American Demon: Eliot Ness and the Hunt for America's Jack the Ripper
About the book
Daniel Stashower's book tells the story of one of America's most baffling serial killers — the Cleveland Torso Murderer — and Eliot Ness's desperate hunt for the perpetrator in 1930s Ohio.
Between 1935 and 1938, an unknown killer terrorized Cleveland, leaving mutilated bodies in the city's poorest neighborhoods. The victims were found dismembered, often decapitated, and impossible to identify. At least 12 victims are attributed to the killer, though the true number may be far higher.
Eliot Ness, who had made his name fighting Al Capone in Chicago, was at this point Cleveland's Director of Public Safety. But this case would prove to be his greatest challenge. Despite a massive investigation and countless theories, the perpetrator was never identified or arrested.
Stashower combines thorough historical research with a gripping narrative that sheds new light on both the murders and Ness's career after his Chicago triumph. The book paints a more nuanced picture of the iconic lawman and documents one of true crime history's most frustrating unsolved cases.
