Society & Culture
A comment on one of my posts from author Priscilla Bettis got me thinking. She had wondered if any of the stories counselors told around summer camp campfires had any basis in fact. Well, that sparked my curiosity and just begged me to research it. That's how I learned about the Camp Scott Murders. Once I did, I instantly wondered if it had inspired the Friday the 13th movies. Of that, I’m not sure. (It's doubtful. The writers have never admitted to it.) However, I do know it inspired this, our first serialized season of the Haunt Jaunts podcast: Haunting American True Crimes. And since it was the inspiration for the series, our first case examines the Camp Scott Murders. The late 1970s case still technically remains unsolved today. In 1978, Gene Leroy Hart was charged with the 1977 murders of Girl Scouts Lori Lee Farmer, Doris Denise Milner, and Michele Heather Guse at Camp Scott in Oklahoma. But a jury acquitted him in 1979. What happened to him after that? And to the families of those little girls? We answer both of those questions while inevitably raising others, such as "Could DNA evidence one day once and for all identify the killer and solve the case?" We also look into another case the Sun once said could have also inspired Friday the 13th: the Lake Bodom massacre in Finland. Then we circle back around to Camp Scott. Because of its dark history, it never reopened after June 13, 1977. It’s been abandoned ever since. I’m sure paranormal investigators and the para-curious can’t help but wonder, “Is it haunted?” It’s a valid question given the camp’s tragic history, even one that crossed my mind when I first learned of this story, but it’s also one of those cases that begs more respect than usual. We explore why ghost hunting just feels unacceptable in some cases, and why Camp Scott and the events that transpired there is one of them. POSTS REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE http://www.girlscoutmurders.com/ https://abandonedok.com/camp-scott/ https://tulsaworld.com/news/local/finding-good-in-the-aftermath-of-the-girl-scout-murders-complicated/article_bb96e32c-e691-5af6-8fae-39d619a25d08.html https://kympasqualini.medium.com/1977-girl-scouts-murders-police-hope-dna-will-identify-killer-ddd5d90bea99 https://www.hauntjaunts.net/did-the-unsolved-camp-scott-girl-scout-murders-inspire-friday-the-13th/ WANT MORE HAUNT JAUNTS? Jaunt with us online anytime at HauntJaunts.net. Read more blog posts, find Paracons and Horror Fests, or shop the Skareporium. Jaunt with us socially at: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HauntJaunts Twitter: https://twitter.com/HauntJaunts Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hauntjaunts/?hl=en And if you liked what you heard, remember to subscribe too. HOST & GUIDE Courtney Mroch MUSIC Classic Horror 1 by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/3511-classic-horror-1 License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license SCP-x7x (6th Floor) by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/6737-scp-x7x-6th-floor- License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license BeeAndButterfly by Lilo Sound Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/8098-beeandbutterfly License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license Big Eyes by Rafael Krux Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/5306-big-eyes- License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license Marimba Thriller by Rafael Krux Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/5335-marimba-thriller- License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license