Rainbow Family Murders | Morbid | Podcast

In the summer of 1980, nineteen-year-old Nancy Santomero, and two friends, twenty-six-year-old Vicki Durian and nineteen-year-old Liz Johndrow, left Durian’s parents’ home in Iowa to hitchhike to West Virginia to attend a gathering of the Rainbow Family. Five days later, Santomero and Durian’s bodies were discovered in the woods in West Virginia, shot to death just hours before being found, and Johndrow was nowhere to be seen.
More than a decade after their bodies were discovered, police in West Virginia had identified several suspects and eventually charged thirty-four-year-old farmer Jacob Beard, who was convicted in 1993 and sentenced to life in prison. Upon appeal, however, it was revealed that the investigation into Beard was rife with dubious circumstantial evidence, police misconduct, and perjury, which led to a new trial and Beard was exonerated.
Thank you to the lovely Dave White for research assistance
References:
Associated Press. 1992. "W. Va drops Rainbow charges." Roanoke Ties and World-News, July 21: 6.
-. 1992. "Arrests in women's deaths 'witch hunt' attorney says." The Daily Progress , April 25: 7.
-. 2000. "Jury finds man innocent in Rainbow murder trial." The Roanoke Times, June 1: 21.
Behrens, David. 2000. "Too many years without answers." Newsday, February 16: B6.
Daily Press. 1980. "2 murdered women in 'Rainbow Family'." Daily Press, June 27: 44.
Danville Reigister and Bee. 1993. "Jury deliberating in slayings case." Danville Register and Bee, June 4: 10.
Darling, Lynn. 1980. The Rainbow People. July 7. Accessed August 7, 2023. www.washingtonpost.com/archiv....
Horn, Dan. 1997. "Franklin's boasting may unlock convict." The Cincinnati Post, April 18.
Lovegrove, Richard. 1980. "Rainbow camp still going up despite slaying of women." The Roanoke Times, June 28: 1.
-. 1980. "Two women slain near 'Rainbow' camp remain unidentified." The Roanoke Times, July 10: B-8.Possley, Maurice. 2012. Jacob Beard. July 30. Accessed August 8, 2023. www.law.umich.edu/special/exo....
State of West Virginia v. Jacob W. Beard. 1998. 24644 (Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, July 15).
State of West Virginia v. Jacob W. Beard. 1995. 22504 (Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, January).
The Gazette. 1983. "2 West Virginia men charged in death of Wellman woman." The Gazette, April 8: 14.
-. 1992. "4 charged in Wellman woman's 1980 slaying." The Gazette, April 17: 10.United Press International. 1980. "Young woman who skipped tragic hitchhiking trip found." The Daily Progress, July 17: 7.
Wallace, Terry. 1992. "Seething hostility led to killing of hitchhikers." The Daily Progress, April 20: 1.
West Virginia Public Broadcasting. 2020. Two Women Murdered Traveling to Rainbow Gathering. June 25. Accessed August 8, 2023. wvpublic.org/june-25-1980-two...#:~:text=The%20writ%20of%20habeas%20corpus%20serves%20as%20an%20important%20check,290%2D91%20(1969).
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[@melindaprince9045]

Love your show feels like I’m setting with two friends having coffee gossiping about true crime 😊love it so much .

[@Lil.N.B.]

The two of you are wonderful story tellers, this might be my new favorite way to consume true crime stories

[@marbzzzx]

The chatter at the beginning didn't bother me one bit and neither did the f***ing f bombs. 1st time listener and I'll probably stay 😊

[@herelieskittythomas3726]

Ocala Florida National Forest here (Well, St. Augustine FL born and raised) The Florida Rainbow Gathering is like the Lord of the Flies now days but the 90's Rainbow Gatherings were amazing.

[@jesstwocrow1005]

The rainbow family is still a thing and national gatherings take place every year around the 4th of July

[@ackkitsally]

Okay, i thought that the quickest way to hear episodes other than wondery plus (I don’t want to pay for more subs) was audible and I have been desperate for an episode yesterday and today and HERE IT IS!!

[@marypowis7778]

I actually ran into Franklin in Utah during the last week in August 1980 when as a teenage hitch hiker on my way to Arches national park . He was unusual so I remembered him, but knew nothing about Frankliin until watching a crime doc over 40 years later ; it was his muscle car camaro I remembered and his rancid race hate about ''Ni$$ers''. I rode with him about 30 minutes north of SLC going east , but just before dropping me off he told me to be very careful as there was some ''very dangerous people about '' . (This posting name is not my real name )

[@SabrinaMBowen]

Listening from Monongahela, PA and you did well with the name. It's Mon-on-ga-hell-a. BUT you did WAY better than most.

