A WALK IN THE WOODS: Accident, Suicide or Murder?
Part Four
All the circumstantial evidence pointed to Will Orpet as the person who likely was involved in the death of Marion Lambert. An inquest was held, followed by an indictment for murder filed against Orpet.
Though he did not believe Lambert actually was pregnant, Orpet offered her a “medicine” he said would induce a miscarriage — although it is not clear whether it was more of a molasses-based placebo than any home-made abortifacient. She declined it, according to his testimony. She called out again as he started to leave, he said, asking if he would continue to send her letters. There seemed to be no use, he responded, and began to walk away.
“Something made me look around — I don’t know what — and I saw Marion lying in the snow,” Orpet testified. “I returned, knelt over her for maybe a minute. I noticed the moist powder in the lines of her hand. Her eyes were glazed. Then a kind of fog came into my brain, and I don’t remember much after that except that on reaching the road I threw away the ‘medicine’ and made my way on foot to Highland Park, caught a train and that evening arrived back at Madison.”
Orpet headed back to Madison but was soon tracked down by reporters and police. He told a series of conflicting stories about what happened and relied heavily on the response “I don’t remember” during three days of cross-examination, according to the Times.
The prosecution’s theory held that Orpet killed Lambert because of her perceived pregnancy after producing a cyanide solution at the estate. The defense argued that Lambert had taken cyanide herself, either to kill herself or as an accident intended to win Orpet’s affection.
“The State was unable to persuade any witness to come from Wisconsin, and repeatedly hinted that a sinister influence of the defense was at the bottom of it,” according to the Times.
One of the prosecution’s key witnesses, a friend of Lambert, changed her story and testified that Lambert had been depressed and discussed committing suicide if Orpet broke up with her.
![[Marion Lambert murder case, photographs of Eleanor Double and Josephine Davis]](https://portal-ccc.s3.amazonaws.com/media/images/chicagohistory/71/cz32g6c.jpg)
Frank Orpet’s employer, Jonas Kuppenheimer, obtained the best legal talent available for Will’s defense and paid all legal costs. His legal team consisted of some of the best defense, legal minds in Chicago.
old spirituals 
Another brilliant story from Nicola Di Crescenzo! The image of the girl standing in the rain and smiling with a black-stained mouth is very creepy!
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I am humbled by the compliment and very appreciative.
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Will definitely murdered Marion. If she lied about being pregnant, she was probably desperate to stop his new relationship. Who knows what else she would do? That was probably Will’s thinking anyway. Great story, Nicola!
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Thanks you, Ruby.
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What a sad story! Both Will and Marion seemed to be troubled young people. Possibly faking a pregnancy to win a boyfriend back isn’t the portrayal of a stable person. Will’s changing story of the meeting with Marion is troubling. Whatever happened, both families lives were destroyed. Will also lived a very unstable life after the tragedy. I’m not sure what really took place in those woods that day, but the jury must not have been convinced of murder beyond a reasonable doubt.
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You’re right about Will. He exemplifies the consequences of a bad life decision. He wanted to become a journalist to write stories, instead he became the story for other journalists to write about his entire life.
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Great research on this, Nicola! I’m always interested in what becomes of people after the story.
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That’s a great point. He escaped prison but there was some bit of justice. What a life he could have had!
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It’s a little creepy to think that Marion can still be seen off the side of the road. It’s hard to say what truly happened since we only know Will’s side of the story, although it’s odd his story kept changing and the case changed the trajectory of his entire life. I believe it was an accident whether it was him that gave her too much poison or her that took to much. She wanted love, not death. Will didn’t want her dead, he just wanted someone else. It seems like whatever she had planned to do, she would have told Josephine.
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Those are very good points! There was no malice between them. And Will told many versions of what happened but he certainly never told the truth. Curious what the author will say.
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I believe we have a meeting of the minds.
While researching this story, by pure coincidence, I spent a week in and around the Lake Forest area. I even drove Sheridan Road. I wasn’t aware of Marion’s apparition until later, so I didn’t try to experience it for myself. Suffice it to say, Will was Marion’s first true love which made him irresistible. I believe she would have done anything to continue a relationship with him. However, I do not believe she would have INTENTIONALLY committed suicide.
Conversely, I do not believe Will would have INTENTIONALLY poisoned Marion. Whatever the sequence of events, I believe the consumption of cyanide was intended for a reason other than murder. For me the case is a confluence of actions that resulted in an unintended consequence.
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just seems odd that Marion went into the woods by herself with an angry ex and didn’t ask her best friend to come with. Also seems odd that she actually did have a letter to send and still had it in her hand. It seems odd that Will only remembers walking off and then something happening to Marion after he turned around, it also seems odd that Josephine Davis her best friend didn’t go with her and also changed her story halfway through the trial and devastated the family. Weird
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I think so too! This is a Nicola post, I’m curious what he thinks!
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