Medical evidence Ellen Bury murder

[Boggles]

Due to the startling similarity with the other ripper murders, sometime over the next few weeks I plan to scan and add the medical reports from Ellen Bury's murder here on this thread for anyone who may interested in reading and discussing the first hand accounts.

So to kick off here is a snippet from the lancet 1889 which serves as good summary.

[Boggles]

trying again with resized picture

[Boggles]

anyway this is what it says! (god bless the clever americans)

THE DUNDEE MURDER.
At the Dundee Circuit Court, on the 28th ult., William
Henry Bury was tried before Lord Young for the wilful
murder of his wife, Ellen Bury, on the 5th of February last.
The facts as disclosed in the evidence were very conclusive
against the prisoner. He was married to the deceased in
London last Easter Monday, she having then about £300
invested in bank shares, and he being a dealer in sawdust
and sand. Soon afterwards he became intemperate and
idle, living entirely upon her money. This led to quarrels,
and he was seen by the landlady of their lodgings in Bow-
kneeling over his wife with a table knife in his hand.
W hen her money was nearly all spent, at the beginning of
this year, he induced her by a forged document to believe
that he had obtained employment in Dundee, and she
accompanied him there by the steamer on Jan. 19th. They
went to live at 113, Princes-street, and on the morning
of Feb. 5th a man living near heard screams as of a
woman in distress coming from Bury's house, but, as
they ceased, he took no further notice. On Sunday,
Feb. 10th, the prisoner went to the central police station
and told the officer on duty that his wife and he had
been drinking on the previous Monday, that he did not
remember the time when he went to bed, and that when
he came down the next morning he found his wife lying
on the floor dead with a rope round her neck. He
then said that he got frightened that he would be appre-
hended as a "Jack the Ripper," and cut up the body, and
packed it in a box, where it was to be found. On the police
going to the house, the deceased's body was found in the
box, the legs having been both broken to admit of its being
got into it. It was removed to the mortuary and examined
by Mr. Templeman, police surgeon, and .Mr. Stalker, patho-
logist to the Dundee Royal Infirmary. Their joint report
was most exhaustive, and, excepting that it contained
rather too many technical terms, was a model of what such a
report should be. It was clear from it that the unfortunate
woman was murdered by strangulation while in a state of
insensibility, probably from a blow on the temple,
and that the various wonnds and fractures were in-
flicted after death. Dr. Templeman expressed a very
strong opinion that the strangulation must; have been
homicidal, and that it could not have been suicidal. The
deceased was right-handed. There was the mark of only one
ligature on the neck; it varied in width from one-eighth to
one-third of an inch, and the direction in which the violence
must have been applied was downwards, outwards, and
backwards—a thing impossible for a right-handed person,
setting aside the great improbability of self-strangulation.
Dr. Littlejohn, the experienced police surgeon of Edinburgh
and lecturer on Medical Jurisprudence at Surgeon's Hall,
also gave evidence for the prosecution. He considered that
the blow on the temple was first inflicted; that the applica-
tion of the ligature to the neck followed, producing suffoca-
tion; and that while the deceased was moribund the various
wounds described in the report were inflicted. He held that
suicide under the circumstances was utterly impossible.
The trial, on the whole, was admirably conducted, though
two circumstances were to be regretted. One was that the
trial was not adjourned over a second day, instead of being
continued for thirteen hours in a close and crowded court,
although this was at the request of the jury. So important
a trial might have properly been extended over parts of
two days. The other circumstance was that there should
have been advanced the theory of suicide, improbable
under almost any circumstances, and under those disclosed
in the evidence impossible. A somewhat curious feature
in the trial was the finding by the jury at first a verdict of
"Guilty," with a recommendation to mercy on the ground
of the conflicting medical evidence—a verdict more sug-
gestive of an Irish than a Scotch jury. The judge very
properly refused to receive it, and sent the jury back to
their room, from which they soon returned to find an
unqualified verdict of "Guilty." The prisoner received
his death sentence with the same callousness he had shown
throughout.

[Cogidubnus]

Hi Will

Yes that would be great...I'm still puzzling over that fragment of the PM report you posted before (the "hue" of capillary hemorrhage still doesn't sound right - maybe it's a line of capillary hemorrhage?) so it'd be good to see the lot assembled in one place.

