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Episode Description
On a warm September afternoon in 1969, 8-year-old Susan Nason vanished from her quiet suburban neighborhood. For two decades, her case remained cold, until a shocking bit of news broke the silence: a former playmate claimed she had witnessed Susan’s murder… and that it was committed by her own father.
Join us for Memory of Murder. Susan Nason’s story is not just a story about a horrible murder; it’s a story of dysfunctional family relationships and repressed memories. Memories can fade and some say they can return with devastating clarity. Today we are unravelling a complicated case that challenges the boundaries of psychology, criminal justice, and the truth itself. Are repressed memories a defense mechanism to protect oneself from painful experiences, or, like one prominent psychologist has said, are they the worst catastrophe to befall the mental health field since the lobotomy?
Sources
A Childhood Memory Sent Her Father to Prison for Murder. Was it Real? Los Angeles Times, Christopher Goffard, 8/7/2024.
Buried: Can you forget a murder? Showtime Miniseries, 2021.
Hey, Daddy, remember when you killed Susie? Arizona Dailoy Wildcat, Jamie Kanter, 8/27/1997.
Once Upon a Time: A True Story of Memory, Murder, and the Law by Harry MacLean
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