The Darkest Night: Two Sisters, a Brutal Murder, and the Loss of Innocence in a Small Town

by Ron Franscell

Book Overview

Casper, Wyoming:1973. Eleven-year-old Amy Burridge rides with her eighteen-year-old sister, Becky, to the grocery store. When they finish their shopping, Becky's car gets a flat tire. Two men politely... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312948468
• Release Date: March 2008
• Publisher: St. Martin's True Crime
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 6.8" x 0.8" x 4.2"

Customer Reviews

One of the most horrific crimes in American history...

The story Becky Thompson and Amy Burridge is one that continues to haunt the American psyche more than three decades later. The darkness that these poor girls were subjected to goes beyond evil, into the realm of the demonic. I would like to say that these events were unique, but unfortunately they are not, as evidenced by other such true accounts in books like: Pure Murder (Pinnacle True Crime) and Sex Kill: Lust crimes that shocked a generation! ...which are well worth reading. The lesson to be learned here is that vigilance must always be maintained in dealing with strangers or even casual acquaintances - and that trusting too easily can mean the difference between life and death.

An Excellent True Crime Book!

The author, Ron Francsell, was a boy himself when this brutal murder, rape, and abduction occurred in his picturesque hometown of Caspar, Wyoming in September 1973. I was in diapers then. His memories and research are first rate about Amy and Becky Burridge, two sisters, who go to the Thriftway market to pick up items for their mother. The author was wise not to change the names of anybody in the book. It's pretty brave of him. Their car has a flat tire that was just fixed and two men agreed to help them. The two men, Jerry Jenkins and Ronald Kennedy, were career criminals. They orchestrated the flat tire in order to abduct and rape the older sister. After hours of pure torture and torment by their abductors, they drive their victims to the Fremont Canyon Bridge where they send Amy and Becky to their sure deaths but one survives. The older sister would survive the harrowing ordeal but barely, traumatized for the rest of her life. Frightened and horrified, a couple rescue her and bring her to the hospital where she recounts the whole ordeal and night of torture. The whole town of Caspar, Wyoming has never fully recovered and the names of Jerry Jenkings and ROnald Kennedy sends chills down even the toughest of people.

I was there, reading the book brought me back again

It was a chilling time in Casper, especially when you knew the girls. The book brought so many memories back to life again. I could not put the book down, even tho I knew what happened, I was hoping the ending had changed after all this time, naturally it hadn't and the tears just kept falling, just like Becky. WOW what a great book, when's the movie? Great job Mr. Franscell!