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The theme for this week’s episode is COUPLES! Nathalie starts off with the controversial case about Edith Thompson and Frederick Bywaters, a couple put on trial and executed for Frederick’s murder of Edith’s husband Percy. Although Edith had nothing to do with the murder, her love letters to Frederick (proof of her affair) were enough to convince the jury that Edith deserved death by hanging. Rachel then tells the story of Jenny and Joseph Carrier. The media described this couple as a modern day Bonnie and Clyde after they were arrested for a month long, multi-state bank robbing spree. The comparison to the most notorious couple in American history is not a fair one, as Jenny and Joseph were struggling with addiction. Rachel discusses how opioid addiction affects the mind and body. We review the importance of early intervention for people who struggle with addiction and discuss harm reduction strategies. Nathalie’s Sources https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edith_Thompson_and_Frederick_Bywaters http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org/edith.html https://murderpedia.org/male.B/b/bywaters-frederick.htm https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/edith-thompson-death-penalty-capital-punishment-hanging-miscarriage-justice-buried-mother-murder-bywaters-younger-lover-husband-grave-a8647636.html Rachel’s Sources Opioid Overdose Prevention Toolkit: https://store.samhsa.gov/product/Opioid-Overdose-Prevention-Toolkit/SMA18-4742 https://www.masslive.com/news/2015/09/suspects_identified_in_ludlow.html https://www.masslive.com/news/2015/09/ludlow_police_investigating_ap.html https://www.masslive.com/news/2015/09/ludlow_police_receive_warrants.html https://www.fbi.gov/history/famous-cases/bonnie-and-clyde https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/heroin https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland/harford/aegis/ph-ag-aberdeen-bank-robbery-1021-story.html https://boston.cbslocal.com/2015/10/20/quincy-couple-wanted-for-bank-robberies-in-several-states/ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3282856/Modern-day-Bonnie-Clyde-wanted-robbing-banks-East-Coast-stolen-Buick-feed-heroin-habit.html https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/10/27/mass-couple-arrested-string-east-coast-bank-heists/UV1YIZT9bH5xdfp3iHGpII/story.html https://www.phillymag.com/news/2015/10/28/bank-robbers-captured-philadelphia-jenny-carrier/

John Dillinger, leader of the Dillenger gang, was a gangster during the Great Depression. John was born in a farm town in Indiana and began causing trouble in early childhood. After a dishonorable discharge from the Navy, John made his way to Indiana and was arrested after robbing a grocery store. He was convicted and sentenced to 10 to 20 years in the Indiana State Prison. While incarcerated, he made friends with other law breakers and formed the Dillenger gang. After his release he would go on to rob 24 banks, four police stations, and kill a police officer, leading law enforcement on a wild goose chase. While evading arrest, John stayed with Evelyn “Billie” Frechette. Although Billie was never directly involved with his crime, she was pursued by the FBI and arrested for harboring a fugitive, Listen now to hear the rest of Billie’s story! Rachel’s Sources: https://www.news-medical.net/health/Gonorrhea-History.aspx https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herman_Lamm https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/dillinger-letters-and-laws/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Dillinger https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evelyn_Frechette http://www.dillingerswomen.com/Evelyn-Trial.html https://www.wxpr.org/arts-life/2019-07-17/you-know-john-dillinger-but-do-you-know-evelyn-frechette

Mary and William (Bill) Yoder ran the Chiropractic Family Center together. Mary was generally a healthy person so when she began to experience stomach issues on July 20th, 2015 she assumed it was just a bug that would soon pass. Mary, however, started to feel much worse over the next few days and was eventually hospitalized for her symptoms. Everyone was shocked when Mary suddenly died, it was clear something was not right. After discovering toxic levels of a drug used to treat gout in Mary’s blood her death was ruled a homicide. Kaitlyn Conley, who worked at the center and had dated the Yoder’s son Adam on and off, was arrested, charged, and convicted of the murder of Mary Yoder. Nathalie takes us through how things may not be what they seem in this case, listen now for the full story! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkSAS3aYe14 https://www.ocgov.net/sites/default/files/distatty/EvidenceProsecution/Search%20Warrant%20%28John%20Doe%20%2316228%29.pdf https://www.freekaitlynconley.com/ https://www.uticaod.com/story/news/crime/2021/09/21/kaitlyn-conleys-second-attempt-appeal-manslaughter-charge-denied/5799335001/ https://thecinemaholic.com/mary-yoder-murder-where-is-kaitlyn-conley-now/ https://www.wktv.com/archive/court-denies-kaitlyn-conleys-final-attempt-to-appeal-manslaughter-conviction/article_f656d923-8813-50b5-9d95-e12bbf571385.html https://www.syracuse.com/crime/2021/03/court-denies-kaitlyn-conleys-appeal-that-she-killed-her-former-boyfriends-mom.html

