By 2022, all three had been paroled. All rights reserved. But with this inmate, I still find it hard to believe that hes credible," Klinge went on. (Alameda County D.A. Heffington passed away in January 2021. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. In July 1976, farmer and bus driver Ed Ray was driving a yellow school bus carrying elementary students from Dairyland Unified when he saw a white van stopped in the road. Many of survivors of the Chowchilla kidnapping gather at the Ed Ray Day celebration on August 22, 1976. A transport driver secures one of three vans recovered by Alameda County Sheriff's Deputies from a warehouse in San Jose, Calif., July 24, 1976. Legal Statement. The 1976 Chowchilla, California, kidnapping of a school bus driver and 26 children is one of the largest kidnappings in U.S. history. "Theyre all dangerous. [6] James Schoenfeld had been captured earlier the same day in Menlo Park, California, while Richard Schoenfeld had voluntarily turned himself in to authorities eight days after the kidnapping.[2]. Fredrick Woods in November 2015. (Handout courtesy of Jennifer Brown Hyde). Woods was also questioned about potential "high-risk situations" he could encounter outside of prison, to which he responded that people have asked him in prison for advice on how to kidnap someone, records show. On July 15, 1976, three masked gunmen stormed a school bus in the small farming town of Chowchilla, Calif., kidnapping 26 children and their bus driver. With Karl Malden, Tim Ransom, Travis Fine, Tom Hodges. And now he rescues me every day.". Gavin Newsom referred Woods parole grant for review by the board, which occurred Tuesday. It had been 28 hours of terror. In a small California town, three young men decide to make money by hijacking a school bus full of children and demanding a ransom for the safe return of the kids. Woods was shockingly quoted in a probation officers report as stating: "This crime has hurtme (sic) more than, I feel, any of the victims," according to parole hearing transcript. The three men were convicted of kidnapping with bodily harm and given life sentences. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Chowchilla is about 40 miles northwest of Fresno. Larry Park was a kid when he was kidnapped, buried and held for ransom with his classmates. [2] There, in the early morning of July 16, the kidnappers forced the victims to climb down a ladder into a buried moving truck that they had stocked with a small amount of food and water and some mattresses. The kidnappers buried them alive in an underground truck trailer in a rock quarry. Investigators unearthed the truck trailer that had been the children's underground tomb hoping they would find clues that would lead them to the kidnappers. "My thought process was if we're gonna stay down here and kick the bucket, we might as well kick it trying to get out.". They also arrested his partner in a used car business, 24-year-old James Schoenfeld, center, and James' younger brother Richard. Die Rckbank wird zum Bett:In diesem Video erfahrt ihr, wie die Dreier-Rckbank eines California Beach oder eines Multivans im Detail funktioniert.Schau dir . I just wanted to hug his neck on his way out to his freedom and send him off," Park told Fox News. Lynda Carrejo Labendeira, who was 10 at the time, recalled how the children struggled to escape . The students were reunited with their families on July 17, 1976. Mike Marshall, who was 14 years old and the oldest student on the bus, was credited with digging the others out of the underground tomb in the Livermore Rock Quarry, where the kidnappers had hidden them. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. A look inside the truck trailer where 26 abducted school children and their bus driver were buried alive -- and managed to escape. At around 4 p.m., on July 16, 1976, three masked men with guns hijacked the Dairyland Elementary School bus driven by Ed Ray. Many of survivors of the Chowchilla kidnapping gather at the Ed Ray Day celebration on August 22, 1976. Ray was hailed as a hero. A parole board affirmed Tuesday that Frederick Woods, one of three men convicted of kidnapping a school bus full of 26 children and their driver in Chowchilla, Calif., in 1976 in an effort to coerce a $5-million ransom, will be released. "I would see my own funeral.". This is a Jan. 12, 2012 photo released by the California Department of Corrections showing James Schoenfeld. Ed Ray and the kids decided they had to try and to escape before it was too late. After Fred Woods and two accomplices kidnapped dozens of California children from a school bus in 1976 and trapped them underground, they were sentenced to up to 27 life . I think hes still, maybe hes making progress, but hes not there yet.". CHOWCHILLA SCHOOL BUS HIJACKING VICTIM CREDITS KIDNAPPERS FOR