The witch of New York: the trials of Polly Bodine and the cursed birth of tabloid justice
Author:
Publisher:
Varies, see individual formats and editions
Pub. Date:
2024
Language:
English
Description
Before the sensational cases of Amanda Knox and Casey Anthony-before even Lizzie Borden-there was Polly Bodine, the first American woman put on trial for capital murder in our nation's debut media circus. On Christmas night, December 25, 1843, in a serene village on Staten Island, shocked neighbors discovered the burnt remains of twenty-four-year-old mother Emeline Houseman and her infant daughter, Ann Eliza. In a perverse nativity, someone bludgeoned to death a mother and child in their home-and then covered up the crime with hellfire. When an ambitious district attorney charges Polly Bodine (Emelin's sister-in-law) with a double homicide, the new "penny press" explodes. Polly is a perfect media villain: she's a separated wife who drinks gin, commits adultery, and has had multiple abortions. Between June 1844 and April 1846, the nation was enthralled by her three trials-in Staten Island, Manhattan, and Newburgh-for the "Christmas murders." After Polly's legal dream team entered the fray, the press and the public debated not only her guilt, but her character and fate as a fallen woman in society. Public opinion split into different camps over her case. Edgar Allen Poe and Walt Whitman covered her case as young newsmen. P. T. Barnum made a circus out of it. James Fenimore Cooper's last novel was inspired by her trials. The Witch of New York is the first narrative history about the dueling trial lawyers, ruthless newsmen, and shameless hucksters who turned the Polly Bodine case into America's formative tabloid trial. An origin story of how America became addicted to sensationalized reporting of criminal trials, The Witch of New York vividly reconstructs an epic mystery from Old New York-and uses the Bodine case to challenge our system of tabloid justice of today.
Subjects
Subjects
Bodine, Polly
Bodine, Polly -- Trials, litigation, etc
Electronic books
History
Infanticide
Infanticide -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 19th century -- Case studies
Tabloid newspapers
Tabloid newspapers -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 19th century -- Case studies
Trials (Murder)
Trials (Murder) -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 19th century -- Case studies
True crime stories
Bodine, Polly -- Trials, litigation, etc
Electronic books
History
Infanticide
Infanticide -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 19th century -- Case studies
Tabloid newspapers
Tabloid newspapers -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 19th century -- Case studies
Trials (Murder)
Trials (Murder) -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 19th century -- Case studies
True crime stories
More Details
Contributors:
ISBN:
9781639363919
9781639363926
9781639363926
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Grouping Information
Grouped Work ID | 134623a2-e601-d934-50db-900ad5d00eb9 |
---|---|
Grouping Title | witch of new york the trials of polly bodine and the cursed birth of tabloid justice |
Grouping Author | alex hortis |
Grouping Category | book |
Grouping Language | English (eng) |
Last Grouping Update | 2024-05-03 06:06:46AM |
Last Indexed | 2024-05-03 23:51:27PM |
Solr Fields
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0
accelerated_reader_reading_level
0
author
Hortis, Alex, 1972-
author2-role
hoopla digital
author_display
Hortis, Alex
display_description
Before the sensational cases of Amanda Knox and Casey Anthony-before even Lizzie Borden-there was Polly Bodine, the first American woman put on trial for capital murder in our nation's debut media circus. On Christmas night, December 25, 1843, in a serene village on Staten Island, shocked neighbors discovered the burnt remains of twenty-four-year-old mother Emeline Houseman and her infant daughter, Ann Eliza. In a perverse nativity, someone bludgeoned to death a mother and child in their home-and then covered up the crime with hellfire. When an ambitious district attorney charges Polly Bodine (Emelin's sister-in-law) with a double homicide, the new "penny press" explodes. Polly is a perfect media villain: she's a separated wife who drinks gin, commits adultery, and has had multiple abortions. Between June 1844 and April 1846, the nation was enthralled by her three trials-in Staten Island, Manhattan, and Newburgh-for the "Christmas murders." After Polly's legal dream team entered the fray, the press and the public debated not only her guilt, but her character and fate as a fallen woman in society. Public opinion split into different camps over her case. Edgar Allen Poe and Walt Whitman covered her case as young newsmen. P. T. Barnum made a circus out of it. James Fenimore Cooper's last novel was inspired by her trials. The Witch of New York is the first narrative history about the dueling trial lawyers, ruthless newsmen, and shameless hucksters who turned the Polly Bodine case into America's formative tabloid trial. An origin story of how America became addicted to sensationalized reporting of criminal trials, The Witch of New York vividly reconstructs an epic mystery from Old New York-and uses the Bodine case to challenge our system of tabloid justice of today.
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Books
eBook
eBook
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Book
eBook
eBook
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134623a2-e601-d934-50db-900ad5d00eb9
isbn
9781639363919
9781639363926
9781639363926
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ADULT BOOK
NEW
NEW
last_indexed
2024-05-04T05:51:27.233Z
lexile_score
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literary_form
Non Fiction
literary_form_full
Non Fiction
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2 Months
Quarter
Six Months
Year
Quarter
Six Months
Year
primary_isbn
9781639363919
publishDate
2024
publisher
Pegasus Books
Pegasus Crime
Pegasus Crime
recordtype
grouped_work
subject_facet
Bodine, Polly -- Trials, litigation, etc
Electronic books
Infanticide -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 19th century -- Case studies
Tabloid newspapers -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 19th century -- Case studies
Trials (Murder) -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 19th century -- Case studies
True crime stories
Electronic books
Infanticide -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 19th century -- Case studies
Tabloid newspapers -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 19th century -- Case studies
Trials (Murder) -- New York (State) -- New York -- History -- 19th century -- Case studies
True crime stories
title_display
The witch of New York : the trials of Polly Bodine and the cursed birth of tabloid justice
title_full
The Witch of New York. The Trials of Polly Bodine and the Cursed Birth of Tabloid Justice [electronic resource] / Alex Hortis
The witch of New York : the trials of Polly Bodine and the cursed birth of tabloid justice / Alex Hortis
The witch of New York : the trials of Polly Bodine and the cursed birth of tabloid justice / Alex Hortis
title_short
The witch of New York
title_sub
the trials of Polly Bodine and the cursed birth of tabloid justice
topic_facet
Bodine, Polly
Electronic books
History
Infanticide
Tabloid newspapers
Trials (Murder)
Electronic books
History
Infanticide
Tabloid newspapers
Trials (Murder)
Solr Details Tables
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ils:.b27649179 | .i69676252 | Hamden/Miller New Adult Nonfiction | 364.1523/HOR | 1 | false | false | Due May 14, 2024 | hmbn | |||||
hoopla:MWT15468792 | Online Hoopla Collection | Online Hoopla | eBook | eBook | 1 | false | true | Hoopla | https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/15468792?utm_source=MARC&Lid=hh4435 | Available Online |
record_details
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ils:.b27649179 | Book | Books | English | Pegasus Crime | 2024 | xx, 315 pages : illustrations; 23 cm | ||
hoopla:MWT15468792 | eBook | eBook | English | Pegasus Books | 2024 | 1 online resource (368 pages) |
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