Netflix’s Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story has revived one of America’s most infamous murder mysteries—and one question keeps coming up: Did Lizzie Borden’s sister Emma actually believe Lizzie was guilty?
The historical record suggests something quite different from the Netflix drama.
Emma Borden defended Lizzie. During the 1893 trial, Emma stood by her younger sister and supported her defense. Historical accounts do not establish that Emma privately believed Lizzie committed the murders of their father, Andrew Borden, and stepmother, Abby Borden. In fact, Emma’s testimony challenged aspects of the prosecution’s case.
That makes the Netflix portrayal especially intriguing—and considerably more dramatic.
In Monster, Emma is given a much more complicated relationship with Lizzie, including moments that suggest doubt and suspicion. But historians and fact-checkers have found no solid evidence that Emma accused Lizzie of the murders or secretly concluded that she was guilty.
The sisters actually remained together for years after Lizzie’s acquittal. They purchased a home called Maplecroft and lived together for more than a decade. Their eventual estrangement came around 1904–1905, largely amid conflict surrounding Lizzie’s friendship with actress Nance O’Neil and Emma’s objections to Lizzie’s increasingly social lifestyle.
As for the Netflix show’s overall accuracy? Think historical skeleton, Hollywood wardrobe.
The series gets major facts right: Lizzie was accused of killing her father and stepmother, she was tried in 1893, and she was acquitted. But it also invents or dramatically reshapes major elements, including Lizzie’s alleged abuse, her relationship with maid Bridget Sullivan, and connections to other notorious female killers. Netflix itself acknowledges that the series is a highly fictionalized interpretation.
So did Emma think Lizzie was guilty?
There is no reliable historical evidence that she did.
And that may be the biggest plot twist of all: sometimes the real story is stranger—and less tidy—than television.
