Just A Few Scary, Tragic, And Awful Things I Learned This Week

Hey there! I'm Crystal, and I constitute the That Got Dark newsletter, BuzzFeed's play roundup of each things creepy, macabre, and horrible AF. And if you looooove this benignant of content, you should subscribe!!!!!

Here's what the newsletter is covering this week:

Warning: Graphic contented ahead, including stories of murder.

1. If your existent transgression algorithm kicked successful recently, you’ve astir apt heard astir the horrible and tragic sidesplitting of Lucy Harrison. In lawsuit you haven’t, here’s the gist: Back successful January 2025, Lucy, a British 23-year-old, was visiting her father, Kris Harrison, astatine his location successful Texas erstwhile helium fatally changeable her successful the thorax pursuing a immense statement astir authorities (specifically, Trump) and guns.

In fact, you tin spot a bone-chilling bodycam video that shows the infinitesimal Kris told constabulary helium changeable his girl dormant close here.

The communicative went viral past week because, contempt Kris claiming it was an accident, and a US expansive assemblage declining to indict Kris, conscionable this month, a UK coroner’s inquest ruled her decease an “unlawful killing,” saying Kris’s actions were apt gross negligence manslaughter. Despite the caller UK ruling, caller charges person not been filed…yet.

2. I personally debar achromatic widows astatine each costs. Not a fan. But apparently, you tin bash your implicit champion to debar them and inactive extremity up successful the ER.

In 2025, a pistillate was hospitalized aft her hubby smashed a achromatic widow wrong their location — and venom from the crushed spider sprayed into her eye, wherever it was absorbed into her bloodstream and caused symptoms akin to a afloat achromatic widow bite. She developed aggravated pain, swelling, and nausea terrible capable to necessitate aesculapian treatment.

3. The lawsuit of missing 16-year-old champion friends Lauria Bible and Ashley Freeman, who disappeared connected the nighttime of Dec. 29, 1999 portion celebrating Ashley’s day astatine her family's location successful Welch, Oklahoma.

In the aboriginal hours of Dec. 30, the Freeman household location was recovered engulfed successful flames. Inside were the bodies of Ashley’s parents, some changeable astatine adjacent range. Lauria and Ashley were obscurity to beryllium found.

For years, the girls remained missing and their destiny unknown. Then, successful 2018, a antheral named Ronnie Dean Busick was arrested and aboriginal pleaded blameworthy to being an accessory to their murders. As portion of a plea deal, helium agreed to assistance investigators find the girls' bodies successful speech for a lighter sentence. Investigators judge the teens were abducted, tortured, and killed, perchance with 2 different accomplices who died earlier they could beryllium charged.

Although helium was sentenced to 10 years successful situation successful 2020, Busick was released aboriginal connected May 19, 2023, owed to credits for clip served and "good behavior." Lauria and Ashley’s bodies person ne'er been recovered.

4. On Dec. 29, 1972, Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 ne'er reached its destination — but not successful the mode you mightiness expect. While the level was connected descent into Miami, the unit became distracted by a seemingly insignificant landing cogwheel indicator airy that wouldn’t spell out. Amid the confusion, the autopilot was inadvertently disengaged, and the pitchy dilatory descended into the Florida Everglades. The level crashed, sidesplitting 112 of the 163 radical connected board. But what turned this into 1 of aviation’s astir unsettling stories was what happened next…

After the wreckage was recovered, aggregate unit members and technicians who had worked connected the clang began reporting unusual sightings and ghostly encounters, including apparitions of a formation technologist who died successful the crash. Tales of phantom footsteps, voices connected radios, and a haunted cockpit turned the calamity into a full-blown, eerie fable that persists successful aviation folklore.

5. The horribly tragic decease of Tennessee Williams connected Feb. 25, 1983, who died by asphyxiation.

Williams, the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright down A Streetcar Named Desire and Cat connected a Hot Tin Roof, was recovered dormant successful his suite astatine the Hotel Elysée successful New York City successful 1983. He was 71 and had been surviving retired of the edifice for years, often alone, surrounded by manuscripts and medicine bottles.

An autopsy determined that Williams had choked connected a integrative cap, which was apt from a vessel of oculus drops oregon nasal spray. The medical examiner besides noted that the beingness of barbiturate secobarbital was successful his strategy erstwhile helium died, and believed that the headdress was being utilized to instrumentality barbiturates. The origin of Williams’s decease was ruled accidental asphyxiation.

6. Finally, the communicative of William Paul Thompson, an American serial slayer and self-described declaration slayer who murdered astatine slightest 3 radical successful California and Nevada successful 1984. In Nevada, helium killed a antheral during a robbery. In California, helium murdered 2 brothers who were camping adjacent Auburn. He besides confessed to sidesplitting 3 different radical successful different states, but those were ne'er confirmed.

Thompson was yet identified and arrested aft investigators connected him to the crimes done witnesser descriptions and grounds tied to the robbery. He was sentenced to decease successful Nevada, aboriginal pleaded blameworthy to the California murders, and yet withdrew his appeals, saying helium wanted to judge his execution. Thompson was enactment to decease by lethal injection astatine the Nevada State Prison connected June 19, 1989.

His past meal: Four treble bacon cheeseburgers, French fries, and a ample Coke.