On July 21st, 2018, Lana Clayton was spotted running into the road by a motorcyclist. She had found her husband, Steve, collapsed and unresponsive at the bottom of the stairs. The police arrived at the Clayton home along with Steve's nephews. Although the police initially believed Steve had died from a heart attack, there were many red flags during the investigation. Lana was a nurse but had made no attempt to revive her husband. She also denied Steve had a will and pushed for cremation to avoid any tests being run on the body, After Steve's nephews grew suspicious of Lana's behavior, they requested a toxicology report and autopsy, It turns out Steve had tetrahydrozoline, or THZ, present in his system. THZ can be found in eye drops, such as Visine, and can kill someone if consumed. Lana's story quickly began to unravel and soon found herself at the center of the investigation. Listen now to hear the full story! Rachel's Sources: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/steve-lana-clayton-eyedrop-medication-homicide-48-hours/ https://thecinemaholic.com/where-is-lana-clayton-now/ https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/steve-lana-clayton-eyedrops-48-hours/19/ https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/crime/joshua-hunsucker-eye-drop-murder-trial-gag-order-judge/275-4476a01c-69ec-4dbb-867f-df7755af8bcf https://www.mountvernon.org/

This week we cover two more cases that helped inspire the musical, Chicago. Nathalie starts with the story of Sabella Nitti, who was accused of murdering her husband, Peter Crudele. Even though the case against her was essentially non-existent, the prosecutor relied heavily on her looks as well as sexism, racism, and stereotypes to convince a jury that she was a murderer. After being found guilty, Sabella's case was taken over by a much more competent group of lawyers. One of her new lawyers was Helen Cirese. Helen not only helped with navigating appeals, but also helped give Sabella a makeover, making her more appealing to her new jury. It turns out a haircut and a wardrobe had a HUGE impact during her new trial. Next, Rachel tells the story of Kitty Malm, aka the Tiger Woman. Kitty was a young woman who had the misfortune of marrying the wrong man. After her first marriage, Kitty thought she had found a new love after meeting Otto Malm. Otto had a criminal background and soon Kitty was helping him rob shops all around the city. One night, Otto shot and killed a security guard. The authorities started to go after known criminal, Walter Bockelman, and pegged Ethel Beck, a sex worker, as his accomplice. However, perhaps in an attempt to clear his conscience, Otto sort of confessed to the crime. He claimed that he was there, but it was Kitty who killed the security guard. Kitty tried to escape but eventually turned herself in when she was ready to face her fate. Rachel's Source: The Wolf Woman by Douglas Perry Nathalie's Sources: https://www.librarything.com/character/Isabella+Nitti+Crudelle%2C+%E2%80%9CSabella%E2%80%9D https://news.wttw.com/2017/06/21/ugly-prey-tells-story-first-woman-sentenced-hang-chicago https://www.womansday.com/life/a58890/ugly-prey/ https://scandalsandsweets.com/sabella-nitti-saved-by-a-makeover/ https://www.racked.com/2018/1/26/16927682/makeover-death-penalty-sabella-nitti https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/508498/lawyer-who-fought-free-first-woman-sentenced-death-chicago

Starting in 1979, China enacted a law to limit couples to one child in attempt to control the country’s population. In October of 2011,  Feng Jianmei became pregnant with her second child. There were some exceptions to the one child law. Feng and her husband, Deng Jiyuan, believed they were allowed to have a second child since they had waited 5 years and also lived in a rural area. Local authorities first tried to fine Feng and Deng. They then tried to convince Feng to have an abortion, but she refused. The government tracked Feng down and forced her to have an abortion at 7 months. A photo of Feng and her aborted child went viral, shocking the entire world. China faced scrutiny and would replace their one-child policy with a two-child policy in 2016. https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/03/politics/oklahoma-heartbeat-act-abortion-governor-stitt-signs/index.html https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2022/5/6/2096338/-In-Tennessee-Plan-B-by-mail-is-now-a-felony-carrying-a-50k-fine https://www.newsweek.com/anger-louisiana-abortion-bill-could-see-women-charged-murder-1704069 https://www.businessinsider.com/arizona-gop-senate-candidate-blake-masters-campaigning-against-birth-control-2022-5 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One-child_policy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forced_abortion_of_Feng_Jianmei https://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/27/world/asia/chinese-family-in-forced-abortion-case-still-under-pressure.html https://www.npr.org/2012/07/05/156211106/after-a-forced-abortion-a-roaring-debate-in-china https://world.time.com/2012/07/13/china-forced-abortion-victim-awarded-11200-fears-for-life/ https://chrissmith.house.gov/uploadedfiles/2012-07-09_continued_human_rights_attacks_on_families_in_china.pdf