All the best

Dave

[Boggles]

Now ive sent Dave first of these, i will not attach it all here just these 2 front pages because it takes too long time. So hopefully Dave can do his stuff on those and post below.

Dave email was ~20mb btw so if you not receive let me know

[Boggles]

next page

[Boggles]

page 3

[Cogidubnus]

Hi Will

One of my daughters is getting married on Saturday, and it's all getting a bit edgy...The missus is in a total flap with the sewing machine going all hours, and I can't think where I left that bloody shotgun...but nonetheless I've tackled the first document.

Apologies if there are any innacuracies because that doctor has the damndest handwriting...and when he's not splitting words between lines in some places, he's combining them on others!

You may recall I had a go at a small portion of this document on another thread, but now, with the advantage of context, (ie the whole thing), I've modified my views (albeit very slightly) on the exact wording...I note also that I differ a just a very little from a couple of the extracts quoted by William Beadle in "Unmasked", though thankfully not sufficiently to alter the essential meaning of anything...

So here goes:-

Medical Report regarding death of Ellen Elliott or Bury

We hereby certify in soul and conscience, that on the morning of Monday 11th February 1889 we examined at the instance of the Procurator Fiscal for the Dundee district of Forfarshire, in the mortuary attached to the cemetery at Constitution Road Dundee, the dead body of a woman said to be that of Ellen Elliott or Bury.

External Appearance
The body was that of a woman apparently about 30 years of age, 5 feet 1 ½ inches in height, well-made, but poorly nourished. The body was quite cold. Rigor Mortis was still present but not marked. Post Mortem lividity, which was of a bright red colour, was well marked on the back of the trunk and arms. There was some greenish discolouration of the right side of the abdomen.

Head
In the front hair were five curl papers. On both sides of the face were bloodstains which presented a striated appearance, as if they had been wiped with a dry cloth. There was some clotted blood in both nostrils. A small stream of blood trickled across the cheek from the right side of the mouth. The eyeballs were soft and slightly congested, corneae dull, pupils equal and of medium size.
About half an inch above the right end of the left eyebrow was a circular bruise about a third of an inch in diameter. Over the bridge of the nose was a small incised wound penetrating the skin only, half an inch in length, running obliquely downwards from right to left.
There was a mark of constriction around the neck passing in front between the hyoid bone and the larynx, and maintaining this level all the way round with the exception of almost two inches on the left side of the neck where it tended slightly upwards. The whole of the face and neck above this line was congested.
There was slight lividity of the lips, but no protrusion of the tongue. From the centre of the neck the first five inches of this mark to the left was brownish red and hard, and the rest of it was pale in the centre and congested at the edges. It varied in width from an eighth to a third of an inch. About an inch and a half from the middle line on the left side of the neck, was a similar mark joining that above described – three quarters of an inch in length, and running downwards and outwards. It was at the juncture of these two lines that the first mentioned tended slightly upwards.
About three quarters of an inch above this line, below the angle of the left lower jaw, were two small bruises each half an inch in length.

Trunk
There was an incised wound in the centre of the abdomen extending downwards from the umbilicus for four and a half inches. It penetrated the abdominal cavity, and through it protruded part of the omentum and about a foot of intestine, part of which was dry and black from exposure to the air. This cut was ragged towards the lower part.
Commencing at the inner end of the fifth right costal cartilage was a cut running downwards and to the left for seven and a half inches. This was quite superficial, with the exception of the last inch, where it penetrated through the skin into the muscular layer of the abdomen. Half an inch to the right of this, and running parallel to it, was a similar cut five inches in length and superficial throughout. Two inches to the right of, and commencing on a level with the umbilicus was an incised wound three quarters of an inch in length and penetrating through to the muscular layer. From the lower end of the wound opening into the abdomen, on the left side were several superficial cuts little more than penetrating the cuticle, and running down to the pubis.
Running downwards from the centre of the pubis to the outer side of the left labium was an incised wound 2 ½ inches in length penetrating the skin and fat. On the inner side of the right labium was a wound 2 inches in length penetrating the skin. Beginning about an inch behind the anus was an incised wound running forwards and to the left into the perineum, and dividing the sphincter muscle.
At the lower border of the ribs on the left side in the nipple line were two abrasions each an inch in length.
The edges of all the wounds described were everted and marked throughout by a line of capillary haemorhage, and we are therefore of opinion that they must have been inflicted during life or very shortly after death, while the body still retained its warmth and vital elasticity. The other injuries described were all of recent origin. There were other two (sic) cuts on the abdomen – one two inches to the inner side of the right anterior superior iliac spine and the other at an almost corresponding level on the opposite side. They were each about half an inch in length, running downwards and inwards and penetrating to the muscular layer. These were free from any trace of haemorhage.
There were a few dried coagula in the left groin. There was no other appearance of blood in this region, except at the lower part of the left side of the abdomen and the upper half and inner side of the left thigh and this presented the appearance of having been partially removed by washing.

