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On November 9th, 1971, John List walked behind his wife at the breakfast table and shot her in the back of the head. After moving her to the ballroom of the families mansion, he went upstairs to his mothers private apartment and killed her. While he waited for the school day to end he stopped the mail, ran to the bank, had lunch, and then he executed his three children and pulled them next to their mother in the ballroom. Then he drove to JFK airport where he abandoned his car and then took a train back into the city.

And he disappeared like a shadow. His family was found a month after their murders and for nearly 18 years- John got away with it. He was able to fade into the invisibility of a "normal" life until America's Most Wanted agreed to air the case. That episode contained the updated facial reconstruction that had been aged but a forensic sculpture, a sculpture so accurate, he even accurately picked what time of glasses John would be wearing.

Lets his the road to New Jersey villages outside of bustling NYC and a very very very- cold case

Sources:

ABC News. (2002, February 20). 1971 family killer breaks silence. ABC News. 

Associated Press. (1990a, March 29). Killer's letter: "After it was all over I said some prayers" (as published by The Roanoke Times).

Associated Press. (1990b, March 29). Letter says family killed to ensure their salvation (as published by The Roanoke Times).

Associated Press. (1990c, May 1). List gets five life terms in murders; parole not possible (as published by The Roanoke Times).

Cullen, D., Yuille, J. C., Porter, S., & Ritchie, C. (2019). A typology of familicide perpetrators in Australia. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, Article 2956. 

Douthat, S. (1989, June 18). The fugitive: In 18 years on the run, slaying suspect's life comes to resemble his old one [Associated Press story as published by Los Angeles Times].

Federal Bureau of Investigation. (n.d.). FBI Richmond history. Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Liem, M., & Koenraadt, F. (2008). Familicide: A comparison with spousal and child homicide by mentally disordered perpetrators. Criminal Behaviour and Mental Health, 18, 306–318. 

Los Angeles Times. (1989, June 18). The fugitive: In 18 years on the run, slaying suspect's life comes to resemble his old one. 

Los Angeles Times. (1990, April 10). 17 years later, town gets answers to family killings. 

New York Times. (1990, March 29). Suspect wrote about killing family in '71. The New York Times. 

NJ.com. (2008, March 25). Body of killer John List remains unclaimed. 

O'Donnell, S. (1994). Forensic imaging and age progression: The John List case. Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice.

People. (2022, October 19). 'The Watcher': John Graff is inspired by family murderer John List. People. 

Priest, D., & Kelleher, S. (1989, July 1). A double life for 17 years? VA accountant denies he's mass murder suspect. The Washington Post.

Scholar.lib.vt.edu. (1990, May 1). LIST GETS FIVE LIFE TERMS IN MURDERS; PAROLE NOT POSSIBLE. 

Shorty Awards. (n.d.). Father wants us dead. The Shorty Awards. 

State v. List, 270 N.J. Super. 252 (Law Div. 1990).

State v. List, 270 N.J. Super. 169 (App. Div. 1993).

UPI. (1990, March 28). Incriminating List letter can be used at murder trial. 

UPI. (2008, March 23). John List, killer of family, dies at 82.

U.S. Census Bureau. (2002). TOTAL POPULATION Town of Westfield and Union County 1930 - 2000.

After his sweetheart deal in 2008, Epstein was able to reintegrate into life and maintain his trafficking ring without any loss in wealth, associations or connections.

This episode tracks his life and dealings from 2008 to his death in 2019, the aftermath of his cruelty, the arrest and trial of Ghislaine Maxwell and the recent release of the Epstein files.

As of now, no man involved with Epstein and his human trafficking has been arrested in the US

Sources

The source list is way too big for the show notes but is available upon request at [email protected]

**Please forgive some slight changes as this had to be recorded remotely*

Please support the show at patreon.com/highwaytohellpodcast

3 million more Epstein files were released and yet in the US there has been no further investigation, no arrests. Files that detail the rape, murder, cannibalism of children result in no arrests.

The release of the files almost extend Epsteins story- a man of deception, greed and who skated through his life with absolutely no accountability. The middle class Jewish boy, born into an average Brooklyn jewish family but who called himself "poor, smart, and desperate to be rich". Desperate for the elite and the luxury of New York, and then the world.

A man, who with no college degree who was hired to teach at the elite Dalton school anyway because of his proficiency at math. He was inappropriate with teenage girls but removed quietly- no accountability, no embarrassment for the school. But a parent who met him there brought him into Bear Sterns, with no degree, no qualifications, and when his deceit ran out, he was released quietly. Epstein then shaped himself as the financial advisor of the elite of the elite. He only needed one client, and he found it in Leslie Wexner who gave Epstein all of the keys to his kingdom. When Epstein misappropriated funds, basically gave himself a New York mansion, they settled quietly out of court- no accountability, no embarrassment.

