Who is John Walsh's wife Reve? How 'America's Most Wanted' host's cocaine use eclipsed son Adam's murder case
The summer of 1981 was rocked by the bone-chilling kidnapping and abduction of six-year-old Adam Walsh. He was the first-born of John Walsh who later went on to become the host of 'America's Most Wanted' on the then-fledgling network FOX and almost immediately turned into a cultural phenomenon. Walsh was approached to be the host of the show after his endless crusade to create a centralized system for tracking missing children.
He and his wife Reve worked tirelessly to make tools available to parents who were in their position and FOX saw him as the right fit to host the criminal-chasing TV show even though he was just an ordinary resort manager by profession back then. Walsh was immediately catapulted into the public eye and his popularity crossed new heights each day, however, his private life took quite a hit.
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Revelations including shocking details of his marriage to Reve as well as the couple's affinity towards cocaine and marijuana emerged. Adam's godfather who had lived with the couple for two years was the one who had decided to part with all of these secrets in a deposition and all of this eclipsed the murder case of the slain six-year-old. Continue reading below to know the chilling details.
Who is Reve Walsh?
Just like her husband, Reve Walsh rose to fame after the death of her son. She and Walsh both launched a massive hunt in the wake of Adam's disappearance and became a household name immediately. After his death, she stood like a rock beside her husband during his activism phase but somewhere around 2002, she filed for divorce from him stating that their marriage was beyond repair.
The couple had been married for 32 years then and even survived infidelity allegations that came to the surface after their son's severed head was discovered. In the aftermath of his son's death, the Walsh couple founded the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children as part of the legislation that the couple helped push through the Congress.
Adam's case never came to a closure and all criminals named in the horrendous crime died in prison before even being tried in this case. Many years later, in 1996, the reopening of the police file in Adam's murder was ordered by a Florida judge after four newspapers filed a suit seeking access to the files. This was opposed by the police and the Walsh couple who didn't want the search for the killer to be jeopardized.
The attorney representing the newspapers dismissed the claim that there was nothing left to be done after a fruitless period of 15 years and was successful in their pursuit. More than 10,000 pages of police files were examined by Palm Beach Post and the Mobile Press Register of Florida and Alabama respectively and it was clear why the couple opposed the reopening.
Did Reve Walsh cheat on John Walsh?
The Walshes had sued Sears department store seeking money damages because their son was abducted from their store. The attorney representing the store shared evidence that Adam had been left unsupervised for 90 minutes before being kidnapped. Moreover, they deposed the Walshes' close friend Jim Campbell who was Adam's godfather and he revealed shocking details about his relationship with Reve.
In his deposition, he said that he was Reve's lover and Walsh wasn't aware of their affair. Sears offered to present extensive evidence about the cheating as well as their affinity to cocaine and marijuana to the court and the judge ruled that their lifestyle was "part of the essence of the trial."
The Walshes tried but couldn't seal Campbell's deposition in the Sears suit and later on they dropped their case against the store to prevent details of their alleged drug use from coming out in public.
Are Reve and John Walsh still married?
The couple has remained together for 50 years now. The divorce filing was dismissed on their behalf by attorney Odette Bendeck who said that the couple was "happily reconciled" and committed to their marriage. A dismissal of all actions was filed in state court in Indian River County a year after Reve filed for divorce. The couple has three children — Meghan Walsh, Hayden Walsh and Callahan Walsh.