Upper Extremities
On the outer side of the left shoulder was a bruise three quarters of an inch in length. An inch and a half behind this was a circular abrasion a third of an inch in diameter. On the inner side of the left elbow were two irregular bruises about half an inch in length and a slight cut little more than penetrating the cuticle On the knuckle of the right mid finger was a scooped-out abrasion an eighth of an inch in diameter.

Lower Extremities
On the right trochanter was a bruise about an inch in diameter and somewhat irregular in shape. These injuries were all recent origin.
On the front of the right leg, about three inches below the lower border of the patella were four small lacerated wounds communicating with the tibia. At this point there was a comminuted fracture of both bones of the leg but there was no haemorhage into the muscle and surrounding structures. We are therefore of the opinion that this fracture must have been caused a considerable time after death.

On cutting into the mark around the neck in various parts of it we found extravasations of blood into the skin and subcutaneous tissue. This was especially marked on the right side where was a well marked effusion of blood into the platysma muscle.

Chest
Heart. The heart was examined in situ. Both cavities were empty. There was a considerable quantity of dark coloured fluid blood in the pericardial veins.
Lungs. Both lungs were congested and on their anterior surfaces were several small punctiform haemorhages immediately beneath the pleura especially in the lower lobes
The mucous membrane of the Larynx, Trachea and Bronchial Tubes was congested. There was some bloody mucus in the Larynx and Trachea, and bloody frothy mucus in the Bronchia.

Abdomen
The abdominal organs were normal. There was some dark fluid blood in the lower part of the cavity.

Head
There was some ecchymosis into the left temporal muscle just above the ear about an inch in diameter. The membranes of the brain were deeply congested, but the substance of this organ was itself normal.

From this examination of the body we are of opinion that the immediate cause of death was asphyxia produced by strangulation, and that deceased had been dead for from three to six days

C .Templeman MD
A.M.Stalker MD

Dundee
February 11th 1889

Note please that in the original the paragraph headers are actually appended at the left side (like modern bullet points) and show every sign of being added after completion of the rest of the document - hence presumably the reason there's a section on dissecting the neck stuck in between the notes on the lower extremities and the chest!

The other document may be subject to a slight delay!

All the best

Dave

[Bridewell]

Thanks, Dave. Hope the wedding goes well!

[Boggles]

Thanks Dave, much apprecited

[Cogidubnus]

Scathing critique of Dr Lennox

Hi again Will

Here's the second document you asked me to look at. There is a good deal of random capitalisation in this, which I have tried to convey, and in the second half, a good deal of alteration and insertion...regarding the insertions the hands look to be slightly different, but this may be something as simple as a different pen...or if it's a quill, perhaps he sharpened it...

I have shown crossings-out by using strikethrough, and probable insertions by use of italics. Some of the crossings-out are a little hard to decipher but I think they're pretty accurate on the whole.

(Cover Inscription) Notes by Dr Templeman in re Charge of Murder against Wm. H.Bury

Notes by Dr Templeman on precognition of Dr Lennox

The first point that strikes me is that the precognition leaves indefinite whether death was caused by Hanging or Strangulation, which is a primary consideration to the determining whether the death was Suicidal or Homicidal.

