The Locked Door

[Tani]

For what reason would the door of Miller's Court be locked and how? I can understand Ripper wanting it locked while he was in there, but what the purpose of having it locked on leaving? Why go to the trouble?

[I1ariusz]

Yes, this is interesting question. Even more so when we know that MJK supposedly had lost the key. Couple of reasons comes to mind:

• he took key with him to have somekind of souvenir;
• he didn't want for her to be found that easy or wanted to prevent just anyone from entering (it can mean e.g. that he actually had either remorse or was fully aware of what he had done and how horrible it was);
• it was just a matter of some sort of compulsion - people with OCD might have something like this; it was also observed that killers of this kind can have some unreasonable compulsion to create some order on the scene - like it was with Annie Chapman where she was found with items ordered in some fashion.
• he went out and got back to the room.

Anything else?

[Geddy2112]

Did I not read somewhere here it was a latched affair, in other words if you shut it behind you it would automatically lock?

[GBinOz]

Did I not read somewhere here it was a latched affair, in other words if you shut it behind you it would automatically lock?

That is my understanding.

[Tani]

Did I not read somewhere here it was a latched affair, in other words if you shut it behind you it would automatically lock?

This seems reasonable.

[Herlock Sholmes]

In The Telegraph 10th November:

“The last person to have left the place must have closed the door behind him, taking with him the key from the spring lock, as it is missing.”

A spring lock:

“……on a door refers to a latch mechanism that uses a spring to automatically secure the door when closed, typically found on interior doors“