This podcast details true crime cases.

It contains adult themes and may contain descriptions of violence.

It is not intended for children.

Listen or discretion is advised. Thank you for joining me for today's episode of Once Upon a Crime.

We're in the series Crimes on Campus, where I'm covering cases related to educational institutions.

In this episode, I'll tell you about a case that received a lot of media coverage when it occurred due to the bizarre circumstances,

the heinous nature of the crime, and the venue in which it occurred at a high school prom.

Melissa Drexler was just 17 years old in 1997 and in her last year of high school.

She was desperate to hide a teen pregnancy from her parents and friends and

equally determined to attend her senior prom.

When these two goals collided, it made for tragic results.

This is the case of Melissa Drexler, aka Prom Mom. Note, this episode was originally released for Patreon members only.

Melissa Drexler was a senior in high school.

She attended Lacey Township High School in Fork River, New Jersey.

She was the only child of a shipping clerk and a bank teller

and lived in a pretty middle-class neighborhood right on the shoreline.

A nice little quiet town where everybody knew one another.

Melissa was said to be quiet, somewhat shy, she had friends, but she kept to a close-knit group of friends

and wasn't a social butterfly.

She loved fashion and she had always aspired to work in the fashion industry.

She mainly hung out with her friend Rebecca at her home and at the mall. Her Rebecca had been

friends since grade school.

...