SERIALously - 148: Rapist Gets Castrated, Suzanne Morphew Killed With Barry's Tranquilzer Dart?! & Karen Read Trial Recap

Episode Date: May 2, 2024

Suzanne Morphew, the Colorado mom who went missing on a bike ride in May 2020, died by homicide, according to an autopsy released on Monday, April 29th. Will her husband, Barry Morphew, be charged wit...h her murder again? Karen Read’s murder trial is officially underway. Opening statements and testimony from family members and first responders were heard during the first 2 days of trial. Madeline Soto Episode: https://pod.fo/e/223667 Suzanne Morphew Episode: https://pod.fo/e/1f2e08 Karen Read Episode: https://pod.fo/e/22c58f Shop the Merch: www.annieelise.com Follow the podcast on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@serialouslypodcast   Follow the podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/serialouslypod/       Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/annieelise     All Social Media Links: https://www.flowcode.com/page/annieelise_    SERIALously FB Page: https://www.facebook.com/SERIALouslyAnnieElise/    About Me: https://annieelise.com/   For Business Inquiries: 10toLife@WMEAgency.com  Sources: Denver Post Fox26 Houston NBC10 Law & Crime Denver7 Audio Credits: Fox26 Houston Denver7 Law & Crime Good Morning America

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Changing a light bulb should be simple. Whoa, whoa, whoa. Uh-oh, that's not supposed to happen. Quickly submitting and tracking a claim on the Bel Air Direct app actually is simple. Bel Air Direct. Insurance simplified. Hey, true crime besties. Welcome back to an all-new episode of Serialistly. Hello, hello, hello. Welcome back to an all new episode of Serialistly with me, Annie Elise. I hope you guys are having a good week so far. I'm probably about to ruin it with all these case updates and new cases I have to share
Starting point is 00:00:54 with you. But before we get into all of that, I did want to just let you know, you might be noticing that the cover art has changed a little bit. The reason why, long story short, is before we had on the cover art the serial was emphasized because of course serialously is a play on the word serial like serial killers and things like that but apparently I made a few enemies at the New York Times and they thought that I was trying to make it a spin-off of their series Serial because they're the ones who own
Starting point is 00:01:23 the podcast Serial. And so we had been talking with them trying to make it work to where, you know, we could have the podcast name that we want. And we told them out of all the reviews we have and everything, nobody's ever said that they thought that there was a tie to Serial. But anyways, we settled on changing the cover art so that the Serial wasn't emphasized and that the new name of the podcast would technically be Ser serial-lessly with Annie Elise. So that's why you're noticing a change in the art.
Starting point is 00:01:49 Not that it matters, but still wanted to address it in case you're like, oh, what's going on, Annie? I miss the old art. I miss it too, guys. But we're just trying to make everybody happy over here. We're not trying to make enemies with the man, if that makes sense. Okay, so we have a lot of cases to talk about today. New, old, existing, all the things.
Starting point is 00:02:08 I wanna start with the Madeline Soto case, because if you have been following that, you know that there have been some updates that are coming out. Madeline is the little girl who went missing when she was supposed to go to school. Her mom reported her missing later that day. She had never showed up at school,
Starting point is 00:02:23 come to find out that the boyfriend was involved. There were allegations that he had been sexually abusing Madeline for years. He was also caught on CCTV dumping her school backpack and I believe her school laptop as well and it just wasn't looking good. Then when they seized his devices, they found all sorts of explicit child material
Starting point is 00:02:41 involving Madeline on it. And I mean, it was pretty obvious that he was the one responsible for her disappearance and for her murder because her remains ended up being found. But weeks and weeks went by and there were no charges. But officially now, Stefan Stearns, the boyfriend of Madeline's mom, was officially charged with murdering her. Now unfortunately, there aren't any other details other than he's been charged and the prosecutors have not said whether or not they will seek the death penalty but once there is more information I will definitely keep you guys updated. We also don't know if the mom is going to be charged with anything.
Starting point is 00:03:16 She hasn't at this point but a lot of people think that she is complicit that maybe she didn't commit the murder but helped him with the cover-up because there was some weird stuff going on with her interview, her stories weren't really matching, and again because the sexual abuse had apparently been ongoing for years people are like how couldn't she know? Was she complicit? Did she allow this? Which I don't want to shame her, she is a victim in this in my opinion in the sense that she's a mother and lost her daughter. However, if she was complicit, my opinions of course change. But I think that there are many times where somebody can be being abused in a
Starting point is 00:03:53 house and other people in the house don't know, so that's not to shame her at all. But we'll find out if she did know and we'll see if she is charged as an accessory or any sort of conspiracy or concealment, cover up any of those things. So stay tuned for that. I also will put in the show notes the full episode I did on this case so that you can get caught up, but a million trigger warnings guys, it is beyond horrific. Now with that, I kind of want to go into a case that makes me very, very happy and it's
