There’s Danger Here

15-year-old Nick Markowitz was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Kidnapped in an attempt to lure out older brother Ben. Unfortunately, Ben was out of town. After Jesse James Hollywood realized he had committed a serious act, he went to his lawyer. But the conversation didn't go as he wanted, and he wanted to dispose of the evidence of kidnapping. Instead of kidnapping, he graduated to murder. Having one of his lackies kill Nick. Jesse Hollywood fled and managed to avoid detection for years, even while he sat on the top of the FBI's most wanted list. Finally found in Brazil five years later and brought to justice.  Sources: Markowitz, susan with Glatzer, Jenna. 2010 My Stolen Son the Nick Markowitz story https://www.reddit.com/r/TrueCrime/comments/f5j7z6/full_case_of_nicholas_markowitz_long/ https://www.pomc.org/murder-wall/murder-wall-stories/nicholas-samuel-markowitz-15-years-old/ https://www.crimeandinvestigation.co.uk/articles/alpha-dog-nicholas-markowitz https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5530172/ https://www.noozhawk.com/gunman-in-alpha-dog-murder-granted-death-penalty-reprieve/

*BONUS* Kenneth Parnell kidnapped and assaulted Stephen Stayner, the younger brother of Cary Stayner, who would go on to become the Yosemite National Park Killer. In a family so small, the tragedies are unfathomably large. Kenneth kidnapped and kept Stephen for years, only when he aged out of Kenneth's preference and brought in an additional young boy did Stephen have the strength to take action. He took the newest kidnap victim, Timothy, and carried him back to the police. Still, for everything that happened, Kenneth served under a decade before getting out. Years later he would be sentenced again, after attempting to have his caregiver buy a 4-year-old. In the end, he died in prison, but not before affecting multiple families exponentially.   Sources: ⁠https://www.sfexaminer.com/news/notorious-child-predator-dies-in-prison/article_0e638ade-58e7-502a-b078-f9d0c00df32e.html⁠ ⁠https://www.factualamerica.com/crime-scene-stories/the-shocking-truth-behind-steven-stayners-7-year-kidnapping-ordeal⁠ ⁠https://www.grunge.com/825537/what-happened-to-steven-stayners-kidnapper-kenneth-parnell/⁠ ⁠https://allthatsinteresting.com/steven-stayner⁠ ⁠https://www.oxygen.com/true-crime-buzz/where-is-kenneth-parnell-who-kidnapped-steven-stayner-now⁠ Captive Audience: A Real American Horror Story

This month, we are in the C's for first names. All these women share a few things in common: their cases are unsolved, little is known about them, and the all deserve to be remembered. Many of the women were lost along the Highway of Tears. Some of the cases are decades old, some are in the 2000's. But they are all equally tragic.  Sources: https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/?profileID=carolyn-connolly https://www.thecanadianlibrary.ca/post/story-of-carolyn-connolly https://www.facebook.com/unsolvedunknown/photos/on-august-2nd-2008-the-body-of-a-woman-was-found-in-an-alley-in-toronto-ontario-/441808585167885/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/cassandra-antone https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/cathy-williams https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/cecilia-nikal https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/cecilia-payash https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/chantelle-alice-rose-bushie https://www.vice.com/en/article/all-her-life-chantelle-bushie-found-ways-to-disappear-until-one-day-she-never-came-back/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/charlene-candice-catholique https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/charnelle-jenny-masakeyash

Cary Stayner grew up in an odd family. His mother despised affection, while his father gave it too freely. When his brother was seven he was abducted by a pedophile, returning home at 14 after escaping with another captured young boy. Cary was placed on the back burner compared to his brother. Cary began fantasizing about killing women by the time he was seven. Years later, his dreams became reality and Cary would go on to murder four women before being caught and brought to justice.

Listen as Marlon sits down with me and discusses his career. IA cases and the importance of technology. He speaks about what makes a case memorable, how officers may need more training on what can be an infraction, and even  how being off duty doesn't mean they are held to a civilian standard.

Junko Furuta was a Japanese high school student. She worked part-time at a factory to pay for a graduation trip. Junko had already accepted a job, post-graduation. Unfortunately, she would never make it. Instead she was tricked and held captive, abused and tortured for over 40 days before her body could take no more. Dying before she even got to live. The perpetrators were four boys. Who, after killing her, finally realized they may get into trouble and so they discarded her in a barrel as trash near a construction site. Months later, after an arrest, one of the boys tells police where to find her body after he incorrectly believed one of his accomplices had already admitted to the crime.  Sources: https://medium.com/write-a-catalyst/they-tortured-her-for-44-days-the-disturbing-case-of-junko-furuta-57c3e5acf80d https://timenote.info/lv/person/view?id=4369916&l=en https://vocal.media/criminal/the-brutal-murder-of-junko-furuta-mbig03xv https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bt9soNvu0Mc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uNwWcavYm4

Caitlin Potts, Caralyn Aubrey King, Carol Lynn Prudhomme, Carol Ruby Davis, and Caroline Burns are five cases all listed on the MMIW site. I discuss the known information about all the women, unfortunately all of these cases remain unresolved. Sources: ⁠https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/⁠ ⁠https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/caitlin-potts⁠ ⁠https://vernonmorningstar.com/2026/02/21/enderbys-caitlin-potts-has-been-missing-for-10-years/⁠ ⁠https://indiginews.com/okanagan/seven-years-after-her-disappearance-family-of-caitlin-potts-reignites-calls-for-justice/⁠ ⁠https://www.castanet.net/news/Vernon/599664/Enderby-resident-Caitlin-Potts-was-last-seen-10-years-ago⁠ ⁠https://globalnews.ca/news/9858717/suspect-sting-operation-okanagan-missing-womans/⁠ ⁠https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/caralyn-aubrey-king⁠ ⁠https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2020/03/05/the-murder-of-caralyn-king/⁠ ⁠https://www.thecanadianlibrary.ca/post/caralyn-king⁠ ⁠https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/carol-lynn-prudhomme⁠ ⁠https://www.justicefornativepeople.com/2018/10/carol-prudhommes-mysterious-albertan.html⁠ ⁠https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/carol-ruby-davis⁠ ⁠https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/tragic-tales-but-hope-for-the-future-at-the-inquiry-into-missing-and-murdered-indigenous-women⁠ ⁠https://francesbula.com/uncategorized/carol-ruby-davis-a-heartbreaking-death-30-years-ago-now/⁠ ⁠https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/caroline-burns⁠ ⁠https://int-missing.fandom.com/wiki/Caroline_Burns⁠  

