Episode
The Chowchilla Bus Kidnapping Survivors | Fresno News
- Published
- Jul 16, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 102
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- https://sources.thednn.ai/de153dcfef86249a
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Summary
In 1976, 26 kids and their bus driver vanished in Chowchilla, California, when three men—two Schoenfeld brothers and a friend—kidnapped them for $5 million. After hours of driving, they buried the bus alive in a quarry. Miraculously, the children dug themselves out after 16 hours, surviving suffocating darkness and terror. The kidnappers were initially sentenced to life without parole, but appeals later freed them: Richard Schoenfeld served 36 years, James 39, and Frederick Wood 46. The case raises tough questions about justice and sentencing, especially as victims like Lynda Carrejo Labendeira, then just 10, still carry the trauma decades later. Listen in comfort: Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN: [email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting. Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates: https://sources.thednn.ai/de153dcfef86249a