Marietta was the possible name of a woman who was found murdered in Atlanta, Georgia on May 11, 1912.
Case[]
The victim was discovered at 6:00 AM behind shrubbery at the corner of Atlanta Avenue and Fraser Street. She had been stabbed in the throat at least twice, with one wound going through her jugular vein. Her body had been dragged after death. She was believed to have been killed six hours prior. It was discovered that she worked at a restaurant and went by Marietta, nobody knew her last name.
At the time of her discovery, the Atlanta Journal reported that she could possibly be a victim of a serial killer known as "The Atlanta Ripper." Between 1910 and 1912, nine to nineteen black girls or women were found murdered in and around Atlanta. The victims often were travelling alone on foot and many were household cooks. Although some suspects were convicted in individual murders that were attributed to the serial killer, no one was conclusively identified as the serial killer.
There is some controversy as to whether this female was a victim of the Atlanta Ripper as her murder is inconsistent with the killer's modus operandi. A man named John Gross was arrested for her murder because he had a "strange reaction" to seeing the victim's body. It is unclear if he was actually involved.
Sources[]
- Homicide Research
- The Atlanta Journal
- Marietta on Wikipedia