Our True Crime Podcast

Wednesday, August 30, 2023

227. Silenced Witness: Donna Willard

Donna Willard, a single mother of three, lived in a tight-knit community of South Philly, doing her best to raise her three children. Her oldest was Todd, 12, with his baby sisters, 10-year-old Donna and 7-year-old Jessica, following. They were the light of her life, and she worked hard as a hairdresser to give them a good life. Donna was petite, weighing just over 80 pounds at 4’10, but she was big in her principles. She believed in working hard and doing the right thing. She was energetic and outgoing; love was the only thing missing in her life. In 1988, that would change for Donna when a man named Tommy Tyrrell, a pipefitter by trade, stepped into her hair salon for a haircut and ended up leaving with much more: her heart. After dating for a bit, Tommy popped the question, and the two were engaged. Life was perfect for Donna and Tommy, with a bright future ahead of them, but neither would know that was all about to change.

Join Jen and Cam on this episode of Our True Crime Podcast entitled ‘Silenced Witness: Donna Willard.’

Listener Discretion by the oh-so-talented @octoberpodVHS

All Music by our EP Nico @theinkypawprint (formally known as @wetalkofdreams)

Sources:

https://chaddsfordlive.com/2014/11/25/court-upholds-death-sentence-in-willard-murder/

https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-gettysburg-times-donna-willard/355976/

https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-philadelphia-inquirer/30388069/

https://casetext.com/case/burke-v-us-14

https://www.newspapers.com/article/standard-speaker-donna-willard/355958/

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7830400/http://www.paed.uscourts.gov/documents/opinions/99d0956p.pdf

https://corporate.discovery.com/discovery-newsroom/homicide-bureau-attorney-anna-sigga-nicolazzi-takes-viewers-inside-the-fight-for-justice-in-investigation-discoverys-new-serie s-true-conviction/

https://www.paed.uscourts.gov/documents/opinions/14d0588p.pdf

Wednesday, August 23, 2023

226. Massacre in Muskegon: The Privacky Family Murders

In many ways, the Privackys were your average American family. They lived in western Michigan, in rural Dalton township just north of Muskegon. It's a place where amazing sunsets can be witnessed on Lake Michigan, and dazzling Northern Lights can be seen in the winter.

The family consisted of Stephen Privacky, aged 50, a fifth-grade science teacher at Reeths-Puffer Intermediate School in Muskegon for twenty-five years; his wife Linda, aged 49, was a receptionist at a doctor's office; and their two sons. Jedidiah was 19 and a freshman at Muskegon Community College, and Seth, aged 18, was a senior at Reeths-Puffer High School.

Around noon on November 29th, the already tense family relationships were strained to the breaking point when Seth and his father had yet another fight. Only this time, his father told Seth that he wanted him to move out of the house. This enraged Seth, who claimed that his father never had anything positive to say to him.

Steve left the house around 12:45 to pick up his father, John Privacky, and bring him back to their home for dinner, and Linda decided to take a quick shower. Jed made himself comfortable on the couch in front of the TV.

Seth went upstairs to his parent’s bedroom and took the gun out of his father’s closet. While the aromas of Thanksgiving dinner filled the house, Seth loaded his dad’s .22 caliber Ruger.

Wednesday, August 16, 2023

225. I Will Not Be Ignored: Cari Farver

Today we are going to a small town in Iowa called Macedonia. The city is located just outside of Omaha, Nebraska, and boasts a population of around 250 residents. It is the kind of town in America where everyone knows each other, and you can’t get away with much because you are either related to them or someone you know is related to them. When a 37-year-old single mom named Cari Farver disappeared in 2012, it was all hands on deck. It would take many people to get some answers for those that loved Cari, and when the answers came, the truth about what happened was nothing less than a horror movie. If this story were not true, you would find it difficult to believe.

Join Jen and Cam on this episode of Our True Crime Podcast entitled ‘I Will Not Be Ignored: Cari Farver.’

