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In Search of the Lindbergh Baby

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Theon Wright should be closer than most to the truth of this enigmatic case. He was a young reporter who covered the Lindbergh case and, according to his book, he uncovered direct connections between Isidore Fisch (linked to Bruno Hauptmann) and members of the Morrow (baby's grandmother's) household. However, the book is a rambling mess, with possibiities hinted at but never set out clearly. The reader is left to infer key connections, probably wrong.
The core of the book depends on the little corpse found four miles from the house not being that of the Lindbergh child. He bases this on a discrepancy between the height on the "missing" poster and the height of the remains found. However, he does not take into account the measurements in a letter from the child's own doctor to the grandmother, eight days before the remains were discovered. Neither does he account for the little shirt found on the body that matched flannel and thread still held by Betty Gow (the shirt's maker).Unless the author has/had very good reason to discount all of this evidence, the book falls down on its key premise.
The book should not be discounted in entirety - it raises some very interesting points about the gang (or gangs) involved in the ransom demands, and it throws a lot of doubt on Hauptmann as a lone kidnapper. The book needs reorganising and a stern editor.

The author covered the original trial as a journalist and felt that the true story was never told. This book has pictures but lacks an index and table of contents. "History ... consists of events and facts, and sooner or later the truth emerges." Theon Wright believes the conviction and execution of Bruno Hauptmann was a miscarriage of justice. Wright first believed Hauptmann was guilty, until he found gaps in the prosecution's story (p.6). Wright met Harold Olson, who amassed records of the case and believes he is the lost Lindbergh child. Public opinion is not as inflamed as it was during the trial.

In Chapter 1 we learn what Harold Olson was told about his parents. Young Olson's pictures are compared to the Lindbergh baby, but we see no pictures of his parents. [The Lindbergh baby seems to have a cleft in his chin, Olson does not.] Wright's oldest daughter, a newspaper reporter, discovered this news, and referred them to her father. Chapter 2 tells of the kidnapping and discovery of the body. There is a question of overlapping toes, and the length of the corpse. Part One has the many stories of the people connected to the case. Chapter 7 quotes the legal journal 'Forum' to question the conviction of Hauptmann. Part Two tells of the investigation that went on for two years. Many false leads were followed. Chapter 10 has many interesting observations, but some may have been taken out of context (Condon's quotes). Part Three covers the trial. Chapter 12 tells about the eyewitnesses. Are eyewitnesses reliable when there is no corroborating evidence? No fingerprints matching Hauptmann were found on the ladder, in the nursery, or on ransom notes (Chapter 13). What happened to the records of the Lindbergh baby's fingerprints? Was Rail 16 tampered with? Who tampered with the shelf that contained the shoebox (Chapter 14)? Wright says the police records needed by the defense were withheld, "too late to help Hauptmann" (Chapter 15).

Part Four covers post-trial investigations, and "unanswered questions" in Chapter 16. Two important things stand out: Hauptmann had an alibi for that night, and there was a discrepancy in the height of the body. Either would clear him of the kidnapping. Chapter 17 explains the background of Gov. Hoffman's interview with Hauptmann: important people questioned the verdict. Did Reilly take a pay-off to sell out his client? Chapter 18 has questions about the case. Gov. Hoffman had police records that were not made public. Hauptmann was guilty of extortion, the evidence was insufficient for kidnapping and murder. Page 215 summarizes the mysteries of this crime. Chapter 19 tells of the Paul Wendel confession (he was a lawyer who once represented Isidor Fisch).

Part Five deals with the question of identity of the body found. If Harold Olson is the lost Lindbergh baby, what then? Fingerprints (or DNA evidence) could resolve this question. Would a psychic then or a profiler now help at all (Chapter 20). What happened to the Lindbergh baby's fingerprints (Chapter 21)? Chapter 22 tells of FBI surveillance of Harold Olson from 1968! Part Six provides some theories on the crime. Wright wonders why Lindbergh assumed full charge of the investigation given his inexperience (Chapter 23). Wright explains the legal reasoning for shifting from a gang crime to a lone kidnapper (Chapter 24). Was John Hughes Curtis in contact with the kidnap gang? Or merely a patsy? Who coordinated the media campaign against Hauptmann? Chapter 25 shows the weakness of this book: emphasis on the predictions of a psychic to solve a crime. How could Lindbergh have controlled the investigation? [Something has been hidden here.] Wright disparages "the New Jersey and New York police", but they only follow orders from the politicians, as in all other states. Whoever stole the baby also gained the sleeping suit, a proof of guilt. Who was it traced back to? Note how this book, like others, skates over this question. Could someone look like Lindbergh? As a popular figure he would have many admirers. We now know of one girlfriend and three children in Germany! David Wilentz's son Robert was a lawyer, politician, and Chief Justice of the NJ Supreme Court; he was adamantly opposed to capital punishment. That may be the final verdict on this case.