Families Who Kill

Wondery
  • 3.2 (846)
  • TRUE CRIME
  • WEEKLY SERIES
Families Who Kill

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In the era of some of the most heinous serial killers of all time, one murderous family went curiously unnoticed: The McCrarys. Led by a psychopathic patriarch and his cunning son-in-law, this Texas clan roamed the country robbing, kidnapping, and killing up to 20 people, most of them taken from donut shops. “Families Who Kill: The Donut Shop Murders” recounts the wild and deeply disturbing story of an unhinged American family and the terrible brutality they unleashed. The podcast features the taped confessions of one of the killers, given when he was serving a life term in Colorado. All episodes of Families Who Kill are available now. You can binge the series ad-free on Wondery+ or on Amazon Music with a Prime membership or Amazon Music Unlimited subscription.

Episodes

  1. EPISODE 1

    The Donut Shop Murders | Donuts and Death

    Lifelong petty thieves Carl Taylor and Sherman McCrary, facing heat in their hometown of Athens, Texas, gather their family and take to the highways in search of criminal opportunities in the American West. In Utah, Carl and Sherman’s small-time cons suddenly escalate when they rob and kidnap 17-year-old Sheri Martin from a Winchell’s Donut Shop, killing her in the Nevada desert. The men’s bloodthirst is awakened.

    46 min

  2. EPISODE 2

    The Donut Shop Murders | A Detective Named Fanciulli

    Carl, Sherman, and the fam head to the peaceful suburban community of Lakewood, Colorado, and strike again — this time robbing, raping, and killing 20-year-old donut shop cashier Leora Looney. As police circle the McCrary family they skip town and return to their homebase of Athens, Texas. A razor-sharp young detective, Joe Fanciulli, is on their scent, but his efforts are hindered by glacially slow 1970s police forensics.

    44 min

  3. EPISODE 3

    The Donut Shop Murders | One Terrible Night in Texas

    Carl and Sherman, now accompanied by Sherman’s son Danny, kidnap a young couple, Forrest and Jena Covey, from a Mesquite grocery and ruthlessly murder them in an old barn. In harrowing testimony from Carl, we learn how Forrest was killed first as Jena was forced to look on. Jenna Covey’s niece recounts the brutalizing effects her aunt’s murder had on her father and her family in general. Meanwhile, we learn the tale of the Bloody Benders, a 19th century clan of killers who bear similarities to the McCrarys.

    39 min

  4. EPISODE 4

    The Donut Shop Murders | What is a Serial Killer, Exactly?

    An intriguing debate emerges: Were the McCrarys, in a technical or criminological sense, serial killers? Or were they spree killers, or something else? Experts debate the similarity of the McCrarys’ killings to those of John Wayne Gacy, Ted Bundy, and Andrew Cunanan. The family heads to the Pacific Northwest, where Carl and Sherman kidnap and kill a bizarrely nonchalant young hippie named Cynthia Glass. The Bloody Benders story continues as the family kills a dozen people at their inn in Labette, Kansas.

    44 min

  5. EPISODE 5

    The Donut Shop Murders | The Traveling Criminals Bulletin

    After their murder in Portland, the police probe begins to tighten like a vise around the McCrarys. They stop the killings and move to Santa Barbara, CA, to focus on armed robberies. As Sherman’s alcoholism spirals out of control, Carl attempts to rob a large supermarket on his own but screws it up and winds up shooting a patrolman at the scene. Meanwhile, Texas police issue a nationwide “Traveling Criminals Bulletin” fingering the McCrarys as a violent clan who may have committed up to 20 murders in six states. Finally, the Benders story concludes as the murderous family is run out out of Kansas. Please support us by supporting our sponsors!

    49 min

  6. EPISODE 6

    The Donut Shop Murders | Cornered in California

    Santa Barbara cops chase Carl Taylor and his wife all the way back to Texas, where Carl and his wife are cornered and arrested. Sherman and his wife are arrested back in California. During the trial, Carl and Sherman, once close partners, turn on each other, each saying the other pulled the trigger. Carl mounts an insanity defense, claiming he was not of sound mind during the killing spree. The family’s brutal saga comes to an end.

    59 min

  7. EPISODE 8 • WONDERY+ ONLY

    Wondery+ Exclusive: The Donut Shop Murders | Killer Clans

    Sign up on wonderyplus.com/applepodcasts and stay up-to-date on the latest new podcasts and more from Wondery. This bonus episode is a look at more FAMILIES WHO KILL, families who rival the McCrarys in their brutality. We dive into the stories of the González Sisters, who murdered at least 91 people as part of their business; the Briley Brothers, who went on a murder spree to establish themselves as freelance hit men; and the Staffords, who drunkenly called the police to identify themselves in a criminal sketch.

    36 min

  8. 12/07/2021

    Introducing - Families Who Kill: The Donut Shop Murders

    In the era of some of the most heinous serial killers of all time, one murderous family went curiously unnoticed: The McCrary family. Led by a psychopathic patriarch and his cunning son-in-law, this Texas clan roamed the country and his cunning son-in-law, this Texas clan roamed the country robbing, kidnapping, and killing up to 20 people, most of them people taken from donut shops. “Families Who Kill: The Donut Shop Murders” recounts the wild and deeply disturbing story of an unhinged American family and the terrible brutality they unleashed. The podcast features the taped confessions of one of the killers, given when he was serving a life term in Colorado. All episodes of Families Who Kill are available now. You can binge the series ad-free on Wondery+ or on Amazon Music with a Prime membership or Amazon Music Unlimited subscription.

    2 min

  9. BONUS • WONDERY+ ONLY

    Wondery+ Exclusive: The Donut Shop Murders | The Life Of A Detective

    Sign up on wonderyplus.com/applepodcasts and stay up-to-date on the latest new podcasts and more from Wondery. This bonus episode of FAMILIES WHO KILL is an in-depth interview with Joe Fanciulli, the detective who brought the McCrarys down, in which we discuss THE LIFE OF A DETECTIVE. Joe discusses the tricks of the trade, how to interpret evidence, the art of interrogation, and more.

    32 min

Trailer

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3.2
out of 5
846 Ratings

About

In the era of some of the most heinous serial killers of all time, one murderous family went curiously unnoticed: The McCrarys. Led by a psychopathic patriarch and his cunning son-in-law, this Texas clan roamed the country robbing, kidnapping, and killing up to 20 people, most of them taken from donut shops. “Families Who Kill: The Donut Shop Murders” recounts the wild and deeply disturbing story of an unhinged American family and the terrible brutality they unleashed. The podcast features the taped confessions of one of the killers, given when he was serving a life term in Colorado. All episodes of Families Who Kill are available now. You can binge the series ad-free on Wondery+ or on Amazon Music with a Prime membership or Amazon Music Unlimited subscription.

Information

  • Channel
    Wondery
  • Creator
    Trooper Entertainment
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2022
  • Episodes
    9
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2021 Trooper Entertainment. All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Families Who Kill
  • Provider
    Wondery, Inc.

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