The 4L's of Murder

Today’s speaker was Catherine Taggart who’s talk was titled The 4L’s of Murder. Catherine who explained that her name Was the same as the fictional detective on tv.

She asked if we could guess what the 4Ls are? They are Love, Lust, Loot and the one that we couldn’t get Loathing. Catherine said there would be no gory photos and then went on to explore cases of murder and in some cases mass murders in each section.

She concentrated mainly on Women who kill, as in the cases of murder to do with lust it is 98% men and just 2% women who commit these crimes. Catherine started with serial killer Jane Toppan who murdered 12 people in Massachusetts between 1895 and 1901 although she confessed to killing 31 and was suspected of killing more then 100. She was a nurse who admitted to carried out the murders to satisfy a sexual fetish.

Another case was Donald Harvey “Angel of Death” who claimed to have murdered 87 people as a hospital orderly in Ohio and Kentucky and claimed to have done it to ease patients suffering but gradually came to enjoy it.

Another more recent case closer to home was of Dr Harold Shipman with an estimated 250 victims over 30 yrs who died in Wakefield prison in 2004. Catherine said there was a fifth L which she said was lunacy, a lot of murders claim diminished responsibility at there trial and get off with manslaughter.

She finished off with the fact that the age range of our members meant that there was little chance of us being victims and to have a good nights sleep.