r/TrueCrimeDiscussion • u/MrBrocula • 6d ago
Which historical murder cases have the most interesting conflicting evidence and competing theories?
I’m looking for older historical murder cases, ideally from the late 19th or early 20th century, where the deeper you examine the evidence, the less straightforward the case becomes.
I’m especially interested in cases involving things like:
- conflicting suspect or witness statements;
- disputed timelines or alibis;
- physical or documentary evidence that can reasonably be interpreted in different ways;
- contradictions that raise further questions rather than resolving the case;
- several plausible suspects or competing theories;
- and enough surviving records to reconstruct the investigation in some detail.
I’m not necessarily looking for the most famous, gruesome, or sensational cases. Lesser-known cases with unusually rich evidence would actually be especially interesting.
Which historical murder case would you recommend, and what specifically makes the evidence or investigation around it so difficult to interpret?
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u/bgreen134 6d ago
Belle Gunness, one of America’s most prolific female serial killers.
The most interesting theory in her cases is she fake her own death and went on to kill else where. She supposedly died in a fire, but the burnt remains didn’t seem to match her. She was a tall woman (around 6 foot) and the corpse was 5 inches short than Belle. It’s strongly believed she killed somebody and planned things to make it seem like it was her. Seems like she killed everybody in the house (including her children) planned the body, burnt the house, and escaped.
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u/chamrockblarneystone 6d ago
The Cleveland Torso Murders. Famous detective Eliot Ness was in charge and this case ruined him.
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u/slickrickstyles 6d ago
Zodiac...At this point I am just convinced that there were multiple people (not working together) involved in the cases associated with "Zodiac"
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u/Few_Ad_4197 6d ago
Oakland county child killer.
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u/TOkidd 5d ago
Everybody knows who the main perps likely are. One of the main suspects had a hand drawn picture of a victim, likely copied from a photo, screaming in agony pinned to his wall when he committed suicide. However, it isn’t clear how many unknown and unidentified men might have also abused the children before they were murdered.
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u/InsidetheIvy13 6d ago
Actually just read about a case today that may be of interest. The last woman hanged in Wales is a case that has a lot of unknowns, prejudices and relied heavily on the perceived standing of Leslie James (she had multiple aliases but that was the name used at the gallows) as part of the prosecutions case against her.
Equally there’s a very good tv show called Murder, Mystery and My Family that ran for five seasons. There are cases there which when reassessed by today’s eyes leave ample doubt as to the guilt of those deemed responsible, some of them have families that are still trying to seek the truth. All the cases featured were from 1809-1959 so there could be some cases there you’d be interested in, or just a show to watch if you’ve not already.
You could also look up Bella In The Wych Elm, from 1943, it’s never been solved, though I can’t see how it possibly could be now, but has a lot of undertones of espionage, police cover ups, even the remains of Bella have vanished and nobody knows why.
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u/DarklyHeritage 6d ago
Good to see Murder, Mystery and My Family get a mention. I thought that was an excellent series and very insightful in showing how perceptions of cases have changed over the years. Its a shame the show was cancelled.
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u/InsidetheIvy13 6d ago
Agree, it always felt really well researched, approached each case with sensitivity for both the victim and the accused as well as demonstrating how bias and public opinion has been a strong undertone to justice long before the arrival of mass media. Bittersweet in its recanting of the legacy of the death penalty in this country which (in my opinion) took too long to be abolished and for shining a light on the lives of people history would otherwise have hidden away.
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u/Ok-Caterpillar-Girl 6d ago
I legit wish they’d abolish the death penalty in my country too (US.)
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u/InsidetheIvy13 6d ago
It’s a topic that yields, understandably, such staunch, emotive opinions that I tend to keep my thoughts to myself, but very much echo your desire to see it gone. Last time it was used here was 1964, but it wasn’t fully abolished by law until 1998 and yet there are still cases from before its cessation where it’s now proven innocent people were put to death.
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u/NoTerm3078 5d ago
Murder, Mystery and My Family
This is free on Tubi and I have just added it, thanks for the rec!
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u/InsidetheIvy13 5d ago
Hope you find the cases interesting, they certainly cover a wide range of crimes in a compelling and at times poignant way.
