This is a story, rather a murder mystery that remained unsolved in the history of murder and crime. A lot of investigations, researches were conducted but nothing ever materialised into concrete evidence. Read the detailed story of who Black Dahlia was and what went wrong with her that took everyone by surprise.
In 1947, the body of a twenty-two year old Elizabeth Short was found in two pieces in a parking lot in Los Angeles. According to the newspaper reports post the murder, Short received the nickname, ‘Black Dahlia’ at a Long Beach drugstore in the summer of 1946 as a play on the movie: The Blue Dahlia. However, Los Angeles County district attorney investigators’ reports state the nickname was invented by newspaper reporters covering the murder. In either case, Short was not generally known as the “Black Dahlia” during her lifetime.
The Black Dahlia is a story that has baffed police and crime investigators across countries for decades now. The story has inspired countless books and movies over the years. Everyone seems wants to know exactly what happened to Elizabeth Short who has created numerous theories as to the true killer’s identity.
The date, i.e. January 15, 1947 was by all accounts an ordinary day. Betty Bersinger left her daughter at home, heading to the shops when she saw a disturbing site. On the first glance, the figure lying in the woods appeared to be discarded mannequin but a second look gave her the impression that the figure was actually the body of a woman.
The police who arrived on the scene found an even more disturbing site. The woman wasn’t just dead but had been mutilated. Her killer had posed the woman graphically but only after first cutting her body in half. Police later estimated that the woman had been tied down with ropes and tortured for several days before death took a toll on her. The scene was devoid of blood indicating that the acts committed against her happened elsewhere.
By the time police removed its barricades from the scene, numerous damage had already occurred to the crime scene. Curiosity seekers carried away souvenirs and raced through the scene. A large amount of evidence was destroyed in the melee. The only thing police could do was take the fingerprint of the young woman in the hope of discovering the identity of the Black Dahlia. It didn’t take long for police to discover that the woman’s name was Elizabeth Short, though she would be better known as the Black Dahlia. Though they knew who she was, they were not sure of what lay ahead of them.
Elizabeth Short had come to Hollywood with the common dream of being an actress like the other girls had. Her fair complexion, a black mane and a curvy figure topped with the black short dress that she mostly dressed in, over-awed a number of men. Once there she changed her name to Beth and began spending her time hopping from club to club, trying to meet the right set of people to launch her acting career. Beth quickly became well known throughout the town. She, then, hooked up with a man by the name of Mark Hansen, who was well-known for the lavish parties he threw and the beautiful women he surrounded himself with. She often borrowed money from friends and was not cautious of where she slept. After seeing a movie called The Blue Dahlia, Beth began calling herself the black dahlia.
People around her noticed that Short seemed to be casual when it came to falling in love and was convinced that every man would rescue her from her dreary life. She was about to get married with a military man before he was sent overseas. Soon, another man proposed to her and that romance lasted long after he was shipped to the point where he gave her a pre-engagement ring. Unfortunately, though the man was killed in action, leaving her heart broken, she was back to staying alone again.
Some believe that losing her love is what set her off as following her lover’s death she began spending more of her time on the streets, searching for the man who would take her away from her ordinary life. Though she seemed firty and eager to please, men quickly realized that the young woman was not as easy as they thought. That didn’t stop the woman from dating a string of men, some of whom would become suspects in her eventual murder.
The hunt for the murderer of the Black Dahlia was far fetched with police following thousands of leads over the years but in vain. A local newspaper office received a letter from the supposed killer containing a number of her personal effects such as some photographs and her social security card. Police discovered that the person had covered everything with gasoline to remove any traces of fingerprints.
There have been a number of theories over the years as to who was the actual killer of Elizabeth Short or the Black Dahlia. One popular theory states that the murder actually committed a number of similar murders in Ohio where he was dubbed the Cleveland Torso murderer. Others have come forward with claims that friends, husbands, fathers, even spouses were the true killer of the Black Dahlia. Despite a long search, the true killer has never been found.
It is surprising that a ffty year old murder can still capture our attention today. Though many people still believe that the murder would be solved. If that is true, then we may never know actually did kill Elizabeth Short. Many rumours have spread about the Black Dahlia and the investigation (one of the largest in LA history) never found her killer.
