Lou Man Entertainment Media
TMD - Borden Axe Murder Walkthrough

So, detective... You need some help?

The following walkthrough will allow you to find all of the evidence, witness statements and provide the suspects to complete the Borden Axe Murder investigation.

Please Note: This game is intended for entertainment purposes only and the implication of guilt is based solely on speculation.


The Borden Axe Murders Walkthrough

1) The front door is always kept locked, so you must go to the side door.

2a) Side Door: Click Question Dr. Bowen and click "Accept Testimony" for all three questions, then return to investigation.

2b) Side Door: Click "Question Onlookers". DO NOT Click on "The Drunkard (select suspect) or you will get a NOT GUILTY verdict. Click on "Question Hyman Lubinski" and click "Accept Testimony". Then click on "Return to Investigation".

2c) Side Door: Click "Inspect Barn". Click the arrow on the door to the left, then click "Question Officer Chase" and click "Accept Testimony". Click "Exit Barn", and "Return to Side".

2d) Side Door: Click "Inspect The House".

3a) Side Entry: Click "Inspect Basement". Click the left arrow to enter the washroom, click on the "Bloody Hip Bath" and click "Accept as evidence". Click arrow to return to main basement. Click the center arrow to enter the woodroom and click on the axe handles in the wooden box, then click "Accept as evidence". Click on the hatchet head in the nook to the upper left in the woodroom and click "Accept as evidence". Then click "Exit Basement".

3b) Side Entry: Click "Inspect Kitchen".

4) Ms. Sullivan in the Borden Kitchen: Click on Ms. Sullivan (select suspect), then click "Question Ms. Sullivan". Click "Accept Testimony" for all three questions, then click "Return To Investigation".

5) Borden Kitchen: Click on "Inspect Dining Room".

6) Dining Room: Click "Questions Mrs. Churchill" and "Accept Testimony". Then click "Inspect Sitting Room".

7) Sitting Room: Click "Inspect Front Entry".

8a) Front Entry: Click "Inspect Parlor", then click "Question Mr. Morse" and "Accept Testimony". Click "Inspect Front Entry".

8b) Front Entry: Click "Investigate Second Floor".

9) Miss Russell on 2nd Floor Landing: Click "Question Miss Russell" and "Accept Testimony". Then click "Inspect Lizzie's Room".

10a) Lizzie's Room: Click on Lizzie (select suspect) "Question Lizzie" and click "Accept Testimony" for both questions. Click "Inspect Emma's Room" (the room is empty) so, click "Return To Lizzie's Room".

10b) Lizzie's Room: Click the arrow to Emma's Room, the Click "Question Emma" and "Accept Testimony". Then click "Return To Lizzie's Room".

10c) Lizzie's Room: Click "What Happened Here This Morning" (again) and "Accept Testimony". (Note: Lizzie has changed both her dress and story).

10d) Click "Solve Case"

11) Courtroom: "Click for Verdict" then "Click To Continue". You will view an animated timeline of the murders. Congratulations!


Explanation Of This Case:

Motive


Many will argue that Bridget couldn't taken part in the murders, neither directly or indirectly, because she had no motive. However, let's not forget that Lizzie was a master manipulator.

By Bridget's own admission, she had asked to leave on several occasions, though stayed on at the insistence of Mrs. Borden. Bridget had wanted to leave, due to the tense power struggles within the home between Mrs. Borden and her step daughters, Lizzie and Emma.

Lizzie, on the other hand, was motivated by fear and greed! Lizzie could not bare the thought of living under Abby's rules and control of the family fortune, should Andrew pass on. As he was getting up in years (70 at the time of his death) and had not drawn up a will, Lizzie decided to take matters into her own hands.

Knowing Bridget's discomfort with the current situation, Lizzie had likely convinced Bridget to take part in the murder as the only way to get out. Lizzie likely offered Bridget a tempting amount of money from Lizzie's inheritance, that that would more than pay for her return to Ireland. Additionally, this would guarantee that Bridget would not implicate Lizzie nor herself for the murders.

Lizzie was in her 30s and well educated, though as the "baby" of the family, had learned to get what she wanted through deceit and manipulation. Though after years of contempt for Mrs. Borden over money, her influence over Andrew and a yearning for a better lifestyle, Lizzie had plenty of time to fantasize about a way to end this ongoing conflict.


The Plan

It was very likely that during her trip to Europe in 1890, Lizzie heard the tales of Jack The Ripper only two years prior and though there were several suspects, no one had been arrested or convicted of the crimes. This just may have set the wheels in motion in Lizzie's mind that, this could be possible in her situation. Besides, who would suspect a Sunday school teacher from a respected family of such a heinous act.

As Andrew and Abby grew into their senior years, they had both become somewhat creatures of habit. Andrew would take his daily walks to stay abreast of his business interests, while Mrs. Borden would do some light cleaning, then go get groceries for the evening supper. The doors of the house were locked regularly and Bridget was ordered to wash windows once or twice per month.

Lizzie began visualizing her plan, as certain questions needed to be answered. What method of murder could she use? Poison? A weapon? How would the police respond? What would be her alibi? Within two years, these questions would be answered. The alleged break in / theft the year before the murders was likely a test to understand how the police would investigate the crime and how she could manipulate the situation. As her plans became clearer, she felt more confident that she could pull this off.


Crime Summary

Every aspect of this case is what has made it such a compelling and intriguing mystery to this day. However, with a careful look at the witness statements alone, a clear time line would develop and certain actions by Lizzie and Bridget would begin to make sense.

