1 00:00:06,920 --> 00:00:15,800 Speaker 1: Diversion audio. A note this episode contains mature content and 2 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:19,600 Speaker 1: descriptions of violence that may be disturbing for some listeners. 3 00:00:20,600 --> 00:00:32,920 Speaker 1: Please take care in listening. It's a chilly Monday morning 4 00:00:32,960 --> 00:00:37,920 Speaker 1: in San Francisco in September of nineteen seventy five. A 5 00:00:38,000 --> 00:00:41,120 Speaker 1: forty five year old book keeper named Sarah Jane Moore 6 00:00:41,680 --> 00:00:44,800 Speaker 1: wakes up early, drops off her nine year old son 7 00:00:44,840 --> 00:00:48,720 Speaker 1: at school, runs a few errands, and then drives downtown 8 00:00:48,800 --> 00:00:52,159 Speaker 1: to the Saint Francis Hotel. She parks her car in 9 00:00:52,200 --> 00:00:55,600 Speaker 1: the garage across the street and walks over to join 10 00:00:55,680 --> 00:01:01,200 Speaker 1: the crowd that's gathered on the sidewalk outside scene. A 11 00:01:01,240 --> 00:01:04,880 Speaker 1: few thousand people are there, and there's a security rope 12 00:01:04,880 --> 00:01:09,480 Speaker 1: barrier keeping everyone back on the sidewalk. Sarah Jane is 13 00:01:09,520 --> 00:01:12,520 Speaker 1: wearing slacks and a jacket, and she has the kind 14 00:01:12,520 --> 00:01:17,720 Speaker 1: of floppy bouffont hairstyle that was popular in the mid seventies. Honestly, 15 00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:21,640 Speaker 1: she's pretty indistinguishable from any other middle aged woman in 16 00:01:21,680 --> 00:01:27,160 Speaker 1: the crowd, which is probably on purpose. The crowd is 17 00:01:27,200 --> 00:01:30,119 Speaker 1: starting to get bigger now, and as more and more 18 00:01:30,120 --> 00:01:33,760 Speaker 1: people shuffle in, Sarah Jane gets pushed almost to the 19 00:01:33,880 --> 00:01:38,640 Speaker 1: ropes at the front. She starts to feel a little uncomfortable. 20 00:01:39,840 --> 00:01:42,759 Speaker 1: She doesn't want to be this close, but she doesn't 21 00:01:42,840 --> 00:01:45,800 Speaker 1: let it distract her. She has a job to do 22 00:01:46,360 --> 00:01:49,840 Speaker 1: and she's going to do it. Sarah Jane holds her 23 00:01:49,840 --> 00:01:53,200 Speaker 1: purse tight against her waist as the space between her 24 00:01:53,320 --> 00:01:57,560 Speaker 1: and the people around her gets tighter. She takes a 25 00:01:57,600 --> 00:02:00,559 Speaker 1: deep breath and settles in for what she knows could 26 00:02:00,600 --> 00:02:04,520 Speaker 1: be a long wait. An hour goes by like this, 27 00:02:05,680 --> 00:02:21,880 Speaker 1: and then two, and then three, and then finally, out 28 00:02:21,919 --> 00:02:25,160 Speaker 1: of the hotel comes none other than the current President 29 00:02:25,200 --> 00:02:30,000 Speaker 1: of the United States, Gerald Ford. He has police and 30 00:02:30,080 --> 00:02:33,240 Speaker 1: secret service around him, and they're all walking out of 31 00:02:33,240 --> 00:02:36,080 Speaker 1: the hotel to get to his car, which is parked 32 00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:43,640 Speaker 1: along the sidewalk. He's not here to make a speech. 33 00:02:44,120 --> 00:02:46,280 Speaker 1: He's just making a quick exit on his way to 34 00:02:46,320 --> 00:02:50,280 Speaker 1: his next appointment. But before the President gets in the car, 35 00:02:50,840 --> 00:02:53,760 Speaker 1: he pauses for a moment and waves at the crowd. 36 00:02:54,919 --> 00:03:00,239 Speaker 1: Everyone starts applauding and cheering, and it's now that Sarah 37 00:03:00,280 --> 00:03:03,480 Speaker 1: Jane reaches her right hand into the purse she's carrying 38 00:03:04,320 --> 00:03:08,680 Speaker 1: and pulls out a gun. It's a thirty eight caliber Revolver. 39 00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:13,720 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane cocks it and takes aim right at Gerald 40 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:35,040 Speaker 1: Ford's head, and then Welcome to the greatest true crime 41 00:03:35,080 --> 00:03:40,040 Speaker 1: stories ever told. I'm Mary Kay McBrayer. Today's episode we're 42 00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:45,600 Speaker 1: calling The Housewife who Tried to Kill the President Part one. 43 00:03:45,800 --> 00:03:48,920 Speaker 1: It's part one of a two part series about the 44 00:03:49,080 --> 00:03:52,240 Speaker 1: unlikely woman who wanted to kill the president and the 45 00:03:52,280 --> 00:04:18,360 Speaker 1: bizarre life she led, which the headlines never got quite right. 46 00:04:19,320 --> 00:04:22,280 Speaker 1: In most of my stories on this podcast, I like 47 00:04:22,360 --> 00:04:25,080 Speaker 1: to leave you in the dark a little bit. I'll 48 00:04:25,080 --> 00:04:28,679 Speaker 1: start with a flashback or an anecdote about a supporting character, 49 00:04:29,400 --> 00:04:31,240 Speaker 1: but I try to keep you guessing about the main 50 00:04:31,279 --> 00:04:35,480 Speaker 1: event until the end. With this story, though, I started 51 00:04:35,480 --> 00:04:40,240 Speaker 1: at the climax, because, to be honest, the crime that 52 00:04:40,400 --> 00:04:43,760 Speaker 1: this week's subject was involved in, the thing that got 53 00:04:43,800 --> 00:04:46,440 Speaker 1: her into the history books and for which she will 54 00:04:46,520 --> 00:04:49,560 Speaker 1: forever be known, is just the tip of the iceberg. 55 00:04:50,839 --> 00:04:55,400 Speaker 1: Her most known victim, President Gerald Ford, is someone so 56 00:04:55,600 --> 00:04:59,799 Speaker 1: powerful that most of the time Sarah Jane's story gets 57 00:05:00,000 --> 00:05:04,760 Speaker 1: squeezed into a footnote on his Wikipedia page. But as 58 00:05:04,760 --> 00:05:08,839 Speaker 1: you're about to learn, President Ford was only one in 59 00:05:08,920 --> 00:05:13,280 Speaker 1: a trail of victims. Few people even realize Sarah Jane 60 00:05:13,400 --> 00:05:17,159 Speaker 1: left others in her wake. The biggest question seems to 61 00:05:17,200 --> 00:05:23,440 Speaker 1: be how did this educated, matronly middle class woman get 62 00:05:23,480 --> 00:05:27,080 Speaker 1: tangled up in a plot to kill the president? But 63 00:05:27,160 --> 00:05:30,520 Speaker 1: appearances deceive because the more you learn about Sarah Jane, 64 00:05:31,279 --> 00:05:36,839 Speaker 1: the less surprising this incident gets. In this two part series, 65 00:05:37,520 --> 00:05:40,680 Speaker 1: we're going to take a look at the real Sarah Jane, 66 00:05:40,839 --> 00:05:43,880 Speaker 1: the Sarah Jane that went home each night and looked 67 00:05:43,880 --> 00:05:46,760 Speaker 1: at herself in the bathroom mirror before crawling into bed, 68 00:05:47,600 --> 00:05:50,560 Speaker 1: The Sarah Jane that the press was never able to capture. 