In the early morning hours of December 14, 1958, in Baltimore, Maryland, 57-year-old Lottie Kight, a white practical nurse, stepped outside her home to sweep the sidewalk. A couple of hours later, her body was discovered in a narrow alleyway just two doors down from her residence. A handkerchief was found tightly wrapped around her neck, and the condition of her hands, with clenched fists and bloodied fingers, suggested a fierce struggle against her attacker.
The discovery of Lottie
Kight's body sent a wave of fear through the city, as her death was not an isolated incident. Law enforcement quickly recognized similarities between her murder and other recent killings in the area, leading them to believe a serial killer was at large. This individual would come to be known as "The Dawn Strangler," due to the time of day the attacks occurred. The victims were typically older women who were assaulted and strangled in alleys near their homes.
In the wake of Lottie Kight's murder, authorities launched an intensive investigation. A number of individuals were brought in for questioning and subjected to lie detector tests as police worked to identify a suspect. However, despite their efforts, all of the initial suspects were eventually cleared and released. The investigation into the string of strangulations that terrorized Baltimore continued, leaving a community on edge and the identity of "The Dawn Strangler" a chilling mystery.
