Introduction - Former Scotland Yard DI & Author

[Wickerman]

Hello all,

I wanted to say hello and introduce myself.

I'm a recently retired Scotland Yard DI. I spent 30 years in the Met, with the last 12 being as a murder investigator. I am also the author of a book that looks at how modern day Scotland Yard investigates murder: Murder Investigation Team

The reason I am here, I have just been signed up by a publisher to write a book about JTR, but from a modern day Scotland Yard viewpoint. I'm in the research stage and have found this site extremely helpful. I also thought it would be polite to introduce myself to those in the Ripper world, before any book is released.

Since immersing myself in the subject, I've become very fond of Frederick Abberline, who I feel I share a bond with. Prior to Scotland Yard, I spent a few years as a DS covering Whitechapel (now Tower Hamlets) and prior to that, investigating terrorists (although Islamic not Fenian).

In the near future I may be picking a few people's brains, if that is OK.

Also, in terms of the book, if anyone has any thoughts on what they would like to see contents-wise, that would interesting.

Thanks for reading and best wishes

Steve

Hello & Welcome.

I'm interested in why your publisher thinks there is any mileage to be had in yet another book about JtR.
Or, is your approach expected to be totally different from the usual?

Also, might I suggest an invaluable book (in my opinion), which might offer some background on the type of person, a virtual nobody, who could turn a locality upside down.

https://www.amazon.ca/Wicked-Beyond-Belief-Yorkshire-Ripper/dp/0007450737

[John Wheat]

Hello all,

I wanted to say hello and introduce myself.

I'm a recently retired Scotland Yard DI. I spent 30 years in the Met, with the last 12 being as a murder investigator. I am also the author of a book that looks at how modern day Scotland Yard investigates murder: Murder Investigation Team

The reason I am here, I have just been signed up by a publisher to write a book about JTR, but from a modern day Scotland Yard viewpoint. I'm in the research stage and have found this site extremely helpful. I also thought it would be polite to introduce myself to those in the Ripper world, before any book is released.

Since immersing myself in the subject, I've become very fond of Frederick Abberline, who I feel I share a bond with. Prior to Scotland Yard, I spent a few years as a DS covering Whitechapel (now Tower Hamlets) and prior to that, investigating terrorists (although Islamic not Fenian).

In the near future I may be picking a few people's brains, if that is OK.

Also, in terms of the book, if anyone has any thoughts on what they would like to see contents-wise, that would interesting.

Thanks for reading and best wishes

Steve

Welcome to the boards Steve.

[JeffHamm]

Hello all,

I wanted to say hello and introduce myself.

I'm a recently retired Scotland Yard DI. I spent 30 years in the Met, with the last 12 being as a murder investigator. I am also the author of a book that looks at how modern day Scotland Yard investigates murder: Murder Investigation Team

The reason I am here, I have just been signed up by a publisher to write a book about JTR, but from a modern day Scotland Yard viewpoint. I'm in the research stage and have found this site extremely helpful. I also thought it would be polite to introduce myself to those in the Ripper world, before any book is released.

Since immersing myself in the subject, I've become very fond of Frederick Abberline, who I feel I share a bond with. Prior to Scotland Yard, I spent a few years as a DS covering Whitechapel (now Tower Hamlets) and prior to that, investigating terrorists (although Islamic not Fenian).

In the near future I may be picking a few people's brains, if that is OK.

Also, in terms of the book, if anyone has any thoughts on what they would like to see contents-wise, that would interesting.

Thanks for reading and best wishes

Steve

Welcome to the boards, and good luck with the book. A lot of work goes into one of those!

With regards to content suggestions, I would advise against a suspect oriented approach (as in where you present some individual as "the best of the lot", or "a new, never before considered suspect whom you just happen to prove is the Ripper" etc). Those aspects of many books do tend to be the more disappointing bits, in my view.

There have been many books, most offering a new solution, a new suspect, and so forth, so another one won't really stand out. What would be a real contribution would be a well presented evaluation of what was done and the conclusions offered at the time, contrasted with a presentation of how it would be done today and what opinions of the day would be viewed differently today. So evaluating the police investigation against the standards of 1888, but also pointing out how what is considered "best practice" today has changed, explaining why methods used in 1888 might be suboptimal, the errors it may introduce, and how a modern investigation would try and overcome those problems. The same could be done with the medical opinions such as on the ToD estimations; the evaluations of medical skills; the estimation of how long the murders would require; the suggestions about the physical descriptions of the knife employed; a comparison of the throat wounds between Stride and Eddowes - are they similar enough to point to the same individual, or are those just how most throat cuttings look? - That is sort of thing that I know I would very much like to see.

