True Crime Brewery

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Sources

An Eye for an Eye, 48 Hours, 7/8/2008

Murder Conspiracy Case Grabs Media Glare, American Medical News, 7/10/2006

Office Visit, Forensic Files, 5/17/2018

Toxic Rage by AJ Flick

Tucson Citizen Archives, 2005-2014

Tucson Weekly Archives, 2005-2006

Apr 04, 2023

02:08:02

Diane Whitmore grew up in the Midwest. She was a smart girl and, as she matured, she was looking forward to an exciting life as an independent, sophisticated woman. But when it came to men, Diane had a bad picker. Diane married Joe Pikul after meeting him at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. He was exciting to her: wealthy and outgoing but emotionally unstable with a terrible temper. By the time the couple had children, they were fighting regularly. Joe’s behavior had progressed from emotionally to physically abusive.

Join us at the quiet end for One Last Family Weekend. Diane’s friends feared for her safety, so they were all relieved when she finally decided to leave Joe. But, at the same time, they worried about Diane taking unnecessary risks. Her brave exterior could no longer cover up how frightened she had become of her husband. Joe asked Diane to meet him at their vacation home in the Hamptons for one last family weekend. She knew this was a bad idea, but she felt obligated to go for the sake of her children. This was a decision she wouldn’t live long enough to regret.

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Sources

4 Years After His Death, Pikul Poses Problems for Offspring, New York Times, Joan Ullman, 9/19/1993

Marrying the Hangman by Sheila Weller

Matter of Pikul, Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 8/5/1993

Mystery in the Hamptons, Dominick Dunne’s Power, Privilege, & Justice, S1 E6

Wife Killer Dies While He Waits for Prison Term, New York Times, James Feron, 6/23/1989

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Joseph Pikul

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Mar 21, 2023

01:55:31

On July 18, 2014, 41-year-old law professor Dan Markel dropped off his two young sons at preschool, worked out at the gym, and returned home to his quiet Tallahassee, Florida home. It was a Friday and Dan was looking forward to a relaxing weekend. But as soon as he pulled into his garage, someone shot him at point-blank range.

Join us at the quiet end for Conspiracy: The Murder-for-Hire of Dan Markel. This is a story of a divorce and custody battle spun out of control and a family hell-bent on revenge. The investigation into Dan’s murder went on for two years before two career criminals were arrested for driving 10 hours from Miami to stalk and kill Dan. They had no known connection to Dan, but Dan’s ex-wife had family in the Miami area. The family hated Dan, who was getting in the way of Wendi and her children moving closer to them. It was difficult to believe that the Adelsons were behind a murder-for-hire plot, but no one else had a motive to want Dan dead.

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Sources

20/20, Over My Dead Body, S42, E3

Dateline, Cold-Blooded, 2020

Extreme Punishment by Steven B. Epstein

Katherine Magbanua v. State of Florida, Petition for Writ of Certiorari, First District Court of Appeal, 5/31/2019

Magbanua, Garcia, and Charles Adelson Court Appearance Video Footage, Law & Crime Network, 2016-2023

Probable Cause First Degree Murder, Charlie Adelson, 9/9/2016

State of Florida v. Charles “Charlie” Adelson, Written Plea of Not Guilty and Demand for Discovery, 4/26/2022

The Unveiling: A Mother’s Reflection on Murder, Grief, and Trial Life by Ruth Markel

Mar 07, 2023

01:43:41

Jana and Bruce Koklich were the ideal couple in many ways. Jana was a smart and attractive woman whose father had been an influential California state senator. Bruce was her dedicated, hard-working, and charming husband. Together, they ran a successful California real estate business and owned several valuable properties. But after going to an Eric Clapton concert with a friend in August of 2001, Jana disappeared.

Join us at the quiet end for Never Seen Again. Bruce Koklich, as Jana’s concerned husband, appeared on the news and pleaded for her to return home safely. But some friends and family members felt like something was off. Bruce’s business and personal choices were scrutinized, leading some to suspect that he was involved in his wife’s disappearance. But Jana had not been with Bruce on the night she disappeared, so was it possible that she had left her husband to start a new life or had she been a target of foul play?

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Sources

The Charley Project, Jana Carpenter Koklich, https://charleyproject.org/case/jana-carpenter-koklich

Los Angeles Times Archives 2002-2008

Monstrous Arrogance, University at Albany Journal of Criminal Justice and Popular Culture, Cynthia Lewis, 2008

People v. Koklich, California Court of Appeal, 5/1/2006

Vanished by Carlton Smith

Feb 21, 2023

01:22:08

Back on July 2, 1970, tourists visiting Loch Ard Gorge, Australia, found a crashed car teetering on the edge of an oceanside cliff. It looked like the car could plunge into the water at any moment. After investigators were called to the scene, the mystery grew deeper. The car’s license plate was traced to a family living over 100 miles away.

Once the car was towed from the cliff’s edge, the inside was inspected. Investigators were horrified to find four dead bodies, including three young children. The back seat of the car had been removed and someone had attached a hose leading from the tailpipe to the front window, suggesting suicide. This find sent waves of grief and confusion throughout Australia. There were so many questions and very few answers.

Join us at the quiet end for Fugitive Father, a dialogue about a terrible crime which has become an enduring mystery. The victims in the car were identified as members of the Crawford family from 136 Cardinal Road, but the father was missing. It seemed possible that Elmer Crawford had been thrown from the vehicle, until witnesses came forward to say that they had seen Elmer after the car was found.

