Ruth Snyder

Ruth and her lover Judd Gray bludgeoned Ruth's husband Albert
to death, planning to make it look like a robbery.  Judd then
tied Ruth up and left, while Ruth (still tied up) crawled into
her daughter Lorraine's bedroom, woke the girl, and sent her
to fetch help.  She adamantly refused to let anyone untie her
until the police came.


http://crimemagazine.com/dumb.htm

http://din-timelines.com/1920de.shtml

This murder has been often immitated by art:
It was the inspiration for:

  * Machinal, a play by Sophie Treadwell
  * Double Indemnity, a book by James M. Cain, later
    a movie starring Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray.
  * The Postman Always Rings Twice, James N. Cain's novel,
    later a two act opera, still later a movie
  * The Girl in the Death Cell, a 1950's pulp novel by
    Fred J. Cook

DAMON RUNYON also attended and covered her trial, so elements
of her story may have gone into "Guys and Dolls".

H.L. Mencken also wrote about the case:

http://www.bizbag.com/mencken/menkwrong.htm