Seaworthy: Murder on Palmyra

True Crime Brewery

On the remote island of Palmyra, about 970 nautical miles south of Hawaii, a series of crimes occurred against experienced sailing couple Mac and Muff Graham. A handful of other sailors spent time with the Grahams on the island, but the Grahams were eventually left alone with a desperate young couple: Stephanie Stearns and her fugitive boyfriend Lesley “Buck” Walker.
Then the Grahams went missing. Soon afterward, their boat was seen at a busy marina, repainted and in the possession of Stearns and Walker. The logical conclusion was that they had stolen the Graham’s boat and murdered the couple but finding evidence and bringing Stearns and Walker to trial would take years.
Join us at the quiet end for Seaworthy: Murder on Palmyra. Learning what it takes to sail the ocean on a small sailboat and survive on a deserted island has been fascinating. At the core of the case is the seaworthiness of Stearns’ and Walkers’ boat. The couple sailed to the island on a rickety boat with inadequate food and supplies. This leads to the very valid question of whether their plan from the beginning was to steal a seaworthy, well-stocked boat and murder its crew.
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