HIS LIFE'S VICTORIES, HAS MET ALL 3 IN PERSON, This Oct. 29, 2021, photo provided by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation shows Frederick Woods. The children and the bus driver . This van was used as a prison for the 26 Chowchilla school children and their bus driver. (California Department of Corrections via AP). They won't have to bring it up all the time and we just move on. After about 16 hours underground, the driver and children dug themselves out and escaped, all surviving. But the terror of the kidnapping which lasted nearly 30 hours changed their lives forever. Jodi Heffington, who went to almost all of the parole hearings, is pictured at Fred Woods 15th parole hearing in 2018. They napped and awoke to the news of the escape, and were captured or surrendered within weeks. ", "Nightmare in Chowchilla: The School Bus Kidnapping,". It starred Karl Malden as bus driver Ed Ray, and Julie Harris as his wife.[31]. He and two of his friends, brothers James and Richard Schoenfeld (aged 24 and 22 respectively), had previously been convicted of motor vehicle theft, for which they had been sentenced to probation. He acknowledged that he knows "their pain is way greater than I can even imagine. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. By Evan Symon, August 17, 2022 2:39 pm. Chowchilla bus kidnapping: Rare photos from one of the largest abductions in U.S. history 39 photos. Ed Ray and the children were interviewed by police. Woods, along with brothers James and Richard Schoenfeld, planned . Ray, the school bus driver, along with 26 children between ages 5 and 14, was apprehended by three masked and armed men on July 15, 1976. They will mind. They also connected Mr. Woods to the purchase of the vans used in the kidnapping. Woods was 24 when he and two brothers, Richard and James Schoenfeld, kidnapped 26 children, ranging in age from 4 to 14, and their bus driver, Ed Ray, according to officials and records. The frightening ordeal began when the children, ages 5-14, were on a school bus on their way home from summer school. There were more than 60 parole hearings total for the three kidnappers. Frederick Newhall Woods IV (aged 24 during the kidnapping) was repeatedly denied parole until August 2022 when, at the age of 70, he was granted full parole. "I want to have steak with Fred. "Im sure they had feelings, emotional feelings, since then about the case. Chowchilla bus kidnapping: Rare photos from one of the largest It would take almost two weeks to track the kidnappers, but investigators finally arrested 24-year-old Frederick Newhall Woods, the son of the owner of the rock quarry where the kids were held. Market data provided by Factset. "I wanted the money. The Chowchilla kidnappings were featured on episode 7 of season 2 of the program House of Horrors: Kidnapped, which airs on the American cable network Investigation Discovery. When later tested by investigators, they found fingerprints from two of the three kidnappers. The driver and the students were buried alive inside a truck . From the Archives: The 1976 Chowchilla bus kidnapping Woods, now 70, is the last perpetrator in prison but perhaps not for much longer. He fought the . Chowchilla bus kidnapping: Rare photos from one of the largest abductions in U.S. history A look inside the truck trailer where 26 abducted school children and their bus driver were buried alive . Nightmare in Chowchilla: The School Bus Kidnapping on Apple Podcasts Why Chowchilla bus kidnapping survivor supports his captor's parole After about 16 hours underground, the . Summer Lin is a reporter on the Fast Break Desk, the Los Angeles Times breaking news team. Russia suspends grain deal with Ukraine that helped rein in food prices, Death Valley, hottest place on Earth, hits near-record high, Elton John testifies for defense in Kevin Spacey's sexual assault trial, Homes being evacuated after derailment north of Philadelphia, Plea for caution as selfie-taking fan reportedly snarls Tour de France, Remembering our beloved colleague Elise Finch. This developer decision could devastate L.A. More than 100 firefighters battle Rosemead fire, As heat wave scorches California, firefighters make headway against wildfires. I actually did," Jodi told "48 Hours.". An incredible survival story. On July 15, 1976, three masked gunmen stormed a school bus in the small farming town of Chowchilla, Calif., kidnapping 26 children and their bus driver. In 2023, the television news magazine 48 Hours aired "Remembering the Chowchilla Kidnapping (Season 36 Episode 20)" on March 18, 2023. Survivor Jennifer Brown Hyde pictured at age 9 standing near a granite monument in Chowchilla, Calif. dedicated to the 26 schoolchildren and bus driver Ed Ray. And Ive had a lot of emotional feelings about the case myself. Alameda County Sheriff Tom