September 17, 2002

11:42 AM

If you find the events of the Lindbergh kidnapping too convoluted and confusing (since Bruno Hauptmann may have been innocent), clear up the mystery by reading this really biased series of contemporary comic strips. And on a semi-related note, did you know that Norman Schwartzkopf's father was the main policeman in the case?
posted by interrobang (6 comments total)

well, since the comic strip only goes up the the "false leads" section, it's not going to clear everything up. the first link (from The Crime Library), however, is great. i'd never really heard the details of the case so it's quite fascinating to see most of what happened (for some reason, Crime Library skips over what happened after they gave the money to the kidnapper and opened the note, very strange) and how badly the case was handled. although, since it was the first case of it's kind (i.e. high profile kidnapping, media involvement, etc.), it is somewhat understandable.
posted by witchstone at 1:26 PM on September 17, 2002

I think if more people looked into they case, they'd get hooked on it. It really is one of the most intriguing cases, and there's a lot more to it than one could imagine. Even considering all the big name crimes of the 20th Century, I agree that this is THE Crime of the Century.
posted by Fahrenheit at 2:25 PM on September 17, 2002

The ladder used in the kidnapping was made from wood in Hauptmann's garage. Hauptmann quit his job right after the kidnapping, lived comfortably with no income over the next 2.5 years, and eventually got caught spending marked bills from the ransom. When he was arrested, police found the remaining ransom money hidden in his garage.

Yes, it's obvious he was framed.
posted by Daze at 2:32 PM on September 17, 2002

Well, it's clear he was involved, but he wasn't the sole perpetrator. His friend Fisck (sp?) definitely had more to do with it than he did, but circumstances prevented him from ever coming to trial (His moving back to Germany, his death in 1933).

Hauptmann was railroaded by the power that Lindbergh held. Maybe if they weren't so quick to kill him, authorities would've been able to drill some answers out of him.
posted by Fahrenheit at 2:41 PM on September 17, 2002

I don't know much about the case, despite being distantly related to Ellis Parker, but I did find this essay to be an interesting survey of the inconsistencies in the case against Hauptmann.
posted by maurice at 6:27 AM on September 18, 2002

There's a big difference between "wasn't the sole perpetrator" (possible though unlikely) and "may have been innocent" (farfetched).

How exactly was Hauptmann "railroaded"? The evidence against him was overwhelming, and his trial lasted six weeks.

The mysterious Fisch doesn't really deserve much attention. Hauptmann got caught with the ransom money stashed in his home, and told investigators: "that money belonged to my friend, and he just gave it to me, and I have no idea where it came from, and then my friend left the country, and then my friend died." The jury didn't buy it, and neither do I.
posted by Daze at 9:47 AM on September 18, 2002