Kriti Mehrotra
Showtime’s ‘Buried’ is a four-episode documentary series that profiles the 1969 homicide of 8-year-old Susan Nason through the repressed memory that eventually became the focal point of the entire matter. After all, back in late 1989, two decades after the offense, Susan’s childhood best friend, Eileen Franklin, came forward to allege that she’d witnessed her father be the person responsible. She’d just oppressed it. Since Eileen had off-the-record conversations with ‘Buried’ creators and did not actually appear on camera, let’s now find out where she is today, shall we?
Who is Eileen Franklin-Lipsker?
In the 1960s, Eileen Franklin was Susan Nason’s neighbor, classmate, and best friend in Foster City, California, living only a few doors away from one another. The duo attended the local school down the street, which is what they did on September 22, 1969, as well. Although, they could have never imagined that Susan would lose her life that day. The strange feature here is that despite their bond, Eileen never read any news reports on the case or discussed it with anyone, including her family. The supposed reason for this came to light when Eileen incriminated her father years later.
In late 1989, Eileen Franklin-Lipsker was playing beside her daughter, who was nearing Susan’s age at the time of her murder, when she recalled that her father, George Franklin, had allegedly seized, raped, and bludgeoned her friend right in front of her eyes. She told this to her husband, Barry Franklin, first, who persuaded her to contact and relay the information to the authorities. As per Eileen, George had picked Susan up from their street on that fateful autumn day before driving them to “the woods.” Once there, he allegedly pushed up Susan’s dress and raped her in the back of the car.
Eileen further claimed that George then struck her friend on the head with a rock and made her help cover her body with a mattress from their trunk. Following all this, he purportedly threatened to murder her, too, if he got a whiff of her talking about it. According to Eileen, George even stated that she would either never be believed or be detained as an accomplice if she ever told people what’d transpired. Furthermore, during her conversations with the police and in her court testimony, Eileen remarked that her father had molested her and a sister when they were just children.
Where is Eileen Franklin-Lipsker Now?
After George’s court trial, Eileen Franklin-Lipsker co-authored ‘Sins of the Father: The Landmark Franklin Case: a Daughter, a Memory, and a Murder,’ where she detailed how childhood abuse affected her mind and memories for decades. She also became an advocate and featured on numerous talk shows to share her story before stepping away in the mid-1990s. By then, her mother, Leah, who had once backed her and testified against George, had publicly recanted her statements.
Moreover, as per Janice, Eileen had gained back her alleged memories of Susan’s killing after hypnosis. In the end, Eileen gave a final set of interviews, maintaining that her memories are real despite the circumstances of their revival. As for where she is today, all we know is that she has since moved out of California and been widowed twice. In her early 60s, Eileen has changed her name because she wishes to move on from the past and remain anonymous for as long as possible.
Read More: Where is George Franklin Now?
