Episode 56: Samiah Downing (Part 1)

Suffer the Little Children

Suffer the Little Children Pod

Social Sciences, True Crime, Society & Culture, Science

4.6 • 993 Ratings

🗓️ 31 March 2021

⏱️ 38 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Four-year-old Samiah Downing was visiting with her father and his girlfriend in Adelanto, California in December of 2012 when police received a report from a witness that something very bad had happened to Samiah. Police interviewed the couple, and within hours, authorities received information that led them to a shallow grave in the California desert, where they discovered Samiah’s body with unimaginable injuries. The story that emerged was a horror of daily beatings, confinement, and diabolical torture, including the water deprivation that ultimately led to Samiah’s death, and later, the arrest and conviction of three people.
In this episode, I will tell you the story of Samiah’s life, her death, and the nearly nine-year criminal case that ensued. Next week, you’ll hear my interview with the prosecutor in Samiah’s case, San Bernardino County Deputy District Attorney Justin Crocker, who spent years pushing toward justice for the sweet, happy four-year-old girl with the big brown eyes.
This is part 1 of the tragic story of Samiah Downing.
To watch the segment about Samiah on Gina Silva’s Fox 11 investigative series The Children Are Dying, click here.
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Transcript

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0:00.0	Ah, she's brilliant. Miss, I finally got plans out the group chat. We get it. Four votes for a festival,
0:05.9	three for a city break. It's hard to adhere to everyone's needs. There's Betty with her
0:09.6	oversized tent. Sarah and her six foot eight boyfriend.
0:13.0	All right.
0:14.0	Roger Junior and his dog, Roger Senior.
0:16.0	And don't get us started on Mel.
0:19.0	But, like a marriage counselor, she's the one keeping things together.
0:22.0	All aboard, Miss I finally got plans out the group. a marriage counselor, she's the one keeping things together.
0:22.6	All aboard Miss I finally got plans out the group chat.
0:25.6	Keep everyone's plans alive when you travel with us.
0:28.0	P, and O'Ferees, there is another way.
0:30.1	We often hear of parents warning their children about the dangers of strangers,
0:39.0	but the reality is children are more likely to come to harm by people they know than people
0:46.2	they don't.
0:48.6	Here at Stolen Lives, children cases are important to us. That's why we do what we do. We hope to bring awareness
0:57.2	to the lost or to the forgotten. Cases like the brutal murder of Kelsey Shelton Smith, searching for answers to
1:06.8	discover the identity of Delta Dawn, and the unsolved missing persons case of Tabitha tutors.
1:15.0	Listen to Stolen Lives on Apple Podcast, or wherever you listen to great podcasts,
1:22.0	like the one you're listening to today.
1:25.0	This podcast contains descriptions of violence against children and adult language and is not suitable
1:35.0	for all audiences.
1:37.0	Listen or discretion is advised. Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh,
	...

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