Australian True Crime — "Banquet: The Untold Story of Adelaide’s Family Murders with Debi Marshall"

Podcast: Australian True Crime
Host: Bravecasting (Meshel Laurie and co-host)
Guest: Debi Marshall (Investigative Crime Journalist and Author)
Date: December 21, 2025

Episode Overview

This re-issued episode explores the chilling saga of Adelaide's Family Murders, focusing on the monstrous crimes committed in South Australia’s capital between 1979 and 1983 by a shadowy network of pedophiles known as “the family.”
Award-winning journalist Debi Marshall joins the hosts to discuss her investigative work, detailed in her book Banquet: The Untold Story of Adelaide’s Family Murders, and shares insights about the cases, the impact on victims’ families, the failures of law enforcement, and the complex web of secrets and legal suppression orders that continue to obscure justice.
The conversation is sobering, empathetic, and deeply concerned with the need for truth, accountability, and healing for those left behind.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Introduction & Background to the Crimes

[04:30‒05:57] Debi Marshall provides context for her investigation:

• The Family Murders involved at least 5 known murdered boys and over 150 young men who survived kidnapping, drugging, and sexual assault by a group of perpetrators.
• “Between 1979 and 1983, five young men that we know of were abducted from the streets of Adelaide, held captive, drugged and sexually tortured before being brutally murdered.” (Debi Marshall, 04:44)
• The group known as “the family” was a loosely-connected network of local men and pedophiles.
• Only Bevan Spencer von Einem was ever convicted — but his conviction failed to bring closure, as many believe powerful accomplices avoided prosecution.
• Adelaide’s reputation for strange, grisly crimes dates back decades, reinforced by notorious cases like the Truro Murders and Snowtown Murders.

Debi Marshall’s Personal Motivation & Experience

[10:08‒14:46]

• Debi shares her own story of loss: her partner Ron Jarvis was murdered, a crime she doggedly investigated herself for years.
  • “...I went looking for him for seven months. And I trawled through the muck of society ... and in doing that, I knew instinctively that it was Standage. And I found him. And he then started to threaten me with my life. … after 10 years, he murdered someone else and his DNA this time gave him away. And then one day, out of the blue, I got a phone call from Tassie police saying, deb, we've just arrested Standage for Ron's murder. And it was the best day of my life.” (Debi Marshall, 11:08)
• This personal tragedy shapes her approach: empathy and respect for victims’ families, and a drive to uncover the truth.

The Challenge of Suppression Orders

[18:37‒20:10], [35:10–42:41]

• Many key names and facts have stayed hidden due to decades-old legal suppression orders.
• These orders, originally intended to protect trial integrity or reputational concerns, now serve little purpose but continue to obscure possible accomplices.
  • “There seems to be not much purpose to them, certainly at the time when they were put on ... That's not the case today. … I think it's important. Not for me. ... This is about the victims and the victims families who want those suppressions lifted because they don't want that badge anymore.” (Debi Marshall, 19:03)
• Debi describes a long, difficult process of lobbying to have some names “un-suppressed” – including that of Lewis Turter, a key witness and participant.

The Crimes: Timeline and M.O.

[20:21–28:50], [42:41–45:42]

• South Australia in the late 1970s and early 80s was a complex place—liberalizing and swinging, but also with persistent societal and police corruption.
• Victims (mostly aged 14–25) were abducted, offered drugs, sexually assaulted, and murdered; many others suffered but survived.
  • “...these men are going out. Von Einem ... getting these boys in the cars, drugged to the guilds and then taken back to houses ... and then the door closes and the horror begins.” (Debi Marshall, 24:40)
• Signature acts of cruelty, such as prolonged captivity (Richard Kelvin was held for five weeks).
• The crimes were often opportunistic but sometimes planned “hunting parties.”
• The network included both wealthy, powerful men, as well as others tied to the Adelaide gay scene and criminal world.

Interview with Lewis Turter: Eyewitness and Participant

[35:18–42:41] — Dialogue excerpts

• In one of the episode’s most riveting moments, Debi plays extracts from her interview with Lewis Turter, whose name was previously suppressed.
• Turter admits to being present when von Einem brought drugged boys to his house:
  • “I had sex with Von Einem, but I didn't have anything to do with the murders all out there.” (Lewis Turter, 36:24)
  • “[The boys] were drugged. Von Einem drugged.” (Lewis Turter, 38:04)
  • On why he allowed it: “Because I was a stupid fool, wasn’t I?” (Lewis Turter, 40:12)
  • Marshall presses him on whether he and others had sex with these boys; he hesitantly admits it happened.
  • Turter ultimately calls for suppression orders to be lifted, saying, “Oh, for God’s sake, have them lifted. It’s time. Okay? It’s time. It is time. It’s way beyond time that those suppressions are lifted…” (42:19)
• Turter’s admissions are deeply uncomfortable but shed light on the extent of complicity and enduring trauma.

