A Psychological Profile of the Ripper

[Guest]

Thanks for that. A good starting place is Beadle's excellent summary on here where he also discusses Bury's close match to the FBI profile (https://www.casebook.org/dissertations/ws-bury.html). The Bury website takes this further and uses Keppel's signature analysis paper to demonstrate a very credible ID signature match between Ellen Bury and the ripper victims - the similarity to some to the wounds on Eddowes is both disturbing and striking (http://williambury.org/blog6/the-bury-id/). There is no doubt Bury was an evil, cunning, manipulative psychopath.

That sounds interesting! I will check it out. I was already reading the pages dedicated to each of the suspects and so far, I feel like I can probably eliminate the Prince (and by extension the Royal Conspiracy) and Barnett, but I haven't read the rest yet! I have to read Blanchard next, but Bury is after him!

[GBinOz]

That sounds interesting! I will check it out. I was already reading the pages dedicated to each of the suspects and so far, I feel like I can probably eliminate the Prince (and by extension the Royal Conspiracy) and Barnett, but I haven't read the rest yet! I have to read Blanchard next, but Bury is after him!

Hi Kristen,

I wouldn't dismiss Barnett so lightly. The Prince had an iron clad alibi. Barnett, no so much.

When you are considering persons of interest I would suggest that the first priority is their proximity - whether they can definitely be placed in London at the relevant times. Next is the M.O. and signature. This is the reference on these matters: https://www.fmhac.org/uploads/1/2/3/...996/walter.pdf.

I did look at HH Holmes some years ago but Holmes being a common name I saw no significance in a shipping record under the name of H Holmes, and a gap in his records is circumstantial at best. The major factor was that he didn't fit the M.O. or the signature. These are the critical tests.

Cheers, George

[erobitha]

Welcome Starlight.

You have already met a few of the resident confirmation bias posters who are already attempting to recruit you as a fellow believer in their preferred suspect.

I am another. I have written a fictional novel (which has surprisingly annoyed some in Ripperology by being very well researched) where I present my candidate with the psychological and circumstantial case against him.

Just I and one other are confirmed ‘out of the closet’ Maybrickians.

I think some of the points you raise are interesting and valid and ultimately none of us know the absolute truth, but I believe we must not stop trying to uncover it. The victims deserve that, even after 130 years.

It’s funny how quickly little battles form on these forums, often over what many would regard as the simplest things.

Welcome and enjoy.

Erobitha

[NotBlamedForNothing]

Wow! I hadn't read that account yet! I admit I haven't done research past the actual murders themselves and the crime scenes in a long time and it'll be fun getting back into the case and learning other things.

Good luck with it all. Liz Stride actually came into brief contact with a middle class man, not long before she died. Thomas Barnardo also witnessed her corpse at the mortuary. Interestingly, he seems to have had very short eyelashes.

[Aethelwulf]

I was already reading the pages dedicated to each of the suspects

That is what I did. It's definitely worth reading about all of them, some for comedy value (e.g., Cream) and some I'd like to know more about just for general interest but there is little or no info (e.g., Fogelmar). I ended up with three that I thought worth further interest and of them a very clear front runner.

[Guest]

That is what I did. It's definitely worth reading about all of them, some for comedy value (e.g., Cream) and some I'd like to know more about just for general interest but there is little or no info (e.g., Fogelmar). I ended up with three that I thought worth further interest and of them a very clear front runner.

Awesome! I will read them all ASAP and then we can exchange ideas on who we think is the most plausible!

[Sunny Delight]

That sounds interesting! I will check it out. I was already reading the pages dedicated to each of the suspects and so far, I feel like I can probably eliminate the Prince (and by extension the Royal Conspiracy) and Barnett, but I haven't read the rest yet! I have to read Blanchard next, but Bury is after him!

In my own opinion the murderers name is probably buried deep within a file somewhere. He might have been interviewed on a few occassions-I actually find it likely he was. Particularly when door to door enquiries were ongoing. These killers can portray an element of calmness in the face of such pressure. I dont believe any of the names currently in circulation were the murderer. But of course we can't know for sure. One thing we can be certain of is that something happened after Mary Kelly's murder that prompted him to go underground(re-emerging possibly with McKenzie and Coles) or stopping altogether. I think it likely there was too much heat after Kelly's death locally and he felt the Police were getting close- maybe he read about George Hutchinson. He re-emerged after a sufficient time inactive.

