Coming Soon: Child Killer

Coming Soon: Child Killer

Author: WDIV Local 4 and Graham Media Group February 13, 2019 Duration: 1:22
In Season 3 of Shattered, host Jeremy Allen is back to tell the story of a string of murders that took place in the mid-1970s in Oakland County, Michigan. Many people know the case as the Oakland County Child Killer. The story is well known in southeast Michigan, but it’s never been told with such depth. Child Killer drills through the surface of the story, all the way down to its core. From millionaire cover-ups to a father’s undying love for his son. Egos, confusion and manipulation take over in a seemingly endless pursuit for answers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The story of Jimmy Hoffa’s disappearance is a piece of American folklore, but the full scope of his life and the forces that led to his death are often lost to time. Shattered, from WDIV Local 4 and Graham Media Group, is built on the idea that some news stories fracture our sense of reality and linger for decades. Each season of this podcast focuses on a single, intricate narrative, peeling back the layers of history, culture, and human motive. You’ll hear a deep examination of these events, moving beyond the headlines to understand the people and the societal pressures at their core. One season meticulously charts the rise and mysterious vanishing of the powerful Teamsters union boss, Jimmy Hoffa. Another revisits a terrifying chapter in Michigan history with the Oakland County Child Killer case, a string of murders from the 1970s that remains a painful open wound. The podcast also delves into the controversial story of Rick Wershe Jr., a figure whose life became entangled with the criminal justice system in ways that provoke more questions than answers. Listening to Shattered means immersing yourself in a true-crime and societal investigation that prioritizes depth and context over sensationalism, exploring how a single case can shatter a community and echo through generations.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 49

Shattered
Podcast Episodes
Black Friday, Chapter 5 – Me, Myself and John [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 23:21
Season 1, Chapter 5: With his three sons missing, John sits inside a Michigan prison cell. He doesn't seem worried, but he also doesn't seem to feel guilty. Hear John tell his story, for the first time, in his own words.…
Black Friday, Chapter 6 – A Simpler Story [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:00
Season 1, Chapter 6: John Skelton's stories change every time he tells them. One that has been told, more than once, is that he gave his children to the Amish. Because they are such a private people, there's no record of…
Black Friday, Chapter 7 – Holiday Road [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 29:50
Season 1, Chapter 7: Early morning, Black Friday, 2010, John Skelton's cell phone registers to cell phone towers between Morenci, Michigan and Holiday City, Ohio. Somewhere along this route is where police believe he mad…
Black Friday, Chapter 8 – Southern Discomfort [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:59
Season 1, Chapter 8: John Skelton’s family in Morenci stays tight-lipped about the case. His mother, father and sister live a thousand miles away in Florida. Jeremy Allen heads to Jacksonville, seeking a perspective we h…
Black Friday, Chapter 9 – Missoula, Montana [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 26:40
Season 1: Chapter 9: As investigators work the Skelton case in Michigan, something pops up, but way off their radar. Human remains are found in Missoula, Montana – the remains of 3 kids. Lead Investigator Jeremy Brewer a…
Black Friday, Chapter 10 – Dear John [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:36
Season 1, Chapter 10: John Skelton has been silent for the better part of a decade. WDIV’s Sandra Ali and Jeremy Allen do their best to get him to speak. In the meantime, police bring someone with Amish ties to confront…
Black Friday, Chapter 11 – Inmate #812593 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:05
Season 1, Chapter 11: After the exchange of letters, a visit to the prison and many emails, John Skelton calls us on the phone. The public will hear John’s words in his own voice for the first time in several years. He t…
Black Friday, Chapter 12 – Getting to the Point [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 26:32
Season 1, Chapter 12: Tanner, Alexander and Andrew Skelton’s whereabouts continue to be a mystery. Their father, John has kept the information needed to crack the case locked up inside his head, but now he’s talking. In…