[@Grandmama-Rainey]

Your podcast is my new calm down and go to sleep routine. XOXOX from Utah. 💜

[@Naji_Naughty_Pantry_Eggs]

😂morbid=calm

[@Albanian_Accountant]

And yes, they are always surrounded by people who dont understand them, but theres never much of a clash because they dont leave the grounds untill its time to go somewhere else. But we did get pulled over a mile from the entrance and they searched every single thing in the car

[@PaisleyGodspeed]

Gonna listen instead of reading comments, so I apologize if you already have a bazillian folks saying the same thing, but if you ever want to discuss the Rainbow Family again, my story begins in 1996 or so. I went to a National Gathering (US) that boasted 80K+ hippies in the woods. The Rainbow Family was my coming of age... When it returned to Northern Colorado for some smallish gatherings many years later, my husband, kids, and I had a sober kitchen at gatherings near Red Feather Lakes, CO, 2 years in a row, but it was nearly unrecognizable compared to my early years... We were doing regular hospital runs for ridiculous reasons, and I'd love to tell you all about it...

[@jacquelineburns2731]

My parents always picked up every military guy they my n saw. It was during the Vietnam War😅 16:01 I had to sit next to them in the back seat. It was creepy.

[@ricknelson565]

My new favorite podcast love you guys !!!

[@nathanielrobertson5414]

Ah yes more murders I love this

[@nicolepadilla866]

This case makes my blood boil so fucking much

[@ritabrown2226]

They are trying to deplateform him. Hit him 😂his wallet.

[@Albanian_Accountant]

I have been to a gathering they are still very much alive and well if you have a chance, go

[@tannaeros]

My cousin went to one, he's really into that culture. He came back and said, "It's alright, but I kept running into the same naked man." I've read your statement about the confederate flag, and yes, I'm old enough to recall when it was pretty much regarded the same as a football flag or a statement about what genre music you liked. Just a corny little kitschy thing back then.

[@josecajigas7828]

i listen to u ladies and mr ballen

[@lenard765]

Love ya ladies for yrs ❤❤

[@scruffy-thejanitor]

😮

[@calebbaston6527]

Is that Kasey???

[@lenard765]

Mom world ❤❤❤❤

[@JoyLearnSallay]

Just a note: In the 80s, it was mainstream tourist merchandise in the south, confederate flags. Nobody in the north complained about the flags,....nor the flag on Dukes of Hazard show, omg......not in New York, nor L.A. corporate media.. television. My mom ran away from the south, in the 60s, because of what she grew up in, so I got to be born in Canada. But northern folks were not less racist in 80s or 90s as I remember, anywhere, but 'of course frowned upon,' hypocrisy....., unless u were enlightening yourself, or apart of social justice interests, like these poor gals might well have been.. However, it's important to remember context of the time; the conception that it was msging from murderer, is coming from our present social consciousness. the confederate merchandise found near their stuff, could have justbeen litter being the 80s. It doesn't mean the authorities weren't messed up,....but keeping context is important, when understanding motive. The fact that they were beautiful young independent strong women, travelling, at all; makes them a target, period. Because mysogyny, has no era. Still don't. Neither does racism still to this decade, however is it ...an intersectional motive in this case, at the time, or did it confuse things moreso (?) Thank you for your work and detailed care. Sorry for long wind and absent grammar, I have been recovering from a cold...lol.

[@eapinkerton17]

Thanks for the informative context!

[@susanh1292]

Actually I grew up in the sixties and seventies..Dukes of Hazard and all of the Confederate stuff really pissed me off!

[@jleighwolfe]

People most definitely complained. You just didn't have internet and social media. Dont be naive

[@earnestgreear5998]

It's pronounced like monagailya

[@morgulka]

Why you still chatting to each other, I wanna hear about this murder stuff not comments form your guest :/

[@gem9089]

Yes!! I nearly turned it off. Was fed up listening to giggling and talking about makeup & crusty hair 🥴

[@victoriawardrope]

literally @@gem9089

[@eapinkerton17]

Same I got close to turning it but I was cutting up vegetables and peppers so it didn't happen. Then I was 30 minutes in and done cooking and settled to listen to the end

[@jleighwolfe]

It was like 5 mins grow tf up

[@victoriawardrope]

@@jleighwolfe they should grow tf up 💀 can’t shut up and start the show

[@gem9089]

It annoys me the talking & giggling at the start 🥴 and talking about crusty hair 🥴🥴Other than that, I think I could get use to listening to this

[@jay-jay-pay-day]

I'm sorry, not sorry but you know nothing about hippies. Please do some research if your gonna podcast about the cultures longest standing still in place gatherings. The hippie has never died. False news. People and cultures evolve. Most hippies aren't hippies their heads or part of a certain tribe.

[@TrueMomentsblog]

First and last time listener…the cussing was distracting

[@deei5010]

I could do without the f bombs. Had to stop listening for that reason.

[@ihave0followers389]

Goddddd I just want a normal true crime podcast to fall asleep too.