Chilling black and white pictures of 1920s crime scenes reveal the Big Apple's bloody history
The New York City Police Department has opened its vaults and released some of the most bloodcurdling images of the 20th century: its catalog of killers and their victims.
The 1,326 police evidence photographs are now available on the Department of Record’s website, sure to inspire more than a few nightmares.
The images were taken between 1915 and 1930 and show dozens of dead bodies, grieving mothers and portraits of the cold-blooded murderers themselves.
However, MailOnline spoke to a retired detective who saw something different: just another day in the life of an NYPD officer.
The photographs depict another New York City, one that bore witness to anarchist bombings, devastating fires and horrific crimes.
But Mike Codella, a retired NYPD detective, saw his own life imbued into every image.
Looking at the images of limp bodies and weeping victims, Mr Codella saw the gaze of an NYPD officer.
'One of the saddest, yet greatest attributes of being a cop is the ability to not let devastating situations affect us too deeply,' Mr Codella said to the Mail Online.
He felt a camaraderie with his colleagues from the previous century.
‘It makes me believe that cops of years ago had to have the same feelings as cops of today, especially when it comes to truly heinous crimes.'
In order to take the grisly photographs, police photographers used special tripods that suspended the camera above the victim.
The resulting images are an oddly beautiful collection of grisly portraits of homicide victims in their death beds.
Click for NYC Police Evidence Archive
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'Ritualistic' horse killings on the rise
Two horses have been killed in horrific attacks linked to black magic worshippers.
One was beheaded and left on a beach with a driftwood cross topped with the body of a dead seagull.
And a pregnant mare was found mutilated in a field. She was treated by a vet but died after her foal was stillborn.
Both attacks happened around the time of the recent “supermoon”.
The beheaded horse was found on Pentewan beach near Mevagissey, Cornwall, on Bank Holiday Monday with “Rest in Peace” written in the sand beside it.
The other was discovered near Gainsborough, Lincs.
The killings come after a stallion called Eric was found dead in Cornwall with his right eye gouged out, teeth removed and genitals hacked off.
His death coincided with a day of satanic animal sacrifice and cops said they could not rule out a ritualistic motive.
In recent weeks three bullocks have been mutilated with blunt instruments in St Tudy in Cornwall.
A fisherman said of the Cornwall horse killing: “I’ve seen many carcasses of seals and dolphins washed up on the foreshore over the years and some have been mutilated as the result of propeller injuries.
“This animal has no such injuries and the head seems to have been removed surgically as a clean cut.
“The way it was arranged makes me shudder. I believe whoever did this is sick and needs help.
“It really seems like some sort of black magic ceremony has taken place.”
Police Inspector Stuart Gibbons confirmed that a cross and a dead seagull were found on the horse.
He said: “It appears that the head had been severed quite cleanly.
“Rest in Peace was written in the sand but we don’t know if it was to do with it.”
He said no-one locally had reported a missing horse.
In Lincolnshire a heartbroken family are offering a £1,000 reward to help catch the sick thugs who mutilated their 19-year-old pregnant horse Penny.
Devastated owner Rupert Worrell, who found her covered in blood and barely alive, said she had been assaulted after being restrained.
He said: “Nobody knows why someone would do something like this, but you can look on the internet and there are all these Satanic cults.
“It always seems to happen on a full moon between the 2nd and the 7th of May — poor old Penny was attacked on the 4th May.
“My family are offering a £1,000 reward for information leading to the conviction of those responsible.”
Lincolnshire Police’s wildlife crime officer PC Nick Willey said: “This was a terrible crime, which resulted in the death of a horse and her unborn foal.
“We are asking the horse owning community to be extra vigilant at this time and report any unusual activity.” - thesun
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This week on Grimm, a group of Bigfoot hunters, a la the Blair Witch Project complete with their own cameras capturing their moves, get attacked by what they believe is the very enemy they're hunting.
Larry the Bigfoot
Naturally, Monroe knows Bigfoot. Larry comes to visit Monroe after he's stabbed. He says he didn't mean to do what he did and struggles to pull some sort of device from his neck. This story sang a different tune than ones in the past, as the creature turns itself right in, instead of Nick having to hunt it down. Monroe doesn't know what to do to help him, other than having the idea to lead the dogs to another direction by wearing Larry's shirt and then going off into the woods. All this time I was thinking how much easier it would be for him to just toss the shirt into the woods instead of giving himself up. He's able to fend off the dogs but then "bumps" into Hank, who's shocked and doesn't know what to do.
Identity Crisis
When two other deaths are turned up, both with those devices inside their necks, Monroe finds out they're connected to a psychologist who is helping the men get "cured" of their creature-like tendencies. Apparently they're in some sort of identity crisis, not wanting to be who they are anymore. It's sort of sad, as they just want to be human, but the fact that when they turn into Bigfoot, they look like the "Geico Man" was a bit humorous.
Hank Sees the Light?
First Hank bumps into Monroe, who's not his human self when they do. Then, when they track down the psychologist who had also injected himself with the device drug, he sees him turn from Bigfoot to human. Then, Juliette also begins to wonder if the Bigfoot stories are real, leaving Nick in a bind as to how to answer these pretty practical questions.
This episode didn't do much to set up next week's season finale, but got those around Nick questioning the odd things that are going in their lives. Esther Gim - Contributing Writer
NOTE: Great show...tugs at the crypto heart strings. Lon
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Catholic bishops investigate the Girl Scouts
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has opened an official inquiry into the Girl Scouts to determine if troops may continue meeting at local community churches, according to a report published Friday.
The bishops are investigating the scouts to determine whether they promote contraception and abortion, The Associated Press claimed.
A letter sent by Bishop Kevin Rhoades, who chairs the committee leading the investigation, reportedly noted some “problematic relationships” with other groups like Doctors Without Borders or Oxfam.
Some conservatives have of late taken to attacking the Girl Scouts for ‘sexualizing’ young women and promoting a liberal reproductive health agenda. Even though Fox News jumped on that bandwagon, the line of attack has not been a popular one.
The scouts say that’s not true, however.
“[Our] policy is not to take a stand on or advocate for or against any issue regarding a girl’s health and sexuality, especially outside the confines of Girl Scout programs,” a document on the Girl Scout’s website (PDF) explains. “We also believe that parents have the primary responsibility for the safety and well-being of their girls within the context of Girl Scout programs.
“These policies enable the Girl Scout program to fully respect and yet remain responsive to the varying beliefs of individual girls and their families. Importantly, when a council or troop offers programs that address many of these issues, they are offered with the fully informed consent of the parents or guardians of the girls who choose to participate.” - RawStory