[NotBlamedForNothing]

In my own opinion the murderers name is probably buried deep within a file somewhere. He might have been interviewed on a few occassions-I actually find it likely he was. Particularly when door to door enquiries were ongoing. These killers can portray an element of calmness in the face of such pressure. I dont believe any of the names currently in circulation were the murderer. But of course we can't know for sure.

Given the extent of the door to door enquiries, and that profiling usually places the man's residence in fairly close proximity to the crimes, I think your suggestion that he was likely interviewed, is a good one. Apparently he gave up nothing.

One thing we can be certain of is that something happened after Mary Kelly's murder that prompted him to go underground(re-emerging possibly with McKenzie and Coles) or stopping altogether. I think it likely there was too much heat after Kelly's death locally and he felt the Police were getting close- maybe he read about George Hutchinson. He re-emerged after a sufficient time inactive.

Too much heat, or too much cold? Remember Sunny, Winters coming.

[Abby Normal]

Hi, everyone! I'm Kristen and I'm new here, but I have been an amateur Ripperologist for decades. As I was growing up, I found myself in an unusual position that led to hands-on experience in the fields of criminal investigation, human anatomy, and the treatment of mental illnesses. My father was a sergeant in the local police force and while he couldn’t speak to the specific details of any of the cases that came across his desk, he often explained to me how criminal investigations as a whole and all of the components thereof typically played out on a day-to-day basis. We would watch television shows like Forensic Files together, but as television is often sensationalized and is therefore never a valid source for a complete education, my father would mostly talk over the show, answer my questions, and share his personal experiences as a criminal investigator and his vast knowledge of the process that was being shown on the screen. I thereby became fascinated with criminology from a very young age and continued to pursue it as a personal interest throughout my adolescence and adulthood.

On the other side of this coin is my mother, who has been a registered nurse assisting orthopedic surgeons in the operating room for almost fifty years. My mother is the person that sterilizes and preps the instruments, serves as one of the scrub nurses that aids the doctor in the actual surgical procedure, and sometimes closes the incisions. Growing up around her produced many unique educational experiences. I began reading when I was three years old and instead of having storybooks growing up, I had books that detailed anatomy such as The Atlas of The Human Body by Professor Peter Abrahams. I read more books on the various sciences than I ever read with fairy tales and by the time I was in grade school, the school bus was letting me off at the local hospital rather than at a babysitter or family member’s home. I spent much of my time learning from the scrub techs and doctors at the front desk of the operating room while waiting for my mom to finish her cases so we could head home.

In addition to these events, I was diagnosed with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Attention Deficit Disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, and Major Depressive Disorder when I was 6 years old. Because my mother was a nurse, she had access to extensive medical research on these disorders as well as access to the very best doctors who treated them. She was therefore able to explain to me exactly what was going on and over the last 28 years of personally living with these disorders, I have learned much about the chemical make-up of the mentally ill brain and how its various disorders are treated.

Now, I do not in any way claim to be a professional investigator with a degree in criminology. I do, however, believe that my unique personal experiences throughout my lifetime so far— along with extensive research, of course— might lend itself to a better understanding of the Ripper case I have always been so fascinated by. My favorite suspect is a relatively new one— H.H. Holmes, but I have also put together a bit of a profile on Ripper that I would enjoy hearing everyone's thoughts on. I only ask that everyone please be respectful. If you think psychology is a pseudoscience, this probably isn't the best topic for you because my struggles with mental health issues have taught me that it is certainly not and it is hurtful when people discredit it. Thank you for your kind consideration and here is the profile.

