For our last project, I have decided to create an e-portfolio using Wix. The features on the website builder are super easy-to-use, which is important to consider due to my lack of experience with personalized websites. I like the flexibility that Wix offers as well because I tend to be creative. Also, I like the opportunity of creating a website that will never be restricted after graduating from Penn State, which is another benefit because I plan to present myself to internships and medical schools in the future. The benefits of Wix clearly align with all of my preferences, so it will be the platform of my choosing.
While creating my e-portfolio, I plan to highlight my extracurricular activities, academics, and interests. My goal is to present myself in a way that will give my future applications for internships and medical schools an extra boost. To present myself in a professional way, I plan to use artifacts that showcase my dedication to academics, such as several awards or a resume. I also plan to use artifacts that highlight my leadership experience, which is an important interest of mine. For example, I plan to emphasize leadership conferences that I have attended and leadership positions that I have held in the past. I would like to incorporate artifacts that emphasize my passion for hobbies or extracurricular activities as well because internships, schools, and places of employment like to look for balance across multiple areas of interest.
Those are all of my ideas for my e-portfolio! Hopefully this gives you enough insight into what I’m planning to do!
I don’t know about you guys, but I can’t believe that the semester is almost over! Working with all of you has been an absolute blast and I hope we stay in touch! With that being said, I hope you enjoy my last blog post too!
Coroner Sam Gerber analyzing the bones of a victim of the Cleveland Torso Murder. Sadly, the case is not solved and not all of the victims have been identified. Image SourceA fitting picture of case expert, James Badal. Image Source
In my last blog post, we delved into the evidence that led reputable detective, Eliot Ness, to his secret suspect of the Cleveland Torso Murders. The suspect, Dr. Sweeney, perfectly fit the profile of the Cleveland Torso Murderer and had the medical expertise required for dismembering human bodies. On top of the evidence gathered by Eliot Ness, another case expert found separate evidence to implicate Sweeney. What’s even more chilling is that the case expert, James Badal, had found his evidence after spending more than 18 years of research on the Cleveland Torso Murders as of 2014. Let’s look into Badal’s portfolio for the Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run.
Badal’s evidence not only confirms that Dr. Sweeney fits the profile of the Cleveland Torso Murderer, but also surpasses the evidence gathered by Eliot Ness. First, Badal uncovered a mysterious report about a vagrant, Emil Fronek, who lived in Kingsbury Run. In the report, the vagrant claimed that a doctor tried to drug him, which occurred in 1934. Badal was initially intrigued by the report because the Cleveland Torso Murders took place from 1934 to 1938. The vagrant also told authorities that the doctor practiced in a building located on Broadway Street. The authorities never found Sweeney’s office, so the report was dismissed. After looking into the story, however, Badal discovered that Sweeney did practice in a modest-looking building on Broadway Street. The vagrant’s report intensifies the suspicion hovering over Sweeney, especially since a victim of the Cleveland Torso Murderer was drugged as well. Despite the profound connection between the vagrant’s story and Dr. Sweeney, it’s hard to believe that a person would risk bloody and gruesome murders while in a public setting. Nonetheless, Badal found more evidence that dismisses this afterthought.
An image of an embalming room used by a funeral home. Image Source
After an interview with David Cowles, head of the scientific identification bureau, Badal realized that Sweeney potentially had an agreement with a funeral home right next to his office. The funeral home may have permitted the practice of surgeries on unclaimed bodies, which is a perfect opportunity for a lunatic. The funeral home also had a ramp that conveniently led to the basement, which may have provided coverage for Sweeney. To give you more goosebumps, the funeral home was also not far from any of the disposal sites for the victims of the Cleveland Torso Murderer.
In the end, Ness and Badal have put together astonishing cases against Dr. Francis E. Sweeney. Unfortunately, all of the evidence is only circumstantial, which is not considered to be concrete proof. As a result, Sweeney was never charged for the Cleveland Torso Murders and the case is not solved. On the other hand, do you believe that Dr. Francis E. Sweeney is the Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run? Or do you have any other ideas as to what may have happened? Let me know in the comments section!
