8 Texas-set true-crime series, documentaries streaming now

North Texas has produced its share of notorious true-crime stories, from headline-grabbing murders to chilling serial predator cases. In recent years, those crimes have inspired a wave of documentaries and dramatized series across major streaming services, giving viewers a chance to revisit cases that shocked communities in Dallas-Fort Worth and beyond. Here are some of the most compelling true-crime titles set in North Texas or within a few hours of Dallas that you can stream right now.

One of Netflix’s latest true-crime hits, Maternal Instinct examines the brutal 2020 murder of New Boston resident Reagan Michelle Simmons-Hancock by Taylor Rene Parker, who had faked a pregnancy and killed the expectant mother in an attempt to steal her unborn child. The documentary uses interviews, text messages and archival footage to recount one of the most disturbing crimes in recent Texas memory.

Released on Netflix on June 12, the film has quickly become one of the platform’s most talked-about documentaries, drawing viewers into a case whose shocking details seem almost unimaginable.

This docuseries explores the crimes of Billy Chemirmir, who was accused of killing about two dozen older women in Dallas and Collin counties and convicted twice of capital murder. Featuring interviews with investigators and victims’ families, the series also examines questions about whether warning signs were missed and whether more lives could have been saved had authorities connected the cases sooner.

Set in Collin County, Love and Death dramatizes one of North Texas’ most infamous crimes: the 1980 killing of Betty Gore in Wylie. The series stars Elizabeth Olsen as Candy Montgomery, a churchgoing wife and mother who admitted to killing her friend with an ax but was ultimately acquitted after claiming self-defense.

Though it’s a dramatization rather than a documentary, the series meticulously re-creates the atmosphere of North Texas in the late 1970s and early 1980s and reignited national interest in a case that has fascinated true-crime fans for decades.

Before Love and Death, Hulu tackled the same story in the limited series Candy, starring Jessica Biel as Candy Montgomery and Melanie Lynskey as Betty Gore. Like its HBO Max counterpart, the series explores the events leading to the killing and the sensational trial that followed.

The existence of two prestige dramas about the same killing underscores the enduring fascination with one of the most notorious cases to emerge from North Texas.

Related: Hollywood is telling North Texas ax-killer’s story again. Why we can’t let Candy go

This documentary series follows law enforcement officers and civilian groups who work to identify and apprehend people accused of trying to exploit children online. Several episodes focus on investigations in North Texas, highlighting the region’s efforts to combat crimes against minors.

Part crime procedural and part cautionary tale, the series offers an inside look at modern sting operations and the complex investigations required to track online predators. Garland Police Department detective Tony Godwin, who is featured in the show and works with the North Texas-based Internet Crimes Against Children task force, said he hoped the show would spotlight grooming tactics used by offenders and encourage vigilance in the community.

Hosted by retired Texas Ranger James Holland, this Investigation Discovery series revisits cold cases and murder investigations through the lens of the interrogations that produced confessions. The eight-episode series includes cases from across Texas, including several in North Texas, and features extensive access to case files and interview footage.

This three-part documentary revisits one of the deadliest and most controversial law-enforcement standoffs in U.S. history: the 1993 siege at the Branch Davidian compound near Waco. Located roughly 90 miles south of Dallas, the Central Texas city became the focus of international attention during the 51-day confrontation between federal agents and followers of religious sect leader David Koresh.

Using newly unearthed video footage and interviews with negotiators, journalists and survivors, the series reconstructs the events leading up to the fiery end of the siege, which killed more than 70 people. The documentary offers a fresh look at a case that continues to spark debate more than three decades later and remains one of the most infamous true-crime stories in Texas history.

This four-part docuseries chronicles a yearslong federal investigation into the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas, one of the nation’s most notorious prison gangs. The series centers on the torture and murder of a young woman in suburban Dallas and follows investigators as they work to unravel a sprawling criminal enterprise that extends far beyond prison walls.

Featuring interviews with law-enforcement officials, former gang members and people directly affected by the case, the documentary examines how organized criminal networks can reach into seemingly ordinary communities. Equal parts murder investigation and organized-crime exposé, The Takedown: American Aryans shines a spotlight on a dark chapter in recent Texas criminal history.

Related: Scarlett Johansson aims to star in movie based on Dallas Morning News’ ‘My Aryan Princess’