Dr Lennox states that as a rule Homicidal Strangulation has certain different appearances from Suicidal Hanging and states these under three different heads.
The first is Subcutaneous Ecchymosis below the constricting band is generally present in Homicidal Hanging Strangulation.

Upon this I would remark that though Dr Lennox failed to detect the subcutaneous Ecchymosis in his examination
[pagebreak]
examination of the body, still when we examined it this was very distinct, more especially on the right side of the neck where the Platysma muscle was as well as cellular tissue was infiltrated with blood.

His second Head is that mechanical injury to the muscles of the neck, to the Larynx & windpipe is generally present in Homicidal strangulation, and also marks of violence about the throat & neck.

As regards this in this case the ligature was placed above the Larynx & windpipe altogether, & the neck disclosed such marks of violence as one would expect from the application of a rope or similar ligature.

His third point is that the hands in Homicidal Hanging are clenched and
[pagebreak]
and have marks of and have marks of injury on them Post that Postmortem lividity is extremely well marked in cases of homicidal Strangulation and patches of Ecchymosis in the Eyes & face are somewhat favourable to the same view.

Upon this I would remark that with regard to the clenching of the hands the only thing one could infer from that and such a condition would be that the violence whether from Hanging or Strangulation was applied suddenly & with great force, whether the case was suicide or homicide.

I cannot find any authority for the last two branches of Dr Lennox’s proposition, and so far as I am aware it is inconsistent with fact.

I may add that when we examined the body there was no Ecchymosis in
[pagebreak]
in the face except the injuries in the nose & above the Eye described in our report.

The patches referred to by Dr Lennox were not evident at first and were only brought out by Postmortem changes.

Dr Lennox also gives as an additional sign of suicidal strangulation the bleeding from the nose

I am not aware of this being said to occur in Suicidal and not Homicidal Hanging Strangulation

He further states that he searched for but found no indication of the position of the Knot, but that the line of discolouration was most marked in the Anterior half of the neck.

A careful examination would have readily shewn where the Knot had been, while as to the line
[pagebreak]
line of discolouration being most marked in the anterior half of the neck, that is not the case.

The main portion position of the knot was to on the left & below the ear side of the neck

Dr Lennox says he did not discover any bruises on the hands, arms or legs beyond the structure fracture to the right leg. I reply that they were there nevertheless & could easily have been seen by examination.

Dr Lennox attributed the blood on the Ulster to bleeding from the nose, and attributes that to suicidal strangulation. How is it possible for blood on the Back of the Ulster to be accounted for in this way?

C Templeman MD

I confess I've guessed the signature from the tops of the characters because the photocopy chopped off the page just a tad prematurely...

He's not very impressed with Dr Lennox is he?

All the best

Dave

[Boggles]

He's not very impressed with Dr Lennox is he?

No he wasnt, and neither am i for that matter, mainly because as he almost got our man off Scot free.

I will send you Lennox's report in a couple of weeks time to decipher for us if you dont mind

[Cogidubnus]

Of course Will...looking forward to it...I observe with dismay that neither the strikethroughs nor the italics in my transcription have been recognised by Casebook....I shall have to sort something out and repost it...

All the best

Dave

[Cogidubnus]

OK - the transcription below is reposted to restore the missing "edit marks"

Round brackets ( ) denote text originally written and subsequently struck through

Square brackets [ ] denote a page break

Italics denote text which looks to have been written subsequent to the main body, either as an addition or an amendment


Note: Cover Inscription reads "Notes by Dr Templeman in re Charge of Murder against Wm. H.Bury"

Notes by Dr Templeman on precognition of Dr Lennox

The first point that strikes me is that the precognition leaves indefinite whether death was caused by Hanging or Strangulation, which is a primary consideration to the determining whether the death was Suicidal or Homicidal.

Dr Lennox states that as a rule Homicidal Strangulation has certain different appearances from Suicidal Hanging and states these under three different heads.
The first is Subcutaneous Ecchymosis below the constricting band is generally present in Homicidal (Hanging) Strangulation.

Upon this I would remark that though Dr Lennox failed to detect the subcutaneous Ecchymosis in his examination
[pagebreak]
examination of the body, still when we examined it this was very distinct, more especially on the right side of the neck where the Platysma muscle was as well as cellular tissue was infiltrated with blood.