If any single person had exposed Epstein for who he was, the files likely wouldn't exist. And when he finally did get caught for abusing minors, the district attorney and FBI cut him the sweetheart deal of a lifetime. 12 hours a day in jail for 13 months, getting to work in his private office, privacy and a non prosecutorial agreement for all his friends who participated in trafficking and raping minors. They went so far as to lie to his victims about it.

No accountability. No embarrassment. Boys will be boys after all.

Sources

ABC News. (2020, January 24). Billionaire businessman Leslie Wexner refuses to reveal full scope of Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged thefts. ABC News.

Alon, S. (2009). The evolution of class inequality in higher education: Competition, exclusion, and adaptation. American Sociological Review, 74(5), 731–755.

Barak, G. (2015). The crimes of the powerful: Marxism, crime and deviance. Routledge.

Bernstein, M. (1996). The education of the Jewish community: Class, culture, and schooling. University Press.

Bourdieu, P. (1986). The forms of capital. In J. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of theory and research for the sociology of education (pp. 241–258). Greenwood.

Brown, J. K. (2018, November). Perversion of justice [Investigative series]. Miami Herald.

Brown, J. K. (2021). Perversion of justice: The Jeffrey Epstein story. William Morrow.

Budd, K. M. (2024). Responding to crimes of a sexual nature: What we really want is no more victims. The Sentencing Project.

CBC News. (2019, August 7). Victoria’s Secret owner says disgraced financier Epstein stole $46M from him. CBC News.

CBC News. (2020, November 11). U.S. Justice Dept. report finds “poor judgment” exercised in Jeffrey Epstein case. CBC News.

Center for American Progress. (2022, December 13). America’s broken criminal legal system contributes to wealth inequality. Center for American Progress.

CBS News. (2019, August 11). Jeffrey Epstein may have taken “vast sums” from Victoria’s Secret billionaire Leslie Wexner. CBS News.

Clarke, M. (2023). Responding to crimes of a sexual nature: What we really want is no more victims. The Sentencing Project.

Collins, R. (1979). The credential society: An historical sociology of education and stratification. Academic Press.

Cooley, A., & Ron, J. (2002). The NGO scramble: Organizational insecurity and the political economy of transnational action. International Security, 27(1), 5–39.

FULL LIST OF SOURCES AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST

[email protected]

A ransom note was found on the stairs of the Ramsey house on December 26, 1996. Patsy Ramsey quickly called police and reported that her daughter, JonBenét, was missing. The police treated it as a kidnapping since the three page ransom note demanded $118,000, the exact Christmas bonus, her father John had received.

Police failed to secure the entire scene, failed to search the house thoroughly,but several hours later John Ramsey searched the house himself and found JonBenét’s body in a small basement room. She had suffered a severe skull fracture and had been strangled with a homemade garrote fashioned from a broken paintbrush handle and cord.

An unusually long ransom note written in the families home, physical evidence from the family on her body, no sign of forced entry but also- no indications of prior abuse. Perhaps one of the strangest cold cases in US history.

Sources

Books

Steve Thomas. JonBenét: Inside the Ramsey Murder Investigation. St. Martin’s Press, 2000.

Lawrence Schiller. Perfect Murder, Perfect Town. HarperCollins, 1999.

James Kolar. Foreign Faction. Ventus Publishing, 2012.

Paula Woodward. We Have Your Daughter. Prospecta Press, 2016.

Paula Woodward. Unsolved: The JonBenét Ramsey Murder 25 Years Later. City Point Press, 2021.

Cyril Wecht & Greg Saitz. Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey?. Onyx Books, 1998.

Primary / Official Documents

Boulder Police Department. Case reports, warrants, affidavits, and investigative summaries (1996–2000).

Boulder County District Attorney’s Office. Grand jury proceedings and charging documents.

Federal Bureau of Investigation. Forensic analysis support reports (DNA testing, handwriting analysis, behavioral science input).

Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Laboratory reports and forensic testing records.

Boulder County Coroner’s Office. Autopsy report of JonBenét Ramsey, December 27, 1996.

Grand Jury Indictment (People v. John and Patricia Ramsey), 1999 (publicly released redacted indictment, 2013).

Major Contemporary Journalism / Archives

The Denver Post investigative coverage archive (1996–present).

Rocky Mountain News historical coverage archive.

The New York Times national reporting on the investigation and legal developments.