Andersonville Prison was created to house Union soldiers during the Civil War. Prisoner negotiations ceased, creating an influx of med being detained. Georgia was one of the sites that new prisons were erected to house these men. There the conditions were horrifying. Men were not given clothes, housing, or adequate nutrition. Men suffered from scurvy and fleas. They dealt with chain gangs and the stockade. As the war ended, almost half of the men that died in the south, died as prisoners of Andersonville.    Sources: https://www.nps.gov/ande/learn/historyculture/camp_sumter_history.htm https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/andersonville-prison https://artsandculture.google.com/story/daily-life-at-andersonville-prison-georgia-public-broadcasting/GgUBE3JvqMsmIQ?hl=en https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/andersonville-prison/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOci27e2V8g https://blogs.loc.gov/maps/2021/09/the-maps-of-andersonville-prison/ https://npshistory.com/publications/civil_war_series/5/sec1.htm James Madison Page. 1908. The True Story of Andersonville Prison. A defense of Major Henry Wirz Charles Rivers Editors. 2026. Andersonville Prison. The history of the civil war’s most notorious prison camp

Gary Heidnik was born in Cleveland, OH to abusive, alcoholic parents. At a young age he suffered a head injury. Shaping him into the grotesque man he was to become. He joined the military and was honorably discharged with a diagnosis of Schizophrenia. From there he became a bishop, embezzled funds, raped members of his clergy and became rich. His delve into darkness spiraled until a woman emerged from the depths of his dungeon and exposed him for the monster he was. The resulting sentence was death. Carried out in 1999.    Sources: Green, R. The Pit. The true crime story of six women, one monster, and the nightmare below. 2025 https://www.michaelmatza.com/heidnik https://6abc.com/post/gary-heidniks-house-of-horrors-30-years-later/3429565/ https://law.justia.com/cases/pennsylvania/supreme-court/1991/526-pa-458-1.html https://www.aetv.com/articles/gary-heidnik

On March 17th 1990, 14 year old Rachel Hurley was out on a boat with friends. She was dropped off on the pier and ran along the beach to another park, before turning to a path as a short cut. She never made it to her destination. After a search, her body was found along the path, nude and strangled. In 2004 the cold case team took over, but as of yet, there are no answers.    Sources: https://www.yahoo.com/news/three-decades-later-st-patricks-164858569.html https://thedeckpodcast.com/rachel-hurley/ https://www.facebook.com/palmbeachcountysheriff/videos/35-year-anniversary-of-the-murder-of-rachel-hurley/538530202138298/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBiQFeRXLss https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/news/crime/2021/03/17/who-killed-14-year-old-rachel-hurley-search-enters-31st-year-today/4729835001/ https://cbs12.com/news/local/jupiter-inlet-march-17-1990-carlin-park-who-killed-rachel-hurley-the-jupiter-teens-death-remains-cold-32-years-later-palm-beach-county-sheriffs-office https://truecrimediva.com/the-1990-unsolved-murder-of-rachel-hurley/ https://www.nbcnews.com/dateline/loved-ones-still-fighting-justice-31-years-after-st-patrick-n1261667

Sources:  In 1954, a woman was murdered and left out for two college students to stumble upon while hiking a week later. Her investigation was minimal before she was buried without a name. Decades later, a woman hears a plea to find her name and takes it as a personal mission. She puts together a case, gets the right people involved, and even with all the help and work it takes over 50 years for Silvia to get Jane Doe's name. Still, she persevered and found Jane Doe333 was in fact, Dorothy Howard.   Web of Death: Boulder Jane Doe https://www.truecrimeedition.com/post/dorothy-howard https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna33622226 https://thecinemaholic.com/dorothy-gay-howard-murder-is-harvey-glatman-dead-or-alive/ https://www.denverpost.com/2009/11/14/after-55-years-boulder-jane-does-story-finally-coming-together/ https://tucson.com/news/local/crime/article_d72ebcc9-7ae8-5e74-938a-2f25b0cb3209.html https://www.colorado.edu/coloradan/2010/09/01/sleuthing-jane-doe

This month I talk about another four cases on the CBC list of MMIW cases. Expanding upon the information available. Getting their stories heard again. This month is for Brandy Vittrekwa, Brenda Campbell, Brittany Bearspaw, and Brooklynn Moose.  Sources: https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/brandy-vittrekwa https://yukon-news.com/2018/05/14/brandy-vittrekwas-killer-to-move-to-b-c-upon-release-from-custody/ https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/sentencing-brandy-vittrekwa-1.3621446 https://www.ipl.org/essay/Research-Paper-On-Brandy-Trekwa-028E3F16EA230FCE https://www.whitehorsestar.com/News/crown-family-had-opposed-open-custody https://www.thecanadianlibrary.ca/post/story-of-brandy-vittrekwa https://ca.news.yahoo.com/brandy-vittrekwa-apos-killer-applies-140000853.html https://www.aptnnews.ca/uncategorized/gwichin-tribal-council-calls-for-review-over-lenient-sentence-in-killing-of-17-year-old/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/brenda-jeannette-campbell https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/rooming-house-fire-murder-1.4194634 https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/brittany-bearspaw https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/brooklyn-moose https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2021/02/16/the-death-of-brooklyn-moose/ http://thecanadianlibrary.ca/post/story-of-brooklyn-moose

Ellen Greenberg had her whole life in front of her. Engaged and preparing the wedding of her dreams. She worked as a first grade teacher, a source of stress due to her large class sizes. She was seeing a psychiatrist and seemed to find some medication that eased her anxiety.  But on January 26th 2011, a 911 call comes in. Her fiancée came home from a workout to her dead on the kitchen floor. He reports she stabbed herself on fell on a knife. The M.E. immediately labeled it as a suicide and went on with their day. But back at the morgue autopsy would show 20 stab wounds, over 10 bruises in various stages of healing. Indicative of abuse and murder.  Her death certificate was changed from suicide to homicide for two weeks. Then it was inexplicably changed back to suicide, where it remains today.     Sources: Death in Apartment 603: What happened to  Ellen Greenberg https://www.lambmcerlane.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/inquirer.com-It-was-very-very-weird-A-civil-suit-reveals-new-details-in-the-case-of-Ellen-Greenberg.pdf https://abcnews.com/US/ellen-greenbergs-family-celebrates-prospect-federal-investigation-death/story?id=129238479 https://www.cnn.com/2025/10/13/us/ellen-greenberg-death-philadelphia-cec

One womans call for help, leads to the identification of a serial killer on Long Island. Shannan Gilbert called saying a man was going to kill her. But police didn't go out and investigate immediately, simply following up later then claiming it wasn't a missing person when they couldn't find her. Her mother knew better, she pushed until people finally went out to look for Shannan. Finding instead four others. The push for Shannan led to a second search and six more bodies, the third to Shannan herself. In the quest for Shannan a serial killer was unearthed and we are still waiting for justice. Trial is expected for the potential serial killer, Rex Heuerman after labor day 2026. Maybe then answers will be had. Sources: Gone Girls. The Long Island Serial Killer Truth and Lies:The Hunted. The Gilgo Beach Murders Architect of Death.The Long Island Serial Killer https://abcnews.com/US/gilgo-beach-suspect-rex-heuermann-stand-trial-shortly/story?id=129176737 https://abcnews.com/US/gilgo-beach-suspect-rex-heuermann-stand-trial-shortly/story?id=129176737

