E92: The Atlanta Child Murders Pt 1

Today we are talking about the Atlanta Child Murders. Between 1979 and 1981, children and teenagers were disappearing off the streets of Atlanta, later turning up dead, terrifying the entire city. At least 28 people in the Atlanta area, most of them young black boys and teenagers, were kidnapped and murdered.

This case is complicated. So to do it justice, we felt we had to turn it into a two parter. We encourage you to check out our show notes for additional information about the case. And we welcome our listeners to be a part of the conversation on Facebook or Twitter @ fruitloopspod or email us at frutloopspod@gmail.com

We dive into the Stats (13:24), the setting (16:12), the convicted killer’s early life (32:20) and the timeline (39:36). As usual we close out the show with some tips on how not to get murdered (103:25) and some shout outs (108:15).

Thanks for listening! This is a weekly podcast and new episodes drop every Thursday, so until next time… look alive guys, it’s crazy out there!

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Articles/Websites

Wikipedia contributors. (08/16/2020). Atlanta murders of 1979–1981. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 08/19/2020 from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Atlanta_murders_of_1979%E2%80%931981&oldid=973269829

Tallerico, Brian. (08/30/2019). The True Story Behind Mindhunter’s Atlanta Child Murders. Vulture. Retrieved 08/20/2020 from https://www.vulture.com/2019/08/mindhunter-atlanta-child-murders-true-story.html

Lloyd, Susan E. (n.d.). ATKID: The Atlanta Child Murders Case. FBI Studies. Retrieved 08/20/2020 from https://fbistudies.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/FBI-Grapevien-Atlanta-Child-Murders-Susan-Lloyd.pdf

Atlanta’s Missing & Murdered. (n.d.). Retrieved 08/20/2020 from http://atkid.weebly.com/

Burch, Audra D.S. (04/30/2019). Who Killed Atlanta’s Children? The New York Times. Retrieved 08/20/2020 from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/30/us/atlanta-child-murders.html

Cep, Casey. (05/01/2020). When James Baldwin Wrote About the Atlanta Child Murders. The New Yorker. Retrieved 08/20/2020 from https://www.newyorker.com/books/second-read/when-james-baldwin-wrote-about-the-atlanta-child-murders

FBI Records: The Vault. (n.d.). Atlanta Child Murders. Retrieved 08/20/2020 from https://vault.fbi.gov/Atlanta%20Child%20Murders

Crime Capsule. (04/07/2020). Behind the Scenes: Atlanta’s Missing, Murdered & Lost Children and the story of Wayne Williams. Retrieved 09/03/2020 from https://crimecapsule.com/atlanta-child-murders/

Smith, Vern. (08/27/2019). 40 Years After I Covered the Atlanta Child Murders, Trauma and Doubt Remain. Newsweek. Retrieved 09/03/2020 from https://www.newsweek.com/40-years-after-i-covered-atlanta-child-murders-trauma-doubt-remain-opinion-1456236

DeLong, William. (04/03/2018; updated 08/02/2020). Wayne Williams And The Mystery Of The Atlanta Child Murders. All That’s Interesting. Retrieved 09/05/2020 from https://allthatsinteresting.com/wayne-williams-atlanta-child-murders

Cep, Casey. (05/01/2020). When James Baldwin Wrote About the Atlanta Child Murders. The New Yorker. Retrieved 09/05/2020 from https://www.newyorker.com/books/second-read/when-james-baldwin-wrote-about-the-atlanta-child-murders

Ishak, Natasha. (02/07/2020). When Camille Bell’s Son Was Killed During The Atlanta Child Murders, She Rallied Her City To Demand Justice. All That’s Interesting. Retrieved 9/5/2020 from https://allthatsinteresting.com/camille-bell

Rawls Jr, Wendell. (03/05/1982). REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: PROSECUTION IN ATLANTA TRIAL FLUNG A WIDE NET. The New York Times. Retrieved 09/06/2020 from https://www.nytimes.com/1982/03/05/us/reporter-s-notebook-prosecution-in-atlanta-trial-flung-a-wide-net.html

Harris, Art. (01/12/1982). Agent Tells Atlanta Trial Story Couldn’t Be Verified. The Washington Post. Retrieved 09/06/2020 from https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1982/01/12/agent-tells-atlanta-trial-story-couldnt-be-verified/eadab177-b18a-4943-a71c-5e0b4cb2b5ed/