Listener Discretion by Edward October @octoberpodVHS

Music by our E.P. Nico @theinkypawprint

Sources: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9015931/Texts-Nebraska-woman-sent-family-murdered-Cari-Farver.html

https://www.oxygen.com/dateline-secrets-uncovered/crime-news/shanna-golyar-killed-cari-farver-after-impersonating-her

https://www.mylifetime.com/movies/the-disappearance-of-cari-farver

https://www.investigationdiscovery.com/crimefeed/murder/stalker-convicted-of-murdering-missing-woman-spent-up-to-50-hours-weekly-on-twisted-plot

https://iowacoldcases.org/case-summaries/cari-farver/

https://www.sportskeeda.com/pop-culture/5-key-details-cari-farver-s-missing-case-ahead-lifetime-s-the-disappearance-cari-farver

https://www.the-sun.com/news/5371202/cari-farver-murder-shanna-golyar-dateline/

https://www.amazon.com/Disappearance-Farver-Howard-Braunstein-Films/dp/B0B67ZXJB3

https://nonpareilonline.com/news/a-tangled-web-the-cari-farver-case-becomes-lifetime-movie/article_d7afce42-45c9-11ed-a2af-37a43f4b81f8.html

https://heavy.com/news/cari-farver-body-disappeared-found/

Wednesday, August 9, 2023

224. Preconceived Notions: Patricia Stallings

David and Patricia Stallings married in August of 1988, and with the belief that they were about to embark on their part of the American Dream, the couple bought a small white farmhouse on Lake Wauwanoka in Hillsboro, Missouri

Twenty-four-year-old Patricia gave birth to the couple’s first child, Ryan Stallings, in April of 1989. Even though Ryan suffered from gastronomic distress since birth, the couple were overwhelmingly happy in their new roles as parents. But on July 9th, 1989, that would all change as Ryan became horribly ill with nonstop vomiting and labored breathing. Patricia drove full speed up Highway 21 toward St. Louis with her sick baby cradled in his car seat. In a panic, Patricia got lost and ended up at Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital instead of going to St. Louis Children’s Hospital, as she intended.

Once there, Ryan was immediately ushered into the ICU, put on a ventilator, and had numerous tubes and IVs going into his tiny body. Patricia was overwhelmed when the doctors couldn’t seem to diagnose what was wrong with him. They slammed her with a barrage of questions and then ran a complete blood and urine analysis. The staff would not allow her or David to be alone in the room with Ryan. Anytime David and Patricia were in Ryan’s room, there had to be medical staff present.

Three days later, Patricia was arrested on assault charges for poisoning Ryan.

Join Jen and Cam as we talk about "Preconceived Notions: "Patricia Stallings"

Written and researched by Lauretta Allen
Listener Discretion by Edward October from OctoberpodVHS
Executive Producer Nico Vitesse of The Inky Paw Print

Sources:
https://www.newspapers.com/image/139943203/?terms=Patricia%20Stallings&match=1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/819970269/?terms=Patricia%20Stallings&match=1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/207793816/?terms=Patricia%20Stallings&match=1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/139942291/https://www.newspapers.com/image/139942651/?terms=Patricia%20Stallings&match=1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/139958402/?terms=Patricia%20Stallings&match=1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/141238228/?terms=Patricia%20Stallings&match=1 https://www.newspapers.com/image/141439318/https://www.newspapers.com/image/141439346/?terms=Patricia%20Stallings&match=1
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patricia_Stallings
http://www.msbp.com/stlouis.htm
https://www.law.northwestern.edu/legalclinic/wrongfulconvictions/exonerations/mo/patricia-stallings.html
https://unsolved.com/gallery/patty-stallings/
https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Ryan_Stallings
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK559906/
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-65830799
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kathleen_Folbigg
https://www.childrenshospital.org/programs/epilepsy-genetics-program

Wednesday, August 2, 2023

223. Death in Davie: Donna Decker

Today we are heading south to a town called Davie, just outside of Florida’s Gold Coast. It is a small town where not a lot happens, and that is precisely how the town folk like it. A massacre in this sleepy town would disrupt the calm community, leaving them in fear. It would take a long time to finally get justice, but how the case unfolds is genuinely one of the most bizarre.

