The murders that still haunt America

On August 4, 1892, Andrew Borden, 70, and his wife Abby, 64, were hacked to death in their Fall River, Massachusetts home. Their 32-year-old daughter Lizzie was the prime suspect.

Why Lizzie looked guilty

Lizzie was home during the midday murders and had a strained relationship with her stepmother Abby. A small hatchet was found in the basement, and the violence suggested someone who knew and hated the victims.

The jury let her walk free

Despite overwhelming evidence, an all-male jury deliberated for just over an hour before acquitting Lizzie in 1893. The jurors struggled to believe an educated, affluent single woman could commit such brutal murders.

“In 1893, 12 men found it difficult to believe an affluent, educated single woman was capable of such heinous acts.”

A CBS correspondent sleeps at the crime scene

In summer 2019, a CBS News team spent the night in the Borden house, now a bed and breakfast museum. The correspondent slept in Abby's bedroom, right where her body was found.

The house layout doesn't add up

Walking through the small house, the dining room where Lizzie claimed to be is directly below Abby's bedroom. The thin walls and floors make it nearly impossible she wouldn't have heard her stepmother being attacked.

The blood evidence problem

If Lizzie used a hatchet to kill both parents, how did she avoid leaving blood on her dress or a trail through the house? She would have needed time to change clothes and clean up, but the murders were reported quickly.

Modern science would have convicted her

Forensic science in 1892 was rudimentary. Today, investigators would immediately seal the scene and recover even tiny traces of blood from Lizzie's clothing. Modern jurors would likely have reached a different verdict.