Houchins, left, holding composites of two suspects in the kidnapping of 26 Chowchilla school children as Madera County Sheriff Ed Bates described the men during a news conference. In this July 20, 1976 file photo, officials remove a truck buried at a rock quarry in Livermore, Calif., in which 26 Chowchilla school children and their bus driver, Ed Ray were held captive. or redistributed. A warrant was executed on the estate of Woods' father, and there police recovered one of the guns used in the kidnapping as well as a draft of a ransom note, but the three men had fled. Frederick Newhall Woods IV and Richard and James Schoenfeld were soon . The California parole board officially granted Woods parole months after his hearing, in August, despite an objection from Gov. California officials allow photographers to take pictures of the inside of this van in Livermore, Calif., on July 24, 1976. Last Friday, after serving more than 40 years behind bars, a 70-year-old California man, who kidnapped 26 . Ive had a character change since then.. Another piece of important evidence was this list of the kidnapped children's names written on the back of a Jack in the Box wrapper. Jennifer Brown Hyde, who was 9 at the time of the kidnapping, remembers what it felt like inside the van. Woods is the son of Frederick Woods III, who owned the quarry and a 100-acre Portola Valley Estate; the Schoenfelds came from the family of a wealthy Menlo Park podiatrist. One of the men held a gun to Ray while another drove the bus; the third man followed in the van. After hours of effort, Ray and the oldest boy, 14-year-old Michael Marshall, wedged the lid open with a piece of wood and moved the batteries; they then dug away the remainder of the debris blocking the entrance. "I remember thinking, I'm gonna die in here," Hyde told the Fox News Investigative Unit in its new podcast, "Nightmare in Chowchilla: The School Bus Kidnapping," available now on Foxnewspodcasts.com and your favorite podcast player. "I thought it would be a mistake for the whole state of California if he was to be released," said Jennifer Brown Hyde, who was 9 years old when Woods and two accomplices kidnapped the children and demanded a $5 million ransom. Where is Michael Marshall Now? - The Cinemaholic "It was carried out in a heinous and cruel way that left an emotional malignancy, not just with the victims, but with the entire community where it originated.". The kidnappers then drove the bus into a dry riverbed and hid it in tree brush. The panels decision is subject to review by Gov. Chowchilla Kidnapper, Frederick Woods, Granted Parole in California 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Jennifer Brown Hyde is a wife, mother and executive assistant. Chowchilla is located about 115 miles southeast of San Jose. Upon further questioning, he said his feelings had since changed. ", This is a June 12, 2012 photo released by the California Department of Corrections showing Richard Schoenfeld. Woods was allegedly caught using cell phones in 2013, 2014 and 2016, and accused of using the phones to give advice regarding business on the outside while in prison. "The earliest recollection I have of them just soon after the kidnapping was that the kidnappers would line us all up, put an apple on our head and shoot and miss the apple and shoot me in the head," said Hyde. But the trio never had their $5 million ransom demand met because all phone lines to the sheriffs department were busy with frantic calls from parents and the media. "I never really felt like they were going to spend the rest of their lives in prison. And probably not a good friend. They planned the kidnappings for more than 18 months in the hopes of getting easy money. Stephanie Pagones is a Digital Reporter for FOX Business and Fox News. (Handout courtesy of Jennifer Brown Hyde), "Nightmare in Chowchilla: The School Bus Kidnapping,". California to Parole Man Who Kidnapped 26 Children on School Bus. FIRST ON FOX: Transcripts from the first and final times Chowchilla school bus kidnapping's so-called ringleader Frederick "Fred" Woods testified before parole boards offer a glimpse into the mind of one of the men behind the "heinous and cruel" 1976 scheme to bury dozens of children alive for a ransom. ", He promised, regardless of whether he was recommended for parole, to "not be the monster I was in (sic) July 15, 1976.". The 54-year-old Hyde, who was 9 years old at the time, said she experienced nightmares about her captors for years. Two ventilation pipes provided air to the children who were trapped 12 feet underground. A 70-year-old man imprisoned for the 1976 kidnapping of a bus full of children has been approved for parole, according to spokesperson Joe Orlando of the California Department of Corrections and .
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