# Emma Brookes — 1939

Canonical: https://hessleroad.com/historical-case-emma-brookes.html

The third killing linked to Burkitt, followed by a life sentence; the precise local address remains to be verified.

Place: Hull; exact address under research

Date: 1939; discovery reported in March

Status: Manslaughter verdict

## The third case in the sequence

Later accounts identify Emma Brookes as the woman killed after William Burkitt's release from prison in 1935. The Murder UK narrative reports that police found her dead at his home in March 1939 and records strangulation as the cause of death. [Source](https://www.murderuk.com/serial_william_burkitt.html)

## The court outcome

The same account dates the proceedings at Leeds to 17 May 1939. It records a third manslaughter conviction and a sentence of penal servitude for life. This account is therefore labelled manslaughter, despite the 'serial killer' wording used in some descriptions of Burkitt. [Source](https://www.murderuk.com/serial_william_burkitt.html)

## Date and address: what is unresolved

The page heading lists 1935, but the narrative gives 1939. We use the narrative year, with the precise date and street still unverified. [Source](https://www.murderuk.com/serial_william_burkitt.html)

## Putting Emma back into the record

Emma's own biographical details remain sparse in the material identified so far. A fuller account requires the original 1939 inquest and trial coverage, an address supported by records, and reliable information about her family and burial. She remains a linked Hull research case until the local address is confirmed.

## Timeline

- 1939: Emma's death is placed in this year by the secondary narrative.
- March 1939: Reported discovery at Burkitt's home; exact incident date needs checking.
- 17 May 1939: Secondary account records manslaughter conviction and life sentence at Leeds.

## Research still needed

- Verify the date of death separately from the date of discovery.
- Establish the precise address and its relationship to the Hessle Road area.
- Obtain the original 1939 inquest and trial reports and Emma's biographical records.

## Sources

- [Murder UK: William Burkitt; secondary account of the three manslaughter convictions](https://www.murderuk.com/serial_william_burkitt.html)
- [Everything2: William Burkitt; secondary narrative, to be checked against original court reports](https://everything2.com/node/e2node/William%20Burkitt)

Decorative illustrations are not verified portraits or reconstructions. Collection cutoff: 1960.