Dateline NBC “Secrets on the Emerald Coast” June 6 2026
Dateline NBC revisits a chilling Florida murder case in “Secrets on the Emerald Coast,” airing Saturday, June 6, 2026, at 10/9c as part of the network’s Weekend Mystery lineup. Reported by Keith Morrison, the broadcast explores the disappearance of Marie Carlson, a young mother whose sudden vanishing left family and friends searching for answers for years.
Marie Carlson disappeared in November 2011 after moving to the Florida Panhandle and becoming closely connected to local pastor James Flanders and his wife, Tanya. Shortly after her disappearance, friends and relatives began receiving text messages from Marie’s phone claiming she had left voluntarily and wanted to start a new life. The messages raised suspicion because they seemed out of character, especially since Marie had left behind her infant daughter.
As investigators dug deeper, they uncovered an unusual and complicated relationship between Marie and the married couple. Authorities learned that Marie had become romantically involved with both James and Tanya Flanders in what was described as a polyamorous relationship. The discovery shifted the investigation toward those closest to her and raised questions about what had really happened in the days before she vanished.
For years, the case remained unsolved. Family members continued to search for answers while investigators followed leads across Florida and beyond. The mystery persisted until a major breakthrough finally emerged nearly five years later. According to authorities, James Flanders eventually admitted that Marie had died during an argument.
Investigators said Flanders confessed to striking Marie Carlson, causing her death, and then concealing her body in a remote wooded area of the Florida Panhandle. Prosecutors alleged that after the killing, he used Marie’s phone to send deceptive text messages designed to convince others she had left on her own, buying time and delaying suspicion.
“Secrets on the Emerald Coast” examines the years-long investigation, the emotional impact on Marie’s loved ones, and the shocking revelations that exposed what prosecutors described as a calculated cover-up. Through interviews, case evidence, and Keith Morrison’s reporting, the episode traces how a missing-person case evolved into a murder investigation that ultimately revealed a dark secret hidden behind the image of a trusted community pastor.