His second Head is that mechanical injury to the muscles of the neck, to the Larynx & windpipe is generally present in Homicidal strangulation, and also marks of violence about the throat & neck.

As regards this in this case the ligature was placed above the Larynx & windpipe altogether, & the neck disclosed such marks of violence as one would expect from the application of a rope or similar ligature.

His third point is that the hands in Homicidal Hanging are clenched and
[pagebreak]
and have marks of injury on them (Post), that Postmortem lividity is extremely well marked in cases of homicidal Strangulation and patches of Ecchymosis in the Eyes & face are somewhat favourable to the same view.

Upon this I would remark that with regard to the clenching of the hands the only thing one could infer from (that and) such a condition would be that the violence whether from Hanging or Strangulation was applied suddenly & with great force, whether the case was suicide or homicide.

I cannot find any authority for the last two branches of Dr Lennox’s proposition, and so far as I am aware it is inconsistent with fact.

I may add that when we examined the body there was no Ecchymosis in
[pagebreak]
in the face except the injuries in the nose & above the Eye described in our report.

The patches referred to by Dr Lennox were not evident at first and were only brought out by Postmortem changes.

Dr Lennox also gives as an additional sign of suicidal strangulation the bleeding from the nose

I am not aware of this being said to occur in Suicidal and not Homicidal (Hanging) Strangulation

He further states that he searched for but found no indication of the position of the Knot, but that the line of discolouration was most marked in the Anterior half of the neck.

A careful examination would have readily shewn where the Knot had been, while as to the line
[pagebreak]
line of discolouration being most marked in the anterior half of the neck, that is not the case.

The (main portion) position of the knot was (to) on the left (& below the ear) side of the neck

Dr Lennox says he did not discover any bruises on the hands, arms or legs beyond the (structure) fracture to the right leg. I reply that they were there nevertheless & could easily have been seen by examination.

Dr Lennox attributed the blood on the Ulster to bleeding from the nose, and attributes that to suicidal strangulation. How is it possible for blood on the Back of the Ulster to be accounted for in this way?

C Templeman MD

Fingers crossed it comes out ok now!

All the best

Dave

[The Baron]

"" Medical Report regarding death of Ellen Elliott or Bury

We hereby certify in soul and conscience, that on the morning of Monday 11th February 1889 we examined at the instance of the Procurator Fiscal for the Dundee district of Forfarshire, in the mortuary attached to the cemetery at Constitution Road Dundee, the dead body of a woman said to be that of Ellen Elliott or Bury.

External Appearance
The body was that of a woman apparently about 30 years of age, 5 feet 1 ½ inches in height, well-made, but poorly nourished. The body was quite cold. Rigor Mortis was still present but not marked. Post Mortem lividity, which was of a bright red colour, was well marked on the back of the trunk and arms. There was some greenish discolouration of the right side of the abdomen.

Head
In the front hair were five curl papers. On both sides of the face were bloodstains which presented a striated appearance, as if they had been wiped with a dry cloth. There was some clotted blood in both nostrils. A small stream of blood trickled across the cheek from the right side of the mouth. The eyeballs were soft and slightly congested, corneae dull, pupils equal and of medium size.
About half an inch above the right end of the left eyebrow was a circular bruise about a third of an inch in diameter. Over the bridge of the nose was a small incised wound penetrating the skin only, half an inch in length, running obliquely downwards from right to left.
There was a mark of constriction around the neck passing in front between the hyoid bone and the larynx, and maintaining this level all the way round with the exception of almost two inches on the left side of the neck where it tended slightly upwards. The whole of the face and neck above this line was congested.
There was slight lividity of the lips, but no protrusion of the tongue. From the centre of the neck the first five inches of this mark to the left was brownish red and hard, and the rest of it was pale in the centre and congested at the edges. It varied in width from an eighth to a third of an inch. About an inch and a half from the middle line on the left side of the neck, was a similar mark joining that above described – three quarters of an inch in length, and running downwards and outwards. It was at the juncture of these two lines that the first mentioned tended slightly upwards.
About three quarters of an inch above this line, below the angle of the left lower jaw, were two small bruises each half an inch in length.

