Dismissed

[Single-O-Seven]

Harry D has certainly explained things well with regard to Bury and why the murder of Ellen did not fully meet or exceed the previous murders. I actually think the mild mutilations to Ellen are what really pushes Bury ahead for me. I agree that he likely strangled Ellen in a heated moment, and the throat cutting wasn't necessary for the reasons outlined above. The fact that WHB just had to slice her a little bit indicates a compulsion he could not control. He could tamp it down enough so as not to look entirely like JTR, but his "desire" was still there to commit piquerism, which is a very unique signature. No murderer does that "just because." There was an itch there he had to scratch and it's a huge giveaway as to Bury's mindset and makes him about the best of the suspects.

[John Wheat]

Harry D has certainly explained things well with regard to Bury and why the murder of Ellen did not fully meet or exceed the previous murders. I actually think the mild mutilations to Ellen are what really pushes Bury ahead for me. I agree that he likely strangled Ellen in a heated moment, and the throat cutting wasn't necessary for the reasons outlined above. The fact that WHB just had to slice her a little bit indicates a compulsion he could not control. He could tamp it down enough so as not to look entirely like JTR, but his "desire" was still there to commit piquerism, which is a very unique signature. No murderer does that "just because." There was an itch there he had to scratch and it's a huge giveaway as to Bury's mindset and makes him about the best of the suspects.

Hi Single O Seven

I could not agree more with what you're saying.

Cheers John

[Single-O-Seven]

Thanks, John! I enjoy seeing your comments on here.

I'm glad that interest in Bury keeps him high on the list of suspects. I feel there's a lot more we can learn about him that will paint a fuller picture. An even stronger circumstantial case could probably be built. For instance, it might be useful to peruse news archives around the areas he resided in before his 1887 arrival in London. Perhaps researching the dates between 1875-1887 (from when Bury was about 16 onward) might turn up some articles that indicate assaults or violence against women/prostitutes. While he may not be named, it would be interesting to see if these things were occurring around him, and if there are descriptions of the assailant that might match what we know about Bury. Even arsons, suspicious animal deaths, etc, may add something, as Bury does seem to fit a lot of the expected traits associated to serial offenders.

I would be interested in searching some of the UK archives myself. Obviously, I won't get over there in person to do it any time soon. Can anybody recommend some of the better online resources that access some of the press archives around Stourbridge/Wolverhampton/Birmingham, etc? And not just the big newspapers of the time but some of the little more lurid ones would be useful too. Naturally, other better researchers may have walked these rails before me, but a second sweep from new eyes can be useful.

[John Wheat]

Thanks, John! I enjoy seeing your comments on here.

I'm glad that interest in Bury keeps him high on the list of suspects. I feel there's a lot more we can learn about him that will paint a fuller picture. An even stronger circumstantial case could probably be built. For instance, it might be useful to peruse news archives around the areas he resided in before his 1887 arrival in London. Perhaps researching the dates between 1875-1887 (from when Bury was about 16 onward) might turn up some articles that indicate assaults or violence against women/prostitutes. While he may not be named, it would be interesting to see if these things were occurring around him, and if there are descriptions of the assailant that might match what we know about Bury. Even arsons, suspicious animal deaths, etc, may add something, as Bury does seem to fit a lot of the expected traits associated to serial offenders.

I would be interested in searching some of the UK archives myself. Obviously, I won't get over there in person to do it any time soon. Can anybody recommend some of the better online resources that access some of the press archives around Stourbridge/Wolverhampton/Birmingham, etc? And not just the big newspapers of the time but some of the little more lurid ones would be useful too. Naturally, other better researchers may have walked these rails before me, but a second sweep from new eyes can be useful.

Hi Single O Seven

I agree it would be interesting to see if any assaults happened to prostitutes etc in the areas of Stourbridge/Wolverhampton which may have been Bury. It's an interesting line of enquiry.

Cheers John