The 1980’s were a time of moral panic in America; people gathered from everywhere to witness the longest and most expensive trial in American history, created from the continuous aggravation of the uncomfortable situation known as the McMartin Preschool case. In Manhattan Beach, California in March of 1984 Ray Buckey, his mom, Peggy Buckey, his sister, Peggy Ann Buckey, Virginia McMartin and 3 other preschool teachers were charged with sexual abuse after accusations of abuse and satanic rituals were made the year prior. The McMartin Preschool case was an essential trial because it caused people question their moral standards by challenging American values such as: how to handle disturbing situations, how much a person's word affects others beliefs, and what happens to people after outrageous accusations.…show more content… Judy Johnson, the mother of a two and a half year old boy who had attended McMartin in 1983, made a report to Manhattan Beach Police station saying the Ray Buckey had molested her son. On September 17, 1983 Buckey was arrested, even though the boy showed no medical signs of sexual abuse, and couldn’t identify Ray from any photos. After the first trial that ended in November of 1989, that included 30 months of testimony, charges on everyone were dropped except for Ray Buckey. Buckey’s case continued with him being tried on thirteen counts of abuse. Finally, after a second trial, all charges against him were dropped, but not before he had already spent five years in jail before being able to be released on bail. After 7 years and $15 million in taxpayer’s money, the longest and most expensive case in American history had finally come to an end.