Cleveland was America's sixth largest city in the 1920s, a significant manufacturing and railroad center, culturally renowned, with a Millionaire's Row and impressive Beaux-Arts structures created by the city's Group Plan of Public Buildings. Then came the Great Depression. Cleveland's public and private leaders, aided by federal government programs, worked to help struggling residents and climb back to its former municipal heights. They secured the 1936 Republican National Convention and successfully planned the 1936-1937 Great Lakes Exposition. But a serial killer emerged, terrorizing the city and threatening its recovery. From 1935 to 1938, at least 12 dismembered bodies were found in the Kingsbury Run area, where hundreds of homeless had created a shanty town. Eliot Ness, hired in 1935 to clean up the police department as Cleveland's safety director, took personal charge of the "Torso Murders" investigation in 1936. The killings stopped after the prime suspect committed himself to a hospital, but the suspect never confessed, and the killer has never been identified. Drawing upon Ness' papers, news articles, and police records, this program will discuss the criminal investigation of the Kingsbury Run Torso Murders, revealing contemporary forensic limitations, and review current forensic efforts with the DNA Doe Project to identify many of the killer's victims. The program will also examine the ramifications of the prime suspect's political connections as well as Ness' ferocious raid and burning of the Kingsbury Run shanty town.

This program will include a panel presentation with fascinating images from the criminal investigation of the Kingsbury Run Murders and 1930s Cleveland. Attendees will also serve as a jury on the guilt of the prime suspect.

This program is sponsored by the Legal History & Rare Books SIS (LHRB-SIS).

TARGET AUDIENCE:

Any librarian involved with marketing special collections or creative marketing to engage one's community (i.e., school, firm, government library). Any librarian interested in using historical collections to teach legal and policy concepts.

TAKEAWAYS:

1. Takeaway #1 goes in here. of the Kingsbury Run Torso Murders and compare contemporary and current forensic methods.
2. Participants will be able to examine Eliot Ness' raid of the Kingsbury Run shanty town within the context of contemporary and current municipal actions with homeless populations. 
3. Participants will be able to explain the use of archival and historical materials to engage audiences and students when teaching about criminal investigations and public policy.

SPEAKERS:

• Traci Onders, DNA Doe Project
• Mazie M. Adams, Cleveland Police Historical Society

MODERATOR/COORDINATOR:

• Laura E. Ray, Cleveland State University College of Law

AALL BODY OF KNOWLEDGE DOMAINS: Teaching + Training, Marketing + Outreach

CANCELLATION AND OTHER POLICIES:

No refunds will be given for any purchased AALL conference recording. This applies to non-AALL members only as the recordings are free for AALL members.

The opinions shared during this program represent the views of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL). Recording, capturing, or using AI tools to duplicate, transcribe, or otherwise reproduce an AALL program in any form is strictly prohibited without prior written consent from AALL. This includes, but is not limited to audio, video, or any other content shared. By accessing an AALL recording, you agree to adhere to this policy.