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Belva Eleanora Gaertner (née Boosinger; September 14, 1884 – May 14, 1965) was an American woman who was acquitted of murder in a 1924 trial. She inspired the character of Velma in the 1926 play Chicago created by Maurine Dallas Watkins; Watkins reported on the trial for the Chicago Tribune.
Mar 17, 2003 · Belva Gaertner, twice a divorcée of page one notoriety, was placed in the county jail last night, charged by a coroner’s jury with slaying Walter Law, a young automobile salesman. Law’s body was found in her car early yesterday morning.
Jul 11, 2017 · A cabaret singer and society divorcee, Belva Gaertner climbed her way into high society. Between divorces from William Gaertner, a man 20 years her senior, she was arrested in March 1924 at the age of 40 for the murder of her 30-year-old lover.
Mar 9, 2023 · Belva Gaertner, 38, center, listens during the coroner’s inquest for the death of Walter Law, 29, held at the South Wabash Avenue station on March 12, 1924, in Chicago.
Nov 29, 2019 · Beulah Annan, left, and Belva Gaertner, both on trial for murder in 1924. Annan was accused of murdering her sweetheart Harry Kalstedt on April 4, 1924.
Apr 2, 2024 · To mark 100 years since Beulah Annan was accused of murder in a case that fascinated the city, CHM historian Jojo Galvan takes a closer look at the incident and how it inspired a well-known Broadway musical.
Sep 11, 2018 · In March of that year, Belva Gaertner, a comely cabaret singer, happened to leave a bottle of gin in her parked car. Unfortunately, she also left a dead man and a gun in the car as well.