Finn, Heather. (08/16/2019). The Atlanta Child Murders: The True Story Behind the ‘Mindhunter’ Season 2 Case. Good Housekeeping. Retrieved 09/06/2020 from https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/entertainment/a28625603/atlanta-child-murders-wayne-williams/

Malesevic, Dusica Sue. (05/01/2020) How the KKK and a pedophile ring may be linked to the Atlanta murders: New series reveals how some families still don’t believe just one man kidnapped and killed 24 black children between 1979 and 81. Daily Mail. Retrieved 9/6/2020 from https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8278395/New-docuseries-points-KKK-pedophile-ring-suspects-Atlanta-child-murders.html

Wikipedia contributors. (08/30/2020). Atlanta murders of 1979–1981. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 09/07/2020 from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Atlanta_murders_of_1979%E2%80%931981&oldid=975887676

Epstein, Gail. (08/19/2019). From 1987: Atlanta child murders: Williams ‘very like’ FBI profile. AJC. Retrieved 09/07/2020 from https://www.ajc.com/news/crime–law/atlanta-child-murders-williams-very-like-fbi-profile/IKyewPxrv06NXcUWz98F9J/

Encyclopedia.com. (10/03/2020). Wayne Williams Trial: 1981. Retrieved 08/11/2020 from https://www.encyclopedia.com/law/law-magazines/wayne-williams-trial-1981

Cohen, Michele. (01/04/1987). NEW QUESTIONS ARISE IN CHILD-MURDERS CASE. Sun Sentinel. Retrieved 09/10/2020 from https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1987-01-04-8701010703-story.html

Criminal Minds Wiki. (n.d.). The Atlanta Child Murders. Retrieved 09/10/2020 from https://criminalminds.fandom.com/wiki/The_Atlanta_Child_Murders

The Trevor Project. (n.d.). Asexual. Retrieved 9/6/2020 from https://www.thetrevorproject.org/trvr_support_center/asexual/

Becker, Emily. (04/12/2020). Who Were The Atlanta Child Murder Victims? Women’s Health. Retrieved 09/10/2020 from https://www.womenshealthmag.com/life/a32008782/atlanta-child-murders-victims/

CNN. (06/01/2010). Victims linked to Atlanta serial killings. Retrieved 09/10/2020 https://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/05/31/atlanta.murders.victims/index.html

AJC. (05/15/2005). Atlanta child murders: A chronology of the missing and murdered cases. Retrieved 09/10/2020 from https://www.ajc.com/news/crime–law/atlanta-child-murders-chronology-the-missing-and-murdered-cases/NJ61ANzP7lxyrVqisqEzYK/

Justia US Law. (07/23/1986). Homer Williams and Mrs. Faye Williams, Plaintiffs-appellants, v. City of Atlanta, et al. Retrieved 09/11/2020 from https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/794/624/230635/

Deadman, Harold A. (May 1984). Fiber Evidence and The Williams Trial. FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin. Retrieved 09/12/2020 from https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/Digitization/94475NCJRS.pdf

Wikipedia contributors. (08/05/2020). Chattahoochee River. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 09/12/2020, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chattahoochee_River&oldid=971385752

Stuart, Reginald. (06/22/1981). SUSPECT IN ATLANTA: YOUNG, BIG IDEAS, BUT A CAREER OF LIMITED ACHIEVEMENTS. The New York Times. Retrieved 09/13/2020 from https://www.nytimes.com/1981/06/22/us/suspect-in-atlanta-young-big-ideas-but-a-career-of-limited-achievements.html

Weiss, Sabrina Rojas. (08/16/2019). Mindhunter Season 2’s Atlanta Child Murders Mystery Is Possibly Still Unsolved. Refinery 29. Retrieved 09/13/2020 from https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2019/08/240400/mindhunter-atlanta-child-murders-killer-true-story

Rowson, Kevin. (04/30/2015). Atlanta Child Murders: Wayne Williams hopes for appeal. USA Today. Retrieved 09/13/2020 from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/local/2015/04/30/wayne-williams-hair-evidence-fbi/26678019/

