In the late 1930s, Cleveland was gripped by terror as a serial killer, often called the "Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run," left a trail of dismembered bodies across the city. Amidst immense public and political pressure to solve the case, sheriff’s investigators arrested Frank Dolezal, a 52-year-old Slavic immigrant.
: Before he could stand trial, Dolezal was found dead in his jail cell, hanging by his own belt. While officially ruled a suicide, Badal uses modern forensic analysis to challenge this conclusion, questioning if Dolezal was actually murdered to cover up police incompetence. A "CSI-Style" Historical Investigation
: Contributions from contemporary forensic anthropologists and medical examiners to re-evaluate autopsy and archival photographs. Though Murder Has No Tongue (James Jessen Bada…
James Jessen Badal’s is a compelling examination of a dark chapter in American true crime history. Published in 2010 by The Kent State University Press , the book serves as a meticulous follow-up to Badal’s previous work on the Cleveland Torso Murders, focusing on the tragic fate of Frank Dolezal . The Scapegoat of a Frightened City
: Exploration of how the high-profile failure to catch the real killer tarnished the reputation of then-Safety Director Eliot Ness . Though Murder Has No Tongue In the late 1930s, Cleveland was gripped by
Dolezal was an easy target for a city desperate for a scapegoat:
: Access to private investigator notes and police reports from the era. While officially ruled a suicide, Badal uses modern
Badal, a journalism professor and board member of the Cleveland Police Historical Society, approaches the cold case with the rigor of a modern forensic investigator. He utilizes a wealth of archival materials to reconstruct the events:
