Analytical Essay: The Murder Of Ada Mills Redpath

On June 13, 1901, two members of one of Montreal’s wealthiest families were both shot and killed. Ada Mills Redpath, widow of the late industrialist John James Redpath, and her son Jocelyn Clifford Redpath were found dying and unresponsive in the former’s bedroom. Two pistols were found at the scene alongside three spent bullets, two lodged in Ada’s backside and one embedded in Clifford’s forehead. Interestingly, the family has remained very secretive about the entire incident; the case was hushed up and only revealed to the authorities by accident. However, by sorting and weighing the value of the limited contradictory and biased evidence available, it becomes clear that the deaths were not a result of suicide intervention, epileptic insanity,

Not only has the family’s relatively high status and influence prove troublesome in solving the case, but much of the print sources have proven to be misleadingly unreliable and biased. To begin, the Redpath family belonged to an extended network of influential families in the Montreal area. Understandably, they were under immense pressure to maintain and uphold a sterling reputation. To sum it up, the family was deeply concerned with maintaining reputation, concealing scandalous behaviour, and suppressing bad publicity. The accounts of the servant and doctors make up an integral part of the contradictory evidence on the website. Both parties are likely to have lied in favour of the family: years of service warrants a certain level of loyalty and protective feelings. Additionally, both parties were vulnerable to bribery and respectively to threats of job loss or blacklisting. Finally, the medical men likely had close ties with the upper class elite and would have desired to save face in the community by protecting the

Looking at the other main popular implications of homicide in the Victorian era, homicidal tendency from nervousness and insanity seems plausible. Clifford was said to be under immense stress and pressure in his bar exam preparation and busy work life. He was also noted to have been showing signs of “nervousness” in the weeks prior. This theory would likely be rejected by the Redpath family due to the hereditary nature of insanity, admitting to Clifford possessing an unstable state of mind would make the family genetics seems unhealthy. However, this theory is unlikely to be true: Clifford appears to have been a happy, well-rounded, and mentally healthy individual. Clifford’s letters to his brother show a sense of maturity and responsibility, as well as sanity and ability to manage family business while working full time. Clifford’s aunt, Annie Redpath, mentions in a letter to Peter and Amy Redpath, about how Clifford appeared pleasant and well in his last visit with the extended family. Moreover, although Clifford was beset with a heavy workload and tight study schedule, this does not mean he was a homicidal and crazy individual: stress does not automatically cause the development of a mental