Join Jen and Cam on this episode of ‘Our True Crime Podcast’ entitled 'Death in Davie: Donna Decker.'

Promo by our friends Whitney and Melissa over at @NavAdvocacyPod. Check them out today!

Listener Discretion by the oh-so-talented @octoberpodVHS

All Music by our EP Nico @theinkypawprint (formally known as @wetalkofdreams)

Sources
https://law.justia.com/cases/florida/supreme-court/1996/84198-0.html https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-11th-circuit/1717231.html http://library.law.fsu.edu/Digital-Collections/flsupct/dockets/sc07-564/07-564ini.pdf https://mycrimelibrary.com/dana-williamson-florida-death-row/https://mycrimelibrary.com/dana-williamson-florida-death-row/http://www.floridacapitalcases.state.fl.us/inmatedetails8a88.html?IID=87 https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1994-07-16-9407150625-story.html https://www.sun-sentinel.com/1990/05/04/invasion-victim-arrested-davie-home-robbery-killed-woman-wounded-3-in-1988/https://casetext.com/case/williamson-v-state-296https://www.scribd.com/book/195157649/Until-Proven-Innocent

Wednesday, July 26, 2023

222. Together Forever: Barbara and Patricia Grimes

Life in America in the 1950s often conjures up images of an idyllic suburban life. Fueled by unprecedented economic growth after the lean and stressful years of World War II, Americans enjoyed the stability and prosperity that they craved. The innocent and wholesome portrayal of the nuclear family was often depicted in programs like Father Knows Best and Leave it to Beaver as one where every problem could be solved with a good ol’ heart-to-heart talk and a slice of apple pie.

But look closer, and there are cracks in that façade. The polio epidemic terrified families of the early 1950s, the Cold War raged, and there was little room for divergent views in what had become a homogeneous society. And crime? It existed, even if television shows tried to pretend that it didn’t.
Elvis Presley rocked America socially and literally with his huge hit Heartbreak Hotel in January 1956. Less than a year later, Presley would have a legion of fans and a new movie called Love Me Tender. And it was on a freezing cold night in December of 1956 when two teenage sisters, Barbara and Patricia Grimes, disappeared off South Archer Avenue in Chicago after having seen Love Me Tender for the twelfth time at the Brighton Park Theatre. Their disappearance and subsequent story would be hailed as the crime that stole Chicago’s innocence. It just shone a light on the less than Leave-it-to-Beaver reality.

This case is still open, so if anyone has any information regarding the Grimes sisters case, the Cook County Sheriff’s dept has a page where you can submit information. Link below.

https://www.cookcountysheriff.org/case/819/

Theresa Grimes is the only sibling left of Barbara and Patricia, and she is in her 80s. It would be amazing if she could see her little sisters get justice.

Research and writing by Lauretta Allen
Listener Discretion by OctoberpodVHS & OctoberpodAM
Producer Music & Editing by Nico at We Talk of Drea

Sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoLOjBEarKY&ab_channel=WGNNews

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mhaptd2v5bw&ab_channel=WGNNews

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_the_Grimes_sisters

https://gizmodo.com/the-hideous-chicago-triple-child-murder-that-was-finall-1728039519

https://www.newspapers.com/image/372809377/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/372809377/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/371134987/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/372098382/?terms=Barbara%20Patricia%20Grimes&match=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/371481073/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/371506269/?terms=Barbara%20Patricia%20Grimes&match=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/372089264/?terms=Barbara%20Patricia%20Grimes&match=1 (funeral details)

https://www.newspapers.com/image/371489418/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/371506299/?terms=Barbara%20Patricia%20Grimes&match=1 (Bedwell's confession details)

https://www.newspapers.com/image/371686309/?terms=Barbara%20Patricia%20Grimes&match=1 (4 Quizzed in Grimes Case)

https://www.newspapers.com/image/371483321/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/371483354/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20 (Detailed breakdown of "sightings")

https://www.newspapers.com/image/372095078/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/371314373/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/372098303/ (details of the girls last day)

https://www.newspapers.com/image/372573261/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/372573297/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/371102964/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/370612530/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1 (clothing)

