We examine the case of Diane Downs, the mother who claimed that she and her three children were shot in an attempted carjacking in Springfield, Oregon in 1983. By the time she reached the hospital, 7 year old Cheryl was dead, 3 year old Danny was paralyzed, and 8 year old Christie was barely clinging to life. Police began to suspect that the person who was supposed to love them most had tried to sacrifice them in order to be with her married lover, a man who did not want children.

Sources:

Small Sacrifices by Ann Rule

Small Sacrifices (TV Movie)

"Diane Downs: The Mother Who Shot Her Three Children" by Charles Montaldo, ThoughtCo

"Becky Babcock: A Girl's Fight to Escape Her Mother's Crimes", Elizabeth Vargas, Gail Deustch, Alan B. Goldberg, and Jessica Hornig

"Blood Ties (Part 1)", ABC News

"Blood Ties (Part 2)", ABC News

Farrah Fawcett Interview (1989)

"Diane Downs 1988 Prison Interview", The Oprah Winfrey Show

"Diane Downs 2010 Parole Hearing"

"50 Years of KEZI 9 News: The Diane Downs Case (Part 1)"

"50 Years of KEZI 9 News: The Diane Downs Case (Part 2)"