Amanda Lamb, a Devon native, is sharing the chilling story of the Johnston Gang and their reign of terror over Chester County in a new podcast, The Killing Month August 1978, writes Gina Lizzo for Main Line Today.

Lamb, the daughter of Chester County district attorney William H. Lamb, was 14 when she sat in the back of the West Chester courtroom in 1980 and watched Bruce Johnston Sr., the leader of the gang, stand trial for murder. His brothers, David and Norman, were convicted in a separate trial.

The gang started doing petty thievery before moving on to grand theft auto, breaking into homes, stealing and selling farm equipment, and finally murder. They managed to avoid arrest until Bruce Sr.’s 19-year-old son found out that his father had raped his 15-year-old girlfriend. He agreed to testify against the gang and barely escaped an assassination attempt that ended up killing his girlfriend.

“A lot of people don’t know about this because it happened 45 years ago,” said Lamb. “That’s why I really wanted to do the story again.”

Read more about the Johnston Gang podcast in Main Line Today.

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