Elizabeth Short - The Black Dahlia

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Elizabeth Short, a 22 year old aspiring actress found dead on January 15, 1947 in Leiment Park, Los Angeles, California [1]. Shorts body was found in a vacant lot on at about 10 a.m. by a housewife named Betty Bersinger, taking a morning stroll with her 3 year old daughter. At first glance, the woman thought the body was a broken store mannequin. Upon realizing what it was she covered her daughters eyes rushed to a nearby house and called the police [2]. When Elizabeth Shorts body was found, it was cut cleanly in half at the waist. Her bottom half was shifted and one foot from her upper half, with her intestines tucked under her buttocks. Her internal organs had been removed [3]. Her body had multiple other mutilations including 3 inch cuts from the corners of her mouth reaching up towards her ears creating the famous Glasgow or “joker” smile [2]. She also had multiple cuts on her breasts and thighs where whole portions of skin were removed [1]. Her body was posed with her legs spread and her hands over her head at 45 degree angles. Her body had been bathed and thoroughly washed before being placed, it was also completely drained of blood [2]. Two detectives were assigned to the case: Harry Hanson and Finis Brown. [2] When they and the police arrived at the crime scene, it was already swarming with people, gawkers and reporters. The entire situation was out of hand and crowded, everyone trampling all over any hopes for good evidence. [2] One thing they did report finding was a nearby cement block with watery blood on it, tire tracks and a heel print on the ground. There was dew under the body so they knew it had been set there just after 2 a.m. when temperatures dropped to 38 degrees. An autopsy revealed Short was 5 feet 5 in... ... middle of paper ... ...ug. 2014. Web. 12 May 2014. . 2. "Black Dahlia." Black Dahlia. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 May 2014. . 3. Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 12 May 2014. . 4. "Black Dahlia Confidential." CBSNews. CBS Interactive, n.d. Web. 12 May 2014. . 5. "Home - Steve Hodel." Steve Hodel. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 May 2014. . 6. "The True Story of The Black Dahlia Murder." About.com Crime / Punishment. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 May 2014. . 7. "TRANSCRIPT OF INQUEST HELD ON THE BODY OF ELIZABETH SHORT."VioletArojo. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 May 2014.

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