Wakefield Prison is located in the UK and home to some of the worst of the worst offenders. Names like Robert Maudsley who required his own cell to be built within the prison after killing multiple inmates. But he isn't alone. Originally Wakefield started out in the late 1500's a jail and holding site. After expansion and multiple escapes, an entirely new prison was built, keeping the same name. Now Wakefield is a maximum security location. Those within are over 61% child/women rapes. For that there is always a potential of violence from inmates with other sentences. In 2025 alone, two inmates with child cases were killed by others.  Sources: Jonathon Levi & Emma French, 2024. Inside Wakefield Prison: Life behind bars in the Monster mansion https://www.gov.uk/guidance/wakefield-prison https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c231lm8p092o https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/search/archives/69689709-cfcf-3daa-ba58-c08f4f4e10b9 https://ppo.gov.uk/establishment/hmp-wakefield/ https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/oct/24/lostprophets-singer-ian-watkins-died-from-stab-wound-to-the-neck-inquest-told https://news.sky.com/story/prisoner-serving-life-for-murdering-toddler-found-dead-in-his-cell-13464559

Top of the new month, means we are back to discussing current MMIW cases. This time we talk about numerous women. Many of them have the same thing in common, their case files are bare bones. There is little to no information on their cases, but there is suspicious circumstances in all of them. From falling 30 stories to disappearing while hitchhiking in an attempt to get her children back from the state. The RCMP continues to throw the term, high risk lifestyle out, making it feel like an excuse rather than simply investigating.    Sources: https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/bella-marie-laboucan-mclean https://itstartswithus-mmiw.com/this-is-bellas-story/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/bernadette-lynda-ahenakew https://www.justicefornativepeople.com/2016/09/bernadette-ahenakew-murdered-in-alberta.html https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/bernadine-quewezance https://someonesawsomething.ca/2026/01/14/the-unsolved-murder-of-bernadine-leanne-quewezance/ https://crimeimmemorial.com/2025/09/29/bernadine-quewezance/ https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/family-of-saskatoon-woman-struggle-with-news-of-death-1.1156157 https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/bernice-evelyn-bottle https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/betsy-rosa-owens https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2022/02/12/the-disappearance-of-betsy-owens/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/bonnie-lynn-jack https://primetimecrime.com/Recent/Murder/murder_Edmonton_Serial.htm https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/bonnie-lynn-jack-remembered-at-service-1.628841 https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/bonnie-marie-joseph https://coldcasepg.ca/?p=134 https://missingpeople.ca/cold-case-missing-woman-in-vanderhoof-british-columbia-bonnie-marie-joseph-32-last-seen-september-8-2007/

Quisi Bryan was born in Massachusetts and spent his youth on the East Coast. Still, he started in youth corrections before graduating to adult corrections when he moved into the Midwest. It was in Ohio that many crimes continued, but didn't come to light until he was already behind bars. In 2000, he shot a police officer in the face, ending both their lives.  After receiving his death sentence, it came out that he had been the perpetrator of numerous rapes and assaults. As of this time, his current death sentence has been delayed on multiple occasions. The latest one as a result of not being able to get the medication necessary to safely end a life per DOC protocol.  Sources: Quisi Bryan-Via Letters and messages https://www.news5cleveland.com/news/local-news/execution-date-pushed-back-for-man-convicted-of-killing-cleveland-police-officer-wayne-leon https://www.cleveland19.com/2025/06/20/execution-delayed-man-who-killed-cleveland-police-officer/ https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/18/18-9372/108342/20190717140040636_17528181_1.PDF https://grokipedia.com/page/Quisi_Bryan https://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/Files/Briefing-Room/News-Releases/Criminal-Justice/BryanStay https://www.hudson.oh.us/1270/Violent-Fugitive-Task-Force

The Amber alert system is a nationwide alert system to immediately broadcast information on vulnerable children, children who have been abducted and are in danger. But how did this system fall into place. Well it came after Amber Hagerman, a nine year old abducted by a stranger. The first media information about her case aired two hours after the incident. Likely allowing the kidnapper turned killer to make it to the location he held her without being detected.  The delay was noticed. Many people got involved and created a plan to immediately get information out. At the time through the use of the radio. Since it's start in Arlington Texas, it has grown. Being taken on nationally and signed on by former president George Bush. Now information is disseminated through phones, TV's, and radios to ensure blanket coverage.  Yet for all that, we still have no answers for who stole and killed Amber.  Sources:  Amber: The Girl Behind the Alert https://www.eastchicago.com/235/Amber-Alert https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/a-key-figure-in-amber-hagerman-case-urges-vigilance-to-protect-children/3967202/ http://missingkids.org/blog/2021/still-searching-for-ambers-killer https://people.com/what-happened-to-amber-hagerman-11883708

One Monday in 1979, 16 year old Brenda Spencer stayed home from school. She told her father that she felt sick and after he left for work, Brenda watched the elementary school across the street. Shortly after 8 am, as the children filed in, Brenda pulled out her .22 rifle, took aim and began shooting. She killed two adults and wounded many others including children and police officers. After 3pm, she simply turned herself in.  Eventually she plead guilty, her sentence 25 to life with the eligibility of parole after 15.5 years.  Brenda has been denied parole at least six times, but her next hearing will occur in 2028.   Sources: Leigh Hunt, 2022. I Don’t Like Mondays. The true story behind America’s first modern school shooter https://www.sdcda.org/content/office/newsroom/tempDownloads/75bec742-da77-491d-af19-b1fbcef5c946_Brenda%20Spenser%20Denied%20Parole%20News%20Release%202-21-25.pdf https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/january-29/school-shooting-in-san-diego https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/i-dont-like-mondays-school-shooter-denied-parole/509-113898c9-c56a-44b4-a64f-75167d82cadd

The CBC has a list of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Woman. Throughout 2025, I have spoken on many of the cases, but couldn't manage to get out of the A's. Today we started the letter B, so still barely scratching the surface. But all of them should be talked about. As often as possible.  Sources: https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/barbara-keam https://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/barbara-keam-family-quest-1.3800637 https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/barbara-shapwaykeesic https://www.justicefornativepeople.com/2018/10/barbara-shapwaykeesic-found-murdered-in.html https://tribunalsontario.ca/documents/ocpc/TBPSB_Investigation_Final_Report_-_EN-FINAL-1.pdf https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/beatrice-adam https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/?profileID=belinda-ann-cameron https://www.indigenouswatchdog.org/update/daughter-of-first-nations-woman-missing-20-years-remembers-her-mothers-warm-hands/ https://www.doenetwork.org/cases/3441dfbc.html https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/?profileID=belinda-williams https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2023/08/13/belinda-williams/ https://www.mbcradio.com/2014/10/father-says-muskoday-woman-died-from-prescription-drug-addiction#:~:text=The%20body%20of%2036%2Dyear%2Dold%20Beatrice,been%20reported%20missing%20on%20Saturday.

