Lizzie Borden Society Forum

Did the Fall River come to the conclusion that the handleless hatchet was the suspected weapon based on the fact that it did not have a handle attached and placed in the box of other hatchets with a different color dust on it ?

Or was is suspect after Professor Wood said that there was no human blood to be found on the blade / wooden part left in the hatchet ?

Exactly what made it suspect ?

Maybe the fact that Lizzie told the police exactly where to find it ? You guys know more than I do, any thoughts on this ?

Its length of blade matched the cuts in the victims, as measured during autopsy.

The Harvard analysis showed gilt in Abby's wounds, suggesting the hatchet was new or unused, ruling out the handle-less hatchet. I believe the prosecutors hid some of this from the defense.

Also, testimony from one of the cops contradicted the testimony of the others who testified the handle was missing. This cop recalled seeing that handle in the tool box.

It suggests the police, desperate to find the weapon, after several days of fruitless searches, fudged things. That's police misconduct, and we know in the modern world that this is all too common.

I agree the biggest red flag and one that the police should have picked up on was the willingness for Lizzie to tell the maid / police where the hatches were. And when they did find the box they came upon the one hatchet, ( that might as well have said MURDER WEAPON on it )
The handless hatchet stands alone in a box - unusable , colored with a dust unlike the rest. Of course this was to steer the attention to that box and that particular hatchet.
I guess she just wanted the police out of the house - so she points them to this hatchet. For some reason as testified by Officer Mullally that the handle was in the box. That was in direct conflict with the assistant Marshall. BTW - Mullally was basically the only cop that was not promoted to a higher rank - almost every one on the Borden case was promoted from patrolman to Capitan or higher the next year. I am not sure when in 1983 the promotions were handed out - it really doesn't matter. Fleet had it in for Mullally and it showed.

Also - oh so innocent, alibi creating - Uncle John's acquaintance was a butcher by trade - you never know that there might have been 2 different weapons. One new for Abby and another for AJ.

I tend to believe that the handleless hatchet might have been one of Andrew's "treasure finds". It could be the explanation for the different color dirt/dust on it compared to the other items in the box. Clean it up and put a new handle on and it's good as new!

Steve, the police theorized that Lizzie had used ashes or something similar to hide the non-existent blood on the hatchet.

the police theorized that Lizzie had used ashes or something similar to hide the non-existent blood on the hatchet.

I am sure the Fall River PD would have cracked that case. My understanding was that it was washed then the ashes were used to dry it.

Hey Steve: You posted: “Mullally was basically the only cop that was not promoted to a higher rank - almost every one on the Borden case was promoted from patrolman to Capitan or higher the next year. I am not sure when in 1983 the promotions were handed out - it really doesn't matter. Fleet had it in for Mullally and it showed.”

Thx for that information. It seems times do not change.

Well he seems like bad cops have always been with us - Reading about how Fleet treated Lizzie during the many questioning sessions in her room. And when he was in conflict in court that must have really got him mad. I did enjoy the line of questioning from Mr. Adams to Fleet.
In my humble opinion - Fleet was what we call today - "a bad cop"

You can find all the details in the archives of the Fall River newspapers, but the majority of the police force promotions that went into effect in 1893 were due to a comprehensive reorganization and the Mayor was the 'driving force'. The reorganization had been proposed early in 1892 (before the murders), but due to Fall River political dynamics, the promotions were not approved by the board of aldermen until December. Even the final vote was very cantankerous amongst the aldermen. One alderman who was against the 'blanket' promotions claimed someone had attempted to bribe him to approve two of the nominees, but refused to name which nominees.

Many of the "promotions" were just reclassifications which sounded like a promotion, but their authority didn't change. Example: In the new org, inspectors would be ranked as Lieutenants, so to avoid Inspectors being higher ranked than a sergeant, Sergeants were promoted to Lieutenant. That sort of reshuffle.

Which of the Borden police participants are you thinking of as part of the '93 promotions? I can see what I can find on them.

Medley was promoted to Inspector from Officer.

moody to harrington - patrolman 8/92 - 10 years experience now captain

moody to mullaly - patrolman 8/92 - patrolman 6/93 - 15 years experience

moody to edson - acting sgt 8/92 now Lt.

robinson to edson - doherty was a patrolman in 8/92 now Lt

robinson to edson - connors was acting sgt 8/92 now capt.

robinson to edson - desmond was acting capt. 8/92. now capt.

moody to medley - patrolman 8/92 now inspector

Source: Official trial transcripts (Burt- Volume II )

All the promotions were approved December 1892 and the trial occurred June 1893.