CBS News case timeline and documentary reporting.

ABC News investigative specials and interviews.

Court TV trial analysis and case coverage (archived).

Documentaries / Long-form Reporting (use cautiously but commonly cited)

The Case of: JonBenét Ramsey. CBS.

JonBenét Ramsey: What Really Happened?. ABC News.

Dateline NBC special episodes on the case.

Andrea Yates, a Texas mother of five, drowned her children in a bathtub on June 20, 2001, shocking the nation. She immediately confessed to police and was later found not guilty by reason of insanity. Her medical history showed years of severe postpartum depression and psychosis, multiple hospitalizations, and suicide attempts. Doctors had warned her husband, Rusty Yates, that further pregnancies could worsen her condition and that she should not be left alone with the children. These warnings went unheeded.

Rusty and Andrea adhered to a strict conservative Christian framework that emphasized traditional gender roles, homeschooling, and isolation from secular influences. Andrea gave up her nursing career to become a full-time mother, homeschooling all five children while managing household duties under increasing mental strain.

A significant influence was evangelical street preacher Michael Woroniecki, whose writings and sermons the Yateses followed closely. Woroniecki preached that women must be submissive and that modern society was spiritually corrupt. He taught that mothers could lead their children to damnation by failing to follow God’s will. Andrea, in her delusional state, internalized these messages and believed her children were spiritually doomed.

This religious pressure, combined with extreme isolation and untreated psychosis, shaped Andrea’s belief that killing her children was a way to save them from eternal suffering. Her statements after the killings reflected this belief, as she said she was trying to be a good mother and protect her children from Satan. Her case remains one of the most deeply tragic examples of how rigid religious ideology and untreated mental illness can collide.

Sources:

Texas v. Yates, 99-CR-2990 through 99-CR-2994, Harris County District Court, trial transcripts and court records, 2002.
Texas v. Yates, retrial transcripts and court records, Harris County District Court, 2006.
Yates v. State, 171 S.W.3d 215 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 2005), Texas Court of Appeals opinion overturning the first conviction.
Resnick, Phillip J. “Filicide in the United States.” American Journal of Psychiatry, 126(3), 1969, 325–334.
Resnick, Phillip J. expert testimony in State of Texas v. Andrea Yates, 2002 and 2006.
Dietz, Park. expert testimony in State of Texas v. Andrea Yates, 2002.
Spinelli, Margaret G. “Maternal Infanticide Associated With Mental Illness: Prevention and the Promise of Saved Lives.” American Journal of Psychiatry, 161(9), 2004.
Friedman, Susan Hatters, and Deborah Hensel. “Child Murder by Mothers: A Critical Analysis of the Current State of Knowledge and a Research Agenda.” American Journal of Psychiatry, 162(9), 2005.
Journal of Forensic Sciences. maternal filicide and postpartum psychosis (2000–2010 issues).
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). Educational materials on postpartum mental illness and psychosis.
Michael and Debi Woroniecki, Mission to the World ministries newsletters, sermons, and correspondence admitted to evidence
Hassan, Steven. Combating Cult Mind Control. Rochester, VT: Park Street Press, 2015 edition.
The New York Times. “Texas Mother Found Guilty in Drowning of Her Children.” 2002; and follow-up reporting
Houston Chronicle. Brian Rogers and staff. Ongoing coverage of the Yates case, 2001–2006.
The Washington Post. “Yates Conviction Overturned” and related trial coverage, 2005–2006.
Los Angeles Times. “Depression, Religion and the Yates Family Tragedy,” 2002 investigative reporting.
Associated Press. National wire service reports on the Yates arrests, trial, appeals, and retrial, 2001–2006.
ABC News. 20/20. “The Andrea Yates Story” broadcast segments and transcripts.
NBC News. Dateline NBC. Andrea Yates case episode and transcripts.
A&E Network. The Crimes That Changed Us, Season 1, Episode “Andrea Yates,”
Investigation Discovery. The Cult Behind the Killer, Andrea Yates
Cummins, Eric. “Religion, Motherhood, and Mental Illness: The Andrea Yates Case.”

In this episode, we step into one of the most unsettling corners of American folklore: the legend of the skinwalker.

Rooted in Navajo (Diné) tradition, the skinwalker—often called yee naaldlooshii, “with it, he goes on all fours”—is not a cryptid or campfire monster, but a deeply serious and taboo figure tied to witchcraft, shapeshifting, and the deliberate misuse of spiritual power. Medicine men who, in a search for power, violated the deepest laws of the Dine to hold that power. We explore the cultural origins of the story, what skinwalkers are believed to be within traditional belief systems, and how colonization, fear, and modern media distorted those teachings into horror mythology.