In 1983, 92-year-old World War II veteran, Edmund Schreiber was found strangled to death with his own neckties in his Buffalo home. The case went unsolved for many years, haunting Edmund’s family. The case was reopened by the cold case unit in 2016. New DNA evidence pointed towards Saundra Adams. Saundra was 17 years old at the time of the murder. Her family lived down the street from Edmund. At first, Saundra denied having any involvement in the crime, but she would later pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter to avoid going to trial over a charge of second-degree murder. Although the judge determined Saundra was the least culpable out of her accomplices, Saundra was denied youthful offender status. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4861998/Western-NY-librarian-pleads-guilty-death-WWI-veteran.htmlhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blizzard_of_1977https://criminaldefense.1800nynylaw.com/new-york-penal-law-125-25-murder-in-the-second-degree.htmlhttps://criminaldefense.1800nynylaw.com/new-york-penal-law-125-20-manslaughter-in-the-first-degree.htmlhttps://buffalonews.com/news/local/family-of-suspect-in-1983-cold-case-murder-says-she-didn-t-do-it/article_5cb231d1-a727-5cf9-93cc-b8d7b463e176.htmlhttps://www.insideedition.com/25386-librarian-pleads-guilty-in-cold-case-killing-of-wwi-veteran-strangled-with-his-own-neckties

In 2016, Crystal Mason cast a provisional ballot for the United States presidential election. She had completed a five-year sentence for tax fraud, but was on federal supervised release. Crystal was not aware that the state of Texas prohibited convicted felons from voting while on parole, probation, or while under supervision. A letter had been sent to her residence…after she had already been incarcerated. Crystal had never seen the letter. Crystal was later convicted for voter fraud and sentenced to five years imprisonment. There are multiple efforts to appeal or overturn the conviction, though none have been successful so far. https://www.justice.gov/archive/usao/txn/PressRel11/hobbs_mason%20hobbs_tax_ple_pr.html https://casetext.com/case/mason-v-state-5232066 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loss_of_rights_due_to_criminal_conviction https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2022/01/voter-fraud-myth-election-lie/620846/

This week we cover the cases of two women sentenced to death for the crime of filicide. Nathalie discusses the case of Melissa Lucio, subject of the 2020 documentary, The State of Texas vs. Melissa. Melissa was convicted of the abuse and killing of her two-year-old daughter. Melissa was arrested and convicted of murder because of the evidence of abuse…but being responsible for abuse does not necessarily make someone a murderer. While Melissa did admit to some of the abuse, she denied being responsible for her child’s death. Nathalie explores the intricacies of this case and the process of appeals. Rachel then tells the story of Christie Michelle Scott. On August 16th, 2008, Christie’s son Mason was killed in a fire in her home. Christie was distraught…or so it seemed. It turned out that Christie had taken out a new life insurance policy on her son just before his death. She also had been involved in a few home fires before this event. Was Christie a very unlucky woman? Or was there a more sinister explanation? Rachel's Sources https://mycrimelibrary.com/christie-michelle-scott-women-on-death-row/ http://encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-2927 https://murderpedia.org/female.S/s/scott-christie.htm https://murderpedia.org/female.W/w/ward-natashay.htm https://www.al.com/news/huntsville/2015/10/former_uah_professor_convicted.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_County,_Alabama http://www.doc.state.al.us/facility?loc=5 Nathalie's Sources https://www.texasmonthly.com/arts-entertainment/did-melissa-lucio-the-first-hispanic-woman-on-death-row-in-texas-kill-her-daughter-an-uneven-new-documentary-raises-more-questions-than-answers/ https://www.ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions/pub/16/16-70027-CV0.pdf

