Dateline: Secrets on the Emerald Coast - Complete timeline of Marie Carlson’s 2011 murder

Aired in March 2018, Dateline Secrets on the Emerald Coast revolved around the shocking Marie Carlson murder case. For those who don't know, a Fort Walton Beach pastor, James Flanders, pleaded guilty to murdering Marie back in October 2011. However, Flanders did not confess to murdering her until five years later, in 2016.

Moreover, Flanders even raised his and Marie's child, Grace, along with his own wife, Tanya. James Flanders and Tanya always planned to adopt Grace; however, it evolved into a complex three-way relationship, which ended tragically. The official logline for Secrets on the Emerald Coast reads:

"Marie Carlson, a young mother of two with an adventurous spirit, goes missing. Her relatives can’t shake the feeling that this time, it’s more than just Marie being Marie."

Dateline Secrets on the Emerald Coast: The Marie Carlson murder case explained:

Secrets on the Emerald Coast revealed Marie Carlson's backstory in addition to what happened between her, Tanya, and James Flanders. Born in the Philippines, Carlson was raised in the US. She wanted a career in law enforcement by joining the FBI. She even became a Deputy Sheriff at one point, but her career was always on shaky ground.

She married Jeff Carlson and even had a child named Paris. However, that marriage ended, and it was decided that Paris would be raised by Jeff because of his stable career. It seems that the marriage ended on an amicable note, and the two decided to co-parent Paris, where Marie would frequently interact with their child. After the dissolution of the marriage, Marie moved to Fort Walton Beach, where she joined James Flanders' church.

This is where Secrets on the Emerald Coast focuses on the events leading to Marie's tragic passing in October 2011. She initially lived with the Flanders, and on the surface level, it looked like they were opening their doors to a down-on-her-luck woman. But the truth was that it was a complicated three-way relationship through which Marie ended up being pregnant.

It seems that they even threw a baby shower party for Tanya, who pretended to be pregnant. However, it seems Marie was growing a bit disillusioned with this relationship over time. This dissatisfaction culminated in the fateful confrontation with James Flanders, which ended with him supposedly giving Marie a tight "bear hug", which killed her.

However, James made it look like Marie left Fort Walton Beach by sending her family and friends a message from her phone. Two people who received this message and grew suspicious were Marie's sister, Esta, and Jeff Carlson, who suspected foul play. They went to Fort Walton Beach, where a missing persons' case was filed.

This investigation uncovered strange details, such as Marie's parked car at the airport. However, she did not board any flight that day, despite parking the car at the airport. The police always suspected James Flanders' involvement in this disappearance, but her fate as of now remained unclear. They couldn't pin her disappearance on James because of the lack of any circumstantial evidence.

However, a few years later, there was a breakthrough in the case as the police were able to decrypt text messages from Marie's computer. This event confirmed Marie's and Flanders's relationship, and her growing dissatisfaction with it, but she hesitated to leave her newborn daughter, Grace, with James and Tanya. This breakthrough is what the police needed to pin Marie's disappearance on James.

Five years after her disappearance, James Flanders confessed to killing Marie after an argument and burying her remains in the backyard. The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office confirmed this through a press release reading:

"The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office was notified that the 1st Judicial Circuit Medical Examiner’s Office has made positive identification via dental records of the human remains recovered on 04/28/2016 at a Fort Walton Beach home as being that of missing person Marie Carlson."

It further continued:

"On 04/27/2016, suspect James Ty Flanders, while accompanied by his lawyer, led Sheriff’s Investigators and Prosecutors from the State Attorney’s Office to 714 Revere Ave., where Flanders admitted to killing Carlson and burying her body in his side yard while he resided there. Flanders showed investigators specifically where to look for Carlson’s remains."

Dateline: Secrets on the Emerald Coast: What happened to James Flanders?

Okaloosa County Circuit Judge William Stone sentenced Flanders to fifteen years of imprisonment on a manslaughter charge. He was awarded this sentence in exchange for Flanders revealing the location of Marie Carlson's remains. Randy Bridges, one of Carlson’s brothers, said this in response:

“I’m happy that he did receive the maximum allowed by law. Was it a fair sentence? Probably not. We would have preferred more.”

James Flanders expressed regret for his actions, but that did not stop William Stone from sentencing him to a fifteen-year prison sentence. You can learn more about this case on Dateline: Season 26, Episode 16, Secrets on the Emerald Coast.

The Dateline episode, Secrets on the Emerald Coast is currently streaming on Peacock.

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