From sacred law to whispered warnings, we trace how the legend moved from protected Indigenous knowledge into pop culture fascination—and why many Navajo people still refuse to discuss it openly.

Then we shift into the modern era: Skinwalker Ranch, strange sightings across the Southwest, and firsthand accounts from ranchers, travelers, and locals who describe encounters they still can’t explain. The episode includes real stories—unsettling, personal experiences that blur the line between folklore, psychology, and the unknown.

Then we end with a breathtaking road trip through the majesty of the Navajo nation.

Listener discretion advised: discussions include disturbing imagery and intense personal encounters.

Sources

Blackhorse Lowe & Dustinn Craig (Diné filmmakers). Interviews and cultural commentary on Navajo witchcraft taboos and the dangers of public discussion/misrepresentation.

Brugge, David. Navajos in the Catholic Church Records of New Mexico, 1694–1875. University of New Mexico Press.

Denetdale, Jennifer Nez. Reclaiming Diné History: The Legacies of Navajo Chief Manuelito and Juanita. University of Arizona Press.

Hale, Berard. Origin Legends of the Navajo Night Chant. Yale University Press.

Iverson, Peter. Diné: A History of the Navajos. University of New Mexico Press.

Kluckhohn, Clyde. Navajo Witchcraft. Beacon Press. (Foundational anthropological study of witchcraft accusations, yee naaldlooshii beliefs, and social function of “skinwalker” narratives.)

Luckert, Karl W. Navajo Mountain and Rainbow Bridge Religion. University of Utah Press.

Matthews, Washington. Navajo Legends. American Folklore Society.

Reichard, Gladys A. Navajo Religion: A Study of Symbolism. Princeton University Press.

Schwarz, Maureen Trudelle. Molded in the Image of Changing Woman: Navajo Views on the Human Body and Personhood. University of Arizona Press.

Witherspoon, Gary. Language and Art in the Navajo Universe. University of Michigan Press.

Witherspoon, Gary. Navajo Kinship and Marriage. University of Chicago Press. (Helpful for understanding hózhó, balance, and why witchcraft is framed as social rupture.)

Young, Robert W., and William Morgan. The Navajo Language: A Grammar and Colloquial Dictionary. University of New Mexico Press. (For correct terminology like yee naaldlooshii.)

Skinwalker Ranch / modern paranormal claims (separate from traditional Diné belief)

Kelleher, Colm A., and George Knapp. Hunt for the Skinwalker: Science Confronts the Unexplained at a Remote Ranch in Utah. Paraview Pocket Books.

Knapp, George, and Colm Kelleher. Skinwalkers at the Pentagon. Mystery Wire.

Shermer, Michael. “The Utah UFO Ranch and the Problems with Paranormal Investigation.” Skeptic Magazine.

Ziegler, Charles. “Folklore, UFO Mythmaking, and the Misappropriation of Indigenous Legend.” Journal of American Folklore.

The continuation of the West Memphis 3 case with a travel itinerary in Memphis!!!

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Occasionally there's a story with so much to it and so much nuance, that we break it up into two pieces instead of making a three hour episode. So here is part one!

On May 5, 1993, three eight-year-old boys—Stevie Branch, Michael Moore, and Christopher Byers—were reported missing in West Memphis, Arkansas. Their bodies were discovered the next day in a drainage ditch in an area known as Robin Hood Hills. The boys had been beaten, bound, and mutilated. The brutality of the crime sparked community panic.

Police quickly focused on three local teenagers: Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley Jr., largely because Echols was interested in heavy metal culture and wore black clothing during the height of the “Satanic Panic.” Misskelley, who had an IQ below average and was interrogated for hours without a parent or lawyer, gave a highly inconsistent confession that he later recanted. No physical evidence linked the teenagers to the murders.

In 1994, the three were convicted—Misskelley and Baldwin received life sentences; Echols was sentenced to death. Over the next two decades, investigative journalists, forensic experts, and attorneys raised major concerns about coerced confessions, mishandled evidence, untested DNA, and alternate suspects.

New DNA testing (2007–2011) found no genetic material connecting any of the West Memphis Three to the crime scene. With growing legal pressure, the defendants entered Alford pleas in 2011, allowing them to maintain innocence while accepting time served. They were released after 18 years in prison.

The case remains controversial, with ongoing debate about wrongful conviction, police bias, and the influence of Satanic Panic on the investigation

Legal Documents & Court Records

• Arkansas Supreme Court: Echols v. State (1996).