69 00:05:51,279 --> 00:05:53,680 Speaker 1: And by the end of this series, trust me, you'll 70 00:05:53,720 --> 00:05:56,200 Speaker 1: believe me when I say that the incident that got 71 00:05:56,240 --> 00:05:59,000 Speaker 1: her into the history books might be shocking, but it's 72 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:01,320 Speaker 1: the stuff she did before or an after that will 73 00:06:01,360 --> 00:06:17,080 Speaker 1: really blow your mind. Let's travel back to West Virginia, 74 00:06:17,800 --> 00:06:22,320 Speaker 1: where Sarah Jane was born in February nineteen thirty. Her 75 00:06:22,360 --> 00:06:25,680 Speaker 1: family home was in a town called Charleston, nestled in 76 00:06:25,720 --> 00:06:29,960 Speaker 1: the lush Appalachian Mountains. She was born Sarah Jane Kahan 77 00:06:30,680 --> 00:06:35,440 Speaker 1: to parents Ruth and Oloff Khan. At first glance, the 78 00:06:35,520 --> 00:06:38,520 Speaker 1: Khan family appeared to be the picture perfect middle class 79 00:06:38,560 --> 00:06:42,360 Speaker 1: American family. There were five kids, three boys and two girls, 80 00:06:43,000 --> 00:06:44,920 Speaker 1: and there was just enough space for them in their 81 00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:48,719 Speaker 1: two story log home. A thicket of woods crept up 82 00:06:48,760 --> 00:06:51,719 Speaker 1: to the back of the house, and the modest neighborhood 83 00:06:51,920 --> 00:06:56,800 Speaker 1: was the perfect place to run and play. Their father, Oloff, 84 00:06:57,080 --> 00:07:00,880 Speaker 1: was a hard working chemical engineer for DuPont. He earned 85 00:07:00,880 --> 00:07:04,080 Speaker 1: ten thousand dollars a year, which was a very respectable 86 00:07:04,080 --> 00:07:07,800 Speaker 1: income in the depression era. Her mother, Ruth, took care 87 00:07:07,839 --> 00:07:11,239 Speaker 1: of the home and was a diligent housewife, always keeping 88 00:07:11,280 --> 00:07:14,480 Speaker 1: things sparkling clean and making sure her kids were tidy 89 00:07:14,520 --> 00:07:18,080 Speaker 1: and polite. She was one of those moms who always 90 00:07:18,160 --> 00:07:20,480 Speaker 1: knew what was going on in the neighborhood, and she 91 00:07:20,560 --> 00:07:24,600 Speaker 1: probably showed up with the best snacks. Zooming in a 92 00:07:24,640 --> 00:07:27,640 Speaker 1: bit on life inside the con home revealed a few 93 00:07:27,680 --> 00:07:31,920 Speaker 1: cracks in their idyllic image, though. According to interviews with 94 00:07:31,960 --> 00:07:36,239 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane's siblings, Olof was a cold and exacting father. 95 00:07:37,440 --> 00:07:40,280 Speaker 1: He wasn't the type to play or even interact much 96 00:07:40,320 --> 00:07:43,160 Speaker 1: with his kids. In fact, they rarely saw him in 97 00:07:43,240 --> 00:07:47,080 Speaker 1: anything but a three piece suit, even when the kids 98 00:07:47,080 --> 00:07:50,960 Speaker 1: were very young. Evenings were to be civil. When the 99 00:07:51,000 --> 00:07:55,480 Speaker 1: family would gather for dinner, Oloff expected good behavior and manners. 100 00:07:55,960 --> 00:07:58,640 Speaker 1: After the kids cleared the table, they would work on 101 00:07:58,720 --> 00:08:01,880 Speaker 1: homework or practice their instruments in the living room, where 102 00:08:01,880 --> 00:08:05,440 Speaker 1: Olaf would light a cigarette and read the paper. Any 103 00:08:05,480 --> 00:08:09,520 Speaker 1: disturbance would be met with anger. In the rare instance, 104 00:08:09,520 --> 00:08:11,440 Speaker 1: when one of the kids would work up the courage 105 00:08:11,480 --> 00:08:15,480 Speaker 1: to ask a question about homework assignment, Olaf would respond 106 00:08:15,520 --> 00:08:18,440 Speaker 1: by raising his eyebrows and replying in a flat voice, 107 00:08:19,440 --> 00:08:23,360 Speaker 1: if I told you, you wouldn't understand anyway, what a jerkyal. 108 00:08:25,080 --> 00:08:29,160 Speaker 1: Their mother, Ruth, wasn't any warmer. She had extremely high 109 00:08:29,160 --> 00:08:32,120 Speaker 1: standards for her children and expected them to excel in 110 00:08:32,200 --> 00:08:36,600 Speaker 1: whatever they were doing. For Ruth, perfection wasn't too much 111 00:08:36,640 --> 00:08:41,760 Speaker 1: to ask. This kind of parenting impacts people in different ways, 112 00:08:42,280 --> 00:08:45,080 Speaker 1: and it's impossible to say whether and to what degree 113 00:08:45,280 --> 00:08:49,400 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane's upbringing directly impacted the person she would later become. 114 00:08:50,600 --> 00:08:54,040 Speaker 1: But one thing I think we can say is that 115 00:08:54,080 --> 00:08:57,120 Speaker 1: living in a world of black and white, right and wrong, 116 00:08:57,720 --> 00:09:01,559 Speaker 1: with incredibly high standards to live up to, could definitely 117 00:09:01,640 --> 00:09:07,440 Speaker 1: contribute to some extreme views of the world. Despite her parents' 118 00:09:07,440 --> 00:09:10,920 Speaker 1: attempts to keep her on the right track, Sarah Jane 119 00:09:11,240 --> 00:09:14,320 Speaker 1: never quite seemed to fit in, either at home or 120 00:09:14,360 --> 00:09:18,640 Speaker 1: at school. Her siblings got along great, they each had 121 00:09:18,640 --> 00:09:22,400 Speaker 1: their own hobbies and bonds with one another, but Sarah 122 00:09:22,520 --> 00:09:27,079 Speaker 1: Jane often kept to herself. Academics made sense to her, 123 00:09:27,679 --> 00:09:30,680 Speaker 1: and she did very well in school, though she even 124 00:09:30,720 --> 00:09:34,200 Speaker 1: skipped a grade in elementary school. She was active in 125 00:09:34,320 --> 00:09:38,920 Speaker 1: orchestra and ballet and other after school groups, but most 126 00:09:38,960 --> 00:09:41,880 Speaker 1: people who knew her would say that something was slightly 127 00:09:41,960 --> 00:09:46,800 Speaker 1: off with Sarah Jane. She struggled to connect with her classmates. 128 00:09:47,760 --> 00:09:51,600 Speaker 1: One of her junior high teachers delicately described her as 129 00:09:52,200 --> 00:09:56,880 Speaker 1: a little odd. According to one of her ballet school classmates, 130 00:09:57,200 --> 00:09:59,600 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane would tell crazy stories to the other girls 131 00:09:59,640 --> 00:10:03,199 Speaker 1: in class, stuff about her family being descendants of royalty 132 00:10:03,720 --> 00:10:06,160 Speaker 1: and other things that the girls in class knew couldn't 133 00:10:06,240 --> 00:10:10,080 Speaker 1: possibly be true. The adults in the neighborhood tried hard 134 00:10:10,120 --> 00:10:13,120 Speaker 1: to get the kids to include her, but this just 135 00:10:13,160 --> 00:10:17,439 Speaker 1: made Sarah Jane more of an outcast. One of her 136 00:10:17,440 --> 00:10:20,800 Speaker 1: fellow Girl Scout Troop members recalled that even if you 137 00:10:20,880 --> 00:10:25,240 Speaker 1: tried to be nice to her, she never reciprocated. She 138 00:10:25,320 --> 00:10:29,720 Speaker 1: never tried to really be a part of anything. The 139 00:10:29,720 --> 00:10:33,120 Speaker 1: weird thing was for as much as the other kids 140 00:10:33,160 --> 00:10:39,880 Speaker 1: made her feel unwelcome, Sarah Jane loved their attention. In fact, 141 00:10:39,920 --> 00:10:43,000 Speaker 1: she demanded it. It almost seemed like she either didn't 142 00:10:43,080 --> 00:10:46,720 Speaker 1: notice that she made other people uncomfortable or she didn't care. 143 00:10:48,600 --> 00:10:51,079 Speaker 1: One of the most bizarre examples of this was at 144 00:10:51,080 --> 00:10:55,120 Speaker 1: her thirteenth birthday party, when Sarah Jane insisted that all 145 00:10:55,160 --> 00:10:58,439 Speaker 1: the neighborhood kids sit and listen to her perform a 146 00:10:58,520 --> 00:11:01,880 Speaker 1: violin recital before anyone could have a slice of cake. 147 00:11:02,640 --> 00:11:05,960 Speaker 1: I mean, we love the main character energy, but this 148 00:11:06,120 --> 00:11:10,680 Speaker 1: is bordering on manipulative. The one social space where Sarah 149 00:11:10,800 --> 00:11:13,680 Speaker 1: Jane did seem to fit in, though, was the theater. 