Category Archives: Homicide

Reminder: My Next Ask Me Anything on the Black Dahlia Case Is August 4

Posted on July 28, 2026 by lmharnisch

Reminder: Boxie and I will be doing a live Ask Me Anything on the Black Dahlia case next Tuesday, August 4, at 10 a.m. Pacific time at YouTube.com/LMHarnisch. Have questions? Leave them in the comments. Continue reading →

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July 26, 1947: Son Cleared of Killing Father During Attack on Mother

Posted on July 26, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 26, 1947: Son cleared of killing father during attack on mother. Continue reading →

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Dead Man’s Last Words: ‘Here’s a Good Spot to Shoot, Baby,’ July 25, 1944

Posted on July 25, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 25, 1944: William B. Smith’s last words to his angry girlfriend were “Here’s a good spot to shoot, baby,” after he said he was going back to his wife. Continue reading →

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July 24, 1947: Honor Student Vesta Belle Sapenter, 17, Strangled

Posted on July 24, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 24, 1947: Vesta Belle Sapenter, an honor student at Jefferson High, is found partially undressed and strangled. Continue reading →

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July 23, 2009: Darryl Thomas Kemp, Paroled Sex Killer Strikes Again, Gets Death Penalty for the Third Time

Posted on July 23, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 23, 2009: Darryl Thomas Kemp, paroled sex killer, is sentenced to death in the 1978 killing of Armida Wiltsey. Continue reading →

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July 9, 1947: Rosenda Mondragon Strangled With Stocking

Posted on July 9, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 9, 1947: Rosenda Mondragon is found murdered. The Times and the Examiner have different accounts of the killing and the actions of her husband, Antonio. Continue reading →

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July 2, 1947: Man Held in Strangling of Mary Tate

Posted on July 2, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 2, 1947: Oscar Hallgren is held in the killing of Mary Tate at 107 Weller Street, now Onizuka Street in Little Tokyo. Continue reading →

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Reminder: My Next Ask Me Anything on the Black Dahlia Case Is July 7

Posted on June 30, 2026 by lmharnisch

Reminder: I will be doing a live Ask Me Anything on the Black Dahlia case, next Tuesday, July 7, at 10 a.m. Pacific time at YouTube.com/LMHarnisch Continue reading →

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June 25, 1947: L.A. Times Praises Gangland Slaying of Bugsy Siegel

Posted on June 25, 2026 by lmharnisch

June 25, 1947: The L.A. Times praises the gangland slaying of Bugsy Siegel: ‘The assassination of a crook is of no particular importance to a community, and grief at his passing is restricted to a minor and unselect circle.’ Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: Mamie Van Doren Is Hallucinating About Knowing the Black Dahlia

Posted on June 20, 2026 by lmharnisch

Mamie Van Doren, age 95, is hallucinating about knowing Elizabeth Short, the Black Dahlia. Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: Mamie Van Doren’s Invented Memories of Elizabeth Short

Posted on June 19, 2026 by lmharnisch

It’s a bit sad when a superannuated actor writes a memoir about what they think they “remember” about old Hollywood. There’s no truth to Mamie Van Doren’s claim that she knew Elizabeth Short, the Black Dahlia. It’s all imagined. Continue reading →

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June 16, 1907: Lawyer Edith Foulkes Handles Her Own Divorce Case

Posted on June 16, 2026 by lmharnisch

June 16, 1907: Attorney Edith Foulkes sues her husband, Ralph, for divorce, saying he drank constantly. “Suspecting that his wife was beginning to consider her marriage a failure, he had talked in melancholy fashion of murder and suicide, somewhat to the martial discomfort of Mrs. Foulkes,” The Times said. Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: Ask Me Anything, June 2026

Posted on June 2, 2026 by lmharnisch

In the Ask Me Anything on the Black Dahlia case for June 2026, I took questions and highlighted David Oranchak’s final installment in his three-part video series on the false claims of Black Dahlia/Zodiac sleuth Alex Baber. Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia Book Club for May 2026

Posted on May 19, 2026 by lmharnisch

In this month’s Black Dahlia Book Club, I discuss Jack Webb’s 1958 book “The Badge” and its portrayal of Elizabeth Short, the Black Dahlia. Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: Teaser for Video Disproving Alleged Dahlia-Zodiac Link and ‘Cracking’ Zodiac’s Z13

Posted on May 13, 2026 by lmharnisch

YouTube teaser for David Oranchak’s video refuting Alex Baber’s claims that he has “solved” Zodiac’s Z13 cipher, and linked the Black Dahlia and Zodiac cases. Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia Book Club – Coming May 19, 2026

Posted on May 12, 2026 by lmharnisch

Reminder: I will discuss Jack Webb’s 1958 book “The Badge” and the “Dragnet” radio show in the next session of the Black Dahlia Book Club, Tuesday, May 19, at 10 a.m. Pacific time at http://www.youtube.com/@lmharnisch/streams Continue reading →

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May 6, 1908: Shocked Judge Grants Divorce; Bodies Found at Indiana Murder Farm

Posted on May 6, 2026 by lmharnisch

May 6, 1908: A judge in Connecticut grants a divorce to Henry Lord with details so shocking that the judge stays the proceedings. And crowds visit the Indiana murder farm. Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: Ask Me Anything, May 2026

Posted on May 5, 2026 by lmharnisch

The Ask Me Anything on the Black Dahlia case for May 2026, focusing on whether the LAPD will release its files on the Black Dahlia case. Continue reading →

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April 29, 1891: ‘The Chinese Murder,’

Posted on April 29, 2026 by lmharnisch

April 29, 1891: The Times reports the death of a Chinese woman named Ah Gue/Goot Gue, who was shot in the abdomen by her husband, Wong Ark/Gam Duck, outside a brothel on Apablasa Street. Ark allegedly killed Gue because she didn’t give him all the money he wanted for gambling. Continue reading →

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April 16, 1938: Child Molested, Killed

Posted on April 22, 2026 by lmharnisch

Trigger warning: This post from 1938 deals with an abuser who died in the gas chamber for killing his young victim. Continue reading →

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