Polk, Jim. (09/06/2010). DNA test strengthens Atlanta child killings case. CNN. Retrieved 09/13/2020 from https://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/06/09/williams.dna.test/index.html

Rawls Jr, Wendell. (12/27/1981). ATLANTA MURDER TRIAL READY TO BEGIN AS RESIDENTS TRY TO FORGET THE FEAR. Retrieved 09/13/2020 from https://www.nytimes.com/1981/12/27/us/atlanta-murder-trial-ready-to-begin-as-residents-try-to-forget-the-fear.html

Renfro, Paul. (11/04/2019). Atlanta Youth Murders. New Georgia Encyclopedia. Retrieved 09/13/2020 from https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/atlanta-youth-murders

Farber, M.A. (07/01/1981). KEY FIBER EVIDENCE IN ATLANTA CASE COULD BE FOCUS OF LONG LEGAL BATTLE. Retrieved 09/13/2020 from https://www.nytimes.com/1981/07/01/us/key-fiber-evidence-in-atlanta-case-could-be-focus-of-long-legal-battle.html

FBI.gov. (02/07/2014). Serial Killers Part 5: Wayne Williams and the Atlanta Child Murders. Retrieved 09/13/2020 from https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/-serial-killers-part-5-wayne-williams-and-the-atlanta-child-murders

What When How. (n.d.). Identification of Human and Animal Hair. Retrieved 09/14/2020 from http://what-when-how.com/forensic-sciences/identification-of-human-and-animal-hair/

Wikipedia contributors. (08/10/2020). FBI Laboratory. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 09/14/2020 from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=FBI_Laboratory&oldid=972083732

Books

Rosewood, Jack. Child Killer: The True Story of the Atlanta Child Murders. LAK Publishing – 11/14/2018
https://www.amazon.com/Child-Killer-Story-Atlanta-Murders-ebook/dp/B07KKPRSCX

Podcasts

Tenderfoot TV iHeart Media and Host Payne Lindsey. Atlanta Monster. 2018. [Audio podcast] Retrieved 09/05/2020 from https://atlantamonster.com/

Invisible Choir. 4/26/2020. Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered Children Episode 22 [Audio Podcast]. Retrieved 09/26/2020 from https://www.invisiblechoir.com/listen/atlanta

Williams, Jerri. FBI Retired Case File Review with Jerri Williams. Episode 187: John Glover- Atlanta Child Murders, Wayne Williams 11/13/19 [Audio Podcast]. Retrieved on 9/7/2020 from URL https://fbiretiredcasefilereview.libsyn.com/podcast/episode-187-john-glover-atlanta-child-murders-wayne-williams

Paige (Host). 39 Atlanta Child Murders June 28 [Audio Podcast]. Retrieved on 9/7/2020 from URL https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/paiges-bookshelf

Shrieks & Geeks. #8 Atlanta’s Lost Children Part 2. 7/29/2020 [Audio Podcast]. Retrieved on 9/7/2020 from URL https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/shrieks-geeks-shrieks-geeks-Y-pEFIOd8To/

Madison in collaboration with Crime and Roses Hosts Megan and Danielle. Shared Madness. Episode 17: Atlanta Child Murders and Heather McDonald. https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/shared-madness-madison-91Q_pGYU4BA/

Terkel, Studs. Radio Archive. The Chicago History Museum. 11/22/1985 [Audio Wav file]. Retrieved on 9/10/2020 from https://studsterkel.wfmt.com/programs/james-baldwin-discusses-his-book-evidence-things-not-seen

Sherer, Devon. (09/06/2019). The Real FBI Agent Behind Mindhunter on What Actually Happened in Atlanta. Vulture. Retrieved 09/14/2020 from https://www.vulture.com/2019/09/mindhunter-john-douglas-atlanta-child-murders.html

Slate. Retrieved 09/14/2020 from https://slate.com/culture/2020/04/atlanta-child-murders-documentary-missing-and-murdered-hbo-review.html

Retrieved 09/14/2020 from https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn27386-hair-analysis-on-trial-after-fbi-admits-to-using-flawed-evidence/

Video

Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children
https://www.hbo.com/atlantas-missing-and-murdered-the-lost-children

The Atlanta Child Murders
https://www.investigationdiscovery.com/tv-shows/the-atlanta-child-murders/