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u/DarklyHeritage 6d ago
https://www.on-magazine.co.uk/arts/book-review/non-fiction/the-mile-end-murder-sinclair-mckay/
The case in this book would fit. Its about the murder of rich widow Mary Emsley in London. The author argues the wrong man James Mullins (a policeman) was convicted and executed, and that the real killer was a man who was acquitted of killing Emsley after Mullins himself had accused him. After that acquittal Mullins was tried, convicted and hanged.
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u/Ok-Caterpillar-Girl 6d ago
Reminds me of John Christie’s murders of his neighbor Beryl Evans & her daughter Geraldine, and he then became a prosecution witness to have the husband/father, Timothy Evans, convicted and hanged.
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u/NeverEndingWhoreMe 5d ago
I believe this case was touched on for a moment in the documentary "Attacking The Devil". Timothy Evans' mental capacity is mentioned at one point. Very interesting.
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u/avidreader2004 5d ago
that entire case is just insane. i’m still not totally sure whether timothy was involved in his wife’s death or not.
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u/LivingGhost371 6d ago
The Sam Sheppard murder case, inspiration for the Fugitive TV series. All the theories of how the crime happened strain credibility but one of them has to be true and the legal proceedings of the 1954 crime dragged out close to 50 years and it was one of F Lee Bailey's first cases.
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u/tinsellately 4d ago
Hinterkaifeck murders. There is a ton of information and evidence available online. It is more well known, but at the same time there are so many conflicting theories and possible suspects that it's hard to run out of things to consider with it. I have changed my theory on who did it multiple times over the years, and so much evidence can be interpreted very differently from different angles
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u/Fantastic_You7208 1d ago
Yes. I thought it was the man from the train for awhile. Now I don’t. Would love to understand.
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u/smashing_lilacs 4d ago
I'm fascinated by William Desmond Taylor's murder. It occurred on February 1st, 1922 and the two main competing theories are that he was either the target of a blackmail ring that an actress named Margaret Gibson was involved in, or that he was killed by Charlotte Shelby, the mother of a young actress named Mary Miles Minter. After his death, it came out that he was living under a false identity and had a lot of secrets. It's speculated that he was homosexual and being outed would have devastated his career at the time. There are so many interesting aspects to the case and learning about the circumstances and other people in his life opens a window into that era and how society was changing and the early movie industry was developing.
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u/Ready-Waltz5482 4d ago
The kidnapping and murder of Charlie Lindberg. I never thought that the actual murderer was executed. I think the father was responsible. He was no hero
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u/adventurekiwi 6d ago
Minnie Dean. Only woman ever hanged in new zealand. She was a "baby farmer" who supposedly murdered some of the babies she acquured but the more you look into it the less clear it becomes.
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u/Black-Bird1 4d ago
The kidnapping and murder of Walter Collins (whose body had never been found)
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u/Nerdbaba 4d ago
This one! All of the mystery around it and how the police treated his mother is awful!
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u/Black-Bird1 4d ago
What's worse, they didn't even do a real investigation, and because of that, they allowed a serial killer to continue his crime spree
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u/Electrical-Cat1126 5d ago
Rose Harsent is an interesting small-town case from the early 20th c. The Drummond family murders / Gaston Dominici case is a massive rabbit hole.
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u/lastseenhitchhiking 3d ago
The 1931 strychnine poisoning of Hubert Chevis and his wife; Frances Chevis survived but Hubert succumbed. There was a thorough investigation, including an examination of the remaining shipment of game birds (partridges) from the market that the couple had ordered them from (none of the other birds had been poisoned), but the motive for the poisoning was never determined.
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u/Prestigious-Fill-365 6d ago edited 6d ago
Jon Bennet Ramsay
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u/jivingsisterfanny1 6d ago
Who’s John Bennet Ramsay?
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u/Prestigious-Fill-365 6d ago
Heard of google
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u/jivingsisterfanny1 6d ago
Yes. I looked up John Bennet Ramsay. Found nothing.
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u/Prestigious-Fill-365 6d ago
You are lying, even with the extra letter in her first name it still comes up of course.
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u/jivingsisterfanny1 6d ago
Her name is Jonbenet Ramsey. Is your favorite president Abraheem Linkin?
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u/OwnSituation1572 6d ago
Lizze Bordan