April 16, 1987. Union City, Tennessee. Four-year old Marlena Childress vanishes from her front yard after her mother, Pamela Bailey, claims she saw a red car driving away from their house. Two months later, Pam confesses that she accidentally killed Marlena and tossed her body into the Obion River. Pam soon recants her confession and claims it was coerced and since Marlena’s body cannot be found and there is no other evidence to implicate Pam, she is not indicted for her daughter’s death. Over the next several years, there would be a number of twists and turns, including some seemingly credible eyewitness sightings to suggest Marlena is still alive, and Pam would also face legal trouble for another violent crime involving her children. Was Pam responsible for her daughter’s disappearance, or was Marlena actually abducted? On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we examine a very controversial and divisive missing children’s case which has yet to find a resolution.

Additional Reading:

http://unsolvedmysteries.wikia.com/wiki/Marlena_Childress

http://charleyproject.org/case/marlena-danyele-childress

https://www.nwtntoday.com/2012/04/12/cold-case-investigation-to-focus-on-disappearance/

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The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.