Torey Dunning

Mrs. Mazany
English 11
4/28/14
5th Hour

Victorian Crime
-Jack the RipperI.

II.

History/Introduction
o The Problem
The problem with trying to give out information on Jack the Ripper is
the fact that he was never actually caught. All information will only be
connected by mere speculation and investigation.
o Signature
One way that the murders can all be connected together though is by a
signature. This is a unique and integral part of the offender's behavior.
This signature component refers to the psychodynamics, which are the
mental and emotional motivations. (www.practicalhomicide.com) In
most of the cases in the murders done by Jack the Ripper, his signature
was slitting the throats of his victims. This then differed from it being
small slits to slashes so deep that the heads of his victims were hanging on
by a string.
Victims
o It makes it very difficult to find out how many victims Jack the Ripper actually
had due to the fact that he was never found. Although there are a total of about
eleven possible victims during his killing spree from 1888 to 1892.
o Jack is supposed to be responsible for five victims, but there were other similar
murders before and after the ones attributed to him, both in this country and
abroad in America and Germany. (www.express.co.uk)
o First Victim

There is not a definite first victim of Jack the Ripper. Although there
are two murders that would fit into that category. The first is a young
woman named Martha Tabram. She was murdered on August 7th 1888 and
was found at 5 am on the first floor landing of George Yard Buildings.
There is a debate as to whether or not she was actually the first victim but
the reasoning behind it is because she was murdered in the time frame
when the set of murders began.
The other woman who could be considered the actual first victim of Jack
the Ripper is Mary Nichols. The difference between the two is that Mary
is definitely known to be a victim of Jack. She was murdered on the 31st
of August 1888. She was found around 3:40 am in a gateway in Bucks
Row, Whitechapel. Her throat was slashed as her head was hanging on
ever so slightly to the rest of her body. It is believed that she was found
just within a half an hour of her death. Her murder was just the beginning
of The Rippers spree.

Torey Dunning
Mrs. Mazany
English 11
4/28/14
5th Hour

o Second Victim
The second victim of Jack the Ripper was 45 year old Annie Chapman,
found by John Davis a little before 6 am. As he walked out of his home on
29 Hanbury Street he saw the mutilated body of Annie laying on the
ground between some steps and a wooden fence. Just as the first victim,
her throat had been cut only to stay attached to her body ever so slightly. A
red handkerchief was tied around her neck and it was believed that this
was done in order for her head to stay in place. To go as well with the
mutilation of her body it seemed that the killer had removed her womb
and taken it with him.
o Third Victim
The third victim of Jack the Ripper was Elizabeth Stride. She was found
around 1 am laying on the pavement. Emergency services were called in
and a doctor was brought in on the sight. She was pronounced dead around
1:16 am. When she was found her throat was cut completely through her
windpipe. This made it so that she was not able to cry out to anyone. She
was left there to bleed to death and it was believe that she died within
about a minute and a half. She was murdered on September 30th 1888.
o Fourth Victim
The fourth victim of Jack the Ripper was Catherine Eddowes. She was
found at 1:44 am in Mitre Square by a man with the name PC Watkins.
She was found lying on her back in a pool of blood, with her clothes
thrown up over her waist.(jack-the-ripper.org/) It was believed that she
was killed in the darkest part of the park. In similarity to the other victims
her throat and windpipes had been cut, which had seemed to be the cause
of death. She was also murdered on September 30th 1888.
o Fifth Victim
The fifth and seemingly final victim of Jack the Ripper was twenty-five
year old, Mary Kelly. Her body was found laying unclothed in the middle
of her bed. Her arms mutilated by several jagged wounds & face hacked
beyond recognition of the features. The tissues of her neck were severed
all round down to the bone.( jack-the-ripper.org/>) Her abdomen was
also cut open and all of the insides we removed and laid out around the
body and the room. She was murdered November 9th 1888.

Torey Dunning
Mrs. Mazany
English 11
4/28/14
5th Hour

III.

Letters
o Dear Boss Letter
One letter written by Jack the Ripper was the Dear Boss letter. This
was written to the police officers and mysteriously dropped off to a
London News Agency. Up until that point the killer had been known
variously as the 'Red Fiend', 'The Whitechapel Murderer,' and 'Leather
Apron.' (jack-the-ripper.org/>) In this letter he names himself Jack the
Ripper.
o Who really wrote the letters?
As far as it goes for the Dear Boss letter, no one was ever officially
named as its author. The only problem found in trying to know what letters
were real or not is that there were so many letters that we copycats.

IV.

Police Investigation & Suspects

o The Metropolitan Police and the City of London Police were the two forces
involved.
o Originally it was believed that the cases were gang-related. They needed more
knowledge if the murder cases should ever be solved.
o Another idea was to look into the circle of individuals that were connected to the
victims. Although this idea was soon thrown out because it was believed the the
Ripper was an opportunist killer.
o There were several suspects involved in the case. There are also several books
that have claimed they cracked the case.
o Many suspects have been put up to trial but no one has been tried and convicted
of the murders

V.

Conclusion
o There are many researchers that continue to look for more information and more
leads each and every day. Although it is very frightening to think that someone
this horrible could get away with this crime all these years. It has been one
hundred and twenty-six years since these terrible events took place and we
havent gotten any closer to finding the real murder who has obviously taken his
secret to his grave.