Tomas Randolph was married six times. Multiple of his wives ended up dead under suspicious circumstances.  He went to trial multiple times for different murders. He was a known drug user/seller. Eventually, his lifestyle caught up with him when he was convicted of his sixth wife's murder. Finally ending his reign of terror on women.  Sources:  https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/television/the-black-widower-the-six-wives-of-thomas-randolph-review-misfortune-or-murder-de15d23b?gaa_at=eafs&gaa_n=AWEtsqcv-jk9RVCSNVm89ZB_MCI7ybP8AAPGBV2OrJhQDwDDBiomh2zyaKy0U7ZWZ9k%3D&gaa_ts=6948647a&gaa_sig=eL4g2s7vqbZjshwCxDWqApj_UtM6LvUNjz9zy8WRYG09TO2Z8FP4l5gY84z6Qu19tpOxgQlfTJc_Rw9sDSaxKQ%3D%3D https://news3lv.com/news/local/thomas-randolph-gets-60-years-to-life-in-resentencing-for-double-murder-conviction-black-widower-las-vegas-clark-county-court-true-crime-homicide-wife-hitman https://skdb.fandom.com/wiki/RANDOLPH_Thomas https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ldPOww27G8 https://www.courttv.com/tag/thomas-randolph/ https://people.com/black-widower-thomas-randolph-investigation-discovery-docuseries-8676928 https://www.newsnationnow.com/us-news/west/black-widower-thomas-randolph-sentenced/ https://thecinemaholic.com/thomas-randolph/ "The Black Widower: The Six Wives of Thomas Randolph" (2024) "The Widower" (2021): A three-part Dateline NBC docuseries

Jen and Sarah Hart seemed like the perfect couple. As they grew, they adopted two different groups of siblings, six children in all. Rapidly expanding the family from two to eight. While Jen curated a social media presence with perfect photographs of the family, behind the scenes was a different story. The children were beaten and starved. One of them jumped out a window to get help, another sought food from neighbors. The couple withdrew the children from school and moved multiple times. But CPS kept catching up. Finally they went on the run, ending in a fatal car crash which ended the lives of the entire family. But it wasn't an accident, it was murder-suicide. Sources: Broken Harts.  https://www.opb.org/news/article/hart-family-washington-california-death-inquest-day-2/ https://commons.clarku.edu/faculty_psychology/75/ https://theappeal.org/before-childrens-grisly-deaths-a-family-fought-for-them-and-lost/

In 1978, four teenagers closed the Burger Chef in Speedway, Indiana. Sometime after 1100pm they are all loaded into the skilled. Police treat it as a kidnapping, allowing day employees of the restaurant to clean up and open for business as usual. Destroying any potential evidence in their wake. While there were thousands of tips called in, none lead to anything. The case went cold and it has remained that way, ever since. Sources:  Murders at the Burger Joint-Netflix Julie Young, 2019. The Burger Chef Murders in Indiana. ⁠https://www.madison.k12.sd.us/article/1792770⁠ ⁠http://indyencyclopedia.org/burger-chef-murders/⁠ ⁠https://www.wrtv.com/news/local-news/crime/new-documentary-explores-1978-burger-chef-murders⁠

Suzanne and Christopher seemed like a boring reclusive couple. They lived a simple life, but the pair held a large secret. Buried in the garden of Suzannes old family home were her parents. Another couple that had been so reclusive, nobody noticed when they went missing in 1998. It wasn't until father William would have turned 100, that the requirement for him to be checked up on in person, did the two panic and flee. A year later in France, they were out of money, Christopher called his mother in law, confessing his crimes. She dutifully notified police, finally the truth was dug up. Sources: The Body Under The Patio: Murder in Suburbia ⁠https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-27836459⁠ ⁠https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/jun/20/william-patricia-wycherley-murder-unnoticed-15-years⁠ ⁠https://inews.co.uk/culture/television/susan-christopher-edwards-now-convicted-murderers-2783077?srsltid=AfmBOopGvWNlDQ_Sehpml644BybVxII5O90oZb3cX0YI5NDuzdLgWAIq⁠ ⁠https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/r-v-edwards-edwards.pdf⁠ ⁠https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/oct/25/the-murderers-next-door⁠ ⁠https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-27924098⁠

Azraya Ackabee-Kokopenace was born on March 6th 2002. She was found hanging April 17th, 2016. In a place, searches looked the day before after walking out of a hospital. She was supposedly noted to have suicidal ideations, yet was allowed to leave. She was a member of the same tribe that suffers from mercury poisoning. Her older brother having passed away at an early age as a result from complications from the poisoning. Yet the government refuses to take accountability or action. Creating generations affected by the same muddied waters that they made their livelihood off of.  Sources: https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/ https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2020/02/12/the-death-of-azraya-ackabee-kokopenace/ http://weareherecanada.ca/azraya-ackabee-kokopenace/ https://www.cbc.ca/news2/interactives/children-of-the-poisoned-river-mercury-poisoning-grassy-narrows-first-nation/ http://culturalsurvival.org/news/them-its-money-us-its-life-grassy-narrows-60-year-legacy-poison#:~:text=Lexx%20Paul%20sits%20on%20a,babies%20were%20born%20with%20deformities. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316376541_Proposal_to_Clean-Up_Remediate_Mercury_Pollution_in_the_English-Wabigoon_River https://www.ontario.ca/page/ministers-five-year-report-english-and-wabigoon-rivers-remediation-funding-act-2017#:~:text=Funding%20of%20the%20remediation%20of,whether%20objectives%20have%20been%20achieved. https://infosuperior.com/blog/2017/02/15/landmark-ontario-commits-to-mercury-cleanup/#:~:text=The%20provincial%20and%20federal%20governments,eating%20birds%2C%20mammals%20and%20people. https://www.ontario.ca/page/2020-2021-panel-annual-report-english-and-wabigoon-rivers-remediation-trust https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2494900#:~:text=Abstract,are%20the%20preferred%20remedial%20actions. https://www.facetsjournal.com/doi/10.1139/facets-2021-0093#:~:text=The%20objective%20of%20this%20study,being%20remobilized%20and%20transported%20downstream. https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2021Facet...6.2002R/abstract#:~:text=Instead%2C%20our%20data%20suggest%20that,Lake%2C%20located%20154%20km%20downstream.

