Elizabeth Short was killed in Los Angeles in a case that remains unresolved.
Updated 20 Aug 2026
The body of Elizabeth Short, a 22-year-old woman later called the Black Dahlia by newspapers, was discovered in a vacant Los Angeles lot on 15 January 1947. [1]
The Los Angeles Police Department investigated numerous leads, suspects, and confessions. The FBI provided identification and laboratory assistance, but the homicide was never prosecuted. [2]
3 sourced milestones
Major events in the case, shown in chronological order.
The body of 22-year-old Elizabeth Short was discovered in a vacant lot in Los Angeles, beginning an intensely publicized homicide inquiry.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation ↗Federal records and fingerprint files helped identify Short, while FBI laboratories assisted the Los Angeles Police Department with evidence.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation ↗Investigators examined numerous suspects and false confessions, but no one was charged and the homicide remains a cold case.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation ↗0 videos
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