The Brown’s Chicken Massacre

In the quiet, "Norman Rockwellesque" suburb of Palatine, Illinois, the American dream seemed alive and well. But on a snowy night in January 1993, that idyllic facade was shattered when seven employees of a local Brown's Chicken restaurant-including the owners-were found brutally murdered in a walk-in freezer. This is the definitive account of the Brown's Chicken massacre, a case so infamous it is often misremembered. The Brown's Chicken Massacre: A Big and True Story of the Decade-Long Manhunt and Trials, author Renee M. Preston gives a new, human-centered account of the story, taking readers beyond the headlines to share the perspectives of the victims' families, the investigators, and the community that was forever changed. The horrendous crime captivated Chicagoland and launched a nine-year manhunt that tested the limits of policing and forensic science. From the frantic worry of families when their loved ones didn't return home to the breakthrough DNA match from a partially eaten chicken bone, this pulse-racing true crime story honors the lives lost while exploring how the crime changed modern policing and forensic technology. It is a story not just about a murder, but about the resilience of a community and the relentless pursuit of justice