Episode 7.7: The Hollandsburg Massacre

In 1977, a quiet community in Parke County, Indiana, was shattered by a brutal act of violence. Four young men lost their lives, leaving behind grieving families and a community forever changed. Amid the tragedy was a mother who survived the unimaginable and found the strength to move forward, refusing to let the killers define the rest of her story.

Sources

Associated Press. “Man Convicted in 1977 Hollandsburg Killings to Seek Parole.” AP News, n.d. https://apnews.com/article/crime-indiana-63b4a8ac60f41cc6737251af2e29b297. 

“Betty Jane Spencer, 71; Victims-Rights Advocate Spoke From Experience.” Los Angeles Times, October 29, 2004. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-oct-29-me-passings29.2-story.html. 

Drollinger v. State. 408 N.E.2d 1228 (Ind. 1980). https://law.justia.com/cases/indiana/supreme-court/1980/778s146-2.html .

Krucoff, Carol. “Victims: A Never-Ending Hurt.” Washington Post, April 13, 1984. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1984/04/14/victims-a-never-ending-hurt/ac68ffa4-6b33-440c-b0fd-dc4c3eb3082c/. 

McCarty, Mike. “Lessons in Tragedy.” Wabash College, January 12, 2015. https://www.wabash.edu/news/story/10440. 

“4 Brothers Are Slain at Trailer in Indiana: Execution-Style Shooting.” New York Times, February 15, 1977. https://www.nytimes.com/1977/02/15/archives/4-brothers-are-slain-at-trailer-in-indiana-executionstyle-shooting.html. 

Reagan, Ronald. “Remarks at a White House Ceremony Observing Crime Victims Week.” April 18, 1983. The American Presidency Project, University of California, Santa Barbara. https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/remarks-white-house-ceremony-observing-crime-victims-week. 

Reddit. “Betty Spencer [Right] and Carolyna Spencer [Left], Mothers and Stepmothers of the Hollandsburg Massacre Victims, Speak at a Clemency Hearing for One of the Perpetrators [1994].” r/TrueCrimeDiscussion, April 2023. https://www.reddit.com/r/TrueCrimeDiscussion/comments/12dwan6/betty_spencer_right_and_carolyna_spencer_left/. 

Smith v. State. 420 N.E.2d 1225 (Ind. 1981). https://law.justia.com/cases/indiana/supreme-court/1981/378s49-2.html. 

Smith v. State of Indiana. No. 23A-PC-317 (Ind. Ct. App. January 9, 2024). https://public.courts.in.gov/Decisions/api/Document/Opinion?Id=eSoJNKh2T-RuYSad46F-3QUcsjh1cZTwKGnBDn9RO5L8L5FaG4uO12xPPBoT_Vj20.