Who Is the Black Dahlia?

Sergeants Hansen and Brown are assigned to investigate the gruesome discovery of a bisected woman whose blood has been drained. This shocking case captures media attention and sets the tone for the sinister events to follow. The crime is believed to be committed by someone with medical or mortuary experience.

In a flashback to February 1943, 18-year-old Elizabeth Short tells her grandmother she plans to go to California to become an actress. She hopes her father will support her, but he is reluctant to have her stay with him, offering only money and asking her to do housework.

Elizabeth arrives at her father’s home in California, where he is initially dismissive about her stay. She begins to make her own way by taking a job at an army base PX and claiming to be the widow of a war hero, all while secretly trying to forge a new path in Hollywood.

Over the next few months, Elizabeth moves between various homes, maintains a secretive lifestyle, and goes out frequently at night. She chooses to wear black as a symbol of her identity as the 'Black Dahlia,' gaining notoriety in the media. She also writes her grandmother about her progressing film career.

Elizabeth’s fingerprints, taken during an arrest for underage drinking in 1944, are matched in 1947 to the murdered woman. The case gains widespread media coverage, and Elizabeth becomes known as the Black Dahlia, with many false confessions from those claiming responsibility.

Police recover Elizabeth's suitcase from a bus station locker, discovering personal items including a cupie doll with 'Love, Doc' written on it, black clothes, letters from her grandmother, and an address book belonging to Miles Harmonder. These clues are critical to the investigation.

Investigators learn that Elizabeth stayed at various locations, was secretive about her life, and frequently went out at night. She claimed to be a war widow, and her behavior suggests she was hiding her true circumstances during her final days.

A newspaper editor receives a call from a man claiming responsibility for Elizabeth's murder, providing secretive information. The man later sends a package containing Elizabeth’s Social Security card and IDs, but then he disappears without further contact.

Detectives speak with Dr. Coppin, who recalls drinking with Elizabeth and helping her to a hotel. She is later seen leaving the hotel with her suitcase, which she places in a locker before disappearing for the last time. The investigation fails to find witnesses for the final six days of her life.

Over the years, many confess to killing the Black Dahlia, but none can provide accurate details. Miles Harmonder, connected through his stolen address book, commits suicide, and the murderer remains unidentified. Hansen suspects the package sender might be Elizabeth’s killer.

Hansen and Brown spend nearly twenty years following leads on the case before retiring. Hansen reflects that the man who sent the package was likely the killer, but the case remains unsolved and shrouded in mystery, with lingering questions about Elizabeth’s final days.