- Jeff

[GBinOz]

Hi Steve,

Welcome to the boards. I share your admiration for Aberline, a working boots-on-the ground detective as opposed to those appointed to senior positions without any experience in the area.

Hope your research goes well, and all the best for your book.

Cheers, George

[DJA]

Cleveland Street scandal - Wikipedia

[Enigma]

Welcome to the boards. Good luck with the book. Looking forward to seeing its release.

[StevenKeogh]

Welcome, but be aware it can be a tough crowd here.

So it seems..... I'll try and dig out my old stab vest. I appreciate the welcome.

[StevenKeogh]

Hello & Welcome.

I'm interested in why your publisher thinks there is any mileage to be had in yet another book about JtR.
Or, is your approach expected to be totally different from the usual?

Also, might I suggest an invaluable book (in my opinion), which might offer some background on the type of person, a virtual nobody, who could turn a locality upside down.
https://www.amazon.ca/Wicked-Beyond-.../dp/0007450737

Definitely a new approach..... I'll have a look at that book. Many thanks.

[StevenKeogh]

Welcome to the boards. Good luck with the book. Looking forward to seeing its release.

Much appreciated, thank you.

[StevenKeogh]

Hi Steve,

Welcome to the boards. I share your admiration for Aberline, a working boots-on-the ground detective as opposed to those appointed to senior positions without any experience in the area.

Hope your research goes well, and all the best for your book.

Cheers, George

Thanks George. Yes, I could say lots about senior officers and their 'help' in murder investigations, but probably best not.

[StevenKeogh]

Welcome to the boards, and good luck with the book. A lot of work goes into one of those!

With regards to content suggestions, I would advise against a suspect oriented approach (as in where you present some individual as "the best of the lot", or "a new, never before considered suspect whom you just happen to prove is the Ripper" etc). Those aspects of many books do tend to be the more disappointing bits, in my view.

There have been many books, most offering a new solution, a new suspect, and so forth, so another one won't really stand out. What would be a real contribution would be a well presented evaluation of what was done and the conclusions offered at the time, contrasted with a presentation of how it would be done today and what opinions of the day would be viewed differently today. So evaluating the police investigation against the standards of 1888, but also pointing out how what is considered "best practice" today has changed, explaining why methods used in 1888 might be suboptimal, the errors it may introduce, and how a modern investigation would try and overcome those problems. The same could be done with the medical opinions such as on the ToD estimations; the evaluations of medical skills; the estimation of how long the murders would require; the suggestions about the physical descriptions of the knife employed; a comparison of the throat wounds between Stride and Eddowes - are they similar enough to point to the same individual, or are those just how most throat cuttings look? - That is sort of thing that I know I would very much like to see.

- Jeff

Hi Jeff

Thank you. I will very much be coming from a modern day point of view. I think your time of death point is an interesting one. Today, we wouldn't use algor mortis in a murder investigation, mostly due to the fact there are too many factors that affect it, thus making it unreliable. The over-reliance of it during this investigation is stark and appears to have distracted some of the officers involved in the case. It is that sort of thing I will be looking at.

I really appreciate the welcome.

Steve

[StevenKeogh]

Welcome to the boards Steve.

Thank you, John. Much appreciated.

[barnflatwyngarde]

Welcome to the Casebook Steven.

I will be particularly interested in how you resolve the problem of witnesses giving contradictory evidence, re times, sightings of victims, sightings of possible perpetrator(s) etc.

And also the criteria you would use to eliminate certain "witnesses" and their evidence.

[StevenKeogh]

Welcome to the Casebook Steven.

I will be particularly interested in how you resolve the problem of witnesses giving contradictory evidence, re times, sightings of victims, sightings of possible perpetrator(s) etc.

And also the criteria you would use to eliminate certain "witnesses" and their evidence.

Thanks for the welcome. And I can assure you, the witnesses of the 21st century are no less problematic than those of the 19th.

[JeffHamm]

Hi Jeff

Thank you. I will very much be coming from a modern day point of view. I think your time of death point is an interesting one. Today, we wouldn't use algor mortis in a murder investigation, mostly due to the fact there are too many factors that affect it, thus making it unreliable. The over-reliance of it during this investigation is stark and appears to have distracted some of the officers involved in the case. It is that sort of thing I will be looking at.

I really appreciate the welcome.

Steve

Hi Steve,

That sounds like the sort of thing that will appeal to a wide range of readers.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the boards. You'll find a lot of very knowledgeable people here. I'm sure you're aware how sometimes threads will go off target for awhile, and personalities get involved, but underneath the chaos is a lot of very useful information about the case and details of the times. I'm sure you'll manage just fine.

- Jeff