The Lets Read Podcast - 291: Presenting: Murder True Crime Stories

Episode Date: May 7, 2025

Murder: True Crime Stories explores the depths of history's most notorious murders, like you've never heard before. Go beyond the crime scene as we search for the real story, and focus on the people impacted the most. Whether or not the case is solved, you'll come away with an understanding of why these stories need to be told. Murder: True Crime Stories is a Crime House Original Podcast, powered by PAVE Studios. New episodes drop every Tuesday. Follow now wherever you get your podcasts.

Hey everyone, it's Joel. If you're loving the Let's Read podcast, you should check out the Crime House original, Murder True Crime Stories. Each episode of Murder True Crime Stories explores the story of an infamous solved or unsolved murder. From crimes of passion to high-profile assassinations, serial killers, and money-motivated murders, host Carter Roy covers it all. But what sets Murder True Crime Stories apart is the unique approach to these stories, not just covering the evidence, but highlighting the victims, their lives, what led to their deaths, and if they ever got justice. Some of the names you'll recognize, Chandra Levy, Lacey Peterson, The Black Dahlia, and others you may not, Betsy Ardsma, David Blakely, Theora Hicks.

But every episode is full of shocking twists, gripping true crime storytelling, and unbelievable moments. Search Murder True Crime Stories and follow now wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes drop every Tuesday. And now, enjoy this special preview of Murder True Crime Stories, The Burger Chef Murders. Besides the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, The Burger Chef in Speedway, Indiana had another reason to schedule four people for the late shift that Friday night. On November 17th, 1978,

CBS was broadcasting the Star Wars holiday special nationwide. As part of a licensing deal, Burger Chef was offering the Star Wars Fun Meal. The special aired from 8pm to 10pm. That left just one hour for Star Wars fans excited by the special to get their fun meals before Burger Chef closed at 11. After that, the four young employees on the closing shift planned to spend the next hour or so cleaning the kitchen and getting the restaurant ready to reopen the next morning. As I mentioned, 16-year-old Daniel Davis wasn't supposed to be one of those four. According to FBI files, another employee was originally scheduled to close.

But this person had a history of performance issues, and his termination had already been finalized. Investigators redacted the employee's name and age before his files were released. So all we know about him is that he was a white male, and he hadn't been notified yet that he was fired. Friday night was set to be his last shift. But he never showed up. That's why at 9.45 p.m., Daniel called home and asked for permission to work until midnight. His team needed the help, and Daniel wanted the extra hours so he could earn money to buy Christmas presents. Daniel's parents said he could stay, and that

they'd wait up to make sure he got home safely. Daniel told them not to worry about waiting up for him. Fifteen minutes later, at 10 p.m., Jane's boyfriend stopped by to check on her. Per the FBI's files, her boyfriend was extremely protective and liked to stop by every once in a while to make sure she was okay. So that night, he pulled his car around to the drive-thru window and Jane told him that everything was fine. Her boyfriend drove off, reassured that Jane was safe. That may have been because he saw that 16-year-old Mark Flemons was also working. Mark stood over six feet tall and studied karate. After a recent murder at a fast food restaurant in Oklahoma, Mark had told Jane that he'd protect her if anything bad ever happened at Burger Chef.

Jane knew that burger joints open late were a popular target for robbers. She'd even rehearsed a plan with her parents in case her restaurant became a target. As she told them every time the subject came up, she wouldn't try to be a hero. She'd just give the robber whatever they wanted in order to protect herself and her team. It was a smart plan, but whoever entered the Burger Chef between its closing at 11 and midnight wasn't your typical fast food robber. Meanwhile, a few blocks away, another Burger Chef employee had no idea his co-workers were in mortal danger. Around midnight, 17-year-old Brian Kring took his date and co-worker, 17-year-old Ginger Haggard, back to her parents' house.

After dropping Ginger off, Brian drove to Burger Chef. Mark had covered Ginger's shift that night so she could keep her date. Brian planned to show his appreciation by helping Mark clean up after closing. Brian parked in the back lot near the rear entrance. He spotted Daniel's car, a 1973 Ford Pinto parked nearby. He noticed all the lights were on inside the restaurant. He figured his friends were still cleaning and headed in to join them. Almost immediately, Brian knew something was wrong. The back door was usually bolted shut, but tonight it was ajar, and when he went inside, he saw the safe was open and the cash register drawers were pulled out with all the money missing.

Brian called his manager to ask what to do. The boss told him to call the police. That's when someone else showed up. The unidentified white male employee who had called out, claiming car trouble. He drove up in the van that had supposedly broken down earlier that night. For convenience, I'll call this employee X. Brian found X's behavior strange. Why would someone who had just claimed he couldn't get to work show up at the restaurant uninvited after it had already closed. As soon as

Brian mentioned he'd called the police, X took off. He was long gone by the time the cops showed up a few minutes later. If you like this episode, please search for Murder True Crime Stories wherever you get your podcasts. And please follow so you get new episodes every Tuesday. Thanks so much for listening. To check out the rest of this episode and so much more, don't forget to search and follow Murder True Crime Stories wherever you get your podcasts.