Trunk
There was an incised wound in the centre of the abdomen extending downwards from the umbilicus for four and a half inches. It penetrated the abdominal cavity, and through it protruded part of the omentum and about a foot of intestine, part of which was dry and black from exposure to the air. This cut was ragged towards the lower part.
Commencing at the inner end of the fifth right costal cartilage was a cut running downwards and to the left for seven and a half inches. This was quite superficial, with the exception of the last inch, where it penetrated through the skin into the muscular layer of the abdomen. Half an inch to the right of this, and running parallel to it, was a similar cut five inches in length and superficial throughout. Two inches to the right of, and commencing on a level with the umbilicus was an incised wound three quarters of an inch in length and penetrating through to the muscular layer. From the lower end of the wound opening into the abdomen, on the left side were several superficial cuts little more than penetrating the cuticle, and running down to the pubis.
Running downwards from the centre of the pubis to the outer side of the left labium was an incised wound 2 ½ inches in length penetrating the skin and fat. On the inner side of the right labium was a wound 2 inches in length penetrating the skin. Beginning about an inch behind the anus was an incised wound running forwards and to the left into the perineum, and dividing the sphincter muscle.
At the lower border of the ribs on the left side in the nipple line were two abrasions each an inch in length.
The edges of all the wounds described were everted and marked throughout by a line of capillary haemorhage, and we are therefore of opinion that they must have been inflicted during life or very shortly after death, while the body still retained its warmth and vital elasticity. The other injuries described were all of recent origin. There were other two (sic) cuts on the abdomen – one two inches to the inner side of the right anterior superior iliac spine and the other at an almost corresponding level on the opposite side. They were each about half an inch in length, running downwards and inwards and penetrating to the muscular layer. These were free from any trace of haemorhage.
There were a few dried coagula in the left groin. There was no other appearance of blood in this region, except at the lower part of the left side of the abdomen and the upper half and inner side of the left thigh and this presented the appearance of having been partially removed by washing.

Upper Extremities
On the outer side of the left shoulder was a bruise three quarters of an inch in length. An inch and a half behind this was a circular abrasion a third of an inch in diameter. On the inner side of the left elbow were two irregular bruises about half an inch in length and a slight cut little more than penetrating the cuticle On the knuckle of the right mid finger was a scooped-out abrasion an eighth of an inch in diameter.

Lower Extremities
On the right trochanter was a bruise about an inch in diameter and somewhat irregular in shape. These injuries were all recent origin.
On the front of the right leg, about three inches below the lower border of the patella were four small lacerated wounds communicating with the tibia. At this point there was a comminuted fracture of both bones of the leg but there was no haemorhage into the muscle and surrounding structures. We are therefore of the opinion that this fracture must have been caused a considerable time after death.

On cutting into the mark around the neck in various parts of it we found extravasations of blood into the skin and subcutaneous tissue. This was especially marked on the right side where was a well marked effusion of blood into the platysma muscle.

Chest
Heart. The heart was examined in situ. Both cavities were empty. There was a considerable quantity of dark coloured fluid blood in the pericardial veins.
Lungs. Both lungs were congested and on their anterior surfaces were several small punctiform haemorhages immediately beneath the pleura especially in the lower lobes
The mucous membrane of the Larynx, Trachea and Bronchial Tubes was congested. There was some bloody mucus in the Larynx and Trachea, and bloody frothy mucus in the Bronchia.

Abdomen
The abdominal organs were normal. There was some dark fluid blood in the lower part of the cavity.

Head
There was some ecchymosis into the left temporal muscle just above the ear about an inch in diameter. The membranes of the brain were deeply congested, but the substance of this organ was itself normal.

From this examination of the body we are of opinion that the immediate cause of death was asphyxia produced by strangulation, and that deceased had been dead for from three to six days

C .Templeman MD
A.M.Stalker MD

Dundee
February 11th 1889 ""



This is Mind blowing!

Wasn't Bury a sexualy insane murderer?!

Isn't that a sexual mutilation in the full sense of the word?!



I favour Kosminski as a suspect, but how can anyone counter the argument that Bury Was Jack the Ripper?!



The Baron