History

Georgia Crime Rates. (n.d.). Rate and Rank of Crimes in the United States 1960 to 2013. Retrieved 09/06/2020 http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/gacrime.htm

Wikipedia contributors. (06/22/2020). Demographics of Atlanta. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 09/06/2020 from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Demographics_of_Atlanta&oldid=963991094

http://www.disastercenter.com/georgia/crime/2726.htm

Bryant, Jonathan M. (08/11/2020). Ku Klux Klan in the Reconstruction Era. New Georgia Encyclopedia. Retrieved 09/06/2020 from https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/ku-klux-klan-reconstruction-era

Wormser, Richard. (n.d.). Jim Crow Stories: Ku Klux Klan. Thirteen.org. Retrieved on 9/5/2020 from https://www.thirteen.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories_org_kkk.html

Wikipedia contributors. (08/29/2020). Demolished public housing projects in Atlanta. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 09/06/2020 from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Demolished_public_housing_projects_in_Atlanta&oldid=975663522

Engebretson, Jess. (07/24/2019). How the Birthplace of the Modern Ku Klux Klan Became the Site of America’s Largest Confederate Monument. KQED. Retrieved 09/10/2020 from https://www.kqed.org/lowdown/19119/stone-mountains-hidden-history-americas-biggest-confederate-memorial-and-birthplace-of-the-modern-ku-klux-klan

Thomas, Becky. (n.d.). Stone Mountain: A Theme Park for White Supremacists. ArcGIS Online. Retrieved 09/10/2020 from https://www.arcgis.com/apps/Cascade/index.html?appid=695684ed6d1d47e8a7b33418907cf1ce

Wikipedia contributors. (08/27/2020). Indian Removal Act. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 09/11/2020 from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Indian_Removal_Act&oldid=975337168

Maulden, Kristopher. (2001). “Let Them Enforce It”: The Supreme Court and the Cherokee Cases. Eastern Illinois University. Retrieved 09/11/2020 from https://www.eiu.edu/historia/maulden.pdf

Shaer, Matthew. (October 2016). The Sordid History of Mount Rushmore. Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 09/12/2020 from https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/sordid-history-mount-rushmore-180960446/

Wikipedia contributors. (09/04/2020). Lost Cause of the Confederacy. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 09/12/2020 from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lost_Cause_of_the_Confederacy&oldid=976728390

McKinney, Debra. (02/10/2018). Stone Mountain: A Monumental Dilemma. The Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved 09/12/2020 from https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/intelligence-report/2018/stone-mountain-monumental-dilemma

Pendergrast, Mark. (08/30/2020). Stone Mountain, Mount Rushmore, Donald Trump, and the KKK. Saporta Report. Retrieved 09/12/2020 from https://saportareport.com/stone-mountain-mount-rushmore-donald-trump-and-the-kkk/

How Not to Get Murdered

Massot, Dolors. (02/27/2020). 10 Tips to help protect your children from danger. Aleteia.org. Retrieved on 9/12/2020 from https://aleteia.org/2020/02/24/10-tips-to-help-protect-your-children-from-danger/

How to report child abuse
https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/responding/reporting/how/
https://www.thehotline.org/

SafeKids.Com. (n.d.). Kids’ Rules for Online Safety. New York Public Library. Retrieved on 9/13/2020 from https://www.nypl.org/sites/default/files/safekidslist_0.pdf

Documentary: Storm Over Brooklyn on HBO
https://www.hbo.com/documentaries/yusuf-hawkins-storm-over-brooklyn

Podcast: Where the Bodies Are Buried
https://www.philchalmers.com/podcast
IG: @wherethebodiesareburied
https://www.facebook.com/wherethebodiesareburied

Promo

Zero Dark Murder
http://zerodarkmurder.com/
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/zero-dark-murders-podcast
@Stitcher https://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=558937
Twitter: @zerodarkmurder
Facebook: @zerodarkmurderpodcast

Music

“Abyss” by Alasen: ●https://soundcloud.com/alasen●https://twitter.com/icemantrap ●https://instagram.com/icemanbass/●https://soundcloud.com/therealfrozenguy●
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

“VVS” & “Starz” by Yung Kartz https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Yung_Kartz
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

“Furious Freak” by Kevin MacLeod
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3791-furious-freak
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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