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Sources

Almost Perfect: The True Story of the Brutal, Unsolved Crawford Family Murders, Greg Fogarty, 2010

Crawford Executed, Bashed Family, Heraldsun.com.au, 2/10/2008

The Crawford Family, Felon S1 E1, 3/10/2020

Killer Crawford Still Haunts Ex-Cop, The Standard (Warrnambool), 7/13/2010

Precise Detailed Detection of Faces and Facial Features, IEEE Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition, Ding, L., Martinez, A. 2008

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The Crawford Children: Katherine, James, & Karen

Feb 20, 2023

00:09:11

Sheree Warren left her job in Salt Lake City on a mild October evening in 1985. She told a coworker she was headed to meet her estranged husband, Charles Warren, at a car dealership. But she never made it, Sheree vanished. When her car mysteriously surfaced weeks later, hundreds of miles away in Las Vegas, no one could say how it got there.

When a young mother disappears under unexplained circumstances, police always turn suspicious eyes towards the husband. And although there was distrust around Charles Warren, he wasn’t the only suspect when Sheree went missing. She also had a boyfriend, a former cop named Cary Hartmann, who lived a sinister double life.

Season three follows two suspects– men who both raised suspicion for investigators. But with two strong persons of interest with competing facts and evidence, it muddied the murder investigation. This season, host Dave Cawley, digs into the lives of these two men, the details of the case and examines the intersections between domestic abuse and sexual violence. The COLD team seeks to answer the question: what really happened to Sheree Warren?

Hey Prime Members, you can binge all 10 episodes of COLD: The Search for Sheree ad-free on Amazon Music. Download the Amazon Music app today: wondery.fm/TCB_ColdS3

Feb 07, 2023

01:07:05

After 18-year-old Kaitlyn Arquette was murdered in 1989, the Albuquerque police department believed it was a random act of violence. But as details were released, possible motives for her murder came to light.

Join us at the quiet end for Who Killed Kaitlyn? Kaitlyn had argued with her boyfriend on the night she was killed. She also had knowledge of a gang-related insurance scheme. But despite her family’s efforts and an extensive police investigation, Kaitlyn’s case went cold. Until early last year, when a suspect was indicted.

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Sources

Albuquerque Journal Archives 1988-2022

Kaitlyn Arquette Website https://kaitarquette.arquettes.com/

One to the Wolves by Lois Duncan

Paul Apodaca indicted for high profile murder of Kaitlyn Arquette, KOAT7, Laflin, Nancy, 2/23/2022

Who Killed My Daughter? by Lois Duncan

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The Arquette family: Kerry and Brett (back row), Don with Donnie, and Lois with Kaitlyn and Robin (front row).

Jan 24, 2023

01:51:38

Registered Nurse Julie Keown had goals for her life: start a family, purchase a home, advance in her career. She just needed to stay the course while her husband completed his MBA at Harvard and they would be all set. But sadly, Julie’s life was cruelly cut short and she didn’t live to see the future which she had worked and planned for all her life.

Join us at the quiet end for Sweet Talker. Julie and her husband James moved from Missouri to Massachusetts after James was accepted into Harvard Business School’s MBA program. Julie was able to work from home setting up hospitals with medical software and she believed that their finances were on the upswing. But James had secrets. He was fired from his job for lying, he had racked up thousands in credit card debt, his car was repossessed, and there were issues with his education. From all angles, James’ life was falling apart. We’ll never know how much Julie knew about James’ lies, but we do know how far he was willing to go to save himself from financial and social ruin.

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Sources

Commonwealth v. James Keown, Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, 10/23/2017

Death by Deception, Dateline, 1/9/2009

Lie After Lie by Lara Bricker, 2010

Man Guilty of Killing Wife with Antifreeze, CBS News, 7/2/2008

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Julie & James

Jan 23, 2023

00:04:01

Hosted by Ash Kelley and Alaina Urquhart from the hit show Morbid.

When 90-year-old Laurence Pilgeram drops dead on the sidewalk outside his condo, you might think that’s the end of his story. But, really, it’s just the beginning. Because Laurence and others like him have signed up to be frozen and brought back to life in the future. And that belief will pull multiple generations of the Pilgeram family into a cryonics soap opera filled with dead pets, gold coins, grenades, fist fights, mysterious packages, family feuds, Hall of Fame baseball legends, and frozen heads — lots of frozen heads. From Wondery, comes a story about life, death, and what comes next.

Follow Frozen Head on Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge early and ad-free by subscribing to Wondery+ in Apple Podcasts or the Wondery App.

Listen to Frozen Head: wondery.fm/FH_TCB

Jan 10, 2023

01:41:14

McKay Everett was the adored only child of Paulette and Carl Everett. The tight-knit family of three lived a comfortable life in an upscale subdivision in Conroe, Texas, a town just a few miles north of Houston. Crime was uncommon in the Everett’s neighborhood, but they still took precautions, including the installation of a home security system.

Join us at the quiet end for A Killer at the Door: The Abduction and Murder of McKay Everett. At 12-years-old, McKay knew all about stranger danger. But kidnapping by a complete stranger is rare. And one of the rarest murders of all is a murder committed in the course of a kidnapping. In this case, McKay had been taken from his home by someone he knew, someone who had lured McKay’s parents out of their home to get them out of the way. So, how did McKay know his killer and what was the motive behind this inconceivable betrayal?