When a loved one passes away, they typically end up at a mortuary. A place designated to care for the after life process. Whether it be a burial or cremation, the family entrusts the funeral directors to be responsible, to properly complete the final wishes. But time and time again there are cases where morticians failed to, not only give the respect everyone deserves, but in some cases are so horrific, it becomes criminal. Sources:  Colorado funeral home: Inspectors find numerous decomposing bodies behind hidden door | CNN What the discovery of improperly stored bodies in a Pueblo funeral home says about the state's death care industry Owners of US funeral home that hid 190 bodies face families in court | Colorado | The Guardian What To Know About Colorado’s (Scandalous) Funeral Industry - 5280 Cremation Scandals - Cremation With Confidence 6 of 24 Bodies Identified in Mortuary Scandal Involving County Coroner US funeral home ordered to pay families $190m in decaying bodies case Judge rejects plea deal for funeral home owner accused of stashing nearly 190 decaying bodies | PBS News Cremation Scandals - Cremation With Confidence https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F3/96/1451/503533/ The Mortician

Robert Eugene Brashers was arrested and convicted of multiple crimes. The first convictions should have landed him in prison for twelve years, but he served just three before getting released for good behavior. The result was multiple murdered women. It wouldn't be until Robert was buried did the truth begin to come to light. The result-a posthumous serial killer label. In 2025, he was verified to have been the offender of the yogurt shop murder. Killing four teenagers in Austin, Texas in 1991.  Sources:  https://www.statesman.com/news/article/robert-eugene-brashers-austin-yogurt-shop-murders-21069898.php https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/035631d21d12b3ca8625729800536894/719609083dcd88e18625831d0050ad6f?OpenDocument https://6abc.com/post/what-know-robert-eugene-brashers-new-suspect-identified-texas-infamous-yogurt-shop-killings/17894500/ https://www.cnn.com/2025/09/29/us/robert-eugene-brashers-yogurt-shop-murders https://www.kctv5.com/2025/09/29/30-years-later-serial-killer-with-missouri-victims-linked-texas-yogurt-shop-cold-case/ https://www.facebook.com/wachfox/videos/deceased-serial-killer-robert-eugene-brashers-has-been-identified-through-dna-as/1394065839101534/ https://abc7.com/post/dna-evidence-links-late-robert-eugene-brashers-1991-killings-4-girls-austin-texas-yogurt-shop/17889732/ https://www.newsweek.com/who-was-robert-e-brashers-what-to-know-about-yogurt-shop-murders-suspect-10792708 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l41AnSungFE https://www.cnn.com/2025/09/29/us/robert-eugene-brashers-yogurt-shop-murders https://www.newsweek.com/who-was-robert-e-brashers-what-to-know-about-yogurt-shop-murders-suspect-10792708

In 1991 in Austin, Texas four teenagers are murdered. Two girls are closing up the yogurt shop that they work at while younger sister and a friend wait for a ride home. Sometime during their final clean up, they are attacked. All of them are bound, shot in the head, and the shop is lit on fire. Investigators do everything they can think of to solve the crime. Eight years later four men are charged, two confess and are convicted. Later winning appeals. In order to bolster their case, DA goes back to collected DNA. It is then, that science proved they convicted the wrong men. Still the case goes cold until 2025, when it is finally solved. The murderer with a long history of such crimes, but he will never see the inside of a courtroom for these murders. Having committed suicide in 1999 during a police stand off. Still families now know, who truly was to blame.  Sources:    The Yogurt Shop Murders: HBO Max https://www.austintexas.gov/news/significant-breakthrough-made-1991-i-cant-believe-its-yogurt-murders https://www.cbsnews.com/news/suspect-identified-in-infamous-texas-yogurt-shop-murder-case-48-hours/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXZW5gHXj0 https://people.com/yogurt-shop-murders-victim-helped-identify-suspected-killer-11823320 https://abcnews.go.com/US/haunting-yogurt-shop-quadruple-killings-solved-3-decades/story?id=126035260

Angeline Pete Anne Peters Annie Pootoogook Annie Yassie Ashley Machiskinic Audrey Desjarlais All of these women are missing or died under suspicious circumstances. There are no cases of closure this month. The families often left without the knowledge of where their loved ones are or what happened in their final moments. Again this is another group of cases of missing and murdered indigenous women. Sources: https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/angeline-eileen-pete https://someonesawsomething.ca/2025/04/13/angeline-eileen-pete/ https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/british-columbia/disappeared-reconstructing-a-life-to-find-a-missing-mother/article31388904/ https://www.doenetwork.org/cases/4703dfbc.html https://www.nsnews.com/local-news/family-pleas-for-info-on-missing-north-vancouver-woman-2979187 https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/health/about-bc-s-health-care-system/office-of-the-provincial-health-officer/reports-publications/special-reports/fn_womenandgirlsreport_july19.pdf https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/anne-rose-peters https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Audrey_Desjarlais https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/annie-pootoogook https://www.aptnnews.ca/national-news/family-friends-say-inuit-artist-annie-pootoogook-lived-in-fear-before-death/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/annie-yassie https://int-missing.fandom.com/wiki/Annie_Yassie https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2021/02/06/the-disappearance-of-annie-yassie/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/ashley-machisknic https://www.bwss.org/day-of-action-for-ashley-machisknic/ https://www.aptnnews.ca/national-news/this-was-a-murder-2/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/audrey-desjarlais  

Fredericka Mandelbaum immigrated from Prussia to the US with her husband and small child. Peddlers in Prussia, the Jewish couple began feeling the effects of the growing anti-semitism movement. In the US they moved to "Little Germany". Marm learned to peddle quickly both legitimate and illegitimate wares.  Opening her own haberdashery to front her fence. She lived and worked in the area until the 1880's when reform finally caught up with her by the hands of the Pinkerton Agency. Even after she was caught, she paid bail and then absconded to Canada. There she, oldest son Julius, and Herman stayed until Marms death.     Sources: North Conway. Queen of Thieves. The true story of “Marm” Mandelbaum and her gangs of New York. 2014 https://www.mcny.org/story/extraordinary-mother-mandelbaum https://www.wnyc.org/story/the-story-of-a-gilded-age-jewish-crime-boss-women-behaving-badly/ https://www.timesofisrael.com/how-a-jewish-german-woman-in-ny-became-americas-first-major-crime-boss-in-1859/ https://www.vegaspbs.org/blogs/community-events/march-11-the-queen-of-thieves-the-jewish-mother-who-built-americas-first-criminal-empire/ https://providenceathenaeum.org/media-archives/the-talented-mrs-mandelbaum/ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-life-and-crimes-of-old-mother-mandelbaum-71693582/ https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/community/articles/marm-mandelbaum-queen-fences

It seems as though almost every historic hotel has a haunting or two attached to it. They are hot beds for paranormal activity, scaring and exciting the living guests who come for their own experiences.  Since it’s October, a time touted as spooky season, I thought it would be fun to take a break from murder and mayhem and talk about the spooky. Especially after the heavy case I spoke about last week. Sources:    https://portlandghosts.com/the-heathman-hotel/ https://frightfind.com/the-heathman-hotel/ https://fhspost.com/7010/feature/our-paranormal-investigation-portlands-hotels/ https://www.fivestaralliance.com/portland-or/countdown-the-most-haunted-hotel-the-heathman-hotel http://hauntedrooms.com/oregon/portland/haunted-places/haunted-hotels/the-heathman https://usghostadventures.com/haunted-places/heathman-hotel/ https://ghostcitytours.com/san-antonio/haunted-places/haunted-hotels/menger-hotel/ https://www.hauntedrooms.com/texas/san-antonio/haunted-places/haunted-hotels/menger-hotel https://ghosttexas.com/menger-hotel-hauntings-paranormal-ghosts/ https://www.concordscolonialinn.com/haunted-hotel/ https://www.hauntedrooms.com/massachusetts/haunted-places/haunted-hotels/the-colonial-inn-concord http://usghostadventures.com/haunted-places/concords-colonial-inn/ https://www.hauntedrooms.com/maryland/haunted-places/haunted-hotels/maryland-inn-annapolis

