Moonlight Murder on Lovers' Lane Read Online Free
Author: Katherine Ramsland
Somerville, Dr. Long cut into her abdomen. Apparently he was looking for evidence of pregnancy. He closed her up without a word and helped to transfer the deceased woman to New Brunswick.
The press was having a field day with the contents of the love letters from the scene. Eleanor had dubbed her lover “Babykins,” and he’d apparently accepted it. “Dearest, love me hard, hard, harder than ever,” he’d written in one of his own letters, “for your babykins is longing for his mother.” Each spoke lavishly of an urgent need for the other, as “liquid fire into your very soul.”
Several letters were printed verbatim, which helped to swell the reach of the local papers. Everyone wanted to see what this supposed man of God had written to his married mistress. The murders acquired a romantic patina akin to Romeo and Juliet.
Neither James Mills nor Frances Hall formally identified their deceased spouses. No autopsy was ordered and funerals were conducted for both victims. The bodies had decomposed too much for full embalming, so the undertakers recommended quick disposal. As Edward was displayed in his ecclesiastical vestments, more than 200 people showed up for the service.
Some members of the minister’s congregation still believed in his integrity, a fair amount of gawkers attended the service, too. When it concluded, Edward’s body went into the Stevens family vault in Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn.
To the surprise of many church members, Frances Hall sent a wreath for Eleanor’s funeral, which took place the next day before a much smaller gathering. She was buried in Van Liew Cemetery on Georges Road in New Brunswick.
Jim Mills at wife’s grave
On Monday, the investigation was transferred to Joseph E. Stricker’s office in New Brunswick, because some officials believed that the couple had been killed over the county line. Although this matter was still undecided, Stricker accepted the challenge. It was the start of what would become a political tug o’ war.
To cover all bases, grand juries were convened in both counties. Despite the appearance of an orderly approach, chaos was rampant.
Even worse, people still flocked to the crime scene to take souvenirs, making it difficult for police to search the area carefully for the murder weapon or other items. People not only stripped the crabapple tree, but had also dismantled the abandoned Phillips farmhouse. As a crime scene, it was pretty much worthless.
However, the investigation now aimed at exposing secrets and lies.
Chapter 10: The Bodies, Again
Nearly two weeks went by without a break. Stricker struck out at every turn. Beekman publicly criticized him and stepped back in without anyone asking him to. Beekman decided that autopsies should have been performed on the deceased, so he wanted them exhumed for another look. In a fumbling effort to get information without having to commit to anything, the Middlesex County Board of Freeholders offered a $1000 reward, to be paid only if the information proved that it was a Middlesex County crime.
Distrustful of the police, Frances hired a former New York County assistant district attorney, Timothy N. Pfeiffer, to protect her rights and to look further into her husband’s death. He hired a private investigator, which added yet one more nose sniffing around.
Officials scheduled the exhumations, and disinterred Eleanor’s body first. A doctor from each of the two counties went jointly to work.
They could see that Eleanor had decomposed quickly. The physicians examined her three bullet wounds and examined the cut across her throat. It was deep, slicing down to the spinal cord. They realized that the killer had been carrying a very sharp knife.
Autopsy table
Photo by Jimmie Johnson
They found that the windpipe had been severed, along with the esophagus, as if to silence the soprano. Eleanor had also sustained scratches on her arms, below the elbows, and had a wound on her upper lip. Although this
The press was having a field day with the contents of the love letters from the scene. Eleanor had dubbed her lover “Babykins,” and he’d apparently accepted it. “Dearest, love me hard, hard, harder than ever,” he’d written in one of his own letters, “for your babykins is longing for his mother.” Each spoke lavishly of an urgent need for the other, as “liquid fire into your very soul.”
Several letters were printed verbatim, which helped to swell the reach of the local papers. Everyone wanted to see what this supposed man of God had written to his married mistress. The murders acquired a romantic patina akin to Romeo and Juliet.
Neither James Mills nor Frances Hall formally identified their deceased spouses. No autopsy was ordered and funerals were conducted for both victims. The bodies had decomposed too much for full embalming, so the undertakers recommended quick disposal. As Edward was displayed in his ecclesiastical vestments, more than 200 people showed up for the service.
Some members of the minister’s congregation still believed in his integrity, a fair amount of gawkers attended the service, too. When it concluded, Edward’s body went into the Stevens family vault in Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn.
To the surprise of many church members, Frances Hall sent a wreath for Eleanor’s funeral, which took place the next day before a much smaller gathering. She was buried in Van Liew Cemetery on Georges Road in New Brunswick.
Jim Mills at wife’s grave
On Monday, the investigation was transferred to Joseph E. Stricker’s office in New Brunswick, because some officials believed that the couple had been killed over the county line. Although this matter was still undecided, Stricker accepted the challenge. It was the start of what would become a political tug o’ war.
To cover all bases, grand juries were convened in both counties. Despite the appearance of an orderly approach, chaos was rampant.
Even worse, people still flocked to the crime scene to take souvenirs, making it difficult for police to search the area carefully for the murder weapon or other items. People not only stripped the crabapple tree, but had also dismantled the abandoned Phillips farmhouse. As a crime scene, it was pretty much worthless.
However, the investigation now aimed at exposing secrets and lies.
Chapter 10: The Bodies, Again
Nearly two weeks went by without a break. Stricker struck out at every turn. Beekman publicly criticized him and stepped back in without anyone asking him to. Beekman decided that autopsies should have been performed on the deceased, so he wanted them exhumed for another look. In a fumbling effort to get information without having to commit to anything, the Middlesex County Board of Freeholders offered a $1000 reward, to be paid only if the information proved that it was a Middlesex County crime.
Distrustful of the police, Frances hired a former New York County assistant district attorney, Timothy N. Pfeiffer, to protect her rights and to look further into her husband’s death. He hired a private investigator, which added yet one more nose sniffing around.
Officials scheduled the exhumations, and disinterred Eleanor’s body first. A doctor from each of the two counties went jointly to work.
They could see that Eleanor had decomposed quickly. The physicians examined her three bullet wounds and examined the cut across her throat. It was deep, slicing down to the spinal cord. They realized that the killer had been carrying a very sharp knife.
Autopsy table
Photo by Jimmie Johnson
They found that the windpipe had been severed, along with the esophagus, as if to silence the soprano. Eleanor had also sustained scratches on her arms, below the elbows, and had a wound on her upper lip. Although this
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