13:28:45Z")
A couple more: [The Killing of Missy Bevers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing_of_Missy_Bevers) in 2016. This one is strange. Missy was getting ready to host an exercise class on a Monday morning at a large church. She was later found murdered. [Video surveillance](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUISKYJsJqw) shows an intruder walking around the church before she was murdered, smashing glass and trying to open doors. So far, no one knows the identity or gender of the intruder, or even if the intruder was the killer. Ohio cult leader and mass murderer [Jeffrey Lundgren](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey_Lundgren) (1989). (You don’t hear much about him for some reason.) [The details](https://www.blockparole.com/remembrance/dennis-becky-trina-karen-and-cheryl-avery/) of how he and his friends murdered the children are just… horrifying. 😱 ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/73 "2024-11-22T13:48:54Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > And always a white male- of 20-40 or something. [Nope](https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/samuel-little-most-prolific-serial-killer-in-us-history-100619). [Not always](https://www.aaihs.org/roberta-elder-the-case-of-a-black-woman-serial-killer/). ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/74 "2024-11-22T14:01:43Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > > [@Loach](#): > > > > The Hall-Mills murders. It was the Trial of the Century until the Lindbergh kidnapping became the Trial of the Century. Dead Preacher. Dead choir lady. Pig Woman on a hospital bed. What more do you want? > > > > [Hall–Mills murder case - Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hall%E2%80%93Mills_murder_case) > > I also find this fascinating. It really would make a good movie, especially the courtroom circus and the Pig Woman. With the amount of nationwide media attention it got it is strange how quickly it disappeared from the consciousness of the country. Maybe because the Lindbergh case happened 10 years later and one county away. Speaking of the Lindbergh case, there is a big display about it in the New Jersey State Police Museum. A nice little museum outside of Trenton. You can see some of the evidence from the case including the wood from the ladder. The original electric chair used to execute Bruno Hauptmann is there. An old instructor of mine was a State Police detective and had once been in charge of the museum. He had access to all the evidence and documents from the case. As a side project he researched it and made a presentation he could pull out when needed. He made a very compelling argument for Hauptmann’s guilt. He certainly didn’t do it alone and was most likely just a henchman but he was involved. The name escapes me but there is a likely suspect for the mastermind of the plot but he died before Hauptmann. ---
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/75 "2024-11-22T14:45:05Z")
I think Dr Deth’s post was about how the FBI profiles alway sait that the killer was white and between 20 and 40. Unless it’s hidden in the articles somewhere, your articles show that that is a bad assumption on the FBI’s part ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/76 "2024-11-22T14:59:47Z")
Well, that part of the profile is likely to be true in the great majority of cases. I well remember the pundits who were dead sure the D.C. Sniper was a gun-crazed white guy. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/77 "2024-11-22T15:04:26Z")
Who uses homemade ladders? That was one of the weirder aspects, I think. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Krupe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ebca7d/32.png) [@Leo\_Krupe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Krupe)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/78 "2024-11-22T15:14:47Z")
I’ve always been fascinated by true crime, but distanced myself after reading details about Albert Fish and seeing photos of Ed Gein’s crimes. That said, Manson always fascinated me, along with Jack the Ripper of course, Zodiac, and other unsolved crimes, as well as serial killers (it’s interesting how Henry Lee Lucas went from being listed [correct me if I’m wrong] at one time in the Guinness book as the world’s most prolific killer to more like the world’s most prolific liar about being a serial killer. (I think Guinness also listed Holmes as being the most prolific killer too at one time.) Historical (Gille de Rais, H.H. Holmes), modern (Gacy, Rader, Ridgway, Keddie cabin, the Delphi murders, etc.), it doesn’t matter. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/79 "2024-11-22T15:28:58Z")
> [@Leo\_Krupe](#): > > That said, Manson always fascinated me, along with Jack the Ripper of course, Zodiac, and other unsolved crimes, as well as serial killers (it’s interesting how Henry Lee Lucas went from being listed [correct me if I’m wrong] at one time in the Guinness book as the world’s most prolific killer to more like the world’s most prolific liar about being a serial killer. Richard Kuklinski was also a prolific liar but they kept putting a camera in front of him. He was certainly a murderer but 99% of what he claimed was bullshit. He murdered probably 4-10 people. He claimed over 200. Mobsters who had no reason to lie (they already had immunity and testified against others) said they never heard of him and he was never a mob hit man. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511/80 "2024-11-22T15:34:06Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > And she’s arguably Arizona’s most (in)famous killer. Only because the St Johns murderer’s name was not released because of his age. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-true-crime-story-fascinates-you-most/1010511.md?page=5)