150 00:11:14,400 --> 00:11:17,080 Speaker 1: She joined her high school's drama club, and even though 151 00:11:17,120 --> 00:11:19,920 Speaker 1: they didn't want to hang out with her, her classmates 152 00:11:19,960 --> 00:11:24,000 Speaker 1: couldn't help but respect her acting talent. Like so many 153 00:11:24,040 --> 00:11:27,200 Speaker 1: misfits before her, it seemed like stepping into the character 154 00:11:27,320 --> 00:11:31,280 Speaker 1: of another person came naturally to Sarah Jane, almost like 155 00:11:31,360 --> 00:11:34,240 Speaker 1: it was more comfortable to her than figuring out who 156 00:11:34,320 --> 00:11:39,880 Speaker 1: she was in real life. Despite her social awkwardness, Sarah 157 00:11:39,960 --> 00:11:44,319 Speaker 1: Jane was capable and smart. Her loved ones assumed she'd 158 00:11:44,400 --> 00:11:47,920 Speaker 1: become successful in some way, maybe go to college, become 159 00:11:47,920 --> 00:11:51,800 Speaker 1: a teacher or actress. Maybe she'd even fall in love 160 00:11:51,880 --> 00:11:56,599 Speaker 1: and start a family. But that was before she disappeared. 161 00:12:13,200 --> 00:12:15,880 Speaker 1: One day in the fall of nineteen forty six, when 162 00:12:15,920 --> 00:12:19,040 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane was sixteen, she packed up for school in 163 00:12:19,040 --> 00:12:23,040 Speaker 1: the morning, left home like she always did, but never arrived. 164 00:12:24,360 --> 00:12:28,160 Speaker 1: She didn't return that evening either. She didn't leave a note, 165 00:12:28,800 --> 00:12:31,080 Speaker 1: didn't tell anyone what she was doing or where she 166 00:12:31,200 --> 00:12:35,959 Speaker 1: was going. Her parents were, of course panicked. They informed 167 00:12:35,960 --> 00:12:39,640 Speaker 1: the police, who mounted a full search and questioned the town. 168 00:12:40,720 --> 00:12:42,760 Speaker 1: No one had a clue as to where she could be, 169 00:12:43,559 --> 00:12:46,120 Speaker 1: nor could they think of any activities or people she 170 00:12:46,240 --> 00:12:50,560 Speaker 1: might be involved with that would have called her away. 171 00:12:50,600 --> 00:12:53,760 Speaker 1: Three days later, just as abruptly as she had left, 172 00:12:54,240 --> 00:12:57,120 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane walked back into the house as if nothing 173 00:12:57,160 --> 00:13:00,920 Speaker 1: had happened. She looked exactly the way she looked the 174 00:13:01,000 --> 00:13:05,440 Speaker 1: day she disappeared. Her family begged for an explanation, but 175 00:13:05,480 --> 00:13:09,320 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane didn't give one. In fact, she refused to 176 00:13:09,360 --> 00:13:13,560 Speaker 1: talk to anyone about the incident at all. Was it 177 00:13:13,640 --> 00:13:17,720 Speaker 1: an abduction, her parents wonder, or sexual assault? Did she 178 00:13:17,840 --> 00:13:20,280 Speaker 1: have some sort of secret romance with a boy in 179 00:13:20,320 --> 00:13:24,439 Speaker 1: the next town over. Her mother, Ruth, insisted that Sarah 180 00:13:24,480 --> 00:13:27,320 Speaker 1: Jane get examined by the family doctor to check for 181 00:13:27,360 --> 00:13:31,520 Speaker 1: any signs of abuse or harm. The doctor sent her 182 00:13:31,520 --> 00:13:36,920 Speaker 1: home with a clean bill of health, so Sarah Jane 183 00:13:37,000 --> 00:13:40,480 Speaker 1: was not injured, she didn't appear to be traumatized, and 184 00:13:40,640 --> 00:13:45,720 Speaker 1: clearly she hadn't been kidnapped. Eventually, when Sarah Jane's family 185 00:13:45,800 --> 00:13:49,679 Speaker 1: realized that their questioning was no use, they gave up. 186 00:13:51,200 --> 00:13:55,200 Speaker 1: Anyone who asked. They just said it was amnesia, and 187 00:13:55,280 --> 00:14:00,319 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane said nothing. Sarah Jane had always been a 188 00:14:00,320 --> 00:14:03,040 Speaker 1: little unusual, but this was the first time that her 189 00:14:03,080 --> 00:14:07,120 Speaker 1: parents had seen her not only completely disobey the rules, 190 00:14:07,880 --> 00:14:12,520 Speaker 1: but refused to acknowledge the seriousness of her behavior. It 191 00:14:12,600 --> 00:14:15,760 Speaker 1: was almost as if she was testing a boundary, seeing 192 00:14:15,800 --> 00:14:18,240 Speaker 1: how far she could push her family, how off the 193 00:14:18,280 --> 00:14:21,600 Speaker 1: wall she could act and still managed to convince them 194 00:14:21,880 --> 00:14:26,400 Speaker 1: that nothing was wrong. It's like she was normalizing her behavior, 195 00:14:26,480 --> 00:14:29,680 Speaker 1: either because she didn't want her loved ones to acknowledge 196 00:14:29,720 --> 00:14:33,320 Speaker 1: how unusual it really was, or because she didn't realize 197 00:14:33,360 --> 00:14:37,200 Speaker 1: it herself. Either way, it would not be the last 198 00:14:37,240 --> 00:14:41,000 Speaker 1: time she pulled a stunt like this. When it came 199 00:14:41,040 --> 00:14:43,720 Speaker 1: time for Sarah Jane to graduate high school in nineteen 200 00:14:43,800 --> 00:14:47,120 Speaker 1: forty seven, her parents were happy to learn that she 201 00:14:47,200 --> 00:14:51,440 Speaker 1: was planning to go into medicine, a fine occupation for 202 00:14:51,520 --> 00:14:55,360 Speaker 1: a smart girl like her. She was accepted into a 203 00:14:55,440 --> 00:14:59,960 Speaker 1: top tier nursing school, and she excelled there and minished 204 00:15:00,400 --> 00:15:04,000 Speaker 1: gave her glowing reviews, and it seemed like maybe Sarah 205 00:15:04,120 --> 00:15:09,520 Speaker 1: Jane had finally found her thing. But after just one semester, 206 00:15:10,200 --> 00:15:16,280 Speaker 1: without explanation, Sarah Jane changed her mind. In nineteen forty eight, 207 00:15:17,080 --> 00:15:19,960 Speaker 1: she dropped out and announced to her parents that she'd 208 00:15:20,000 --> 00:15:26,280 Speaker 1: be joining the Women's Army Corps instead. All right, they thought, 209 00:15:26,800 --> 00:15:30,120 Speaker 1: she's never mentioned anything about the army before, but at 210 00:15:30,200 --> 00:15:34,320 Speaker 1: least she's got a plan, and Sarah Jane was nothing 211 00:15:34,360 --> 00:15:38,000 Speaker 1: if not driven. She told her parents she had her 212 00:15:38,040 --> 00:15:42,840 Speaker 1: sights set on becoming a commissioned officer, and like in 213 00:15:42,920 --> 00:15:46,240 Speaker 1: most things she attempted to do, Sarah Jane was kind 214 00:15:46,240 --> 00:15:50,160 Speaker 1: of kicking ass. She earned top marks on the qualifying 215 00:15:50,240 --> 00:15:53,880 Speaker 1: tests and military arms training, and it seemed