The Slasher killings : a Canadian sex-crime panic, 1945-1946 / Patrick Brode.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Brode, Patrick, 1950-

Series:

Painted turtle book

A painted turtle book

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Sears, Ronald, -1956.

Sears, Ronald.

Serial murderers--Ontario--Windsor.

Serial murderers.

Gay people--Crimes against--Ontario--Windsor.

Gay people.

Gay people--Ontario--Windsor--Social conditions.

Gays--Crimes against.

Ontario--Windsor.

Social conditions.

Windsor (Ont.)--History--20th century.

Windsor (Ont.).

Physical Description:

229 pages : illustrations, maps ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

Detroit, Mich. : Wayne State University Press, [2009]

Summary:

"The Slasher Killings is an excellent account of community and police responses to unusual crimes and shows us how crime can sometimes provoke a deeply disproportionate reaction. A fascinating case study-it is also a very good read."

As the City of Windsor, Ontario, Celebrated the End of World War II and the return of its troops with parades and public revelry, the industrial city in southeastern Canada was shaken by a series of brutal attacks on gay men. Windsor residents learned there was a serial killer living among them and that, despite numerous police roundups, no credible suspect could be found. The failure of the police to catch the murderer, a "blood lusting maniac" as the local newspaper described him, and the media's sensational focus on "sex deviants" involved in the attacks, plunged the city into a moral panic.

Drawing heavily on investigation records and firsthand evidence maintained by the Windsor Police Department, author Patrick Brode details the dramatic search for "the slasher" that captivated the community for two years. Brode also examines the press campaign that chronicled the search, as it fanned the flames of the public's hysteria and justified the authorities' efforts to monitor and control Windsor's gay population. The Slasher Killings is both an engaging true-crime story and a serious look at the media's influence in fueling public paranoia.

Contents:

Victory

Panic

"When in doubt throw him in"

The root of the panic

Interesting persons

Return of the Slasher

Arrest and redemption

An avenging force

First trial : "disgusting details"

"Not British justice"

A most unusual young man

Third trial : a newspaper conviction

The marketplace of fear

The cost of panic.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780814334485

0814334482

OCLC:

316736402