Today's episode is from a friend of the podcast, Kim Toller with A Million Other Choices.

It’s been over 100 years since 8 eight people were mysteriously murdered in Villisca, Iowa. In this episode, we go through the terrifying crime scene and discuss who could have done such a horrible thing, and how they got away with it for so long.

Sources:

Dash, Mike. “The Ax Murderer Who Got Away.” Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Oct. 2022, www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-ax-murderer-who-got-away-117037374.

Grey, Orrin. “Serial Suspects: Who Committed the Villisca Axe Murders?” The Lineup, 3 May 2016, the-line-up.com/villisca-axe-murders-suspects.

Villisca Historical Society, Inc. - Preserving the Unique History of the Community of Villisca, Iowa. www.villiscahistory.org.

Serena, Katie. “The Gruesome Story of the Unsolved Villisca Axe Murders.” All That’s Interesting, All That’s Interesting, Feb. 2018, allthatsinteresting.com/villisca-axe-murders.

Turner, Joe. “Unsolved Villisca Axe Murders of 1912.” Historic Mysteries, 4 Jan. 2021, www.historicmysteries.com/major-crimes/villisca-axe-murders/20491/.

“Villisca Murder House Tour.” Villisca Axe Murder House, 12 July 2024, murderhouse.com/visit/. Accessed 27 Oct. 2024.‌

“From the Archives: Inside the Villisca Ax Murder House.” Www.desmoinesregister.com, www.desmoinesregister.com/picture-gallery/life/2013/12/06/photos-inside-the-villisca-ax-murder-house/3898221/.

Register, Des Moines. “The Stories behind 19 Odd Iowa Town Names.” The Des Moines Register, www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/local/2019/09/11/strange-iowa-town-names-villisca-des-moines-waukee-odd-stories-tales-what-cheer-midwest-history/2208204001/.

When a 68 year-old woman is found murdered in her own home, her family quickly turns on each other and points fingers at one of her sons, Jason Carter.

If you have any information about Shirley’s murder, please contact the Marion County Sheriff’s Office at (641) 828-2220 or file a report anonymously through Crime Stoppers of Central Iowa at (515) 223-1400.

Sources:

Iowa Cold Cases, Inc. “Shirley Carter | Iowa Cold Cases.” Iowa Cold Cases, 27 Apr. 2022, iowacoldcases.org/case-summaries/shirley-carter.

Jacob, Richy Maria. “Shelly Carter: Where Is Jason Carter’s Wife Now?” The Cinemaholic, 13 July 2024, thecinemaholic.com/jason-carters-wife-now.

Jacob, Richy Maria. “Where Is Jason Carter Today?” The Cinemaholic, 10 Aug. 2021, thecinemaholic.com/where-is-jason-carter-now.

Rossi, M. (2019, December 13). Jason Carter files federal lawsuit against his father and Marion County investigators. weareiowa.com. https://www.weareiowa.com/article/news/local/jason-carter-files-federal-lawsuit-against-bill-carter-marion-county-investigators-shirley-carter-death/524-08e839dc-c133-4216-abae-a6f59623947b

Rossi, M. (2018, May 31). Attorneys: New evidence proves Jason Carter didn’t kill mother. weareiowa.com. https://www.weareiowa.com/article/news/local/attorneys-new-evidence-proves-jason-carter-didnt-kill-mother/524-239f1ac0-dfe8-47b4-a8f5-9ca8ce4e91c7

Morris, W. (2021, July 21). Federal appeals court revives Jason Carter’s lawsuit against father, Iowa investigators over his mother’s killing. The Des Moines Register. https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/crime-and-courts/2021/07/21/jason-carter-lawsuit-against-investigators-revived-appeals-court-murder-shirley-carter/8044655002/

Magel, T. (2017, December 8). Carter vs. Carter: Affair comes out in civil murder trial. KCCI. https://www.kcci.com/article/carter-vs-carter-affair-comes-out-in-civil-murder-trial/14384453

Basu, R. (2018, February 2). Basu: Mother’s slaying divides father, son. The Des Moines Register. https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/opinion/columnists/rekha-basu/2016/06/17/basu-mothers-slaying-divides-father-son/86036754/?from=global&sessionKey=&autologin=

Law and Crime. Murder of Farmer's Wife Turns Cold When Son Goes Free (Killer Cases) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuxKuuqWl7w&t=881s