Although the introduction of the Met caused some improvement in law and order in London, it was still embryonic and amateurish and so the impact was minimal. England’s law and order was far inferior to other countries around the world, which includes India who introduced fingerprint identification by this time. Poor recruitment and organisation, futile methods and a large number of crimes all contributed to the weak law and order system which was in place during 19th Century London.
2.Why did the Whitechapel murders attract so much attention in 1888? (15 marks)
The five Whitechapel murders in 1888 were cause of much attention and interest and remains so today. The actions of the notorious Jack the Ripper attracted so much attention because of the media involvement, the forged letters and the fact that all the victims were from the same social group. However, it will be argued that the most important reason is the sheer brutal and horrific nature of the murders and the fact that they were all committed in such a short period.
The press were also responsible for attracting a lot of attention to the Jack the Ripper. Newspapers, such as ‘The Star’, created sensationalist stories about Jack the Ripper and covered all the developments in the investigation. These papers were read by people all over the country, and the citizens were gripped by the stories they were reading. The murder cases became so well covered and published that they gave the murderer a name – Jack the Ripper – and he became notorious.
As the case developed, and the Ripper claimed more victims, it became apparent that all of his preys were prostitutes who were often drunk. The public were engrossed by the fact that one social group was targeted, and were intrigued by why this was so. Moreover, all five of the murders occurred between August and December and this created a huge sense of fear and shock and had an immediate impact on the public and hence it attracted a lot of attention.
The fact that the Ripper was left anonymous, gave rise to multiple people writing forged letters, claiming to be the infamous murderer. An example is the ‘Dear Boss’ letter in which the writer claimed to be Jack the Ripper. These claims attracted more attention and intrigue as the public wanted to find out who was committing all these violent deeds.
The vicious nature of the murders and the mutilated state which the bodies were left in, is possibly the biggest cause of attention. Jack the Ripper not only murdered his five victims, but he butchered their bodies as well and this caused a strange fascination among the public. There had been very few serial killer cases which involved such a massacre and this uniqueness attracted a lot of focus. This was particularly apparent in the case of Mary Kelley who was found with her thighs and breasts cut off and her face was beyond recognition.
The case of Jack the Ripper and his five brutal murders is one of the most famous ever, and he is still known as the most infamous serial killer, however the attacks attracted even more attention at the time. This was due to the forged letters which people wrote claiming to be the murderer, as well as the press involvement and the fact that the victims were from the same social group. However, the most important cause for the attention was the brutal nature of the attacks and the small time period in which they occurred.
Q.3 Why were the police unable to catch Jack the Ripper? (20 marks)
The case of Jack the Ripper was, an still is, one of the great police mysteries as the infamous serial killer still remains anonymous. The police were unable to catch Jack for many reasons, which include the location and geography of Whitechapel, conflicting witness statements as well as the role of the media. However, it will be argued that the most important reason as to why the Ripper wasn’t caught, is the poor policing methods which were employed when investigating these crimes.
The location and geography of Whitechapel helped Jack the Ripper to escape from the scenes of crime and ultimately aided him to remain anonymous. There were many dark alleys and narrow crooked streets which meant that it was hard to see or follow the Ripper and so people were unable to identify or catch him. Moreover, all of his victims were prostitutes who often worked in dark alleyways and corners and this meant that the Ripper was easily able to target these victims and it would go unnoticed as they were in secluded areas. These reasons meant that the Ripper was able to murder his victims without many people seeing, as he was also able to easily escape from the crime scene and this is a significant factor as to why he wasn’t caught.
As well as the suitable surroundings, another important reason why the Ripper wasn’t caught was the role of the media. The press often published false leads which distracted the police and often wasted a lot of their time. This was apparent in the ‘Dear Boss’ letter in which the writer claimed to be Jack the Ripper, however there was no evidence to support this claim. The press also suspected that the Ripper was foreign, despite no evidence, however this created confusion and meant that the police were pursuing false leads. Therefore, the role of the media was quite significant as a cause as to why the Ripper wasn’t caught.
During the case, the police had many suspects however they were never able to locate any evidence to support these suspicions, and one important reason for this was the fact that there were conflicting witness statements and often witnesses were drunk. An example of this was Louis Diemschutz, who found the body of Elizabeth Stride, however prior to this he had been drinking at the Men’s club and therefore his evidence was less reliable. Furthermore, there were often witness statements which contradicted each other and this meant that the police had little of no evidence. Without any evidence, the police could make little progress with their investigation and this meant that they were unable to catch the Ripper. Therefore, the unreliable witness statements were a significant factor as to why the Ripper was never caught.
Arguably the most significant reason as to why the Ripper was not caught is the poor policing and ineffective methods which they used. The police used methods such as phrenology, the judgement of character by the shape of one’s skull, as well as photographing the eyes of the victim because they thought that the eyes would reflect the face of the murderer. These methods are clearly illogical and did not make any progress in the investigation. Moreover, there were examples of officers falling asleep and acting drunkenly while on duty, at the time of the murders. This ineffective policing meant that it was easy for the Ripper to go undetected and get away with his crimes. The combination of futile methods and poor policing meant that the police were unable to gather any evidence against the Ripper and this is a significant reason as to why the Ripper wasn’t caught.
Jack the Ripper was, and still is, one of the most famous serial killers in history and the case of his five murders will remain one of the great police mysteries as he still remains anonymous. There were many factors which contributed to why he wasn’t caught, which include unreliable witness statements, the unhelpful role of the media as well as the location and geography of Whitechapel. However, the most significant reason why the Ripper wasn’t