Listen Now: American Scandal | The West Memphis Three

British Scandal

Wondery

Scandal, Alice Levine, Great Britain, Society & Culture, Exhibit C, British, England, History, Matt Forde, Documentary

4.5 • 6.5K Ratings

🗓️ 1 December 2025

⏱️ 5 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

On May 5, 1993, three 8-year-old boys were brutally murdered in West Memphis, Arkansas. The tiny local police department launches an investigation but finds little physical evidence to lead them to a suspect. Eventually, outside pressure pushes them to charge someone with the killings, whether or not the evidence supports their conclusions.

American Scandal takes you deep into the heart of America’s dark side to look at what drives someone to break the rules and what happens when they’re caught. In our latest series, three teenage boys are falsely accused of a vicious triple homicide, but their story doesn't end with their trials or convictions. Instead, their plight will capture the imagination of the entire country and spark a campaign for justice that will last for almost two decades. Listen to American Scandal: The West Memphis Three: Wondery.fm/AS_IFD

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Transcript

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0:00.0	In 1993, three eight-year-old boys were brutally murdered in West Memphis, Arkansas. As the small-town
0:07.0	local police struggled to solve the crime, rumors soon spread that the killings were the work of a
0:12.2	satanic cult. Suspicion landed on three local teenagers, but there was no real evidence linking
0:17.8	them to the murders. Still, that would not protect them. Hi, I'm Lindsay Graham,
0:21.7	the host of Wondry Show American Scandal. We bring to life some of the biggest controversies in
0:26.3	U.S. history, presidential lies, environmental disasters, corporate fraud. In our latest series,
0:32.2	three teenage boys are falsely accused of a vicious triple homicide, But their story doesn't end with their trials or
0:38.9	convictions. Instead, their plight will capture the imagination of the entire country and spark a
0:44.0	campaign for justice that will last for almost two decades. You're about to hear a clip from
0:48.8	American Scandal. Follow American Scandal on the Wondry app, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can binge all episodes of American Scandal, The West Memphis 3, early and ad-free right now on Wondery Plus.
1:23.7	Wondry Plus. It's the afternoon of May 6, 1993, in West Memphis, Arkansas, a small town on the border with Tennessee.
1:29.4	Police Sergeant Mike Allen swat at the mosquitoes, swarming his neck. Squinting into the sunlight, he looks down at a wide stream that flows lazily along a tree-line gully. Alan has been out all
1:35.9	day looking for three missing eight-year-old boys. They've been gone since yesterday evening,
1:41.5	and fears are growing for their safety.
1:49.8	The search has now taken officers to a small wooded area near the interstate, known as Robin Hood Hills.
1:55.4	It's a popular spot with children who are often seeing riding bikes, building forts, and playing games among the trees.
1:57.1	But today, the area doesn't seem so innocent, because one of the other officers in the search
2:01.7	team gives out a shout and points downstream. There's something black bobbing on the surface,
2:08.0	and from this distance it's hard to tell, but it looks like a shoe. Sergeant Allen is the nearest,
2:14.0	and he doesn't hesitate to wait into the water. Splashing over to the object, he grabs it and then realizes with horror that it's attached
2:21.3	to the naked body of a small boy.
2:24.1	Shocked, Alan calls out to his superior, Detective Bryn Ridge.
	...

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