https://www.newspapers.com/image/370647278/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1 (classmate IDs Bennie)

https://www.newspapers.com/image/370615583/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/371130799/ (13 Questions)

https://www.newspapers.com/image/372600722/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/372185966/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1

https://thehauntedlibrarian.com/tag/edward-bennie-bedwell/

https://www.aetv.com/real-crime/murders-of-barbara-and-patricia-grimes

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5f975edb6e81564dce78f544/t/61f14af66fb7342a62c01bd1/1643203320769/Teen-Cleared.pdf

https://chicagoreader.com/news-politics/death-and-the-maidens/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/372217973/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1

https://theoremfact.wordpress.com/2017/05/31/the-grimes-sisters/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/372755194/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/372755194/?terms=%22Barbara%20Grimes%22%20&match=1 ("crossed on both her feet")

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/5501564/barbara-jeanne-grimes

https://www.americanhauntingsink.com/bonnie-leigh-scott

https://www.newspapers.com/image/372577214/?terms=Charles%20Leroy%20Melquist&match=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/111564966/?terms=max%20fleig%20chicago&match=1

https://www.newspapers.com/image/643903658/?terms=max%20fleig%20chicago&match=1

https://wgntv.com/news/wgn-films/the-grimes-sisters-murders/will-detectives-discovery-help-solve-grimes-murders/

https://wgntv.com/news/wgn-films/the-grimes-sisters-murders/did-investigators-overlook-a-crucial-lead-in-girls-murders/

https://wgntv.com/news/wgn-films/the-grimes-sisters-murders/sisters-killings-blamed-for-chicagos-loss-of-innocence/

Wednesday, July 19, 2023

221. The Murder of Mark Kilroy

Warning: This episode is graphic. Listener discretion is advised.

It is a rite of passage for many American college students, and that is Spring Break. It’s a time when students can cut loose, drink too much, and make plenty of bad decisions. Whether Palm Springs or Palm Beach, kids flock to the surf, sun, and sand to have a week full of fun. As parents, we know our children are getting older, and we would probably prefer them not to go, but we have to trust them and know they will be ok but…what if the darkness that lurks out there is more evil than we could ever comprehend and it is just waiting for the right moment to strike.

On Wednesday, March 15, 1989, in Brownsville, Texas, two young men came into the station to talk to Chief Investigator George Gavito. The two men tell the investigator their good friend is missing as they explain that they are visiting South Padre Island for spring break. When investigators finally learn what happened to Mark Kilroy, it is indeed the stuff of nightmares.

Join Jen and Cam of Our True Crime Podcast on this episode entitled ‘Murder of Mark Kilroy.’

Listener Discretion by @octoberpodVHS
Music by our EP. @wetalkofdreams

Sources: https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/13380628/

https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/the-believers-cult-murders-in-mexico-53577/
https://www.texasmonthly.com/true-crime/the-work-of-the-devil/
https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/spring-break-trip-matamoros-murder-mark-kilroy-17838251.php
http://people.com/archive/the-grisly-secrets-of-a-lonely-ranch-vol-31-no-17/
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crime/mexico-kidnapping-matamoros-mark-kilroy-b2297461.html
http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1989-05-08/news/8905085178_1_jesus-constanzo-leon-valdez
http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/news/local/article_99155ab6-236b-5055-9dff-06ccc00
https://www.valleycentral.com/news/local-news/friend-recalls-horrific-murder-of-mark-kilroy/cf207.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20160206041321/http://www.biography.com/people/adolfo-constanzo-408870#investigation-and-death
http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/news/local/article_50a7351b-618b-5848-871b-ba5c5ad9731a.html
https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/147402748/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1989/04/13/spring-break-reveler-met-grisly-end/5eae25b4-2176-45ed-a9f6-5d39c759d613/
https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/13380109/
https://www.tulsaworld.com/news/most-of-cult-s-victims-were-traffickers-says-official/article_2d2826ba-65e0-5d69-845e-004ac52d3edd.html
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/mexican-druglord-kills-college-student-sicko-ritual-article-1.2157613

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