 Mystery: August 24, 2022 Issue [#11528] |
This week: The Black Dahlia Edited by: Arakun the twisted raccoon  
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Quote for the week:
"Mystery spread its cloak across the sky.
We lost our way.
Shadows fell from trees.
They knew why."
~From "House of Four Doors" by the Moody Blues |
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On January 15, 1947, a young woman named Elizabeth Short was found brutally murdered in the Leimert Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. If you have never heard of Elizabeth Short, you might recognize her by a more familiar name, the Black Dahlia.
The Black Dahlia case is one of America's most famous unsolved mysteries. In spite of an extensive police investigation in which more than 150 suspects were considered, no arrests were ever made.
The case gained instant notoriety because of the brutal nature of the murder. The body was horribly mutilated and cut in half at the waist. Notoriety is both a curse and a blessing to a criminal investigation. Publicity will bring the case to the attention of anyone who might have information that might help the police. Sometimes these people might not even realize their information is important until they hear about the case in the news. However a well publicized case also generates false leads and misinformation.
Although the Black Dahlia case was extensively covered in the news at the time, it is difficult to separate true from false information. The news media sensationalized the crime and the victim was put on trial in the court of public opinion. Many unsubstantiated rumors about Elizabeth Short circulated at the time and continue until this day. The media branded her an "adventuress who prowled Hollywood Boulevard." In various accounts, she was rumored to have been a sex worker, pregnant at the time of her murder, or a lesbian, none of which have any basis in fact.
Over the years, the police have received more than 500 confessions to the murder, some by people who had not even been born at the time. Many others tried to implicate family members or acquaintances. One detective, Steve Hodel, believed his own father, George Hodel, was responsible for the murders of Short and several other people. George Hodel was never charged, but he did flee the country, spending the next 40 years in the Philippines.
Even the source of the nickname "the Black Dahlia" is unclear. According to news reports at the time, Short was given the nickname by acquaintances because she wore dahlias in her hair. Other reports stated that the name came from her fondness for sheer black clothing. There is actually no evidence that Short was ever called by this nickname during her life. It is most likely to have been invented by news reporters after her death, probably based on "The Blue Dahlia" a 1947 film noir.
Since 75 years have passed, the killer and anyone who might have had knowledge of the crime are either dead or extremely old. This case illustrates the difficulty of investigating a well known crime and sifting important leads away from red herrings and false information.
Something to try: Write a mystery story where the investigation is confounded by false information.
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