like she 216 00:15:54,000 --> 00:15:57,320 Speaker 1: was right on track to becoming an officer. But just 217 00:15:57,360 --> 00:16:00,880 Speaker 1: as she was rounding toward the finish line, Sarah Jane 218 00:16:00,960 --> 00:16:05,600 Speaker 1: took another abrupt turn that no one saw coming. In 219 00:16:05,680 --> 00:16:12,040 Speaker 1: nineteen forty nine, she got married marine's staff Sergeant Wallace E. 220 00:16:12,240 --> 00:16:15,440 Speaker 1: Anderson was his name, and they probably met on the 221 00:16:15,480 --> 00:16:19,560 Speaker 1: base where Sarah Jane was in training. They got married quickly, 222 00:16:19,800 --> 00:16:23,080 Speaker 1: and in spite of the fact that marrying would bar 223 00:16:23,240 --> 00:16:26,760 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane from ever becoming an officer, which up until 224 00:16:26,760 --> 00:16:30,200 Speaker 1: this point seemed like her dream. In the space of 225 00:16:30,360 --> 00:16:34,280 Speaker 1: just two years, Sarah Jane had gone from high school 226 00:16:34,280 --> 00:16:41,320 Speaker 1: graduate to nursing student, to army cadet, and now to housewife. 227 00:16:41,360 --> 00:16:44,800 Speaker 1: Her family was confused, as was I at learning of 228 00:16:44,840 --> 00:16:48,000 Speaker 1: this particular pivot, but they were happy that she seemed 229 00:16:48,000 --> 00:16:53,600 Speaker 1: happy at least. Also, I am completely aware and perhaps 230 00:16:53,680 --> 00:16:56,600 Speaker 1: a good example of the fact that people can make 231 00:16:56,640 --> 00:17:01,160 Speaker 1: impulsive and inconsistent decisions in their early adulthood but ultimately 232 00:17:01,320 --> 00:17:05,560 Speaker 1: end up mostly fine and level headed. But that was 233 00:17:05,640 --> 00:17:09,600 Speaker 1: not the case with Sarah Jane. Now, we're not going 234 00:17:09,680 --> 00:17:12,880 Speaker 1: to get too deep into Wallace or her marriage to him, because, 235 00:17:13,320 --> 00:17:16,560 Speaker 1: believe it or not, Sarah Jane changes her mind about 236 00:17:16,640 --> 00:17:20,000 Speaker 1: him pretty quickly. But I mentioned him here because there's 237 00:17:20,040 --> 00:17:23,040 Speaker 1: one incident from this period of Sarah Jane's life that 238 00:17:23,200 --> 00:17:27,320 Speaker 1: is just too strange not to highlight. It was on 239 00:17:27,320 --> 00:17:30,240 Speaker 1: one of those early days of her marriage that Sarah 240 00:17:30,320 --> 00:17:32,639 Speaker 1: Jane decided to go on a public tour of the 241 00:17:32,640 --> 00:17:36,479 Speaker 1: White House. She and Wallace were living in Pennsylvania at 242 00:17:36,480 --> 00:17:39,480 Speaker 1: the time, and Wallace must have been on duty because 243 00:17:39,520 --> 00:17:42,240 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane made the trip out to DC by herself. 244 00:17:43,840 --> 00:17:47,120 Speaker 1: It was a beautiful spring day. The cherry blossoms were 245 00:17:47,119 --> 00:17:50,199 Speaker 1: decorating the National Mall, and Sarah Jane, who was just 246 00:17:50,280 --> 00:17:53,240 Speaker 1: twenty years old at the time, wore a neat little 247 00:17:53,280 --> 00:17:57,240 Speaker 1: pastel suit to match. At the end of the tour, 248 00:17:58,240 --> 00:18:02,000 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane separated herself from the group and started wandering 249 00:18:02,000 --> 00:18:05,600 Speaker 1: across the White House lawn. After she'd made it a 250 00:18:05,600 --> 00:18:11,000 Speaker 1: few yards away, Sarah Jane suddenly went rigid and collapsed 251 00:18:11,000 --> 00:18:16,159 Speaker 1: onto the ground. Secret Service agents and other bystanders rushed 252 00:18:16,200 --> 00:18:19,200 Speaker 1: in to see what was wrong. Apparently she had fainted. 253 00:18:20,160 --> 00:18:24,040 Speaker 1: When she regained consciousness a few moments later, Sarah Jane 254 00:18:24,040 --> 00:18:27,239 Speaker 1: told the gathered crowd that she didn't know who or 255 00:18:27,359 --> 00:18:31,320 Speaker 1: where she was. When the Secret Service agents couldn't find 256 00:18:31,480 --> 00:18:34,480 Speaker 1: any form of ID on her, the only thing they 257 00:18:34,520 --> 00:18:36,800 Speaker 1: could think to do was to check her into the 258 00:18:36,880 --> 00:18:41,639 Speaker 1: Walter Reed Army Hospital. Here's where it gets really weird. 259 00:18:42,840 --> 00:18:45,600 Speaker 1: As the nurses undressed Sarah Jane to get her into 260 00:18:45,640 --> 00:18:50,840 Speaker 1: her hospital gown, they found something totally bizarre tucked up 261 00:18:50,880 --> 00:18:55,040 Speaker 1: into the bodice of her dress. It was a handful 262 00:18:55,160 --> 00:19:00,960 Speaker 1: of printed photographs, all of Sarah Jane. Over the next 263 00:19:01,000 --> 00:19:04,120 Speaker 1: few days, because Sarah Jane's identity was still a mystery, 264 00:19:04,720 --> 00:19:07,920 Speaker 1: her fainting spell got picked up by the local news. 265 00:19:08,600 --> 00:19:11,280 Speaker 1: Newspapers published a few of the photos she carried with 266 00:19:11,320 --> 00:19:14,760 Speaker 1: her and asked whether anyone could identify this mystery woman. 267 00:19:15,840 --> 00:19:18,000 Speaker 1: It didn't take long for her husband and her mother 268 00:19:18,080 --> 00:19:20,760 Speaker 1: to catch the story and rushed to the hospital to 269 00:19:20,840 --> 00:19:25,160 Speaker 1: id her. And would you believe it, her memory mysteriously 270 00:19:25,240 --> 00:19:29,280 Speaker 1: returned right after they showed up. Police leader concluded that 271 00:19:29,320 --> 00:19:32,960 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane had purposely traveled to the White House without 272 00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:37,919 Speaker 1: her idea. Now, we may never know exactly what was 273 00:19:37,960 --> 00:19:42,399 Speaker 1: behind this bonker's incident, but what I can say is 274 00:19:42,440 --> 00:19:45,159 Speaker 1: that it fits into a pattern of bizarre outbursts from 275 00:19:45,200 --> 00:19:49,520 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane that not only demand attention from everyone around her, 276 00:19:50,240 --> 00:19:53,560 Speaker 1: but forced them to redefine what normal behavior looks like 277 00:19:55,080 --> 00:19:57,199 Speaker 1: just like she did when she disappeared in high school. 278 00:19:57,840 --> 00:20:01,960 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane went on after this amnesia spell as if 279 00:20:02,040 --> 00:20:05,679 Speaker 1: nothing was wrong. Is almost like little by little, she 280 00:20:05,720 --> 00:20:10,840 Speaker 1: normalized the insanity of these behaviors. For Sarah Jane, these 281 00:20:10,880 --> 00:20:14,960 Speaker 1: feigning spells and mysterious games of hooky were harmless enough, 282 00:20:15,920 --> 00:20:18,480 Speaker 1: but they were paving the way for something much weirder 283 00:20:18,960 --> 00:20:23,440 Speaker 1: and much more dangerous. Now back to Sarah Jane's marriage 284 00:20:23,440 --> 00:20:27,600 Speaker 1: to Wallace Anderson. Practically as soon as his name escaped 285 00:20:27,640 --> 00:20:30,960 Speaker 1: your lips, Sarah Jane had divorced him and moved on 286 00:20:31,040 --> 00:20:35,320 Speaker 1: to her second husband, Air Force Captain Sidney Lewis Manning. 