The Burger Chef Murders Part 1

The Burger Chef murders case out of Indiana is one of the most notorious cases in true crime history. Jayne Fried, Ruth Shelton, Daniel Davis and Mark Flemmonds were all on shift the night of November 17th 1978 when something terrible happened. To this day no one exactly knows what happened that night. Was it a robbery gone wrong?

Research Assistance by Dave White.

References:

Bird, Paul, and Skip Hess. 1979. "Police under gag order in Burger Chef slayings." Indianapolis News , March 7: 1.

Corbin, Bryan. 2003. "Victim's parents say they can forgive." Daily Journal, June 28: 1.

Ellis, Mike. 1978. "Shootings frighten rural residents." Indianapolis News, November 20: 12.

Frederick, Diane. 1978. "Lights to 'happy face' turned off." Indiana News, November 21: 20.

Hess, Skip, and Rich Schneider. 1978. "4 shootings shock Speedway residents." Indianapolis News, November 20: 1, 12.

Indianapolis Star. 1978. "Press Group Assails Police Silence." Indianapolis Star, November 21: 6A.

—. 1978. "Stymied police probing murders of 4 at Burger Chef ask 'why?'." Indianapolis Star, December 10: 14.

—. 1978. "'They could have been anyone's children'." Indianapolis Star, November 21: 8.

Journal and Courier. 1978. "Police without leads in restaurant killings." Journal and Courier, November 26: B-2.

Judkins, Jane. 1978. "Young Speedway Murder Victims." Indianapolis News, November 20.

Luzadder, Dan. 1986. "Police have confession in Burger Chef murders." Indianapolis Star, November 14: 1.

Morrison, Patrick. 1978. "$10,000 reward offered in westside abduction of 4." Indianapolis Star, November 20: 1.

Morrison, Patrick, and James G. Newland. 1978. "Kidnap victims believed slain by more than one." Indianapolis Star, November 21: 1.

Morrison, Patrick, and James Newland. 1978. "4 Speedway kidnap victims found dead in wooded area." Indianapolis Star, November 20: 1.

Murphy, Shelly. 1979. "2 held in Milwaukee slayings." Boston Globe, April 27: 26.

Trusnik, Mac, and John Flora. 1978. "$25,000 reward offered in four kidnap-slayings." Indianapolis News, November 20: 3.

Trusnik, Mac, and Paul Bird. 1978. "4 held 24 hours before slayings." Indianapolis News, November 21: 1.

Walton, Richard. 1979. "Burger Chef murder suspects held." Indianapolis Star, April 28: 1.

—. 1978. "Police baffled by kidnapping." Indianapolis Star, November 19: 1.

Young, Julie. 2021. The Burger Chef Murders in Indiana. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

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