• Psychopathy (manipulative and volatile; lacking a conscience or empathy towards others)
• Letters thought to be authentic reveal narcissistic tendencies, but I am not comfortable labeling Ripper as an officially diagnosed narcissist absent evidence of his psychological state at the time of the murders
• Hematomania (obsession with blood)
• Always sliced the left carotid (right handed killer), but subdued the victim through strangulation into a position where the slice could be made from behind with limited blood spurting
• Mutilations usually involved the severing of both femoral arteries, often in the process of removing organs, which produced a massive flow of blood, yet were always carried out postmortem to avoid spurting with the pulse, indicating careful calculation
• “Dear Boss” letter refers to “proper red stuff” and how he saved some from a victim to write with, further leading towards an indication of hematomania
• Superficial charm led victims to let down their guard; may have enticed them with grapes, which were far too expensive for any Whitechapel resident to afford in the time period
• Intelligent and careful; too calculated and arrogant to be a simple case of a man experiencing schizophrenic episodes
• Targeted prostitutes not for what they were, but for their availability and ease
• No sexual motive; women were butchered, but never sexually assaulted
• No sadism; mutilations occurred after quick deaths; doesn’t get off on pain and terror, but on blood and damage

What are everyone's thoughts?

hi star
interesting. alot of what you post i agree with. i also have a profile on the ripper, although it goes beyond just psychological. its here: https://forum.casebook.org/forum/rip...-of-the-ripper

[Sunny Delight]

Given the extent of the door to door enquiries, and that profiling usually places the man's residence in fairly close proximity to the crimes, I think your suggestion that he was likely interviewed, is a good one. Apparently he gave up nothing.



Too much heat, or too much cold? Remember Sunny, Winters coming.

After the murder of Mary Kelly the East end already in a state of panic seemed to go off the scale. It would be really interesting if we had a list of people questioned after her murder. It could be possible the Ripper was questioned by Police and felt sufficiently spooked to reign in his actions.

[FISHY1118]

After the murder of Mary Kelly the East end already in a state of panic seemed to go off the scale. It would be really interesting if we had a list of people questioned after her murder. It could be possible the Ripper was questioned by Police and felt sufficiently spooked to reign in his actions.

Sunny, take a good look at Mary kellys mutilated corpes ask yourself do I think a man who was capable of this sort of barbaric butching could or indeed would stop? . Its my belief the killer either died very shorty after Kelly or was instituionize being adjudged criminally insane for some unrelated event, but " reign in his action" not likely .just my thoughts.

[John Wheat]

Sunny, take a good look at Mary kellys mutilated corpes ask yourself do I think a man who was capable of this sort of barbaric butching could or indeed would stop? . Its my belief the killer either died very shorty after Kelly or was instituionize being adjudged criminally insane for some unrelated event, but " reign in his action" not likely .just my thoughts.

Hi Fishy
Didn't William Henry Bury leave London shortly after Mary Kelly's murder, probably have some sort of a breakdown, dispatch his wife in a manner similar to the C5, get arrested, then was hung for his wife's murder? Isn't this the sort of bloke you're talking about?

Cheers John

[Sunny Delight]

Sunny, take a good look at Mary kellys mutilated corpes ask yourself do I think a man who was capable of this sort of barbaric butching could or indeed would stop? . Its my belief the killer either died very shorty after Kelly or was instituionize being adjudged criminally insane for some unrelated event, but " reign in his action" not likely .just my thoughts.

I think he may well have felt the pressure if the Police were getting close or for instance he read about George Hutchinson and got spooked. Alternatively look at someone like Sutcliffe. He stopped for over a year and it coincided with his mother's death. I don't think he would have stopped willingly- something happened to make him stop. You think he may have died or been judged insane- absolutely possible. For me though I see McKenzie and Coles as Ripper victims or at least likely to be. And so I look at it and say why did he stop after Kelly, for me it was a real possibility that he felt obliged to stop as things were getting too hot, the Police were getting close and there was an excellent description of him out there.

[FISHY1118]

Hi Fishy
Didn't William Henry Bury leave London shortly after Mary Kelly's murder, probably have some sort of a breakdown, dispatch his wife in a manner similar to the C5, get arrested, then was hung for his wife's murder? Isn't this the sort of bloke you're talking about?

Cheers John

Hi John , yes could be a scenario, but in William Henry Burys case id be putting that down to a Domestic violence ''kill'' of his wife. There are plenty of thing about Bury that dont sit well with me.

[Mark J D]

... take a good look at Mary kellys mutilated corpes ask yourself do I think a man who was capable of this sort of barbaric butching could or indeed would stop? . Its my belief the killer either died very shorty after Kelly or was instituionize being adjudged criminally insane for some unrelated event, but " reign in his action" not likely .just my thoughts.

To be totally honest with you, poor Kelly's corpse has a lot about it that looks to me like performance...

M.