A Note from the Moms: Hey everyone! Just a quick heads-up: this is one of our early episodes, so please be gentle! We were still figuring things out, and we promise the audio quality and our hosting skills have gotten much better since. Thanks for sticking with us from the beginning!
Welcome back to Moms and Murder! This week, we’re heading to the Lone Star State to cover the absolutely chilling case of Erin Caffey, the 16-year-old girl from a devout Christian family who masterminded the brutal murder of her mother and two younger brothers—all because her parents made her break up with her boyfriend.
This is a story of teenage obsession, manipulation, and a horrific crime that left a father as the sole survivor of a massacre orchestrated by his own daughter.In this episode, we discuss:
•A Picture-Perfect Family: We introduce the Caffey family—Terry, Penny, and their three children, Erin, Matthew, and Tyler—a tight-knit, church-going family living a quiet life in rural Texas.
•Forbidden Love: Erin, 16, falls hard for 19-year-old Charlie Wilkinson. Their intense puppy love quickly escalates into an obsessive relationship that her parents, Terry and Penny, do not approve of.
•The Breakup and the Plot: After her parents force her to end the relationship, a furious Erin spends the next three days plotting their demise. She convinces Charlie and two other friends to help her carry out the unthinkable.
•A Night of Terror: We detail the horrific events of March 1, 2008, when Charlie and his friend entered the Caffey home in the middle of the night, shooting and stabbing the family before setting the house on fire.
•A Father’s Survival: We recount the incredible story of Terry Caffey, who, after being shot multiple times, dragged his wounded body through the woods to a neighbor’s house to get help, ultimately becoming the sole survivor.
•The Investigation and Arrests: The accomplices quickly confess, pointing the finger directly at Erin as the mastermind. We cover her bizarre fake amnesia story and the moment she was arrested while hiding under a pile of laundry in her boyfriend’s trailer.
•A Lesson in Forgiveness: In a truly astonishing act of grace, Terry Caffey forgives his daughter and her accomplices, asking the prosecution to take the death penalty off the table.Join us as we try to understand what drives a teenage girl to commit such an evil act against her own family.
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