The Trail Went Cold - Episode 174 - The Mills Family Murders

February 26, 1980. Berkeley, California. 51-year old Al Mills, his 40-year old wife, Jeannie, and Jeannie’s 16-year old daughter, Daphene, are all shot to death, execution-style, in their home. Jeannie’s 17-year old son, Eddie, is left unharmed inside his bedroom, but claims he did not hear the murders take place. Years earlier, the Mills family had defected from the Reverend Jim Jones’ infamous cult, the Peoples Temple, and become outspoken advocates against them. Following the Jonestown Massacre, rumours circulated that surviving members of the cult were going to target the family as revenge. However, investigators suspect that Eddie was the actual perpetrator and make an unsuccessful attempt to charge him with the crime 25 years later. Did Eddie Mills murder his own family, or were they victims of an assassination by outside intruders? This week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold” explores an unsolved triple homicide and its potential connection to the Jonestown saga.

Additional Reading:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeannie_Mills

https://people.com/archive/the-mills-family-murders-could-it-be-jim-jones-last-revenge-vol-13-no-11/

https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/BERKELEY-Man-jailed-in-family-slayings-from-25-2557794.php

https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2005/12/09/son-wont-be-charged-in-1980-slayings/

https://archives.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2015/11/12/yesterdays-crimes-peoples-temple-hit-squads-and-jonestowns-last-victims

https://www.sfweekly.com/news/yesterdays-crimes-jonestown-was-just-the-beginning-for-one-peoples-temple-family/

https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/articles/199203/the-truth-about-jonestown

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The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.