Using the firsthand expertise she has gained through writing the bestselling Dr Kay Scarpetta novels, Patricia Cornwell utilizes the demanding methods of modern forensic investigation to re-examine the evidence in the Jack the Ripper murders. These include state-of-the-art DNA testing on various materials, computer enhancement of watermarks and expert examinations of hand-writing, paper, inks and other relics. She also uses her knowledge of profiling on the possible suspects, as well as consulting experts in the field. On presenting her conclusions to a very senior Metropolitan Police officer she learns that had the investigators of the time been presented with the facts she has unearthed, her suspect would definitely have been arrested and would probably have faced trial. Naming the killer as the artist, Walter Sickert, Cornwell details the reasons and evidence for this conclusion.
Cornwell makes a good circumstantial case against Walter Richard Sickert, a painter. She blames him not only for the 5 murders attributed to Jack the Ripper, but for several others as well, including the murders of several children. Unfortunately, there’s no real physical proof, and apparently no room in this book for dissenting opinions.
I listened to what is apparently an abridged version of this book, despite owning a hard copy. I really don’t feel the need to pick up the book and fill in the blanks.