First, regarding the timeline... the murders were commonly understood to have taken place at approx. 9:35 AM (Abby) and 11:00 AM (Andrew). While Bridget had an air tight alibi, seen washing windows outside between 9:30 and 10:30 AM, that leaves Lizzie and Abby in the house alone, with ample time for Lizzie to commit the crime, bath herself in the hip bath in the basement washroom and return to her common daily tasks.

As Andrew was witnessed returning home at approx. 10:35 AM, Bridget and Lizzie were inside at that time and became the only witnesses that could establish a timeline of events until approx. 11:05 AM. This the time that Hyman Lubinski, the 18 year old Russian ice cream vendor stated he witnessed a woman walking slowly from the barn to side door of the Borden house. Minutes later, Bridget is seen running back from Dr. Bowen's house to the Borden house and Lizzie is witnessed standing at the side door by Mrs. Churchill.

By Bridget's own statement that she went upstairs two or three minutes before 11:00 AM, this would not allow Lizzie enough time to commit the murder of her father, bathe and be seen walking back from the barn at 11:05 AM. Additionally, she had not appeared to be recently bathed and without a speck of blood on her from that time on.

However, this timeline would allow Bridget time to commit the crime at just minutes before 11:00 AM dressed in only an apron and a towel to cover her hair, before returning to the basement to bathe quickly, while Lizzie disposed of the murder weapon in the barn's privy vault. Lizzie returns to the house at 11:05 AM, inspects Bridget and sends her across the street to notify Dr. Bowen of the murder.

Now Lizzie's act of sending Bridget for Dr. Bowen across the street, serves two primary purposes. 1) Bridget, who is freshly bathed is sent running across the street and back, then around the corner to notify Alice Russell, which would leave her sweaty in the humid August heat. 2) Lizzie would discretely tell Dr. Bowen that the hip bath in the basement that contained bloody water, towels and an apron was due to Lizzie's monthly cycle. So, when police did ask about this, it could be verified by a doctor and hence, not questioned further.

Which leads to another important aspect of Lizzie sending Bridget for Dr. Bowen and Alice Russell first, instead of sending her to notify the police. An obvious crime has been committed, however Lizzie sends Bridget for a doctor and close friend and never mentions notifying the police. This was done initially by Mrs. Churchill, the first outside witness at the crime scene. She also verified that Lizzie did not appear in the least to be freshly bathed, nor any trace of blood on her hands, hair, face or clothing at approx. 11:10 AM.

The final two primary facts in this case involve 1) the bloody hip bath and it's contents and 2) the lack of blood evidence and a murder weapon.

First, after police and medical examiner arrived, photos were taken and initial autopsies were performed on the victims (the stomachs and their contents were removed and initial assessments on their injuries were observed). The victims clothing were removed and sent to the basement washroom. These clothes were then put into the bloody hip bath and all were ordered to be buried in the back yard behind the barn by Marshal Hilliard. An inventory of the items buried was noted by officer Chase and included the clothing that the victims wore at the time of their murders, plus a handkerchief (found by Abby's body), a bloody sofa cushion and doily, a blood stained sheet (which had covered Andrew's body), various bloody rags, three bloody towels and two aprons. Since Abby was only wearing one apron at the time of her death, where did the other apron come from? It was in the hip bath with the bloody rags and towels. Evidence largely overlooked in the initial investigation.

Finally, the forensics of the day determined that the hatchets and axes found in the basement did not contain any trace of human blood or hair. None! So, where was the actual murder weapon? Due to Lizzie's statements, she was in the barn at the time of the second murder and was verified by Hyman Lubinsky, who testified to have seen a woman returning from the barn at 11:05 AM. Although Lizzie claimed to be in the
barn loft, no visible footprints were seen in the thick hay dust that covered the loft floor. But Lizzie was in the barn... just not in the loft.

After Andrew's murder, the hatchet was wrapped in the newspaper that he had been reading and taken to the barn privy. The hatchet, which weighed approx. 3 lbs., was dropped into the privy vault and sank to the bottom. The newspaper was then rolled up and taken back to the house to be disposed of in the stove. The stove was inspected and was noted that there appeared to be ashes in the form of rolled up paper. The privy vault itself, though inspected, was never drained and thus never fully investigated. It is very likely that the head of the hatchet, it's handle now decayed and undetectable from the surrounding earth, lays buried 8 to 10 feet below ground under what is now the gift shop at the Lizzie Borden Bed & Breakfast.

Final Notes

In closing, Lizzie had played out this elaborate plan to a tee, with the exception of her inconsistent statements to police and at her inquest. This was likely due to the ongoing doses of morphine from Dr. Bowen from the day of the murders throughout her trials. However, she played it calmly throughout the entire ordeal, manipulating and controlling the investigation at every chance she had. Even though she had been indicted and tried, she never believed that she would be found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

The dress burning incident, which only confused the case even more, was never really an issue in her mind. She was just carrying out the typical action of burning a soiled and paint stained dress in the stove, because that's what was normally done. The only real close call, was when Bridget was summoned to the inquest. She is reported to have broken down, sobbing uncontrollably because she thought that she was being arrested. However, Officer Doherty eventually calmed her down and made it understood that she was only being taken to the courthouse to speak at Lizzie's inquest.

Bridget Sullivan disappeared for a number of years after the trials before returning to the US to live out the rest of her life never mentioning the incidents of the Borden case. Lizzie, acquitted of the gruesome crimes, moved into the upscale neighborhood she so fantasized about with her sister Emma and their inheritance. Though shunned by much of the towns people, she still socialized and threw parties with close friends and theatrical performers, living out the rest of her life at the comfort level she had so desired.

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