The UNKNOWN suspect

[Versa]

Is an unknown suspect theory really a theory? For example, imagine if a serial killer was at large today and the police held a press conference and stated that they didn't have the foggiest idea of who it was. But, they assure the public, the killer is not among their usual suspect pool of sex offenders. Is that a theory?

Modern policing methods and a change in racial steriotyping and prejudice make a difference. the Unknown Susect is the best therory, the police in the east end of london in 1888 where very poorly equipped to deal with an evolved sexual preditor let alone a serial killer of JtR's calibre.

the unknown suspect is the most likely, how many serial killers are active today? and are they all on suspect lists?

[lynn cates]

violent thug types

Hello. Mr. Mason, I concur. I think most (all?) of the non C5 (and perhaps 1 or 2 of even them) might be cleared up by implicating some of the violent thug types (Bury, Deeming, et al.).

I think there is a map on case book dedicated to an early sociological analysis of the Whitechapel neighbourhood. Some areas were listed as violent.

(I said "sociological," not "psychological" Mr. Flynn.)

I suppose the real mystery is why there weren't MORE knife murders.

LC

To chime in - an UNSUB is definitely my choice, too. The recent - and excellent - documentary " Revealed: Jack the Ripper" nearly mirrored my imagined profile of the killer - an anonymous East End "low-life", possibly violent and alcoholic, most likely never listed or mentioned in any case files or later research material.

Of all the named suspects, Martin Fido's Cohen is the only one that genuinely interested me.

I think Cohen is very interesting as well.

The thing that jumps out at me is that there seems to be an endless list of men that were known by or brought to the attention of the authorities that had criminal backgrounds that included violence, and were unstable. The fact that one of the most prevalent answers to the Ripper question that was given by senior men after the slayings was that he was identified and locked away in an asylum.

If we built a list of those kind of men alone, disturbed and likely violent...the Pizers, Squibbys, Cohens, Kosminskis, Burys, Graingers, Sadlers.....I wouldnt be surprised to find a killer or 2 of some of the women who have been placed under a Ripper kill category...or some of the suspected ones.

Cheers all.

[Vess]

To chime in - an UNSUB is definitely my choice, too. The recent - and excellent - documentary " Revealed: Jack the Ripper" nearly mirrored my imagined profile of the killer - an anonymous East End "low-life", possibly violent and alcoholic, most likely never listed or mentioned in any case files or later research material.

Of all the named suspects, Martin Fido's Cohen is the only one that genuinely interested me.

The only ones that I agree with both of you on are the first 2, and it seems they are the most probable Ripper kills in your estimations respectively. That doesnt surprise me, but it does affirm what I believe is the only way to get a fix on Jack the Ripper, the first two murders hold the bulk of the clues because they are the most probable Ripper murders.

Thats the reason I use those 2 kills as the foundation for what is known about that specific killer...the one that earned his later given nickname.

But I think it also safe to say some known Ripper suspects likely committed crimes against women including violence that are today still examined as possible Ripper murders.

Best regards

[Pettifogger]

I have:

Wilson: 75-25% because I think her attacker was Mr Blotchy Face

Tabram: 55/45% in favour

Nichols: 100%

Chapman: 100%

Stride: 95-05%

Eddowes: 100%

Kelly: (Boy do I ever waver on this one!) But ultimately 65-45%

None thereafter.

We concur on Nichols & Chapman with your stronger argument for Eddowes.

We're approximately similar on Tabram and you exclude McKenzie & Coles where as I exclude Wilson.

We differ on Kelly and you're more cautious on Stride.

[Chava]

I have:

Wilson: 75-25% because I think her attacker was Mr Blotchy Face

Tabram: 55/45% in favour

Nichols: 100%

Chapman: 100%

Stride: 95-05%

Eddowes: 100%

Kelly: (Boy do I ever waver on this one!) But ultimately 65-45%

None thereafter.

[Pettifogger]

I believe among the named suspects there are men that committed offenses that they were not charged with, some that ended up categorized as Canonicals. I do not believe any are Jack the Ripper.

The lesson here is that there were lots of evil men with knives that attacked and killed women in London during those same periods, some Unfortunates....but what happened to Polly then Annie was different than those crimes. Someone may have tried to replicate that horror later in Mitre Square if not the same man, and someone may have made room 13 look like a bloody playground for such a man, ....but of the men that we know as Suspects, not one has the truly deviant edge that the killer of C1 and C2 did.

