Marlena Childress

Voices for Justice

Sarah Turney

True Crime, Documentary, Society & Culture

4.8 • 9.3K Ratings

🗓️ 10 April 2026

⏱️ 66 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

A four-year-old girl disappears from a small Tennessee town, and almost instantly, fear ripples through the community. Her family pleads for answers. Her neighbors rally around them. People search, pray, and hold onto hope that she’ll be found safe. But then, just when it seems the case couldn’t get more tragic, it takes a turn so shocking it changes everything. Marlena Danyele Childress was just 4 years old when she vanished on April 16, 1987, from Union City, Tennessee, where she was last seen playing in the front yard of her family’s home. She was 4 feet tall, weighed about 38 pounds, and had light brown hair and blue or hazel eyes. Her ears were pierced, and she had silver or stainless-steel caps on her top and bottom front teeth. The day she disappeared, Marlena was wearing a purple and white checked shirt with lace trim, light purple pants, and pink jelly-style shoes. Anyone with information is asked to call the Union City Police Department at 731-885-1515. For more information about the podcast and the cases discussed, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠VoicesforJusticePodcast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ For even more content or to further support the show, join the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Voices for Justice Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow us on social media: Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@VFJPod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@VoicesforJusticePodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@VoicesforJusticePodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@VoicesforJusticePodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Voices for Justice is hosted by Sarah Turney Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@SarahETurney⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@SarahETurney⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@SarahETurney⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@SarahETurney⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@SarahTurney⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ The introduction music used in Voices for Justice is Thread of Clouds by Blue Dot Sessions. Outro music is Melancholic Ending by Soft and Furious. The track used for ad transitions is Pinky by Blue Dot Sessions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:30.2	There's no one like you, and there never will be.
0:33.1	From the producer of Bohemian Rhapsody.
0:36.5	There were many legends, but there was only one.
0:42.1	Michael in IMAX in Cinema's Wednesday, April 22.
0:46.9	Voices for Justice is a podcast that uses adult language and discusses sensitive and potentially triggering topics, including violence, abuse, and murder.
0:56.5	This podcast may not be appropriate for younger audiences.
1:00.3	All parties are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
1:03.6	Some names have been changed or omitted per their request or for safety purposes.
1:08.4	Listener discretion is advised.
1:14.7	My name is Sarah Turney, and this is voices for justice. Today I'm discussing the case of Marlena Childress. A four-year-old girl disappears from a
1:26.2	small Tennessee town, and almost instantly fear ripples
1:29.6	through the community.
1:31.4	Her family pleads for answers.
1:33.8	Her neighbors rally around them.
1:36.0	They organize, search, and hold on to hope that she'll be found safe.
1:40.7	But then, just when it seems like the case couldn't get any more tragic, it takes a turn
	...

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