UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Wednesday, July 19, 1995
5B
New book theorizes about the Ripper
The Associated Press
LONDON — An American doctor has emerged from the fog of 19th century London as the latest suspect in the crimes of Jack the Ripper, who slashed five prostitutes to death and terrorized the streets in 1888.
But he faces strong competition from a string of other candidates ranging from Queen Victoria's grandson to Impressionist painter Walter Sickert.
A new book by two Suffolk, England, policemen says American surgeon Francis Tumblety was a prime suspect in at least four of the murders. He was
arrested soon after the last murder, but fled to the United States after he was released on bail.
The London murders stopped, but several Ripper-style murders occurred in Nicaragua and Jamaica soon afterward, says "The Lodger" by policemen Paul Gainey and Stewart Evans.
Their theory is based on a previously unpublished letter written in 1913 by Chief Inspector John Littlechild, then head of Scotland Yard's special branch.
Century Publishing, which will publish the book August 3, said author Gainey discovered that Tumbletie, who had hoped to set up a practice in England, hated
women after discovering that his wife was working in a brothel.
Gainey also said Tumbleby had a collection of wombs in a glass jar. Four of the Ripper's victims were disembowelled.
The publishers have not yet said where in the United States Tumbletle was from or where he fled.
Tumblety was arrested soon after the last murder when his landlady found blood on his shirt. He was charged with sexual offenses and granted bail. When he fled, police failed to find him.
The story of the Ripper's horrible deeds has fascinated mystery
buffs for a hundred years, and theories about the killer's identity abound.
One theory said the Ripper was the Duke of Clarence, grandson of Queen Victoria. The duke has been described as a frequenter of high-class brothels. He died at age 28 in 1892, reportedly of influenza, but theorizers suggest syphilis might have been the cause.
The Walter Sickert theory suggests the prostitutes were killed to keep them from revealing that the duke had secretly married an artist's model and fathered a child.
Simpson strong enough to kill, doctor says
The Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — O.J. Simpson's damaged, arthritic wrists would not have prevented him from yanking back his ex-wife's head and slashing her throat, provided she was still and immobilized. Simpson's doctor said Monday.
Robert Huizenga, the physician, is under attack by a prosecutor who accused him of being an advocate for Simpson. Huizenga acknowledged that while the former football player had severe physical limitations, none would have made him incapable of murdering his ex-wife and Ronald Goldman.
"Could he, with his left hand, have grabbed the hair of his ex-wife and pulled her head back?" prosecutor Brian Kelberg asked.
"In a stationary situation, yes," Huizenga responded.
Kelberg went on to question the doctor about
whether Simpson could have slit Nicole Brown Simpson's throat with a knife held in his right hand. Huizenga said it was possible if she was stationary.
The prosecution maintains that Brown Simpson was knocked unconscious and was lying face down on a paved path when her throat was cut.
Kelberg's cross-examination aimed to underline a defense claim that Simpson was so debilitated by arthritis and old football injuries that he could not have killed Brown Simpson and Goldman in a violent confrontation requiring great strength.
The two were stabbed and slashed to death in front of her Brentwood condominium on June 12, 1994.
Huizeng, who examined Simpson on June 15, 1994, said defense attorney Robert Shapiro asked him to evaluate his client's mental condition, but he also did a complete physical exam that
revealed multiple orthopedic problems.
The doctor detailed ailments ranging from deterioration of knee cartilage to rheumatoid arthritis.
Kelberg showed jurors photos of Simpson's muscular body and asked the doctor to evaluate the power of his upper torso.
"I wouldn't hire him to back me up in a bar fight," Huizenga said. "He isn't as powerful as he looks."
At one point, Kelberg took off his jacket and lay down on the counsel table to have the doctor show jurors how he examined Simpson.
A defense objection, however, stopped Huizenga from trying to comply with Kelberg's request to limp across the courtroom to show how Simpson walked into his office.
The doctor said it would be difficult to do such an imitation, and the judge sustained the objection.
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