Crime of the century (idiom)

"Crime of the century" is an idiomatic phrase used to describe particularly sensational or notorious criminal cases.^[1] In the United States, it is often — though not exclusively — used in reference to the Lindbergh kidnapping. However, the phrase was in popular use much earlier in the 19th-century and has been used repeatedly ever since.^[1][2]

Other criminal cases that have also been described as "the crime of the century" include the Leopold and Loeb case^[3] and the Richard Speck case.^[4]

See also

• Trial of the century

References

1. • Top 25 Crimes of the Century Time Magazine Archived April 28, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
2. • Henry Hunt. The crime of the century; or, The assassination of Dr. Patrick Henry Cronin, H. L. & D. H. Kochersperger, 1889. via Internet Archive
3. Hal Higdon, Leopold and Loeb: The Crime of the Century, University of Illinois Press, 1999 (originally published 1975). ISBN 0-252-06829-7.
4. Breo, Daniel L.; William J. Martin (1993). Crime of the Century; Richard Speck and the Murder of Eight Student Nurses. New York, NY: Bantam Books. ISBN 0-553-56025-5.