287 00:20:35,920 --> 00:20:39,159 Speaker 1: And you may notice a pattern here. Sarah Jane loves 288 00:20:39,240 --> 00:20:44,320 Speaker 1: military types, especially high ranking ones. That's one thing about 289 00:20:44,359 --> 00:20:49,240 Speaker 1: her that I can understand. Sarah Jane and Sidney began 290 00:20:49,320 --> 00:20:52,520 Speaker 1: their marriage by moving into family housing on the Air 291 00:20:52,560 --> 00:20:58,119 Speaker 1: Force base in Tucson, Arizona, where Sydney was stationed. In 292 00:20:58,200 --> 00:21:02,360 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty one, at age twenty one, she became pregnant 293 00:21:02,359 --> 00:21:05,960 Speaker 1: with their first child, and two more babies followed quickly 294 00:21:06,000 --> 00:21:11,000 Speaker 1: after that. Sarah Jane now had her feet firmly planted 295 00:21:11,040 --> 00:21:14,240 Speaker 1: in the world of motherhood, and this new persona was 296 00:21:14,280 --> 00:21:17,399 Speaker 1: sticking just about as well as the others she tried on. 297 00:21:18,600 --> 00:21:21,159 Speaker 1: The other mothers in the Air Force community could clearly 298 00:21:21,200 --> 00:21:24,680 Speaker 1: see that Sarah Jane was struggling. She had a hard 299 00:21:24,720 --> 00:21:27,480 Speaker 1: time keeping up with all the tasks of running a household, 300 00:21:27,520 --> 00:21:31,960 Speaker 1: which I mean, I completely get that, you forget to 301 00:21:32,000 --> 00:21:34,800 Speaker 1: switch over one load of laundry before it sours and 302 00:21:34,840 --> 00:21:38,679 Speaker 1: it blows the whole process to smotherings. But worse, and 303 00:21:38,920 --> 00:21:42,960 Speaker 1: probably more important, Sarah Jane just didn't seem to like 304 00:21:43,280 --> 00:21:47,520 Speaker 1: being a mother. She fed her kids on an erratic schedule, 305 00:21:48,160 --> 00:21:50,600 Speaker 1: The energy of the house was chaotic, but in an 306 00:21:50,640 --> 00:21:55,880 Speaker 1: abnormal way, and Sarah Jane seemed resentful of it all. 307 00:21:56,040 --> 00:22:01,200 Speaker 1: This wasn't the grandeur she had envisioned for her life, 308 00:22:01,600 --> 00:22:05,000 Speaker 1: and her marriage wasn't doing any better. With each new 309 00:22:05,040 --> 00:22:10,399 Speaker 1: addition to the family, Sydney and Sarah Jane grew further apart. 310 00:22:10,640 --> 00:22:15,160 Speaker 1: He started taking more overseas assignments, leaving Sarah Jane even 311 00:22:15,280 --> 00:22:20,760 Speaker 1: more isolated and unhappy. Eventually, he filed for divorce, and 312 00:22:20,800 --> 00:22:24,000 Speaker 1: once it was finalized, he quickly lost touch with both 313 00:22:24,040 --> 00:22:30,119 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane and his children. In nineteen fifty six, Sarah 314 00:22:30,200 --> 00:22:33,120 Speaker 1: Jane made one of her very rare calls to her mother. 315 00:22:34,680 --> 00:22:38,320 Speaker 1: She needed help. She said she wanted to visit West 316 00:22:38,400 --> 00:22:41,400 Speaker 1: Virginia with the kids and stay with Ruth and Olaft 317 00:22:41,400 --> 00:22:45,960 Speaker 1: for a bit. Ruth was thrilled. She had been watching 318 00:22:46,000 --> 00:22:48,840 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane's home life unravel from afar for the last 319 00:22:48,840 --> 00:22:51,760 Speaker 1: few years, and she thought that maybe this would be 320 00:22:51,800 --> 00:22:54,479 Speaker 1: her chance to finally help Sarah Jane get a handle 321 00:22:54,560 --> 00:22:58,479 Speaker 1: on this whole motherhood thing. The fights were booked and 322 00:22:58,640 --> 00:23:03,720 Speaker 1: Ruth and Olaf prepared for their stay. Sarah Jane's brother, Dana, 323 00:23:03,840 --> 00:23:06,479 Speaker 1: who still lived in West Virginia, was in charge of 324 00:23:06,480 --> 00:23:08,800 Speaker 1: collecting Sarah Jane and the kids from the airport when 325 00:23:08,840 --> 00:23:12,280 Speaker 1: they arrived. On the day of the flight. The plane 326 00:23:12,359 --> 00:23:16,960 Speaker 1: landed right on time, just before sunset. Dana stood at 327 00:23:17,000 --> 00:23:21,040 Speaker 1: the tarmac and watched the ground crew roll the big 328 00:23:21,080 --> 00:23:24,840 Speaker 1: staircase up to the plane's exit door. As the door 329 00:23:24,880 --> 00:23:28,879 Speaker 1: opened and the first passengers got off, Dana watched for 330 00:23:28,960 --> 00:23:32,920 Speaker 1: the faces of his sister and her kids. Passenger after 331 00:23:33,040 --> 00:23:37,200 Speaker 1: passenger walked down the staircase and was greeted by friends 332 00:23:37,320 --> 00:23:43,600 Speaker 1: and loved ones on the ground, but no Sarah Jane. Finally, 333 00:23:44,359 --> 00:23:49,040 Speaker 1: after every other passenger had left, Dana watched as little 334 00:23:49,080 --> 00:23:52,040 Speaker 1: Sidney Junior, who was just four years old at the time, 335 00:23:53,320 --> 00:23:57,560 Speaker 1: grabbed the handrail and carefully walked down the steps alongside 336 00:23:57,560 --> 00:24:02,000 Speaker 1: his three year old sister. Behind them was a flight 337 00:24:02,040 --> 00:24:06,440 Speaker 1: attendant holding their nine month old brother in her arms. 338 00:24:07,160 --> 00:24:13,680 Speaker 1: Dana was confused Sarah Jane was not with them. Sarah 339 00:24:13,760 --> 00:24:17,080 Speaker 1: Jane's parents were shocked when Dana arrived home without her. 340 00:24:18,119 --> 00:24:22,199 Speaker 1: They were sure something terrible had happened. They called the 341 00:24:22,240 --> 00:24:25,600 Speaker 1: airline right away, but the airline's staff had no information. 342 00:24:27,560 --> 00:24:29,679 Speaker 1: When they tried her home phone number and found that 343 00:24:29,720 --> 00:24:34,320 Speaker 1: it was disconnected, they called the police. Days went by 344 00:24:34,400 --> 00:24:38,560 Speaker 1: with no word from Sarah Jane. Sarah Jane's parents even 345 00:24:38,640 --> 00:24:41,480 Speaker 1: ended up calling Sydney, the children's father, at his air 346 00:24:41,520 --> 00:24:44,600 Speaker 1: Force base, but he had no idea where Sarah Jane 347 00:24:44,600 --> 00:24:49,840 Speaker 1: could be. After weeks of panic and confusion, the cons 348 00:24:49,920 --> 00:24:52,479 Speaker 1: finally had to accept what they didn't want to believe 349 00:24:52,560 --> 00:24:57,720 Speaker 1: was true. Sarah Jane was not hurt or sick or abducted. 