Shawn Yamate was born and raised in California. Falling in love with the 60's era lifestyle, he tattoo'd his moniker above his eyebrows. Sick Boy. In and out of juvi, mental health facilities, and then prison from his late teens. His most recent sentence puts him on the inside for life.  Sources: https://kpic.com/news/local/yamate-sentenced-in-court-monday https://theworldlink.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/yamate-trial-day-5-defendant-takes-the-stand-in-own-defense/article_e5e25066-4178-5b1a-9fdd-37108deb8a7a.html https://theworldlink.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/gonzales-accepts-plea-deal-to-testify-in-murder-trial-of-shawn-yamate/article_fc96201c-5755-5187-86e4-7e72626349bc.html https://kcby.com/news/local/yamate-denies-murder-charge-while-on-stand-during-trial https://theworldlink.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/drinking-unsubstantiated-accusations-may-have-led-to-coos-bay-murder/article_72b04dc3-40d5-5e7d-a5be-f6b1b35e487f.html https://theworldlink.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/yamate-murder-trial-day-2-3-lifestyles-and-gruesome-forensic-photos-unveiled/article_03beaa4b-374c-5e0a-ac8e-7e65d7587d0f.html https://mugshots.com/US-States/Oregon/Coos-County-OR/Shawn-Kristofer-Yamate.68320286.html https://www.localcrimenews.com/welcome/detail/66776068/shawn-yamate-arrest.html https://rain-street.org/Shawn-Yamate-7l3521

Another set of women in Canada, missing or murdered. While the bulk of them remain unsolved, we did end on a known case. That doesn't make it any less tragic. Killed for $20.00, the perpetrator given a four year sentence. As always we try and shed light on the epidemic that is the MMIW.  Sources: https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/angel-edna-carlick https://www.aptnnews.ca/national-news/yukon-rcmp-putting-out-another-call-for-information-in-death-of-angel-carlick/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/angela-carmen-pitseolak-meyer https://canadiancrimeopedia.com/missing_women/meyer-angela/ https://int-missing.fandom.com/wiki/Angela_Meyer https://medium.com/@DaniBujold/woman-went-out-for-a-cigarette-and-vanishes-angela-carmen-pitseolak-meyer-2010-98ae97843ed9 https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/angela-hazel-williams https://oublieesoudisparues.ca/en/cultural-mediation-kit/tools/factual-data/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/angela-poorman https://thestarphoenix.com/news/crime/no-sentencing-can-ever-bring-my-mom-back-says-daughter-of-sask-woman-killed-in-winnipeg https://globalnews.ca/news/3095163/arrest-made-in-2014-homicide-winnipeg-police-set-to-release-more-details/ https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/it-felt-like-the-whole-world-collapsed-arrest-brings-closure-for-angela-poorman-s-daughter-1.3873729

Blaine Milam and Geoffrey West never knew each other. They were born years apart. The only thing in common is that both men were murderers. They carried the common theme of being tried, convicted, and sentenced to death. Both men died the same day by their respective states.  At 18, Blaine murdered a 13 month old girl after torturing her for over 30 hours. She was the daughter of his girlfriend who received a lesser sentence of life. Geoffrey was 21 and strapped for cash. He and his girlfriend robbed a gas station then executed the clerk. A 33 Patty Berry who left behind two young boys.  They both claimed to have found God before their execution date and implored others to do the same. Sources: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/death-row-inmate-s-haunting-final-words-before-execution-for-baby-s-exorcism-death-revealed/ar-AA1NmEw7?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=68d6cb14f77844b0b270e9bbda6e80c5&ei=74 https://kfmx.com/blaine-milam-execution/ https://www.kltv.com/2025/09/24/rusk-county-man-convicted-toddlers-exorcism-death-set-be-executed/ https://www.texastribune.org/2019/01/14/texas-court-criminal-appeals-stays-execution-blaine-milam/ https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/texas-prisoner-seeks-stay-of-execution-on-claims-of-junk-science-arbitrary-sentencing https://thearc.org/resource/ex-parte-blaine-milam/ https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/18/18-5494/58378/20180803112031347_milamcertpet.pdf https://www.kltv.com/2025/09/25/man-facing-execution-fatally-beating-13-month-old-girl-during-exorcism/ https://www.yourconroenews.com/neighborhood/moco/news/article/Milam-has-big-heart-sister-testifies-9260873.php https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/20/20-6518/164393/20201221163729092_Milam%20-%20SHC%20BIO%20Edited%20-%20with%20tables.pdf https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/double-execution-texas-alabama-execute-inmates-within-minutes-of-each-other/ar-AA1NjNVT?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=68d6cb14f77844b0b270e9bbda6e80c5&ei=74 https://www.murderauction.com/auction/listing/geoffrey-todd-west-scheduled-for-execution-by-nitrogen-hypoxia-in-alabama-on-september-25-2025-for-the-1997-execution-style-killing-of-margaret-parrish-berry-during-a-250-robbery-after-23-years-on-death-row-als/870280 https://apnews.com/article/alabama-execution-nitrogen-abbee4a788ad61f5b8d7cfe0d7afe992

This episode is for the understanding of why it is that I do what I do. Why I write to those incarcerated and hear their stories. What brought me to this point? It includes a couple stories from my time working as a prison nurse. As well as insight as to what special accommodations are made. 

Herbert "Herb" Mullin was born into a typical American family. He grew up well socially in California. He was voted "Most likely to succeed." Then, after high school, his best friend died, and he delved into drugs and religious rhetoric. He broke mentally, and his schizophrenia reared its head. He was smart enough to mask, even in mental institutions, which he found himself in twice. But the thought that he was meant for more, came to a head when the voices started. The voices told him to be the savior, but demanded sacrifice. He dutifully completed those sacrifices, only stopping when he was caught. He was 26 when his spree both started and ended. Spending the rest of his life, behind bars.  Sources:  Green, Ryan. 2024. I Hear Voices. A descent into the dark half of psychotic killer, Herbert Miller https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/news/2022/08/19/herbert-mullin-dies-of-natural-causes/ https://www.aetv.com/real-crime/herbert-mullin-serial-killer-sacrifice https://maamodt.asp.radford.edu/Psyc%20405/serial%20killers/Mullin,%20Herbert.htm

Jane started out in this world as Honora Kelley. She lived in poverty until her mother died. Her father had a psychotic break and subsequently signed her over to the state. From there she was sent to a poorhouse, then was adopted as an indentured servant. She did well in the family home and was loved by the family, taking their name of Toppan, hiding her Irish heritage by changing her first name to Jane. In her 20's she set out on her own in the world training as a nurse. From the start she did well, learning at an incredible rate. But with power, she learned she could control people's fates and immediately began killing. After being dismissed from two hospitals, she shifted to private nurses. She did well until she killed two generations in the same house in two months. Suspicions were confirmed with autopsies and Janes spree was over.  Sources: https://www.lowellhistoricalsociety.org/lowells-ties-to-jolly-jane-massachusetts-female-serial-killer/ https://thewestendmuseum.org/history/era/immigrant-neighborhood/jolly-jane-toppan-the-mgh-nurse-turned-mass-murderer/ https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/465836 https://www.alcatrazeast.com/crime-library/serial-killers/jane-toppan/

