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The Cases That Haunt Us by John Douglas
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The Cases That Haunt Us

by John Douglas, Mark Olshaker

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I enjoyed reading a profiler's point of view on some of the most famous unsolved cases of all time. It was fascinating to hear his take and read about evidence I might not have known about. ( )
  jclark88 | Feb 1, 2013 |
John E Douglas features the following cases in this book. These are the chapter titles, in American Dreams/American Nightmares he covers the three cases listed.

Jack the Ripper

Lizzie Borden

The Lindbergh Kidnapping

The Zodiac

American Dreams/American Nightmares

“The Black Dahlia” Elizabeth Short

“Lawrencia Bembenek” ‘Bambi’

‘The “Boston Strangler” Albert Henry DeSalvo
The Jon Benet Ramsey Murder

Although I ‘know’ all these cases, I have not done much reading on them. I prefer to read about less known cases. This made this a very interesting book for me. Also it is very informative book, John Douglas has ‘done the research’ on these cases and presents the facts as known.

In some cases he also reports what was ‘known’ or published in the papers.

He explains why these cases are still so well know even today, even though some of them were over a century ago. He details mistakes in the investigations and subjects them to modern profiling. He tells us what kind of man Jack the Ripper was. Did Lizzie Borden really kill her parents? Did Bruno act alone? All the questions that people ask about these cases.

I found this book to be very informative, interesting and would recommend it to True Crime fans. ( )
  BellaFoxx | Apr 23, 2012 |
That half star is because there's no bibliography. I especially felt that lack for the two cases with which I am most familiar: Jack the Ripper and Lizzie Borden. It would have been nice to know if the authors had read all of the same books on those two that I have. Before this book I knew no more about the JonBenet Ramsey murder than the tabloid headlines I'd read in supermarket checkout lines (it happened at a bad time for me). I do not feel that Mr. Douglas skewed the chapter in the Ramseys' favor because he was a paid consultant. I had some experience researching malpractice and injury liability cases when I was a medical librarian. I didn't look for only that information which favored my patron's side. I also looked for information that favored the other side -- and reported both to my patron. I wouldn't have been doing my job if I hadn't. I believe that Mr. Douglas considers the Ramseys innocent for the reasons and evidence he presented. None of the photographs are of the victims, alive or dead, except for the drawings of the heads of the Ripper victims on the reproduction of the old Whitechapel map in the photo section. The other photos are of the 9/25/1988 'Dear Boss' letter signed 'Jack the Ripper,' presented on the same page as the 'Mr. Lusk' letter; the Borden house above its floor plan; ariel view of the Lindbergh home above the ransom note; two photos of that house with the homemade ladder used in the kidnapping; part of the Zodiac's cryptogram above a Zodiac letter; the Ramsey ransom note above a photo of the house; and a floor plan of the Ramsey house. The profiling information was very interesting, and the descriptions of jurisdiction problems are troubling. Fair warning: if you want wild speculations presented as facts, this is not the book for you. ( )
  JalenV | Nov 26, 2011 |
nonfiction compilation of famous unsolved cases by the founder of what is now the FBI's BAU, ---pages, mostly modern-day US, also 1880's England with Jack the Ripper. Douglas analyzes each case using the BAU's techniques. easy to understand for the layperson. straightforward nonfiction, not dry but not stylized either. ( )
  juliabeth | Oct 19, 2010 |
Great read! Douglas delves into some of the most notorious cases in history. He gives honest accounts of the crimes, adding to it his opinions from what really happened to who-dunit. I found the book informative and quite interesting. I only took issue with the Jon Benet Ramsey case. I found Douglas's opinions to be skewed in favor of the Ramsey's due to his employment by them.
  SLeano | May 27, 2009 |
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John Douglasprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Olshaker, Markmain authorall editionsconfirmed
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To the victims of all the unsolved violent crimes this book is dedicated with love and respect. They must never be forgotten nor their cause abandoned.
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In the dark realm of serial killers, this is ground zero: the point from which virtually all history and all discussions begin.
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Amazon.com Amazon.com Review (ISBN 0671017063, Mass Market Paperback)

Confident in his opinions and systematic in his examination of high-profile whodunits, FBI veteran John Douglas proves his worth once again as one of the world's best psychological detectives. You may think you've read all there is about Jack the Ripper, Lizzie Borden, and the Lindbergh kidnapping, but Douglas has a few surprise conclusions in his modern analysis of these gripping crimes. By applying criminal personality profiling techniques he developed while stalking more current killers, Douglas provides a fresh, sage outlook on some disturbing history. He also sheds new light on San Francisco's Zodiac Killer, the Black Dahlia murder, Bambi Bembenek, the Boston Strangler, and the continuing mystery of who killed 6-year-old JonBenét Ramsey. Douglas sometimes reveals his chief suspect; other times he simply narrows down who the killer is not. In the JonBenét mystery (in which Douglas was hired by the Ramseys to find the killer), he presents a convincing case for why he believes the girl's parents are not guilty of murder. Douglas is founder of the FBI's Serial Killer Profiling Unit. His method of solving a crime by entering the mind of the killer inspired Thomas Harris's book The Silence of the Lambs. In this dissection of our most sensational crimes, Douglas proves that reality can be more horrifying than fiction. --Jodi Mailander Farrell

(retrieved from Amazon Wed, 20 Apr 2011 11:22:20 -0400)

(see all 3 descriptions)

From the bestselling authors of Broken Wings, Mindhunter, Journey Into Darkness, and Obsessions, The Cases That Haunt Us dismantles the conventional wisdom regarding eight of the most notorious cases in the history of crime and rebuilds them with astonishing results. From the case of Lizzie Borden in the 1800s, to the murder of the Black Dahlia (Elizabeth Short) in 1940s Hollywood, to the JonBenet Ramsey case, America's foremost expert on criminal profiling takes a fresh and penetrating look at several notorious murder cases and reinterprets facts using modern profiling with astonishing and haunting conclusions.… (more)

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