Martha Wise | |
|---|---|
| Born | Martha Hasel April 18, 1883 Hardscrabble, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | June 28, 1971 (aged 88) Marysville, Ohio, U.S. |
| Spouse | Albert Wise (his death in 1922) |
| Children | 5 (1 died in infancy) |
| Conviction(s) | First-degree murder of Lily Gienke |
| Criminal penalty | Life |
| Details | |
Span of crimes | 1924–1925 |
| Country | United States |
| State(s) | Ohio |
| Killed | 3 |
| Injured | 14 |
| Weapons | Arsenic |
Date apprehended | 1925 |
Martha Wise (née Hasel; April 18, 1883 – June 28, 1971) was an American poisoner and serial killer. After her husband died and her family forced her to end a relationship with a new lover, Wise retaliated by poisoning seventeen family members, of whom three died, in 1924. She was convicted of one of the murders, despite defense claims that she was mentally ill and that her lover had ordered her to poison her family. The case is considered one of the most sensational of the era in Ohio, where it occurred.[1]