The case that may - or may not - connect to the Black Dahlia

In this episode of Dee-Brief, Dee heads to 1940s Chicago to examine one of America's most infamous unsolved - or perhaps wrongly solved - murder cases: The Chicago Lipstick Murders.

Between 1945 and 1946, three shocking murders terrified the city. A cryptic message allegedly scrawled in lipstick gave rise to the ridiculously nickname "The Lipstick Killer," while the brutal murder of six-year-old Suzanne Degnan sparked one of the largest criminal investigations in American history.

But was the right man ever convicted?

Dee explores the controversial case of William Heirens, whose confession has been debated for decades, examining claims of coercive interrogation, disputed forensic evidence, and one of the earliest alleged false confessions in American criminal history.

The episode also revisits the extraordinary claims made by retired LAPD detective Steve Hodel, who believes his father, Dr George Hodel, was responsible not only for the murder of Elizabeth Short - the Black Dahlia - but also for the Chicago Lipstick Murders.

Was the case really solved?Or has the true killer remained hidden for nearly eighty years?

Listen now and decide for yourself.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to listen to our two-part interview with Steve Hodel on the Black Dahlia, where we explore the evidence behind his extraordinary theory that his father may have been one of America's most prolific unidentified serial killers.

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Sources

• Hodel, Steve. Black Dahlia Avenger

• Hodel, Steve. Most Evil

• Newton, Michael. The Encyclopedia of Serial Killers

• Chicago Tribune 

• Chicago Sun-Times

• Illinois Innocence Project materials discussing the Heirens case