350 00:24:59,119 --> 00:25:03,800 Speaker 1: She had orchestrated this whole thing. She had disappeared again, 351 00:25:04,800 --> 00:25:09,920 Speaker 1: and this time she had left her children behind. Two 352 00:25:10,000 --> 00:25:13,280 Speaker 1: and a half months went by without a single word 353 00:25:13,480 --> 00:25:17,760 Speaker 1: from Sarah Jane, and then one day she called. And 354 00:25:17,840 --> 00:25:21,040 Speaker 1: she called collect from a payphone. For those who weren't 355 00:25:21,080 --> 00:25:24,639 Speaker 1: alive when payphones were a thing, call and collect meant 356 00:25:24,640 --> 00:25:27,280 Speaker 1: that the person receiving the call is the one who 357 00:25:27,280 --> 00:25:30,600 Speaker 1: has to pay the charge. It's a funny little detail, 358 00:25:30,640 --> 00:25:32,639 Speaker 1: but it must have just been salt in the wound 359 00:25:32,680 --> 00:25:36,960 Speaker 1: for Sarah Jane's parents. Not only did Sarah Jane leave 360 00:25:37,000 --> 00:25:40,320 Speaker 1: her kids on her parents doorstep, but she wouldn't even 361 00:25:40,320 --> 00:25:42,879 Speaker 1: pay the two dollars to make the phone call to 362 00:25:42,960 --> 00:25:47,000 Speaker 1: let them know she was okay. Her parents, of course, 363 00:25:47,480 --> 00:25:50,359 Speaker 1: begged her to come home and take care of her kids. 364 00:25:50,960 --> 00:25:53,240 Speaker 1: They would help as much as they could, but the 365 00:25:53,320 --> 00:25:58,120 Speaker 1: children needed their mother. Sarah Jane agreed and promised she'd 366 00:25:58,160 --> 00:26:02,639 Speaker 1: be back. She never said. When five more months and 367 00:26:02,720 --> 00:26:06,800 Speaker 1: a few sporadic phone calls came and went, Sarah Jane 368 00:26:06,840 --> 00:26:12,199 Speaker 1: never showed up. That's when the calls stopped altogether. In 369 00:26:12,280 --> 00:26:17,040 Speaker 1: an act of desperation and exhaustion, the cons eventually called 370 00:26:17,080 --> 00:26:21,080 Speaker 1: the police to have Sarah Jane arrested for child neglect, 371 00:26:21,600 --> 00:26:25,440 Speaker 1: but by then even the police couldn't find her. Sarah 372 00:26:25,560 --> 00:26:30,960 Speaker 1: Jane had actually disappeared this time. To be honest, if 373 00:26:31,000 --> 00:26:33,960 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane hadn't gone on to attempt to assassinate a 374 00:26:34,040 --> 00:26:37,640 Speaker 1: US president, this incident could have been the focus of 375 00:26:37,680 --> 00:26:42,200 Speaker 1: this entire episode. It's worth pausing to recognize the amount 376 00:26:42,240 --> 00:26:45,240 Speaker 1: of trauma her actions are causing her family during this time. 377 00:26:46,320 --> 00:26:49,040 Speaker 1: The crimes we normally cover on this podcast often tend 378 00:26:49,119 --> 00:26:51,959 Speaker 1: to be violent and fatal, so it could be easy 379 00:26:52,000 --> 00:26:55,880 Speaker 1: to cruise past an incident like this without acknowledging how 380 00:26:55,920 --> 00:27:00,840 Speaker 1: emotionally destructive it is. Not only have these children had 381 00:27:00,840 --> 00:27:04,800 Speaker 1: to watch their parents get divorced, but now, only a 382 00:27:04,840 --> 00:27:08,439 Speaker 1: few months later, they're being abandoned by both of them. 383 00:27:08,920 --> 00:27:12,760 Speaker 1: It's difficult to fathom the pain of that. And let's 384 00:27:12,760 --> 00:27:16,120 Speaker 1: not forget how life altering this was for Sarah Jane's parents. 385 00:27:16,800 --> 00:27:19,600 Speaker 1: Ruth and Olaf had already done the whole parenting thing 386 00:27:19,720 --> 00:27:22,639 Speaker 1: with their children, and they were just getting ready to 387 00:27:22,640 --> 00:27:26,199 Speaker 1: settle into retirement. But now it was back to diaper 388 00:27:26,280 --> 00:27:30,480 Speaker 1: changes and baseball practice and college tuition. They wouldn't be 389 00:27:30,560 --> 00:27:34,600 Speaker 1: settling down for at least another eighteen years. So when 390 00:27:34,640 --> 00:27:37,640 Speaker 1: I say that Sarah Jane left a trail of victims 391 00:27:37,680 --> 00:27:40,400 Speaker 1: behind her. It may not be the kind of victims 392 00:27:40,400 --> 00:27:43,000 Speaker 1: you're used to hearing about in our stories, but they 393 00:27:43,000 --> 00:27:48,040 Speaker 1: were victims all the same. Eventually, Ruth and Olaf filed 394 00:27:48,040 --> 00:27:51,040 Speaker 1: to adopt their grandchildren outright so they could collect some 395 00:27:51,119 --> 00:27:54,320 Speaker 1: Social Security benefits and save some money to put them 396 00:27:54,359 --> 00:27:58,359 Speaker 1: through college. What they can never do, though, was heal 397 00:27:58,440 --> 00:28:01,399 Speaker 1: the wound of being left by a mother for reasons 398 00:28:01,400 --> 00:28:06,679 Speaker 1: they would never understand. But Sarah Jane wouldn't disappear completely 399 00:28:07,000 --> 00:28:11,240 Speaker 1: from her children's lives. Twenty years from now, they'd see 400 00:28:11,240 --> 00:28:14,399 Speaker 1: her again, but this time it would be on the 401 00:28:14,400 --> 00:28:40,120 Speaker 1: front page of the newspaper. Only Sarah Jane knows exactly 402 00:28:40,160 --> 00:28:43,360 Speaker 1: what she did in the years after she abandoned her kids. 403 00:28:45,120 --> 00:28:48,160 Speaker 1: The records that exist suggest that she was probably living 404 00:28:48,200 --> 00:28:51,560 Speaker 1: in Los Angeles, but she covered her tracks well enough 405 00:28:51,600 --> 00:28:55,920 Speaker 1: that law enforcement was never able to locate her. It's 406 00:28:56,000 --> 00:28:59,520 Speaker 1: possible that she used aliases and even in different Social 407 00:28:59,520 --> 00:29:03,840 Speaker 1: Security number. From what we can tell, it seems like 408 00:29:03,920 --> 00:29:07,720 Speaker 1: she studied accounting and began to support herself as a bookkeeper, 409 00:29:09,480 --> 00:29:12,880 Speaker 1: and surprise surprise, she also managed to find a new 410 00:29:12,960 --> 00:29:16,720 Speaker 1: husband and just a real quick polling question for our listeners. 411 00:29:17,240 --> 00:29:19,440 Speaker 1: You know, we have a lot of episodes that feature 412 00:29:19,560 --> 00:29:24,840 Speaker 1: serial monogamous women who get married many, many times, and 413 00:29:24,920 --> 00:29:29,920 Speaker 1: I just wonder sometimes, how how did they find these guys? Like, 414 00:29:29,960 --> 00:29:33,320 Speaker 1: how did they convince them to get married? I don't 415 00:29:33,320 --> 00:29:36,800 Speaker 1: even think it's necessarily a regional or time period related thing. 416 00:29:36,920 --> 00:29:42,080 Speaker 1: My brain just doesn't compute it anyway. Her new husband's 417 00:29:42,160 --> 00:29:45,480 Speaker 1: name was John Alberg, and he worked in Hollywood, y'all, 418 00:29:45,520 --> 00:29:48,200 Speaker 1: this poor guy. He was known around town as a 419 00:29:48,280 --> 00:29:51,280 Speaker 1: kind and genuine man, and he was head over heels 420 00:29:51,320 --> 00:29:54,960 Speaker 1: in love with Sarah Jane. But just a month after 421 00:29:55,000 --> 00:29:58,600 Speaker 1: their wedding and days after discovering she was pregnant with 422 00:29:58,640 --> 00:30:02,240 Speaker 1: his child, when know it, Sarah Jane had had enough. 423 00:30:03,240 --> 00:30:06,520 Speaker 1: She left John and moved to San Francisco, where she 424 00:30:06,600 --> 00:30:11,840 Speaker 1: decided she would raise the baby alone. Why san Francisco. 