In my last blog post, we explored the crimes of the Cleveland Torso Murderer or the Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run. Today, the case is considered “sorta-unsolved,” a classification created by Ryan and Shane, my favorite dynamic duo on Buzzfeed Unsolved Network. The case is considered to be partially solved because detective Eliot Ness collected astonishing circumstantial evidence that implicated a prime suspect. Despite the clues, however, the detective was not able to apprehend the suspect. Before we dive into the details, who exactly is Eliot Ness? If you recall, the last victims of the Cleveland Torso Murderer were found in front of the detective’s office window.
Back in the day, Eliot Ness was a “law enforcement legend.” He led the Untouchables, a group of special agents associated with the U.S. Bureau of Prohibition, and ended the illegal activities of mafias, crooked police, and labor racketeers. The Untouchables largely contributed to the fame of Eliot Ness due to the group’s uncorrupted efforts against Al Capone’s breweries during the Prohibition Era. As a result of the success and fame, Eliot Ness was pressured by authorities to catch the Cleveland Torso Murderer and the heat intensified as the murders progressed. After the last victims of the serial killer were placed in front of his house as a way to mock him, Ness panicked. Several days after the incident, Ness ordered authorities to scour the shantytowns for any evidence that would reveal a serial killer. During the investigation, 63 vagrants were arrested and entire shantytowns were burned to the ground, which was also ordered by Ness. The unethical response to the last victims of the serial killer ultimately ruined the detective’s reputation, but others have reasoned that the extreme action was intended to protect the vagrants from the murderer. Some believe that this opposing explanation is far fetched, but the more you think about it, the more it starts to sense. Despite the backlash that Eliot Ness faced in regard to the detainment of innocent vagrants and the vandalization of shantytowns, he led a secret investigation that uncovered chilling clues.
The secret suspect investigated by Eliot Ness. Image Source
The secret suspect of Eliot Ness was Dr. Francis E. Sweeney. The doctor fit the profile of the serial killer and had the proper anatomical skills required for the dismemberment of human bodies. Dr. Sweeney ended his practice right before the Cleveland Torso Murders as well, which is suspicious. The doctor’s wife also claimed that he was an alcoholic, abusive, and would leave for days without any explanations. The doctor’s extended absences are another red flag. To make the matter even more interesting, Ness secretly apprehended Sweeney and privately interrogated him for 10 to 14 days in a hotel. During the interrogation, Sweeney was asked to take several polygraph tests, which he absolutely failed. Despite the evidence stacked against Sweeney, Ness had violated civil liberty laws by apprehending Sweeney without permission. In addition, Sweeny was the cousin of a congressman, which complicated the matter. As a result, Ness decided to let Sweeney go.
Guess what?
Several months after Sweeney was dismissed by Ness, the last two victims of the Cleveland Torso Murderer appeared in front of the detective’s house (quite the coincidence to say the least). Immediately after the last murders, Sweeney admitted himself into a mental institute. Can you guess what happened next? No more murders were committed by the Cleveland Torso Murderer.
So what do you think so far? Let me know in the comments section and be ready for Part 3 because there’s even more!
Hello, everyone! I hope you are doing well! Throughout the process of writing an issue brief, I have brainstormed several ideas for the advocacy project that I would like to share with all of you. After researching, blogging, deliberating, and talking about food waste, I have decided that it would be appropriate to use the next project as another platform for advocating limited food waste. I think that creating an advocacy project about this topic would also be a great opportunity to complement finished projects. For example, I could create an infographic that exemplifies one of our approaches to limiting food waste on college campuses: educating the students through passive approaches. I could also create an infographic for restaurants or fast food chains, which coincides with the bulk of my issue brief. I am interested in creating an infographic because I think it would effectively grab the attention of my audience – consumers – and would be a realistic approach to influencing the food waste habits of ordinary people. Let me know what you guys think!
