THE SOLUTION

 

HOW TO BEGIN

The Start Here guide provides your goals for the case: investigate a series of strange events and murders that occurred at Bedlam Asylum in 1913 and 1914, and uncover the identity of the killer. It also indicates that you should observe the following protocols during your investigation: (1) Solve the case by developing the most likely theory that is supported by the evidence, and (2) Accept statements made by witnesses or other sources of information as true unless they are contradicted by other evidence.

 

THE SUSPECTS 

The case file identifies six male suspects: Dr. Custis Henley (superintendent), Dr. George K. Richmond (physician), Desmond Taylor (patient)Charles Muller (clerk), John Fuhr (attendant), and Henry Miller (patient).                  

 

The disturbing letter written by the killer makes clear that he was responsible for all of the following events: the grave robbings in early 1913, the missing patients in late 1914, and the murder of nurse Jenna Morrison. Therefore, only those suspects who had the opportunity to engage in all of those actions could be the murderer.

 

A DEATH AND A FUNERAL 

A note in the document book written by “HEH” states that Charles Muller received a telegram on Jan. 13, 1914, informing him that his father had died. Muller left Bedlam Asylum on Jan. 14 by train to go to New Orleans for the funeral. It further states that Muller will not return to Bedlam Asylum until Feb. 3. Therefore, Muller could not have been present at the asylum when Morrison was killed. He can be ruled out as the killer.

 

A STRANGE FEVER 

According to a typewritten note in the evidence, John Fuhr was severely ill with a fever and confined to his room for seven days beginning on March 8 of 1913. The grave robbing of Marshall Walker occurred on March 10, 1913. Since the killer admitted in his letter that he was responsible for the grave robbings in early 1913, and Fuhr was incapacitated when Marshall Walker’s grave was robbed, Fuhr cannot be the murderer.

 

AN ILLITERATE PATIENT

An article in the newspaper notes that patient Henry Miller is unable to read and write. Therefore, he would not have been able to compose and write the note from the killer contained in the evidence. Henry Miller can be ruled out as a suspect. 

 

AN EPILEPTIC FIT

Dr. Custis Henley was at Forrest City Hospital with his wife when patient Ethel Long went missing. Mrs. Henley underwent surgery to repair a skull fracture and a hospital record in the case file reveals that Dr. Custis Henley did not leave Forrest City Hospital from 12/24/13 through 12/27/13. Since Henley was not present at the asylum when Ethel Long went missing, he is not the killer.

 

A LATE ARRIVAL

The killer’s letter makes clear that he was responsible for all of the following events: the grave robbings in early 1913, the missing patients in late 1914, and the murder of nurse Jenna Morrison. From the timeline of events, you can determine that Dr. George K. Richmond was not yet working and living at Bedlam Asylum when the grave robbing of Marshall Walker occurred. Therefore, it is very unlikely that he is the killer. 

 

WHO IS THE NIGHT MAN

In Dr. Troglen’s interview notes, he noted that Taylor had “developed kleptomania, stealing small objects and items under a seemingly irresistible compulsion and hiding them in his room or in other secret places.” Patient Rachel Pawlowicz (who went missing) was known to always wear a religious bracelet. Patient Ethel Long (who also went missing) was known for stealing ornaments from the Christmas tree and putting them in her pocket, particularly tin snowflakes. Objects matching these descriptions were among the items in the suitcase owned by Desmond Taylor and sent to you by the Oglevie, Thorn & Sharpe law firm. This evidence is not conclusive, since there is no indication in the evidence as to when Taylor might have acquired these items, but it does suggest that he had access to them at some point.

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The killer's letter reveals that the killer is articulate and has the grammar and spelling skills of an educated person. The evidence indicates that Desmond Taylor worked as a clerk for a mining company called Hammond & Co. and therefore would have been able to read and write competently.

 

Coupled with the analysis of the other suspects as articulated above, these facts lead to the most likely hypothesis supported by the evidence -- your ancestor, Desmond Taylor, was the killer.

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DID YOU KNOW?  

 

The descriptions of the residents at Bedlam Asylum in Forrest City were based on real patients who were committed to the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum in the early 1900’s.

 

The floor plan of the fictitious Bedlam Asylum is based on the Kirkbride Plan, a system of mental asylum design and construction advocated by psychiatrist Thomas Story Kirkbride in the mid-19th century based on the now obsolete therapeutic method known as “Moral Treatment.”

 

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