For this month, we remain in Canada and on the missing/endangered/murdered list, still in the A names. It is truly difficult to read, name after name, case after case, and feel it is all so similar. These are women, sisters, sometimes mothers who are known on a government list, and for months, we remain at the top of it. Women are tragically and horrifically being lost to their families. This is the September group of those women: Amanda Sophia Bartlett, Amber Alyssa Tuccaro, Andria Meise, and Annette Margaret Holywhiteman Sources: ⁠https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/amanda-sophia-bartlett⁠ ⁠https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2025/02/01/amanda-bartlett-disappearance/⁠ ⁠https://orb.binghamton.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1145&context=alpenglowjournal⁠ ⁠https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/amber-alyssa-tuccaro⁠ ⁠https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/andria-lucille-meise⁠ ⁠https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2020/02/24/the-disappearance-of-andria-meise/⁠ ⁠https://www.wltribune.com/news/sisters-appeal-for-information-on-missing-woman-5486628⁠ ⁠https://nationtalk.ca/story/the-case-of-andria-lucille-meise-cbc⁠ ⁠https://globalnews.ca/news/429464/not-seen-since-2008/⁠ ⁠https://www.kelownanow.com/columns/Kelowna_RCMP/news/Kelowna_RCMP/13/03/26/5_Years_Later_Police_Continue_Search_For_Andria_Lucille_Meise⁠ ⁠https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/anette-margaret-holywhiteman⁠ ⁠https://www.justicefornativepeople.com/2018/08/annette-holywhiteman-skull-found-in.html⁠ ⁠https://www.townandcountrytoday.com/westlock-news/human-remains-investigation-continues-1863107⁠ ⁠https://www.rcmp.gc.ca/en/murdered-annette-holywhiteman⁠ ⁠https://edmontonsun.com/2012/04/13/holywhitemans-death-senseless⁠ ⁠https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/skull-found-near-westlock-belonged-to-missing-woman-1.1161937⁠ ⁠https://vancouversun.com/news/edmontons-project-kare-examines-links-to-accused-winnipeg-serial-killer⁠ ⁠https://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/en/murdered-annette-holywhiteman⁠

John Lowe met a woman named Sue and the couple built a thriving dog breeding business in Keepers Cottage Stud, Surrey England. In 1986 Christine brought her two daughters Lucy and Stacy out to pick out a puppy. As a way to get through a hard time after Christine left their father. The girls leave with the puppy and Christine a date.  Over time Christine moves in with John and Sue bringing along her girls to the mix. While everything starts out fine, it slowly deteriorates.  Abuse creeps in.  Stacy eventually leaves to start her own family. Returning for a time when Sue's health fails. After she passes, once again Stacy is out of the home.  Christine and Lucy too have enough and attempt to leave. But the leaving has deadly consequences. Ones that clearly could have been avoided if police had done due diligence.    Sources:   https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-surrey-48436674 https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-surrey-45251194 https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/oct/31/puppy-farmer-jailed-double-murder-shooting-john-lowe https://dpglaw.co.uk/inquest-surrey-police-involvement-murder-of-christine-and-lucy-lee/ https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/john-lowe-pensioner-found-guilty-of-puppy-farm-murders-9825571.html https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/who-john-lowe-full-story-15055709   https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-surrey-29743897

Bruce McArthur grew up in Canada on a family farm. He reports believing his father knew of his closeted homosexuality and tried to work it out of him. Bruce married and moved to Toronto and had two children before confessing his sexual preference. He had a run-in with the law after beating a man in 2001. Still, he supposedly kept his nose clean and was free and clear after probation. He worked as a landscaper during the day, but at night, other gay men were slowly disappearing from the Village, an area in Toronto that housed many of the clubs/all men bathhouses that Bruce would haunt. A cry to find out what was happening went out, but it wasn't received by the masses until decades later when it began again. This time, the voices couldn't be stifled and the ensuing investigation all led to Bruce. Bruce was killing men and hiding them in his work. After his arrest he received a life sentence with the possibility of parole after 25 years. Sources:   https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/08/us/bruce-mcarthur-toroto-serial-killer-sentencing https://allthatsinteresting.com/bruce-mcarthur Ling, J. 2020, Missing froom the Village. The story of serial killer Bruce McArthur, the search for justice, and the system that failed Toronto’s queer community

Robert Berdella Jr was born into a Catholic family in Ohio. He was a loner, and once high school finished, he moved on to Kansas City. He was expelled from college and turned his life around almost immediately. Participating in the community, to the point that when his crimes came to light, many people thought he was framed. Still he confessed to the torture and murder of multiple men, all of whom he dismembered and threw in the trash when he was done.    Sources: Becker, Ryan. Robert Berdella: The true story of a man who turned his darkest fantasies into reality. 2020 https://allthatsinteresting.com/robert-berdella https://search.worldcat.org/title/Robert-Berdella-:-the-true-story-of-the-the-Kansas-City-butcher/oclc/962023749 https://criminalminds.fandom.com/wiki/Robert_Berdella https://maamodt.asp.radford.edu/Psyc%20405/serial%20killers/Berdella,%20Robert.htm

Amanda Cook was 14 when she decided to go to the fair with her family. Just fifteen minutes from home in the Manitoba district of Canada. She checked in with her father throughout the day, getting money for games. He last remembered seeing her around 6:60-7pm. But then nothing, the family searched for her. They called the RCMP. Four days later her body was found, near the grounds, mostly nude. She had been beaten to death. Months later a suspect was charged and tried. Three times until his eventual acquittal, leaving the family with unanswered questions and Amanda's case, unsolved.    Sources: True Crime Central. Taken S3E08. Amanda Cook https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/amanda-jane-cook https://www.thecanadianlibrary.ca/post/story-of-amanda-cook https://www.scc-csc.ca/cases-dossiers/search-recherche/27738/ https://canadianmedialawyers.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/R._v._Mentuck.pdf https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/gag-order-obscures-mans-innocence/article25576991/

In 1988, 16-year-old David Brom murdered all family members in his home, burying an ax into each one of them in Rochester Minnesota. For which, he received four life sentences. However, in 2023, legislative changes allowed for the possibility of parole early due to his age at the time of sentencing.  On July 29th 2025, 53 year David was released into a work released program in nearby Twin Cities.      Sources:    https://www.kttc.com/2025/07/31/brom-murders-inside-look-investigation-case-file/ https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/david-brom-axe-murders-family-teenager-released-prison/ https://law.justia.com/cases/minnesota/supreme-court/1990/c3-89-2269-2.html https://www.foxnews.com/us/minnesota-ax-murderer-who-killed-own-family-1988-gets-early-release-under-law-supported-gov-tim-walz https://www.kttc.com/2025/07/29/digging-deeper-axe-murderer-david-broms-next-chapter/

