Alice Crimmins was born on March 9, 1939, in the Bronx, New York City, to devout Irish Catholic parents. She attended Saint Raymond's convent school. At 19, she married her high school sweetheart, Edmund Crimmins, and the couple had two children: Eddie Jr. and Alice Marie, affectionately known as Missy. 

The family resided in the Regal Gardens Apartments in Kew Gardens, Queens. Alice took on the role of a homemaker while Edmund worked, but their marriage became strained due to Edmund's alleged infidelity and Alice's desire for independence. This led to their separation, with Edmund moving out and filing for custody of the children.

On the morning of July 14, 1965, Alice Crimmins discovered that her children were missing from their bedroom and reported their disappearance to the police. Later that day, Missy's strangled body was found in a vacant lot near their home. Five days later, Eddie Jr.'s decomposed body was discovered near the Van Wyck Expressway; due to the state of decomposition, the cause of death could not be determined. 

Alice became the primary suspect in the investigation. Authorities scrutinized her lifestyle, noting her relationships with various men and her appearance, which they deemed unconventional for a grieving mother. Despite a lack of physical evidence linking her to the crimes, she was placed under extensive surveillance. 

In 1968, after three years of investigation, Alice was charged and subsequently convicted of manslaughter in Missy's death. This conviction was later overturned on appeal. In a second trial in 1971, she was convicted of first-degree murder for Eddie Jr.'s death and manslaughter for Missy's death. The murder conviction was overturned in 1973, but the manslaughter conviction was upheld. Alice was paroled in 1977 after serving part of her sentence.