• Arkansas Supreme Court: Misskelley v. State (1996).

• Arkansas Supreme Court: Baldwin v. State (1996).

• West Memphis Police Department investigation files.

• DNA testing records submitted during 2007–2011 appeals.

• 2011 Alford Plea filings, Craighead County Circuit Court.

Books & Scholarly Works

• Leveritt, Mara. Devil’s Knot: The True Story of the West Memphis Three.

• Baldwin, Jason; Echols, Damien; Misskelley Jr., Jessie. Life After Death (Echols memoir).

• Hobbs, Pamela. “The West Memphis Three: Media, Moral Panic, and the Politics of Fear.” Journal of Southern Studies.

• Burnett, Joe. The Case of the West Memphis Three: Wrongful Conviction and the American Justice System.

Documentaries & Investigative Journalism

• Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills (1996).

• Paradise Lost 2: Revelations (2000).

• Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory (2011).

• West of Memphis (2012).

• Arkansas Times and Memphis Commercial Appeal investigative archives.

Forensic & Expert Analyses

• Dr. Werner Spitz, forensic pathology evaluations (2007–2011).

• Dr. Michael Baden, forensic analysis on post-mortem animal predation vs. mutilation.

• FBI files and behavioral assessments (released through FOIA).

⚠️ Content Warning:
This episode contains discussion of extreme violence, sexual abuse, and the murder of minors. Listener discretion is strongly advised.

This episode examines the crimes of Dean Corll who operated in early 1970s in Houston, Corll, later dubbed “The Candyman”, used manipulation, coercion, and the assistance of two teenage accomplices to abduct, torture, and murder dozens of boys and young men.

We trace how Corll gained access to victims, the role his accomplices played, and how systemic failures—including ignored disappearances and marginalized victims—allowed the crimes to continue for years. The episode walks through the investigation that finally exposed the murders, the discovery of multiple burial sites, and the shocking moment when Corll’s killing spree ended not with arrest, but with his own death at the hands of an accomplice.

Welcome to our new release schedule! Midnight every Tuesday (we'll explain more next episode about the schedule change)

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Opened in 1829, Eastern State Penitentiary was once the most radical and influential prison in the world. Built on the belief that isolation and silence would inspire penitence, it pioneered the “Pennsylvania System” of solitary confinement—an approach that quickly drew international attention and criticism. In practice, prolonged isolation caused severe psychological harm, mental breakdowns, and suicide attempts. Overcrowding, brutality, and abandonment eventually replaced reform, even as the prison housed infamous inmates like Al Capone before closing its doors in 1971.

Today, Eastern State stands as a decaying monument to failed penal philosophy—and one of the most notorious haunted locations in the United States. Guards, historians, and visitors have reported disembodied voices, echoing footsteps, shadow figures, cell doors slamming shut, and sudden waves of panic or despair. Paranormal activity is most frequently associated with Cellblock 12, Death Row, and the long-sealed isolation cells. This episode explores how extreme punishment, silence, and human suffering shaped Eastern State’s legacy—and why many believe the trauma embedded in its walls never truly faded.

Sources

Alexis de Tocqueville & Gustave de Beaumont, On the Penitentiary System in the United States

American Philosophical Society — archival exhibits on early incarceration and youth prisoners

Charles Dickens, American Notes for General Circulation (1842)

David J. Rothman, The Discovery of the Asylum

Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site — official archives & institutional history

Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site — Staff & Visitor Incident Reports

Eastern State Penitentiary Preservation Coalition — 1990s restoration records

Eastern State Penitentiary staff and guard incident reports — archived testimonies

Eastern State preservation staff interviews (1990s–2000s)

Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia — “Eastern State Penitentiary”

Harry Elmer Barnes, The Evolution of Penology in Pennsylvania

JSTOR — scholarly articles on prison discipline, solitary confinement, and the Pennsylvania System

Library Company of Philadelphia — archival materials on prison discipline and the iron gag

National Trust for Historic Preservation — Eastern State Penitentiary documentation

Pennsylvania Department of Corrections — Annual Reports (19th–20th centuries)

Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission records

Rebecca McLennan, The Crisis of Imprisonment

Scholarly discussions of “place memory” in carceral ruins

Scholarly literature on solitary confinement and mental health referencing Eastern State as a case study

The Philadelphia Inquirer — historical reporting and interviews related to Eastern State

University of Delaware — Finding Aid: Eastern State Penitentiary Medical Log Books, 1840–1868

U.S. Supreme Court jurisprudence on prison conditions and the Eighth Amendment

WHYY — Philadelphia public media reporting on Eastern State history and paranormal accounts