Fall River Globe December 31, 1892
“Ordered, That the office of inspector of police may be established with the rank of Lieutenant, the number of said inspectors to consist of four.
That the rank of sergeant be abolished and the rank of lieutenant substituted.

The Mayor then announced the following nominations:
For Captains – Dennis Desmond, Jr., Patrick Connors, Phillip Harrington and Patrick Dougherty.
For Lieutenants – Jeremiah Fahey, John Devine, John Brocklehurst, Andrew Milton and Charles Hinckley and Francis Edson for Day Lieutenant.
Inspectors – Martin Feeney, William Medley, Isaac Wordell, Adelard Perron.”

Observations:
Of the police officers often recognized to have participated in the Borden case, Hyde, Allen and Mullaly were not impacted by these promotional decisions. Desmond went from acting to permanent captain and Edson got promoted since all sergeants got promoted to lieutenant and sergeant rank eliminated. So those two don't jump off the page at me as peculiar changes.

That Medley, as lead detective for the Borden case, would be given one of the initial investigator position makes sense. That said, I do believe that Medley was very zealous in his pursuit of becoming a detective and wouldn't let a little 'creative problem solving' get in the way of his aspirations.

The promotion that feels like an outlier to me is Phillip Harrington jumping from patrolman/officer to Captain. Per the article, Harrington had the choice of a captaincy or being an inspector. He chose the captain position. Hilliard and Mayor Coughlan preferred he take the inspector spot. Interesting that he was so highly thought of that he was given a choice of which promotion he preferred.

The newly promoted Captain Harrington died less than year after the promotion and just days after getting married to his 2nd wife. He went bedridden on his wedding day and did not recover. He was only 34 years old.

Who was promoted is known - why ? we really don't know for sure - You see Desmond with 10 years experience then you see Mullally with 15 years. Probably nothing that tells a story - but as for the Mayor nominating the officers - I would like to think that the PD had the input and the Mayor made it official. I just don't see the mayor promoting anyone without recommendations from the Marshall.

When,,,,,, they were promoted looks like it is pre-trial, why they were promoted is a different story. Just like today - the boss has favorites and the other workers that just do the job. I am sure the same "phrase" was used back then as it is today.

I don't know why it was brought out in court by the attorneys as far as what their rank was in 92 and their job now.

Totally agree that we are still missing many relevant details with these promotions. I was just looking to provide additional contextual info that I had previously compiled. Up to each Bordenite how to evaluate.

To your point, favoritism (real or perceived) plays a part in all of our lives and it must have with these promotions. Additionally, seniority does not necessarily equate with climbing the 'corporate ladder'. Nor should it.....it is only a single input into the evaluation. Right along with favoritism, skill sets, temperament, interest in the job, perceived upside potential, resume, etc. Working on the high profile Borden case would have been beneficial to the resume, even if not due to nefarious activities. Of course, on the flip side, there could have been some nefarious police work going on and that might have helped the evaluation process when the "you owe me one" card might have been played by a potential promotion candidate.

Basically the whole promotion process is a stew with mysterious ingredients.....both in 1892 and today.

The defense brought up this theme at the trial for the same reason I presume they surface most of their points...to create reasonable doubt. Planting seeds in the jurors minds and give those seeds maximum fertilization. That is the recipe for a great defense team.

I would agree on the planting seeds in the jurors mind as to maybe cast a certain image on the force ? But it was basically asked by Moody as well.

Did Moody want a pre emptive strike on the defense, so when they asked the rank questions it would dampen the effect and seem like it was a normal line of questioning ?

However chronology, the first questions about rank came from Moody to Harrington , Mullaly and to Edson. THEN Robinson. Maybe it's something they do as a normal line of questioning. Unless Moody knew something about how Robinson conducts his line of questions - as this not being the first case they were on together - I am assuming...

I've never noticed the sequence of questioning before.....I'll go back and reread and see if my antenna senses any gamesmanship.

I love that you poked on this whole topic....has me thinking some new thoughts and that is what makes this case stay interesting.