On March 25th, 2005, Anna Ayala erupted in a scream. She had found a human finger in her Wendy's chili. Throughout this episode, Rachel replaced the word "finger" with "circus peanut" as it is something that is equally disgusting but does not make her feel light headed to talk about. Anna was quick to hire a lawyer, however, many began to question the legitimacy of her claim. Turns out, she had scammed before and was likely scamming again. She conveniently decided to stop pursuing legal action against Wendy's, but seeing as they had lost an estimated $2.5 million dollars it was clear Anna was not getting off easy. The police began to investigate where this finger had come from. In a weird turn of events it was suspected the finger may have come from an incident where a woman was bitten by a spotted leopard? Listen now to hear the twists and turns on this roller coaster of a case. ABC’s ‘Good Morning America’ on Finger in Chili Again - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6-kxlrwuc8 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Ayala https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/finger-food/ https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/finger-put-in-wendys-chili-was-cooked-first/ https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/wendys-chili-finger-lady-comes-clean/1884507/ https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna7487945 https://www.chron.com/news/nation-world/article/Animal-rescuer-links-leopard-bite-to-finger-in-1483211.php

This week Nathalie covered two cases related to women caught in the crosshairs of the legal system for using medications during pregnancy. She tells the story of Lindsay Ridgell, a mother from Phoenix. Lindsay suffered from hyperemesis gravidarum during her pregnancy. This condition causes severe vomiting and nausea, and Lindsay had to be hospitalized twice from dehydration before giving birth. Lindsay had treated her condition with medical marijuana, which is legal in the state of Arizona. Lindsay had agreed to wean off the medical marijuana but found it was the only thing that helped her even keep food down. After giving birth, Lindsay was reported to the Department of Child Safety and was told she would be placed on the child abuse registry. Before getting pregnant, Kim Blalock suffered from arthritis and degenerative disk disease. The year before her pregnancy she experienced surgical complications and a car accident that only worsened her pain. Her pain was managed with a hydrocodone prescription. When she became pregnant she discontinued taking the medication. The entire pregnancy was long and incredibly painful, however, in the last six weeks before her due date the pain became unbearable, prompting Kim to seek medical treatment. Kim had no idea that taking a medication prescribed by her doctors would lead to an investigation by the Department of Human Resources and a possible felony conviction. https://www.thelily.com/a-mom-was-charged-with-child-neglect-for-using-medical-marijuana-while-pregnant-the-arizona-case-could-set-a-precedent/ https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/national/article254240778.html https://casetext.com/case/ridgell-v-ariz-dept-of-child-safety https://www.elle.com/culture/a39541235/kim-blalock-took-lawfully-prescribed-pain-killers-during-pregnancyand-was-charged-with-a-felony/?utm_campaign=socialflowTWELM&utm_medium=social-media&utm_source=twitter https://www.al.com/news/2021/06/alabama-mom-faces-jail-for-filling-doctors-prescription-while-pregnant.html https://www.al.com/news/2022/02/charge-dropped-against-alabama-woman-who-renewed-pain-pill-prescription-while-pregnant.html

Jeanette Ortiz had been working at the Chipotle across the street from Fresno State for 14 years. She worked 50 hours a week and made $72k a year., not a bad salary for the fast food industry. While this may seem like a lot of money, Jeanette had 9 children to house and feed. She was going through some financial difficulties when she filed a workers' compensation claim in December of 2014. She continued to work through January the following year when she went on medical leave. While she was out, Jeanette was informed by her supervisors she was being fired for stealing. They accused her of taking $636 from the store's safe, but she was not allowed to see the video. Jeanette was adamant she did not take that money, she even had another manager from the store that could vouch for it. It appeared Chipotle may have had other motivations for firing Jeanette, listen now to hear how it played out in the courtroom. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/business/wp/2018/05/14/chipotle-wrongfully-accused-a-manager-of-stealing-636-she-just-won-millions-in-court/ https://www.thebalancesmb.com/history-of-chipotle-mexican-grill-3973222 https://www.businessinsider.com/chipotle-pay-ex-manager-8-million-in-wrongful-termination-case-2018-5 https://bplaw-inc.com/warren-r-paboojian/ https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/punitive_damages https://www.ttla.com/index.cfm?pg=mcdonaldscoffeecasefacts https://www.fastcompany.com/90714685/we-are-fast-food-executives-if-our-industry-is-to-survive-workers-need-a-greater-voice