My feelings are quite similar. My list of JtR kills are as follows along with the probability that JtR was the murderer:


Tabram (50/60%)

Nichols (100%)

Chapman (100%)

Stride (60/70%)

Eddowes (80/90%)

Kelly (80/90%)

McKenzie (60/70%)

Coles (75/80%)

I believe among the named suspects there are men that committed offenses that they were not charged with, some that ended up categorized as Canonicals. I do not believe any are Jack the Ripper.

Bury for sure did some other stabbings, maybe Martha's... Chapman likely some dirty deeds, I dont know if Druitts crimes were likely outside the realm of pedophilia if any, one or more named suspects likely might have been involved with Emmas stabbing, or Annie Millwood or Ada Wilson. Pizer may have committed a few slices here and there. Tumblety might be the American Quack who wanted to buy uteri. Kidney may have killed Liz, Joe B or Joe F might have have killed Mary....if you look thorugh the press all that Fall men who were known to be dangerous were being picked up and held for questioning.

Cohen, Puckridge, Ludwig, Sadler, Grainger, .....

The lesson here is that there were lots of evil men with knives that attacked and killed women in London during those same periods, some Unfortunates....but what happened to Polly then Annie was different than those crimes. Someone may have tried to replicate that horror later in Mitre Square if not the same man, and someone may have made room 13 look like a bloody playground for such a man, ....but of the men that we know as Suspects, not one has the truly deviant edge that the killer of C1 and C2 did.

Cheers

[Ben]

I was unaware that Douglas saw psychotic features in JtR.

Yes, this was very much the implication of that particular profile.

[Chava]

I'm still hanging out for Blotchy Face as my favourite candidate. And we have no idea at all what his name was or where he lived.

One thing that strikes me as interesting is the amount of 'not-knowing-ness' that goes on here. Annie Chapman lodged round the corner from #29 Hanbury St. She may have taken other clients there, or at least been in that vicinity, but no one from there recognizes her. A man sounding like Our Mr Blotchy is seen on a couple of occasions with victims just before their deaths, but no one has a clue who he is. Who was the young gentleman seen plying Kelly with drink at the Ringers'? Was that BF? Or someone else? He's not named. I know there were an awful lot of people living in Whitechapel then, but no one seems to know anyone else in this case. I can't believe the victims didn't know each other, since they were of similar age and circumstance and lived very close, but there's no evidence they did.

Whoever he was, I agree, he lived locally and knew the area extremely well. It's true, Whitechapel looks vastly different at night. Much harder to find your way around then.

[Mascara & Paranoia]

The unknown local theory makes perfect sense to me. That and having read all the bios and stuff about the known/named/official suspects - sure, there's the odd nutter and/or murderer amongst them, but; none of them are of the Ripper's caliber in terms of how they killed or maimed. There's just hardly any tangible proof (or proof at all for the majority of the suspects) that links any of them to any one of the Whitechapel murders in a believable or realistic way.

[Pettifogger]

The one unchallengeable fact remains that JtR was knowledgeable about the Whitechapel area at night.

There should be a poll on this.

If JtR was not a Whitechapel night owl, he was the luckiest SOB who ever lived!

Take any London neighborhood in 1888 (or today) and attempt to dismiss the fact that those neighborhoods are significantly different from sundown to sunup than they are in daylight hours.

[brummie]

Of late I've been giving a great deal of consideration to Francis Thompson as a suspect, he was known to have been living in the Whitechapel in the summer of 1888 as a pauper. It is quite likely he even shared the same lodging houses as some of the victims, indeed he was known to have lived with a Whitechapel prostitue (unnamed) who eventually rejected him. Perhaps it was during this time he wrote his poem 'The ballad of the Witch Babies' in which the hero(?) roams the fog killing and disembowelling women. All circumstantial I know but surely at least as strong as any evidence against any other suspect.

[Varqm]

The one unchallengeable fact remains that JtR was knowledgeable about the Whitechapel area at night.

This doesn't necessarily make him a denizen of Whitechapel but certainly someone who frequented the area at night.

Since I'm someone who believes that he was operational from August 1888 (Tabram?/Nichols) until February 1891 (Coles), I've eliminated many of the named suspects who didn't fit that timeline.

The one unchallengeable fact remains that JtR was knowledgeable about the Whitechapel area at night.

There should be a poll on this.
Can include did he knew the victims/or a bit of their routines slightly or not. Did he know Mary Kelly was alone that night and sneaked in or Mary Kelly went out and brought him. Or the other view he knocked and Mary Kelly opened.
Views on these things helps.