Is Lizzie Borden Guilty Or Innocent? What To Know Before Netflix's Monster
On September 17, Ryan Murphy’s new instalment in his Monster series will tell the bloody tale of alleged murderer Lizzie Borden in Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story.
On August 4, 1892, in the town of Fall River, Massachusetts, the bodies of Abby and Andrew Borden were discovered hacked to death in their home. The two victims were husband and wife, and lived there together with Andrew’s two daughters from a previous marriage, Lizzie (32) and Emma (41).
The subsequent investigation led police to suspect Lizzie, and although she was tried and acquitted of the murders, the case remains legally unsolved. However, society came to its own verdict, explained in the children’s rhyme:
“Lizzie Borden took an axe
And gave her mother forty whacks.
When she saw what she had done,
She gave her father forty-one.”
But what do we really know about what happened on that day? If we examine the facts, can we tell for sure if Lizzie Borden did indeed murder her father and stepmother? Here's what to know before you watch Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story.
Please note that this article contains descriptions of graphic violence, so take care when reading.
Everything We Know About What Happened on August 4, 1892
On the morning of August 4, 1892, in Fall River, Massachusetts, Andrew and Abby had breakfast with their guest, Lizzie and Emma’s maternal uncle John Morse, in their sitting room. They were served by the Bordens’ Irish live-in maid, Bridget Sullivan, whom Lizzie and Emma called “Maggie”.
Morse then left, intending to return for lunch, and Andrew went out for a walk. Abby went upstairs to clean the guest room where Morse had stayed overnight. It was there, sometime between 9 am and 10:30 am, that the first attack occurred. Abby was struck over 17 times with a hatchet and was later found face down on the floor of the guest bedroom.
When Andrew returned around 11 am, he found the front door locked, and Bridget testified that when she went to help open the door, she heard Lizzie’s laugh from upstairs. After Andrew got back into the house, he settled on the couch for a nap, and Bridget went to her third-floor quarters to rest.
Not long after, Andrew was attacked where he lay, struck over 10 times with a hatchet until he was dead. Lizzie testified that she discovered him after returning from the barn, and immediately called Bridget to fetch a doctor. The doctor quickly declared both Andrew and Abby dead, and the police investigation began.
Lizzie was eventually named the prime suspect and arrested on August 11, 1892. She spent 10 months in a jail in Taunton, Massachusetts, awaiting trial.
Where Was Lizzie Borden on That Day?
Lizzie’s account of her whereabouts that day was full of inconsistencies, as was the entirety of her testimony.
According to the maid, Bridget, Lizzie was home all morning, but they didn’t see each other most of the day. Bridget said she'd mostly cleaned the windows and saw no one in any of the rooms throughout the entire process.
As for Lizzie’s testimony, she claims to have been feeling sick in the days leading up to the murders. She says she came downstairs from her room just before 9 am that morning, where she met her stepmother in the dining room. Abby said she had received a note asking her to call on a sick friend in town, meaning she would be leaving at some point.
Bridget asked Lizzie if she wanted breakfast, which she refused. She then decided to do some ironing in the kitchen, with a quick visit to the cellar at one point. She says she didn’t see Abby after that, nor did she hear her leave or return. In her testimony, Lizzie was rather confused about whether she was downstairs or upstairs when her father returned home. This bit of information is crucial because Lizzie would likely have been able to see Abby’s body if she had been upstairs at the time.
After her father’s return, Lizzie says she went out to the barn to look for a fishing sinker while she waited for her irons to heat up again, and then returned to the kitchen. She discovered her father’s body, claimed not to know if he was dead, and summoned Bridget to fetch the doctor.
What Did Lizzie’s Defence Argue at Her Trial?
Coming from a respectable Victorian family, Lizzie could afford a top defence from attorneys George D Robinson and AJ Jennings. Robinson and his team successfully persuaded the jury to acquit Lizzie, mainly based on the sheer fact that the men could not conceive of a woman committing such a heinous crime. The sexism of the time dictated that upper-class Victorian ladies such as Lizzie were far too sensitive, refined, and delicate — not to mention too physically weak — to be able to commit such brutal acts.
The fact that Lizzie was an active member of her community and church further played into her lawyers’ picture of her as a morally grounded, refined lady, swaying the jury further away from the idea that she could also be a cold-blooded killer.
The lawyers also discounted police accounts of Lizzie’s erratic, often affectless behaviour in the initial inquest, saying that her testimony was made without a lawyer present and that she was under the influence of morphine prescribed by her doctor.
Crucially, Lizzie’s lawyers succeeded in blocking key evidence the prosecution tried to introduce showing that she had tried to purchase deadly prussic acid a day before the murders. The team argued that, since the murders were committed with a sharp weapon, the poison was not relevant.
What Points to Lizzie Borden’s Guilt?
Throughout the investigation, Lizzie gave vague and often contradictory accounts of her whereabouts and actions on that day to different officers.
The prosecution highlighted Lizzie’s contentious relationship with her stepmother, and Lizzie herself confirmed that she had stopped calling her “Mother” and referred to her only as “Mrs Borden”. Lizzie also had a difficult relationship with her father, who was wealthy but exceptionally frugal. They argued often about money, and both Lizzie and Emma were upset that Andrew had transferred property to Abby around the time of the murders.
Lizzie’s friend and neighbour Alice Russel testified that, when she arrived shortly after the murders, Lizzie did not have any blood on her person. However, a bloodied dress was found soaking in water in the basement that the maid said she knew nothing about. Lizzie told police that it was her own menstrual blood, and that was enough to fluster them into not pursuing the line of inquiry further.
Alice also testified that Lizzie had come to her the night before the murders, claiming that she was worried her father might be harmed by his enemies. She also said she saw Lizzie burn a dress the Sunday after the murders, saying it was old and covered in paint.
As previously mentioned, although the judge deemed the evidence not admissible in court, Lizzie’s attempt to purchase poison the day before the murders does point to a suspicious level of premeditation.
Lastly, Lizzie was the only person in the right place at the right time, with a motive. Bridget, the maid, was there, but had no identifiable motive; Emma was 15 miles away in Fairhaven visiting friends; and Uncle Morse had been seen around town at the time of the murders. Perhaps someone else did it, but there has never been solid evidence pointing to anyone but Lizzie.
The Aftermath of Lizzie Borden's Trial
Although the jury acquitted Lizzie of the murders, she was widely believed to be guilty amongst the townsfolk, and indeed the country at large. After the trial, Lizzie and Emma inherited a lot of money and property, but Lizzie found herself to be the subject of intense speculation and was ostracised. The two sisters lived together in a big house in town, and Lizzie often went on shopping trips to Boston, New York City, and Providence.
In 1904, Lizzie and Emma had a fight, after which they never spoke again. Although we don’t know what the fight was about, it was enough to divide the sisters until both of them passed away within nine days of each other in 1927. Reunited in death, the sisters were buried together in the family plot in Fall River, MA.
