Suicides in 1888 Whitechapel

[Mayerling]

While suicide is possible i believe we would be more likely finding the Ripper's name among those who were incarcerated for a lengthy period of time.

If we are to assume he was, i can't help but wonder if Jack couldn't keep it to himself and confess to a fellow inmate.

He could have risked it, but if his inmate was likely to reveal such information to the prison authorities it was quite risky. But also consider that after awhile many prisoners (and non-prisoners) may have made confessions like that - especially death bed confessions. In 1874 a small boy named Charlie Ross was kidnapped from a street he was on in Germantown, Pennsylvania. He was never heard from again, despite an intense search (the first child kidnapping for ransom in U.S. history that we know of). His father Christian Ross spent the rest of his life (he died around 1901) double checking every new "revelation" that somebody made that he was Charlie Ross. None worked out. Charlie's brother Walter (who died in the 1930s) had the same painful experience for years too. Confessions whenever made have to be viewed with skepticism until something in them clicks with undisclosed facts on the case.

Jeff

[Abby Normal]

Maybe. No. Suicide is rare among serial killers. A few have killed themselves while in custody. A handful have killed themselves before arrest. It's very rare and even then its usually just among a specific type of serial killer but not unheard of.
Suicidal tendencies aren't unusual when they are adolescents or in their pre-crime stages. Once they actually start killing, suicide is highly unlikely.

yup. They Usually(only?) commit suicide when the jig is up.

[Shaggyrand]

yup. They Usually(only?) commit suicide when the jig is up.

I have seen references to the BELIEF that some commit suicide before capture. A couple of suicide notes have claimed ownership, a Jack the Stripper suspect's did & the killings stopped right around te same time. Not sure if any of those claims have been confirmed but its sometimes a working theory.

[John G]

I have seen references to the BELIEF that some commit suicide before capture. A couple of suicide notes have claimed ownership, a Jack the Stripper suspect's did & the killings stopped right around te same time. Not sure if any of those claims have been confirmed but its sometimes a working theory.

Unfortunately, the Jack the Stripper suspect who committed suicide is slightly less credible a suspect than the Duke of Clarence in the Whitechapel murders!

[Abby Normal]

While suicide is possible i believe we would be more likely finding the Ripper's name among those who were incarcerated for a lengthy period of time.

If we are to assume he was, i can't help but wonder if Jack couldn't keep it to himself and confess to a fellow inmate.

HI Gnote
Yes I agree.
I would be extremely interested if any serious resesrchers looked for men who were incarcerated (prison or asylum) or killed, preferable with a knife involved, in the latter half of 1889. (because McKenzie was probably a ripper victim IMHO).

There are a lot of extremely talented researchers on here.

Has anyone done this yet, or willing to take it on?
!!!Calling all researchers!~!!

: )

[caz]

A serial killer will typically:

1. Ask strangers to view people they've just killed
2. Walk with said stranger to find a policeman to tell them about the dead person
3. Voluntarily show up in court to tell their story about asking the stranger to see the person he'd just killed and going to find a policeman to tell about the dead person
4. Maintain gainful, steady employment throughout their lives
5. Marry and stay married throught their lives
6. Have a dozen kids
7. Open a business later in life
8. Die in their bed at a ripe age
9. Leave a nice inheritence to their family (Psychopaths are often very worried about their loved one's financial security, you see)

This is all very elementary stuff. I can't believe I have to remind you of it.

Very disappointed in you, Patrick. You missed one out between 3 and 4:

3a. Kill again the following week in a location designed to bring police attention straight back to the stranger who was second on the scene of their previous murder.

Love,

Caz
X

[SirJohnFalstaff]

Abraham Potzdamer killed himself after killing his estranged wife. He cut her throat and fled. When he saw that he was about to be captured, he cut his own throat and plunged his fingers inside the wound to widen the gap.
(Source: 1888 London Murders in the year of the ripper, by Peter Stubley.

[Rosella]

In April 1889 a coronial jury brought in a verdict of suicide on Robert Hiron, a shoemaker aged 52, who was living in a common lodging house in Whitechapel. He was driven by mania and 'excitement' due to being disturbed by the Jack the Ripper murders. The Cumbrian Patriot newspaper reported the case.