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book: The Case That Never Dies
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The Case That Never Dies

The Lindbergh Kidnapping
Language: English
Published/Copyright: 2004

About this book

The Case That NeverDies places the Lindbergh kidnapping, investigation, and trial in the context of the Depression, when many feared the country was on the edge of anarchy. Gardner delves deeply into the aspects of the case that remain confusing to this day, including Lindbergh’s dealings with crime baron Owney Madden, Al Capone’s New York counterpart, as well as the inexplicable exploits of John Condon, a retired schoolteacher who became the prosecution’s best witness. The initial investigation was hampered by Colonel Lindbergh, who insisted that the police not attempt to find the perpetrator because he feared the investigation would endanger his son’s life. He relented only when the child was found dead.

After two years of fruitless searching, Bruno Richard Hauptmann, a German immigrant, was discovered to have some of the ransom money in his possession. Hauptmann was arrested, tried, and sentenced to death. Throughout  the book, Gardner pays special attention to the evidence of the case and how it was used and misused in the trial. Whether Hauptmann was guilty or not, Gardner concludes that there was insufficient evidence to convict him of first-degree murder.

Set in historical context, the book offers not only a compelling read, but a powerful vantage point from which to observe the United States in the 1930s as well as contemporary arguments over capital punishment.

Author / Editor information

LLOYD C. GARDNER, a professor of history at Rutgers University, is the author of over a dozen books on U.S. foreign relations. Among the awards he has received are two Fulbright Professorships and a Guggenheim Fellowship.

Reviews

"The Case That Never Dies does not tell us definitively who kidnapped and killed Charlie. But I would not be surprised if other readers also conclude that had Gardner, with his curiosity, keen understanding of human behavior and first-rate analytical mind, been involved with the original investigation, this story would have had a significantly different ending."
— Trenton Times

Topics

  • Publicly Available

    Frontmatter

    i
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  • Publicly Available

    Contents

    vii
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    Acknowledgments

    ix
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    Introduction

    1
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    1. Sudden Fame

    5
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    2. Betty Gow’s Journey

    11
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    3. Mickey Rosner’s Game

    34
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    4. Man of Mystery

    57
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    5. Interrogations

    88
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    6. Expert Opinions: Money, Handwriting, and a Ladder

    112
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    7. Confrontations

    143
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    8. In District Attorney Foley’s Office

    173
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    9. Mr. Wilentz Builds His Case

    199
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    10. Visions of a Ladder

    222
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    11. The Search for Isidor Fisch

    243
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    12. Judge Trenchard’s Courtroom

    267
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    13. Trial by Experts

    298
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    14. Cross Examinations

    321
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    15. The Governor and the Man in the Death House

    358
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    16. The Palate of Mortals

    397
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    Notes

    417
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    Bibliography

    463
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    Index

    467
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    About the Author

    481
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Publishing information
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook published on:
September 23, 2019
eBook ISBN:
9780813554471
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
View content
https://doi.org/10.36019/9780813554471
eBook ISBN: 9780813554471
Keywords for this book
kidnap; kidnapping; Lindbergh; Lindbergh kidnapping; criminal; true crime; history; New Jersey; American; evidence; investigation; evaluation; Charles Lindbergh; kidnapper; Colonel Lindbergh; Norman Schwarzkopf; Schwarzkopf; police; FBI director; FBI; Edgar Hoover; Hoover; trial; Great Depression; anarchy; crime; Owney Madden; Al Capone; New York; perpetrator; child; Bruno Hauptmann; Hauptmann; ransom; guilty; innocent; murder; 1930s; capital punishment; punishment; Betty Gow; Mickey Rosner; mystery; attorney; interrogation; justice
Audience(s) for this book
For a non-specialist adult audience
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