Analysis of Bevan Spencer von Einem and the System’s Failures

[45:04–47:04]

• Von Einem remains the only person convicted for the Family Murders; he has never confessed or implicated others.
  • Debi’s assessment: “...not just that he is a coward with brutal sexual fetishes and fantasies, but that he's also probably impotent. … No, actually he was just a creep, you know, a real grub who's. Who tragically enacted his fantasies.” (Debi Marshall, 45:04)
• Discussion of institutional failures — the lack of prosecutions, suppression orders, and lack of a Royal Commission.

The Human Cost: Victims, the Surviving Boys, and Families

[32:22–36:36] and [57:53–61:07]

• The absolute devastation wrought on victims’ families is a recurring focus.
• Richard Kelvin’s case is detailed, with Marshall describing his last moments, abduction, and the devastation left for his parents and friend Carl.
  • “He was on his way home. He was scared of the dark. It was getting dark ... he tried to get home and those bastards wouldn't let him.” (Debi Marshall, 32:22)
• Carl, Richard’s friend and the last to see him, still struggles as an adult with guilt and grief. Debi urged him to seek help, and he’s now committed to advocacy.
• The mothers of other victims speak (e.g., Mrs. Stognet), decades later, of unhealed wounds and a desperate need for truth.

Call for Justice and Transparency

[47:04–50:08]

• Debi and the hosts argue for a Royal Commission, calling on lawyers and the public to demand action and the lifting of suppression orders.
  • “...most of us are parents and all of us know that it is not acceptable to have unsolved murders of children or young men. That is not acceptable in anyone's language. So you know, I think we all need to pull together.” (Debi Marshall, 47:04)
• The episode ends with a powerful reminder that the story isn’t told for entertainment, but to honor the victims and push for justice.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “You have to live through murder and its impact and its terror that it leaves in its wake to really understand ... It's always a privilege to hear their stories and to get their trust.”
  — Debi Marshall (11:44)

• “Sunlight is the best disinfectant ... Everyone, sooner or later, sits down to a banquet of consequences.”
  — Debi Marshall, referencing a lawyer and Robert Louis Stevenson (42:19, 55:08)

• “Of all the books I've done and all the true crime stories ... I never forget that I've been through a lot of pain, but, by God, what they've been through, you know...”
  — Debi Marshall (12:08)

• “Suppression orders ... now serve little purpose but continue to obscure possible accomplices.”
  — Host, paraphrased from [19:03]

• “True crime is not entertainment. ... Please read [my book] for what it is, which is a very up close, very personal approach to what happened.”
  — Debi Marshall (45:52)

• “Carl, you know, maybe have you considered getting some help? ... And he's come back fighting now and saying, let's do this together, Debbie. Let's go and, you know, do whatever we can.”
  — Debi Marshall reflecting on supporting a survivor [58:24]

Important Timestamps

• [04:30] Debi Marshall introduces herself and the nature of her investigation.
• [10:08] Debi’s personal experience with crime and its impact.
• [18:37] Discussion of suppression orders, their origins, and ongoing harm.
• [25:33] Graphic description of the murder victims and the Family’s criminal methods.
• [35:18] Marshall’s breakthrough interview with Lewis Turter, including direct excerpts.
• [45:04] Psychological profile of von Einem and system’s failures.
• [47:04] The call for a Royal Commission and legal reform.
• [57:53] Reflection on the continuing trauma endured by surviving families and friends.

Final Reflections

This episode is a haunting, incisive look at Adelaide’s Family Murders, focusing not only on grim facts, but the profound pain inflicted — and the corrosive secrecy that still protects perpetrators. Debi Marshall’s journalism is deeply empathetic yet unflinching, revealing both the horror and the hope for justice that drives her—and the families—decades later. The call for transparency, legal reform, and support for the grief-stricken survivors is urgent and unmissable.

Content warning: This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence and abuse.

If you need support or have information:

• 1-800-Respect (1-800-737-732)
• Lifeline (13 11 14)
• Indigenous Australians: 13Yarn (13 92 76)