TRUE CRIME FRIDAY: THE YOGURT SHOP MURDERS

Ninetoes goes over some new information from the infamous Yogurt Shop Murders from almost 35 years ago.

Hey there, true crime lovers! It is your favorite investigator, Ninetoes, and I am on the beat with The Yogurt Shop Murders. I have my notebook in hand and coffee in my system, so let’s get to it!

On August 3, 2025, HBO premiered a true crime documentary, The Yogurt Shop Murders, and it left a lot of viewers dissatisfied. The main reason for this lack of satisfaction is that there was no resolution. Most of the true crime shows, Dateline, 20/20, 48 Hours, etc., will give a resolution by the end of the show. It is very seldom that no resolution is given, and that is what we, as True Crime viewers, expect. We want…no wait, need to know who did it and that justice was done. In my opinion, a lot of the viewers of The Yogurt Shop Murders missed a major point in the show: the coerced confessions.

It is tragic that four young women lost their lives on December 6, 1991. I will not even pretend to understand the pain and suffering that their families and communities have suffered. If I were in their shoes, I would want justice meted out ASAP as well. But is it justice if two other people go to jail and face possible execution if they had nothing to do with the crime?

The person(s) responsible for the crime killed Amy Ayers, Eliza Thomas, Jennifer Harbison, and Sarah Harbison, and then set the building on fire. Firefighters responded to the blaze and put the fire out, and it was at this point that the bodies were discovered, and almost all of the evidence was washed away. This lack of evidence stymied the police investigation. Most of the leads that the police had brought them to Robert Springsteen and Michael Scott. The confessions that both men ended up giving were coerced. For me, this is as important as the crime itself. The police did not care that the confessions were coerced; they got their men, justice was served, and all was right in the land, and God Bless Texas and America!

The problem for me, as a viewer, is that we can sit back in the comforts of our homes and say, “If I were innocent, there is no way I would confess!” I am guilty of saying that as well. BUT, I have also never faced the inside of an interrogation room against people who are trained to get a confession. The police can employ any tactic, right down to lying, to get a person to confess to a crime. Is this right? No. Is this justice? Hell no! Why? Because it leaves the perpetrator of any crime free to repeat it. Once the confession is obtained and the case gets kicked up to the District Attorney, it is chiseled in stone, and the blinders go on. These particular blinders involve reputations to protect and not admitting a mistake was made.

As it was at the time, the police had their confessions, and Springsteen was sentenced to death while Scott was sentenced to life imprisonment. In 2005, Springsteen’s sentence was commuted to life in prison by Governor Rick Perry. This was as a result of the case Roper v Simmons. The following year, Springsteen’s conviction was overturned by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. This was because the court found Springsteen’s trial to be unfair. Both men would eventually be freed from prison in 2009. They were freed on bond for upcoming trials. On October 28, 2009, all charges against Springsteen and Scott were dropped.

On August 3, 2022, President Joseph Biden signed into law the Homicide Victims’ Families’ Rights Act of 2021. This act was motivated by the Yogurt Shop Murders of 1991. This law is meant to ensure federal law enforcement reviews cold cases and applies the latest technologies to help close the cases.

In a stunning twist, in 2025, the Austin Police Department verified that the perpetrator of the crime was found through a genetic genealogy conducted by CeCe Moore. The man responsible for the crime was Robert Eugene Brashers, a serial killer and rapist. Brashers committed suicide in 1999 during a standoff with police.

Darren “Ninetoes” Perdue is a book and media reviewer. When he is not reading, he is watching true crime shows, cooking for his family, or working on a plan for universal domination. If you see him on his porch, say hi. He does not bite…much.

PLEASE NOTE: The views and opinions of the staff of Memento Mori Ink do not necessarily represent those of Memento Mori Ink or Crystal Lake Publishing. Thank you for understanding.