Lindbergh Kidnapping Research Paper

84 years ago Charles Augustus Lindbergh Jr. was kidnapped on March 1, 1932 from the bedroom of his parents house near Hopewell, New Jersey around 9:00 pm. The child was noticed missing around 10:00 pm. Charles Lindbergh, the famous aviator, and his wife Anne Morrow Lindbergh as well as the nursery maid began to search the house grounds for the 20 month baby. In this they found a ransom note on the nursery window sill asking for $50,000. When the New Jersey State Police was notified the investigation of the nursery began. The investigators didn’t find much besides a few muddy foot prints and the ladder that was used to reach the second floor window. They did not find any blood or fingerprints in the nursery. The employees of the estate and household were questioned as well. To create a distance, Colonel Lindbergh asked a friend to communicate with the kidnapper to start negotiations. On March 6th, Colonel Lindbergh received a second ransom note asking for $70,000. A third ransom note was received on March 8th saying the Colonel’s friend would not be accepted as a go between. That same day Dr. John F. Condon, a retired school principal offered to play a role in the negotiations and pay and additional $1,000 to the ransom. This offer was accepted by the kidnapper the next day with a fourth ransom note asking again for the $70,000 dollars in
cash. On the ninth ransom note, the kidnapper threatened to increase the ransom to $100,000 after the Lindbergh Baby’s thumb guard, worn the night of the kidnapping, was found near the entrance of the estate.
The twelfth ransom note was found by Dr. Condon under a stone in front of the Lindbergh Greenhouse, as instructed in the eleventh note. With that note, Condon met with someone calling themselves “John” to attempt to decrease the ransom to $50,000. This was agreed upon and a thirteenth note was given to Condon. The note included a receipt as well as instructions indicating the baby could be found on a nearby boat named
“Nellie.” The following day there was an unsuccessful search for the child. On May 12, 1932 the body of the kidnapped child was found accidentally, partially decomposed and haphazardly buried. The location of the body was four and a half miles away from the Lindbergh home. The infant had a crushed skull with an aperture. Some body components were missing as well. The coroner’s examinations showed the child had been deceased for about two months. More than two years later a man by the name of Bruno Richard Hauptmann uses a $10 gold certificate to buy gasoline. In this time gold certificates were rare, so the gas station attendant wrote down Hauptmann’s license number and took the certificate to the bank. There the gold certificate was identified as part of the ransom paid by Colonel Lindbergh. Hauptmann, who had a record of petty crime, would face the jury. Discovered behind boards in Hauptmann’s garage was $14,590. They were all bills used to pay the ransom. There was also the address and telephone number or Dr. John F. Codon written on the trim of Hauptmann’s bedroom closet. Codon had met with the kidnapper to hand over the ransom in exchange for the location of the yet to be discovered deceased child. During the trial, Codon would testify that “is the voice I heard that night,” to identify Hauptmann. The State of New Jersey proved that Hauptmann received the money. Attorney General David T. Wilentz worked to prove Bruno Hauptmann killed the Lindbergh baby and wrote the ransom notes. 40 examples of Hauptmann’s handwriting were compared to the ransom notes. Experts involved in the trial were able to point out distinct similarities between the ransom notes and the writing samples of Hauptmann. Bruno Richard Hauptmann was convicted of the kidnapping and murder of 20 month old Charles Augustus Lindbergh. On April 3, 1936 Bruno was executed by electrocution. Bruno Hauptmann awaited his death for a year and 20 days. He was pronounced dead at 8:42:45 pm by three doctors, Dr. Robert Stone, Dr. Howard Weisler, and Dr. Connelly. Whether or not Bruno Hauptmann was wrongfully convicted is up for debate. Some believe that because of how willing to participate Hauptmann was that he couldn’t possibly be guilty. Others think that since everything matched up, he committed the crime. However, much of the community did question the efficiency and quality of the investigation.