[SPEAKER_00]: On the cold, snow-covered morning of March, sixteenth, nineteen-sixty.

[SPEAKER_00]: The bodies of three women from the Chicago suburbs were discovered at a place called St.

[SPEAKER_00]: Louis Canyon, of Starved Rock State Park near Yudogit, Illinois.

[SPEAKER_00]: The murders shocked the entire state and led to a manhunt that sneered a confessed killer who spent the next fifty-nine years in prison.

[SPEAKER_00]: The story of the Starbrook murders is one of the most shocking in an Illinois history, which is ironic since this is perhaps the most beautiful park in the state.

[SPEAKER_00]: The violence that occurred here seemed impossible to anyone who would ever walk the trails or stayed denied in the magnificent lodge that serves the centerpiece of the park.

[SPEAKER_00]: They were stunned when they heard about the discovery of the brutalized bodies of the three women, and nearly a shock when their killer was captured and convicted of the crime.

[SPEAKER_00]: The murder salt and the killer was safely behind bars.

[SPEAKER_00]: There was nothing left to fear for visitors to start rock.

[SPEAKER_00]: It was a tragic, heart-wrenching case, but thankfully, it was over.

[SPEAKER_00]: Or was it?

[SPEAKER_00]: Not only of the murders left ghost stories in their wake, but the man who confessed nine different times to the murders, changed his mind behind bars, and then spent the next six decades trying to get out of prison, declaring himself innocent.

[SPEAKER_00]: Was he guilty of the murders, or was he, as he claimed for so long?

[SPEAKER_00]: Rail wrote it into admitting to a crime he didn't commit.

[SPEAKER_00]: Has this murder case really been an unsolved mystery for the last sixty-five years?

[SPEAKER_00]: Well, if so, perhaps that's the reason why the spirits of the dead refused to rest.

[SPEAKER_00]: These are just a few of the questions that I'll try and answer in the podcast season ahead, which I've called Canyon, the true story of the Starbrock murders.

[SPEAKER_00]: But in complete honesty, this is a story that I [SPEAKER_00]: never planned to turn into a podcast.

[SPEAKER_00]: I don't get me wrong.

[SPEAKER_00]: I've been fascinated with the case since I first started digging around in it more than twenty years ago.

[SPEAKER_00]: I've spent a lot of time around Star Rock over the years and not just hiking the trails and exploring the park.

[SPEAKER_00]: I've dealt them to the archives, visited the crime scene, interviewed people who are around in nineteen sixty and spoken to those who knew the accused killer, the police officers who tracked him down, and the district attorney who prosecuted the case.

[SPEAKER_00]: didn't take me long to understand the obsession that so many people have with this story of three murders that occurred in the woods, a desperate villain who may not be a villain.

[SPEAKER_00]: The heroes who chased him down who may not be heroes at all, and even the lingering ghost stories.

[SPEAKER_00]: It is a fascinating and chilling story.

[SPEAKER_00]: And I've written about it a little over the years, which is why I hesitated to create this podcast.

[SPEAKER_00]: You see, I can honestly say that the opinions I've shared about this case have led me to receiving more hate mail that I've ever received about anything else I've written about over the years.

[SPEAKER_00]: And while I don't expect that's going to change, I've decided not to let it stop me from telling this story.

[SPEAKER_00]: Like most other cases that I've investigated and written about, this podcast will be presenting the facts as they were discovered in the nineteen sixty.

[SPEAKER_00]: Following the clues, the evidence, the manhunt and the confession.

[SPEAKER_00]: I know there are many theories about the alleged innocence of the convicted killer, and we'll be looking at all those two, but keep in mind he did confess.

[SPEAKER_00]: In fact he confessed nine times.

[SPEAKER_00]: He was also tried by a jury of his peers and found guilty in a court of law.

[SPEAKER_00]: And no matter how many times he returned to court to appeal the verdict, his appeals were always denied.

[SPEAKER_00]: Well, this is not a podcast about how the cops got the wrong man, but it's also not a podcast that automatically assumes everything that happened in the case was without problems.

[SPEAKER_00]: I'll be pointing out the flaws in the police case, but I'll also be pointing out the flaws in the claims made by the convicted killer in his attorneys.

[SPEAKER_00]: We all know that sometimes the wrong people end up behind bars.

[SPEAKER_00]: Our legal system is far from perfect, and maybe it failed in the case of the Starbrock murders.

[SPEAKER_00]: Or maybe it didn't.

[SPEAKER_00]: That's what I'll be trying to find out.

[SPEAKER_00]: I'll certainly be sharing my opinions about what happened in the nineteen sixty and maybe they're right or maybe they're wrong.

[SPEAKER_00]: But I've tried to base them as solidly as I can on my own years of research and the story.

[SPEAKER_00]: I haven't based my opinions on books or magazine articles that I've read or TV documentaries I've watched.

[SPEAKER_00]: Those are usually written or filmed to present only one side of the story.

[SPEAKER_00]: This podcast is meant to look at all sides of the story.

[SPEAKER_00]: I'll present the evidence, the rumors, the mistakes, and hopefully the truth.

[SPEAKER_00]: And then you can judge the guilt to the innocence of those involved for yourself.

[SPEAKER_00]: I can promise this is not a story for the faint of heart, or the easily offended.

[SPEAKER_00]: Canyon will present an unflinching look at what happened at Star Rock in nineteen sixty, both before and after.

[SPEAKER_00]: And our story will be filled with incidents of murder, sex, brutality, domestic abuse, and violence.

[SPEAKER_00]: It may not be suitable for all listeners, but if you're willing to join me, you know, suggest that you buckle up because this one, well, it gets very nasty.

[SPEAKER_00]: Canyon the true story of the Starved Rock murderers will be season six of Deadman do tell tales of podcast you can only get by becoming a Patreon supporter of American hauntings.

[SPEAKER_00]: To do that just go to patreon.com slash American hauntings and get signed up now.

[SPEAKER_00]: We can't thank you enough for being a listener of the American Honning's podcast.

[SPEAKER_00]: And we hope you'll join us for this alternative show, which falls in between the regular episodes of the podcast, giving you something new to enjoy each week.

[SPEAKER_00]: And thanks again.

[SPEAKER_00]: We hope we can count on your support, and that you'll stay tuned for the first episode of the new season, which is coming in September,