The Beatrice Six and the Murder of Helen Wilson (Part 1)

WILDCIDE

In the heart of Nebraska, the serene town of Beatrice is shattered when Helen Wilson, a local wholly loved by her community, is brutally murdered in her own home, leaving the community in a state of terror. The suspect pool was very small and early leads lead to a promising arrest. However, DNA would prove the Beatrice Police Department had the wrong guy. Following Helen's murder, and the gruesome nature of the crime sets off a frenzy of suspicion and paranoia, eventually culminating in the arrest and conviction of six locals- Joseph White, Thomas Winslow, Ada JoAnn Taylor, Debra Shelden, James Dean and Kathy Gonzalez- each claiming innocence. As the years drag on, the eerie realization dawns that the true horror lies not just in the murders themselves but in the sinister forces within the justice system that condemned the wrong people. Dark secrets surface, revealing a web of corruption, coercion, and manipulation. This case highlights the malleability of the mind, specifically a person's memories of events and the hope that technology such as DNA testing can bring to criminal cases.

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​​Art for the podcast was created by Kelly Steen. Editing/Production for the podcast by Bltzwolff ([e-mail]).

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References:

Aviv, R. (2017, June 12). Remembering the murder you didn’t commit. The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/06/19/remembering-the-murder-you-didnt-commit

Duggan, J. (2009, May 4). Part One: Murder in Apartment 4. Lincoln Journal Star. https://journalstar.com/special-section/presumed-guilty/part-one-murder-in-apartment-4/article_e748ddcd-00a2-54af-aeb0-1a7184814445.html
Duggan, J. (2009, May 4). Part two: The search for a killer. Lincoln Journal Star. https://journalstar.com/special-section/presumed-guilty/part-two-the-search-for-a-killer/article_5a105087-d813-5b77-b8b4-826bbf6297a8.html

Ferak, J. (2016, July 20). Investigator Tina Vath unraveled Beatrice’s FAILURE OF JUSTICE homicide case • WildBlue Press true crime website. WildBlue Press True Crime Website. https://wildbluepress.com/investigator-vath-unraveled-beatrices-failure-justice/
James Dean - National Registry of Exonerations. (n.d.). https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=3164

GovInfo. (n.d.). https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/USCOURTS-ca8-14-01773
Search - Supreme Court of the United States. (n.d.). https://www.supremecourt.gov/search.aspx?filename=/docket/docketfiles/html/public/18-648.html
Mind Over Murder (TV Mini Series 2022) ⭐ 7.2 | Documentary, biography, crime. (2022, June 20). IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt20782578/

Feb 07, 1985, page 1 - Beatrice Daily Sun at Newspapers.com. (n.d.). Newspapers.com. https://www.newspapers.com/image/507648361/?match=1&terms=%22Helen%20Wilson%22
Feb 12, 1985, page 1 - Beatrice Daily Sun at Newspapers.com. (n.d.). Newspapers.com. https://www.newspapers.com/image/507649103/?match=1&terms=%22Helen%20Wilson%22