Twenty-one-year-old Grace Millane wanted to go on a solo trip during her gap year. She had graduated with her Bachelor's Degree, feeling accomplished and excited, and planned her trip. First landing in South Africa, then moved on to New Zealand. A country touted for its safety, it's here that Grace stops adding posts to social media and loses contact with family. On the eve of her 22nd birthday, she replies to none of the families calls or messages. Immediately, they know, something has gone wrong. They notify New Zealand Police and the investigation is underway. Unfortunately it is already too late and Grace is gone. In such a safe place, Grace is murdered.   Sources:  The Lie: The Murder of Grace Millane https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-63627166 https://news.sky.com/story/grace-millane-what-happened-in-the-last-hours-of-british-backpackers-life-11866557 https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/21/asia/grace-millane-killer-named-intl-hnk https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-55346213 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/feb/21/grace-millane-man-jailed-for-life-for-killing-of-uk-backpacker

In the 1960's in Scotland a man killed three women. All of them came from the Barrowland Ballroom, they were all mothers, and all menstruating. They were beaten, then strangled. The last victim had a bite mark on her arm. While this suggested a pattern of escalation. Instead the killing stopped. The man disappeared and the cases have remained unsolved.    Sources:  MacGregor, Steve. 2018. Murder World Scotland. The Face of Bible John. The hunt for a Scottish serial killer https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-63916850 https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2023/oct/11/bbc-podcast-causes-police-to-reinvestigate-serial-killer-bible-john https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xr12--eMdj0 https://bloodyscotland.com/who-was-bible-john/

This months MMIW cases hail once again out of Canada. When looking for a reference, the CBC houses a plethora of information. After looking through the list, I got lost on where to start. I did as anyone would, the beginning. The cases are all hard and tragic. But what's worse is the lack of information and outcry for every single female. It should be shouted as loud as possible. I'm simply adding my voice to the many that are speaking up and speaking out.    Sources: https://energeticcity.ca/2025/05/05/we-stand-in-solidarity-metis-society-on-15th-anniversary-of-local-womans-disappearance/ https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/abigail-andrews https://medium.com/@Itsravenbby/the-disappearance-of-abigail-andrews-c3b451ff396d https://int-missing.fandom.com/wiki/Abby_Andrews https://energeticcity.ca/2022/05/18/12-years-after-abigail-andrews-disappearance-her-family-continues-to-seek-closure/ https://www.cbc.cahttps://www.coursesidekick.com/sociology/2916779/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/ada-elaine-brown https://thehueandcry.com/ada-elaine-brown https://www.thecanadianlibrary.ca/post/story-of-ada-brown https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/aielah-saric-auger https://thehueandcry.com/aielah-saric-auger https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2020/07/28/the-murder-of-aielah-saric-auger/ https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/189318855/aielah-katherina-saric_auger https://coldcasepg.ca/?p=143 https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/remains-found-near-goodfish-lake-believed-to-be-those-of-missing-alannah-cardinal https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2019/07/17/the-death-of-alannah-jamima-cardinal/ https://www.thecanadianlibrary.ca/post/story-of-alannah-cardinal https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/alberta-gail-williams https://thehueandcry.com/alberta-williams https://www.grunge.com/475399/the-untold-truth-of-the-alberta-williams-murder-case/ https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/189317214/alberta_gail-williams

Genene Jones always thought she was better than others. When she became an LVN she administered ordered however she saw fit, assuming she knew what was best. In a PICU she was present for more than half of the deaths that occurred in just over a year. After being released from the hospital, her reign of terror simply went on to the children who entered her clinic. While only convicted for a few of the murders and injuries, she is expected of killing up to sixty.    Sources: Smith, Jack. Killer Nurse. Life of serial killer Genene Ann Jones https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/01/17/texas-killer-nurse-genene-jones-guilty-infant-death/4499258002/ https://allthatsinteresting.com/genene-jones https://www.propublica.org/article/genene-jones-i-really-did-kill-those-babies https://www.oxygen.com/crime-news/genene-jones-angel-of-death-nurse-has-final-conviction-for-baby-killings-upheld-by-texas https://www.crimemuseum.org/crime-library/serial-killers/genene-jones/ https://www.texasmonthly.com/true-crime/how-san-antonio-baby-killing-nurse-finally-got-justice/

Erick started in Texas. After a stint in juvi, he absconded up to Seattle to be with his dad. Bringing his girlfriend, who was pregnant with their first son at the time. He waited out the law until his record was expunged and he was free to move around again. The streets were familiar and he ran them under his fathers protection. Still he didn't manage to stay away from the law. Multiple run-ins and short sentences plagued his life, culminating in a second degree murder charge. But don't take my word for it, these are his words.  Sources: https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/wa-supreme-court/1666881.html https://law.justia.com/cases/washington/supreme-court/2014/85410-6.html https://spdblotter.seattle.gov/2021/06/30/twelve-people-charged-in-two-indictments-following-investigation-of-drug-trafficking-ring/  

Fred West was a happy child, but after a motorcycle accident in his teens, became a different person. His true terrifying nature didn't come to fruition until his life partner Rose came into the picture. A child of abuse and mental health issues Rose had the propensity for torture. Her sexual appetite barely satiated with Fred. Together the pair prowled for the vulnerable, when challenged they killed their own. Finally stopped after decades and a dozen murders. Fred refused to give the truth, opting to end his life and take his secrets to the grave. Rose will live out the rest of her days behind iron.  Sources: Green, Ryan. 2016. Fred & Rose West. Britain’s most infamous couple killers Fred and Rose West: A British Horror Story Smith, Jack. The Wicked West of Cromwell Street. The lives of serial killers Fred and Rose West https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-03-10/fred-rose-west-victims-anniversary/103453858 https://time.com/7285264/fred-and-rose-west-true-story-netflix/ https://people.com/what-did-fred-and-rose-west-do-11739109 https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/may/14/fred-and-rose-west-a-british-horror-story-review-netflix https://www.biography.com/crime/a64771660/rose-west

In 1821 the world Penitentiary comes in. A place for those who have committed crimes to be and seek reflection and penance. The original spoke and wheel design housed indoor plumbing from its inception. The addition of other buildings changing its landscape, design, and overall workings. Like other prisons, overcrowding plagued the system quickly. Drugs were introduced and idle hands led to disdain and riots. Still the location was active for over 141 years before its decay and decline were too much and the door were shut. That was until it was decided preservation was necessary and the door opened again, this time not as punishment but for entertainment.    Sources: Dolan, Frances. 2007. Images of America. Eastern State Penitentiary Kahan, Paul. 2008. Eastern State Penitentiary. A History https://www.easternstate.org/research/history-eastern-state/timeline https://www.easternstate.org/unlockinghistory https://worldadventurists.com/eastern-state-penitentiary-philadelphia/#:~:text=During%20the%20operation%20of%20Eastern,Adventures%20and%20Most%20Haunted%20Live.