425 00:30:12,120 --> 00:30:15,479 Speaker 1: It's hard to know why Sarah Jane did anything, But 426 00:30:15,520 --> 00:30:18,400 Speaker 1: the one thing we do know about Sarah Jane is 427 00:30:18,440 --> 00:30:21,640 Speaker 1: that she wanted to live a big life. She wanted 428 00:30:21,680 --> 00:30:25,000 Speaker 1: to be at the center of things. Where better to 429 00:30:25,080 --> 00:30:29,320 Speaker 1: be in the mid nineteen seventies than San Francisco, the 430 00:30:29,360 --> 00:30:33,760 Speaker 1: epicenter of the political and cultural revolution that was turning 431 00:30:33,840 --> 00:30:38,360 Speaker 1: America upside down. For those of us who weren't alive 432 00:30:38,440 --> 00:30:41,200 Speaker 1: at this time, me included, it can be hard to 433 00:30:41,280 --> 00:30:45,600 Speaker 1: understand what a gigantic paradigm shift was going on in 434 00:30:45,640 --> 00:30:49,880 Speaker 1: the nineteen sixties and seventies in America. The buttoned up, 435 00:30:49,960 --> 00:30:53,840 Speaker 1: Ozzy and Harriet days when wives had dinner on the 436 00:30:53,880 --> 00:30:57,600 Speaker 1: table at five o'clock sharp were no more. Clothes were 437 00:30:57,640 --> 00:31:01,200 Speaker 1: getting looser, hair was getting longer, and women were leaving 438 00:31:01,240 --> 00:31:05,760 Speaker 1: their girdles and braws at home. In the fifties, most 439 00:31:05,760 --> 00:31:08,680 Speaker 1: Americans were content to live by the traditional values of 440 00:31:08,720 --> 00:31:14,440 Speaker 1: hard work, family and patriotism. But once the seventies rolled around, 441 00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:19,080 Speaker 1: political activism was ramping up all around the country. People 442 00:31:19,080 --> 00:31:22,560 Speaker 1: were upset. The Vietnam War seemed to be getting more 443 00:31:22,600 --> 00:31:26,720 Speaker 1: nonsensical and hopeless. Racial inequality was becoming more and more 444 00:31:26,720 --> 00:31:30,520 Speaker 1: difficult to ignore. In the South, feminism and civil rights 445 00:31:30,560 --> 00:31:33,920 Speaker 1: were on everyone's mind and were creating an atmosphere of 446 00:31:33,960 --> 00:31:39,640 Speaker 1: both optimism and tension. Enemy Number one for many radicals 447 00:31:39,760 --> 00:31:44,200 Speaker 1: was the President Gerald Ford. For one thing, Ford kept 448 00:31:44,200 --> 00:31:48,640 Speaker 1: America entangled in the Vietnam War. He also chose to 449 00:31:48,680 --> 00:31:52,160 Speaker 1: pardon Richard Nixon after his involvement in the Watergate scandal, 450 00:31:52,680 --> 00:31:55,479 Speaker 1: which seemed to most people like an obstruction of justice 451 00:31:56,520 --> 00:31:59,840 Speaker 1: and hanging over all of that, there were questions about 452 00:31:59,880 --> 00:32:04,680 Speaker 1: whether Ford was even a legitimate president. Now here's something 453 00:32:04,720 --> 00:32:08,760 Speaker 1: I didn't know until I started researching this story. Gerald 454 00:32:08,800 --> 00:32:12,400 Speaker 1: Ford was the first person in America to ever become 455 00:32:12,480 --> 00:32:17,800 Speaker 1: president without being elected. It sounds crazy, but it's true. 456 00:32:18,120 --> 00:32:23,520 Speaker 1: When Nixon's Vice President, Spiro Agnew resigned in nineteen seventy three, 457 00:32:24,040 --> 00:32:30,640 Speaker 1: Nixon appointed Ford to fill Agnew's place. Then, when Nixon 458 00:32:30,720 --> 00:32:35,600 Speaker 1: resigned a year later, Ford automatically ascended to the presidency. 459 00:32:36,880 --> 00:32:39,680 Speaker 1: It's a bizarre return of events, and it made many 460 00:32:39,760 --> 00:32:43,480 Speaker 1: Americans feel like the democratic process was crumbling under their feet. 461 00:32:45,280 --> 00:32:48,960 Speaker 1: So suffice it to say left wing Americans were upset 462 00:32:49,000 --> 00:32:52,920 Speaker 1: about it in the seventies, and San Francisco had become 463 00:32:52,960 --> 00:32:57,360 Speaker 1: their home base. You can imagine how the energy of 464 00:32:57,360 --> 00:33:00,320 Speaker 1: a city like this would have appealed to a bright, 465 00:33:00,480 --> 00:33:04,040 Speaker 1: ambitious woman like Sarah Jane when she struggled to find 466 00:33:04,080 --> 00:33:08,160 Speaker 1: purpose as a housewife. The energy of these young, forward 467 00:33:08,240 --> 00:33:14,920 Speaker 1: thinking activists was seductive. They had purpose, they were doing 468 00:33:14,960 --> 00:33:18,360 Speaker 1: something that mattered or at least it seemed that way 469 00:33:18,400 --> 00:33:22,240 Speaker 1: to Sarah Jane. She decided she wanted to be one 470 00:33:22,240 --> 00:33:25,280 Speaker 1: of them, so she began to try on her most 471 00:33:25,320 --> 00:33:32,040 Speaker 1: compelling and influential persona to date political activist. Once she 472 00:33:32,160 --> 00:33:36,360 Speaker 1: arrived in San Francisco, Sarah Jane began to transform from 473 00:33:36,400 --> 00:33:42,200 Speaker 1: an isolated conservative military wife who was uninterested and uninvolved 474 00:33:42,200 --> 00:33:47,800 Speaker 1: in politics into something very different. She started reading, hanging 475 00:33:47,840 --> 00:33:51,640 Speaker 1: out on college campuses, and informing herself about the political 476 00:33:51,680 --> 00:33:56,400 Speaker 1: issues of the day. She found easy retail work during 477 00:33:56,440 --> 00:33:59,200 Speaker 1: the day at a linoleum flooring shop where she earned 478 00:33:59,280 --> 00:34:01,440 Speaker 1: enough to pay for rink and food, and in the 479 00:34:01,480 --> 00:34:05,520 Speaker 1: evenings she started driving to the warehouse district where she'd 480 00:34:05,520 --> 00:34:08,480 Speaker 1: heard some of the radical groups were holding their meetings. 481 00:34:09,239 --> 00:34:11,839 Speaker 1: One of the groups Sarah Jane became involved with was 482 00:34:11,840 --> 00:34:16,160 Speaker 1: called People in Need or PIN. Like many of the 483 00:34:16,239 --> 00:34:19,520 Speaker 1: left wing groups of this era, PIN was all about 484 00:34:19,560 --> 00:34:24,279 Speaker 1: social change through protests, strikes, and other forms of activism. 485 00:34:24,600 --> 00:34:28,479 Speaker 1: They advocated for peace, an end to the Vietnam War, 486 00:34:29,480 --> 00:34:37,560 Speaker 1: civil rights, women's rights, LGBTQ rights, and workers' rights. Sarah 487 00:34:37,640 --> 00:34:41,160 Speaker 1: Jane was immediately captivated by the way PEN members were 488 00:34:41,280 --> 00:34:45,640 Speaker 1: actually doing something about the issues she thought were plaguing society. 489 00:34:47,440 --> 00:34:51,000 Speaker 1: Life here seemed to have a purpose in a way 490 00:34:51,040 --> 00:34:54,680 Speaker 1: that none of her previous lives ever did. Maybe she 491 00:34:54,719 --> 00:34:57,680 Speaker 1: could do something important here. Maybe this could be her 492 00:34:57,719 --> 00:35:03,240 Speaker 1: opportunity to finally live her big life. At her first meeting, 493 00:35:04,320 --> 00:35:07,680 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane introduced herself to the people in charge as 494 00:35:07,719 --> 00:35:12,959 Speaker 1: a passionate activist with extensive experience in accounting, and asked 495 00:35:12,960 --> 00:35:16,200 Speaker 1: if they needed help with their books. She didn't look 496 00:35:16,280 --> 00:35:20,160 Speaker 1: like an activist with her preppy, suburban mom blouses and cardigans, 497 00:35:21,320 --> 00:35:24,760 Speaker 1: but they did need help. Within just a few weeks, 498 00:35:25,280 --> 00:35:27,960 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane had found her way into one of the 499 00:35:27,960 --> 00:35:32,680 Speaker 1: group's messy offices and asserted herself as the lead accountant. 