Atlanta’s Lost Children: 29 Deaths, One Conviction and Unanswered Questions

Between 1979 and 1981, at least 29 children, teenagers and young adults — overwhelmingly boys — disappeared from Atlanta neighborhoods and were later found dead in wooded areas and waterways. The string of killings terrorized families and reshaped daily life in the city, prompting neighborhood patrols and an intensive multiyear investigation.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation joined a multi-agency task force in 1980 and logged the probe under the case name ATKID. Investigators focused on dump sites near the Chattahoochee River and wooded corridors on the city's southwest side where many victims were recovered.

In May 1981, detectives staking out bridges over the Chattahoochee heard a splash and stopped a car driven by 23-year-old music promoter Wayne Williams. Days later, the body of Nathaniel Cater, 28, was recovered downstream. Authorities later linked fibers and dog hair found in Williams' home and vehicle to samples recovered from several victims; based on that forensic evidence, police closed 22 of the 29 cases after his arrest.

Williams was charged and convicted in 1982 of the murders of Nathaniel Cater and Jimmy Ray Payne, 21, and was sentenced to two consecutive life terms. He has maintained his innocence, saying, 'The bottom line is, nobody ever testified or even claimed that they saw me strike another person, choke another person, stab, beat or kill or hurt anybody, because I didn’t. The fact is, I didn’t kill anybody.' Despite the convictions, Williams was never criminally charged in the children's deaths.

Many families reject the idea that the two adult convictions answered the wider pattern of killings. 'Wayne Williams didn’t kill our children. No! And we want justice,' said Catherine Leach, whose 13-year-old son Curtis Walker was killed in 1981. Sheila Baltazar, whose stepson Patrick, 12, was killed the same year, recalled the years of fear: 'Every day, every night, it seemed like they were finding bodies… There was this big dark cloud over us.'

Renewed Review and a Memorial

Decades later, city officials reopened a review of preserved evidence. In March 2019, authorities began cataloging what remained and submitted deteriorated items to a laboratory that specializes in degraded DNA and trace evidence. Officials cautioned that advanced forensic techniques could be limited by the age and storage condition of materials, but said the effort aimed to give families clarity and pursue any remaining leads.

In June 2023 the city dedicated the Atlanta Children’s Eternal Flame at City Hall, a memorial intended to honor the victims and acknowledge the ongoing pain of their families. 'This is a really beautiful event to remember this and to keep this out front because this same thing can happen again,' said Rev. John Bell, father of 9-year-old victim Yusef Bell. June Thompson, sister of victim Darron Glass, added that the memorial helps ensure the children are not forgotten.

The review of the deaths remains open. City leaders and investigators say they have inventoried remaining evidence and continue to pursue testing where possible, but emphasize that aging and degraded materials may limit forensic returns. Wayne Williams remains incarcerated and continues to assert his innocence; for many families and for the city, questions remain about accountability and closure.

Key facts: At least 29 young people were killed between 1979 and 1981; FBI case name ATKID; Wayne Williams convicted of two adult murders in 1982 but never charged in the children's deaths; evidence review reopened in 2019; memorial dedicated in 2023.