14. Nathan Leopold and malaria research
Nathan Leopold does not merit much sympathy from those studying his story. One half of the murderous duo Leopold and Loeb, Nathan participated in the kidnapping and murder of 14-year-old Bobby Franks in May, 1924. The murder, a thrill killing, served as the inspiration for Alfred Hitchcock’s film Rope, and several later works. Despite benefiting from a defense mounted by noted American attorney Clarence Darrow, Leopold and Loeb were convicted and sentenced to life plus 99 years in prison. Loeb was murdered in Stateville Penitentiary in 1936 (his murderer was tried and acquitted). Leopold was still serving his sentence, at the age of 39, when the malaria experiments began at Stateville. He volunteered, beginning as a test subject.
Leopold underwent inoculation by mosquito vector, developed malaria symptoms, and served as a case study for several anti-malarial treatments and drugs. He continued in the experiment through its end, in a variety of additional roles, including recruiting new volunteers. Leopold also served as an observer to validate experiments, and dissected mosquitoes under supervision. He later served as an x-ray technician. He earned praise for his various roles from the University of Chicago and the US Army, as well as from prison officials. In 1958 he was released from prison, and eventually settled in Puerto Rico, where he taught at the University of Puerto Rico and conducted research into leprosy at the University Hospital.