When it comes to the photos displayed in the photo essay, “Photographer as Witness: A Portrait of Domestic Violence,” I think that the photos are works of art and platforms for advocating domestic violence. The photos are a form of artwork because each one portrays an abstract idea – a key aspect of art – through people and places. All of the abstract ideas are intangible emotions that unify all of us, including love, hate, patience, mistrust, anger, joy, sorrow. The snapshots of the domestic violence are also pieces of advocacy because each one pulls on the heartstrings of its onlooker, which may inspire that person to take a stand against domestic violence. The emotions emanating from the photos engender advocacy, and the advocacy leads to persuasion. On another note, I have a hard time believing that the photos are an insult to ethics for several reasons. First of all, the people allowed the photographer to document the ebb and flow of their lives by taking photos. Also, I’ve seen and heard so many worse things through all forms of media. The photographs ultimately reveal the difficulty of life and the existence of particular issues that need to be addressed, including domestic violence. The photos are indeed sensitive, but at least they don’t create the impression that life is perfect.
The front page of a newspaper about the Cleveland Torso Murders. Image Source
Cleveland, Ohio, one of the largest cities in the U.S., was plastered on the front page of a gazillion newspapers for the best and worst reasons during the 1930s. Despite the Great Depression, the city was teeming with excitement and bustling with activity after hosting both the Republican National Convention and the Great Lakes Exposition. In addition, the city was promoting Higbee’s Department Store, Standard Oil, and General Electric, which were booming industries back in the day. Amidst all the glory and success, the city was in a panic too. Why? A gruesome serial killer was on the loose.
Starting in 1934, dismembered bodies were found scattered throughout the city of Cleveland, especially in Kingsbury Run. At the time, Kingsbury Run was extremely dilapidated, impoverished, and overrun by shantytowns for the poverty-stricken. Unsurprisingly, the place was also notorious for drugs, alcohol, and sex work. Kingsbury Run was the perfect spot for a serial killer because crime plagued the sector of the city and the police department had become a “corrupt, lazy unit of political patronage.” The killer dismembered the bodies of vagrants and sex workers by decapitating heads and severing torsos. Due to the nature of the serial killer’s crimes, the criminal was referred to as the “Cleveland Torso Murderer” or the “Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run.” By 1938, the serial killer had dismembered 13 people, including 6 women and 7 men. Here is a timeline of all the murders:
A team of investigators, including coroner Sam Gerber, examining one of the body parts left by the Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run. Image Source
September 5, 1934 – An unidentified woman was found on the shore of Lake Erie. The 30-year-old woman was extremely dismembered and the police only found part of her torso, thighs, and other remnants. Oddly, the body parts were “red and leathery” due to a chemical preservative that was lathered on the skin by the serial killer.
September 23, 1935 – Edward Andrassy, a 28-year-old man, was found at the bottom of a hill. His body was naked and completely drained of blood. His head was missing and his genitalia was mutilated as well.
September 23, 1935 – After the body of Edward Andrassy was uncovered, an unidentified 40-year-old man was also found. The body was decapitated, the genitalia was mutilated, and the skin was covered in the same chemical preservative found on the first victim.
January 26, 1936 – The body parts of a woman, Florence Polillo, were found amidst piles of newspaper inside half bushel baskets, which were placed in front of the Hart Manufacturing Building.
June 5, 1936 – The head of an unidentified man was found in a pair of trousers. The rest of the body was found in front of the Nickel Plate Railroad Police Building.
July 22, 1936 – The body of an unidentified 40-year-old man was uncovered in the woods near Clinton Road.
September 10, 1936 – An unidentified man was found near a set of train tracks in Kingsbury Run. The body was cleanly decapitated.
February 23, 1937 – The body parts of a woman in her 20s were found on the shore east of Brahtenahl.
June 5, 1937 – The skull and bones of a woman, Rose Wallace, were found underneath the Lorain-Carnegie Bridge.
July 6, 1937 – An unidentified man in his mid-to-late 30s was found in the Cuyahoga River. The man’s heart was completely missing and all the abdominal organs had been removed from the body.
April/May 1938 – The body parts of an unidentified woman were found in the Cuyahoga River.
August 16, 1938 – Two unidentified bodies were found in front of the house owned by Eliot Ness.
Due to the grizzly murders, the Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run was “one of the most gruesome serial killers of all time.” To put insult to injury, the serial killer sent a letter to the Cleveland police after all the murders, which told the police to “rest easy now” and revealed the serial killer’s new location: California. As of today, the Cleveland Torso Murders are unsolved, but suspects have been identified and clues have been uncovered. Most importantly, why were two bodies placed in front of the house that belonged to Eliot Ness? Stay tuned for Part 2 of the Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run!
