Seven-year-old Alsa Thompson confesses to murders, Los Angeles, 1925

Seven-year-old Alsa Thompson confesses to murders, Los Angeles, 1925

5-Feb-25

Access to this collection is generously supported by Arcadia funds.

Alsa has light eyes and freckles, with short dark hair with bangs. She is unsmiling, wearing a knit shawl of some kind.

*No stamped date provided, date from article used.

Photograph appears with the article, "Alsa Calm in Confession," Los Angeles Times, 05 Feb 1925: A5.

The girl describes putting ground-up glass in her baby sisters' food, putting ant paste in the food of neighbor Nettie Stelle of 376 South Avenue Fifty-two and acid in the food at the home of the Platts. Alsa describes that her sisters Mildred and Murial would cry the days leading up to their death, and after they had died she felt remorse. Alsa decided to poison Mrs. Steele after she continuously yelled at the girl. She continues to describe taking ant paste and the acid from batteries in the radio and mixing it with coffee and putting it on lamb chops, watching everyone but herself become ill in the Platt household. After much prompting from doctors and court officials the only explanation she gave was, "I guess I liked to see them suffer."

Text from negative sleeve: THOMPSON, ASA, CCASE 1925 Alsa

Text from newspaper caption: Seven-Year-Old Alsa Thompson Tells Sordid Story Three studies of the confessed poisoner, who declares she caused the death of three by administration of poison, and attempted to kill others. The photographs were taken in the District Attorney's office.

Poisons

Children--California--Los Angeles

Homicides--California--Los Angeles

Thompson, Alsa, 1917-1994

California Digital Library

image

https://ursus.library.ucla.edu/catalog/ark:/21198/zz002cpfkp