500 00:35:33,400 --> 00:35:35,560 Speaker 1: But even though she had managed to make herself at 501 00:35:35,640 --> 00:35:39,280 Speaker 1: least a little bit useful, she had trouble making friends 502 00:35:40,719 --> 00:35:43,359 Speaker 1: the same way her girl Scouts and classmates sensed that 503 00:35:43,920 --> 00:35:47,520 Speaker 1: something was off about her. The other volunteers at PENN 504 00:35:47,600 --> 00:35:52,880 Speaker 1: found Sarah Jane's personality off putting. Her attitude was volatile, 505 00:35:53,800 --> 00:35:56,440 Speaker 1: and she seemed to be more concerned with her status 506 00:35:56,560 --> 00:35:59,640 Speaker 1: as a member of the organization than with its mission. 507 00:36:00,760 --> 00:36:03,759 Speaker 1: But even though she wasn't very well liked. It wasn't 508 00:36:03,760 --> 00:36:07,360 Speaker 1: a reason to kick her out, at least not yet. 509 00:36:08,880 --> 00:36:12,880 Speaker 1: So Sarah Jane settled into a routine, spending her days 510 00:36:12,920 --> 00:36:16,320 Speaker 1: at the flooring shop and her nights at PEN meetings 511 00:36:16,320 --> 00:36:21,719 Speaker 1: and events. The activism work consumed her free time and 512 00:36:21,760 --> 00:36:25,520 Speaker 1: eventually her identity, and she loved every minute of it. 513 00:36:33,680 --> 00:36:37,960 Speaker 1: On a Saturday morning in September nineteen seventy five, a 514 00:36:38,000 --> 00:36:41,360 Speaker 1: few years into her work with Penn, Sarah Jane opened 515 00:36:41,400 --> 00:36:44,560 Speaker 1: up the San Francisco Chronicle to find a report that 516 00:36:44,640 --> 00:36:49,120 Speaker 1: President Gerald Ford would be visiting the Bay Area. He 517 00:36:49,160 --> 00:36:52,400 Speaker 1: would be in downtown San Francisco at the Saint Francis 518 00:36:52,400 --> 00:36:56,279 Speaker 1: Hotel on September twenty second for a luncheon with the 519 00:36:56,320 --> 00:37:01,359 Speaker 1: World Affairs Council. He wouldn't be making any public appearances, 520 00:37:01,600 --> 00:37:05,359 Speaker 1: it said, but he'd be traveling in his motorcade to 521 00:37:05,400 --> 00:37:10,280 Speaker 1: the airport sometime that afternoon. And that's when an idea 522 00:37:10,360 --> 00:37:14,839 Speaker 1: popped into Sarah Jane's mind. She may not fit in 523 00:37:14,920 --> 00:37:17,880 Speaker 1: with the young, bleeding heart hippies and the activist community. 524 00:37:19,040 --> 00:37:21,600 Speaker 1: She knew a few things that they didn't know about 525 00:37:21,600 --> 00:37:26,200 Speaker 1: the way the world worked. She knew that sometimes small 526 00:37:26,239 --> 00:37:30,920 Speaker 1: actions weren't enough. Sometimes, in order to make big changes, 527 00:37:31,400 --> 00:37:35,960 Speaker 1: you had to make a statement. Sometimes, if people didn't 528 00:37:36,000 --> 00:37:39,000 Speaker 1: see things the way you did, you had to make 529 00:37:39,040 --> 00:37:44,280 Speaker 1: them pay attention. Sarah Jane knew how to make people 530 00:37:44,280 --> 00:37:48,920 Speaker 1: pay attention. This would be her moment, her chance to 531 00:37:48,960 --> 00:37:53,160 Speaker 1: be the main character she always wanted to be. It 532 00:37:53,280 --> 00:37:56,560 Speaker 1: was with this conviction that Sarah Jane drove herself to 533 00:37:56,600 --> 00:38:01,360 Speaker 1: the Saint Francis Hotel on September twenty second, nineteen seventy five, 534 00:38:01,880 --> 00:38:04,800 Speaker 1: with a thirty eight revolver in her purse, and aimed 535 00:38:04,800 --> 00:38:18,480 Speaker 1: it at the President. A single gunshot rings out, Screams 536 00:38:18,600 --> 00:38:23,000 Speaker 1: pierce the air. The crowd scrambles. The President Ford does 537 00:38:23,040 --> 00:38:27,919 Speaker 1: not fall. The bullet flies five inches to the right 538 00:38:27,960 --> 00:38:33,040 Speaker 1: of his head and chips the wall behind him. Sarah 539 00:38:33,160 --> 00:38:35,680 Speaker 1: Jane is standing with her hands still holding the gun 540 00:38:35,719 --> 00:38:39,200 Speaker 1: in the air, but before she can take another shot, 541 00:38:39,760 --> 00:38:43,279 Speaker 1: a burly man behind her lunges grabs her arm and 542 00:38:43,320 --> 00:38:46,400 Speaker 1: pulls it down just long enough for a police officer's 543 00:38:46,440 --> 00:38:49,560 Speaker 1: nearby to take her gun and pin her to the ground. 544 00:38:51,560 --> 00:38:54,279 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane has missed her chance, and she won't get 545 00:38:54,320 --> 00:38:59,080 Speaker 1: another one. Newspapers the next morning would scramble to find 546 00:38:59,160 --> 00:39:02,439 Speaker 1: information about this woman who seemed to have come out 547 00:39:02,440 --> 00:39:07,360 Speaker 1: of nowhere to assassinate the president. What the reporters didn't 548 00:39:07,400 --> 00:39:11,120 Speaker 1: know was that Sarah Jane hadn't actually come out of nowhere. 549 00:39:12,160 --> 00:39:16,520 Speaker 1: In fact, law enforcement knew all about her, but not 550 00:39:16,600 --> 00:39:22,520 Speaker 1: because of her nefarious passed. Actually, law enforcement knew about 551 00:39:22,520 --> 00:39:48,160 Speaker 1: Sarah Jane because she'd been working with the FBI for months. 552 00:39:49,320 --> 00:39:52,120 Speaker 1: Join me next week on the greatest true crime stories 553 00:39:52,160 --> 00:39:55,760 Speaker 1: ever told to find out how Sarah Jane got mixed 554 00:39:55,840 --> 00:39:58,920 Speaker 1: up with the FBI and how she went from working 555 00:39:58,960 --> 00:40:02,879 Speaker 1: for the government to trying to take it down. That's 556 00:40:02,920 --> 00:40:05,840 Speaker 1: in part two of our two part series about Sarah 557 00:40:05,920 --> 00:40:08,640 Speaker 1: Jane Moore, the woman who tried to kill the President. 558 00:40:10,560 --> 00:40:14,080 Speaker 1: I'd like to shout out Jerry Spieler's book Housewife Assassin, 559 00:40:14,560 --> 00:40:17,560 Speaker 1: The Woman who Tried to Kill President Ford, which was 560 00:40:17,600 --> 00:40:21,480 Speaker 1: our biggest source for today's episode. It's really the only 561 00:40:21,560 --> 00:40:25,840 Speaker 1: place you'll find detailed information about Sarah Jane's life, and 562 00:40:25,880 --> 00:40:29,920 Speaker 1: I highly recommend getting a copy. All other sources we 563 00:40:30,080 --> 00:40:34,200 Speaker 1: used are cited in the show notes. Plus, at the 564 00:40:34,320 --> 00:40:37,520 Speaker 1: end of next week's episode, I get to interview Jerry 565 00:40:37,520 --> 00:40:40,560 Speaker 1: Spieler about Sarah Jane, so I hope you'll come back 566 00:40:40,560 --> 00:40:45,680 Speaker 1: for that too. For more information about this case and 567 00:40:45,800 --> 00:40:50,440 Speaker 1: others we cover on the show, visit diversion audio dot com. 568 00:40:50,920 --> 00:40:53,960 Speaker 1: The Greatest True Crime Stories Ever Told is a production 569 00:40:54,080 --> 00:40:58,520 Speaker 1: of Diversion Audio. I'm Mary Kay mcbraer and I hosted 570 00:40:58,520 --> 00:41:03,640 Speaker 1: this episode. This episode was written by Grace Heerman. Our 571 00:41:03,719 --> 00:41:08,040 Speaker 1: show was produced by Emma Dumouth, edited by Antonio Enriquez, 572 00:41:08,640 --> 00:41:13,080 Speaker 1: Theme music by Tyler Cash. Executive produced by Scott Waxman.