Framing of Justine Moritz
The Framing of Justine Moritz is the pivotal act of calculated malice by which the monster, having just strangled the young William Frankenstein, ensures that an innocent person will bear the blame for his crime. By placing the miniature portrait of Caroline Beaufort on the sleeping Justine, the monster transforms a random murder into a judicial catastrophe, one that deepens Victor Frankenstein's guilt and sets the stage for the family's further ruin.
The Murder and the Planting of Evidence
Immediately after killing William in a field near Geneva, the monster notices a glittering object on the child's breast: a miniature portrait of a lovely woman. He gazes at it with momentary delight, but his rage returns when he remembers that he is forever deprived of the delights such beautiful creatures can bestow. Seeking a hiding place, he enters a barn where a young woman—Justine Moritz—lies asleep on some straw. Bent over her, he whispers mockingly, then places the portrait securely in one of the folds of her dress. He flees as she stirs, having ensured that the evidence of the murder will be found on her person.
Discovery and Arrest
The morning after the murder, Justine is taken ill and confined to her bed for several days. During this interval, a servant examining the apparel she had worn on the night of the murder discovers the miniature in her pocket. The servant shows it to another, who without informing the family goes to a magistrate; upon their deposition, Justine is apprehended. When charged, her extreme confusion of manner confirms the suspicion in the eyes of the authorities. The portrait is produced in court, and Elizabeth, in a faltering voice, proves that it is the same miniature she had placed around William's neck an hour before he was missed. A murmur of horror and indignation fills the court.
The Trial and Justine's Defense
At the trial, Justine appears calm and dressed in mourning, her countenance rendered exquisitely beautiful by solemnity. She speaks in her own defense, explaining that she had spent the evening at her aunt's house in Chene and, on her return, learned the child was lost. She spent hours searching, was shut out of Geneva, and slept in a barn. She cannot account for the picture. Several witnesses testify to her good character, but fear and hatred of the crime make them timorous. Elizabeth, violently agitated, addresses the court, declaring her belief in Justine's perfect innocence and describing her as the most amiable and benevolent of human creatures. Yet the public indignation turns against Justine with renewed violence, charging her with blackest ingratitude.
The False Confession and Execution
Despite Elizabeth's eloquence, the judges condemn Justine. In prison, she confesses to her confessor under threat of excommunication and hell fire, but later tells Elizabeth and Victor that she confessed a lie. "I confessed, that I might obtain absolution; but now that falsehood lies heavier at my heart than all my other sins," she says. She resigns herself to death, asking Elizabeth to remember her as one unjustly condemned. On the morrow, Justine dies on the scaffold. Victor, who knows the true murderer, is consumed by the agony of his own guilt, recognizing that he is the real cause of her death. The execution of Justine, following so soon upon William's murder, completes the first wave of the monster's vengeance and seals Victor's descent into a hell of remorse and despair.