Starting point is 00:04:23 about disgusting, creepy rapists who are finally getting the punishment that they deserve. Because Glenn Sullivan, a 54-year-old man from Louisiana who repeatedly raped a 14-year-old little girl and impregnated her, he is going to be physically castrated while serving a 50-year prison sentence. This is all part of a plea deal. According to court records, Glenn had groomed this 14-year-old victim,
Starting point is 00:04:50 and he also used threats of violence against her and her family, also that he could keep her quiet. I mean, truly disgusting, truly sick. Then when she was pregnant, DNA evidence proved that he was the father of the child. So he pled guilty on April 17th to four counts of second-degree rape and he agreed to be surgically castrated as opposed to chemically castrated. Which let me just say when I first saw this headline I was like, wait this
Starting point is 00:05:17 can't be real and I like clicked into it I started researching it. It is. I was like why isn't that the rule of thumb for all rapists? Why aren't they all castrated from the jump? I just feel like it makes so much sense, not only so they can never reoffend in the future if they're let out, but also so they can't reoffend in the prison with other inmates. You know what I mean? So I was really pleased when I saw this. It probably made me more happy than it should, but it did. Now, the district attorney in this case said, and I quote, sex crimes against juveniles are the most malicious crimes we prosecute. I intend on using every tool the legislator is willing
Starting point is 00:05:54 to give us, including physical castration, all to seek justice for the children in our community. Many of us have heard of chemical, but when you talk about physical, exactly what does that mean? Yeah, thanks for having me. Of course, we're talking physical this time, as you said, unlike the chemical. I've had probably two or three, I think over the course of my career, chemical castrations that are ordered. And what that entails in the state of Louisiana is a scheduled administration of shots
Starting point is 00:06:25 throughout the remainder of the defendant's life that he has to go in, he has to report, and he has to voluntarily intake. And if he ever were to take testosterone or steroids to counteract those injections, then that would be a new charge and he would go back to prison. For the case of physical castration,
Starting point is 00:06:44 we're talking about a surgeon surgically removing the defendant's testicles from his body. So Glenn Sullivan has lived in Libeson Parish, if I understand his whole life, and I can tell you he is what we call a longtime offender or a career defendant. He has constantly been a part in the justice system as a defendant. And this particular crime that he's committed is just so egregious and so heinous. The raping of a 14 year old girl,
Starting point is 00:07:13 which led to her being pregnant. Now this girl is raising this child. I mean, she has to live with this the rest of her life. With this child that I'm sure she's gonna love and she's gonna raise. And I know, I really commend her. She was able to actually finish school, get her high school diploma, and she's really
Starting point is 00:07:32 making something of herself and I'm proud of her for that. And Mr. Sullivan, just being the lifelong defendant that he is, committing such a horrible act to this young girl, I think he deserves every bit of this. It just makes me so happy. I feel like finally that is good justice. That is, I appreciate when people go to prison, don't get me wrong, I can appreciate like all of the things, but like that is just true divine intervention if you ask me. Speaking of divine intervention guys, I want to talk to you about Suzanne Morphew because I have been long awaiting this day
Starting point is 00:08:09 and you'll understand why. Now, as a reminder for those of you who are not very familiar with the case, Suzanne Morphew is the Colorado mom who went missing while she was out for a bike ride back in May of 2020, specifically on Mother's Day. Her husband Barry had been arrested, which I will get into in
Starting point is 00:08:25 a minute, but then he was released and the charges were dropped. But Suzanne died by homicide. This, according to an autopsy that was released on Monday, April 29th. Now, if you haven't heard of this case before, I will link a podcast episode about this case in the show notes as well, because this one is so wild. I mean, from the jump, I definitely thought that her husband Barry was involved. There were so many shady things he did, such as his cell phone activity on the property that day that she went missing, the weird trip to the hotel,
Starting point is 00:08:56 which then reeked of chlorine. Then it was like the papers he brought to the hotel. Like nothing was making any sense, which he ultimately ended up being charged. But then the charges were dropped, which we talk about all of that in the episode, and I'm gonna talk about more of it in a second here, but I have just been like waiting for justice in this case.
Starting point is 00:09:13 So Suzanne's body ended up being found almost three years later in September of 2023, when investigators were searching on an unrelated case in Moffett, Colorado, which is about 90 minutes south of where Suzanne lived. So her death was determined to have been caused by homicide by undetermined means in the setting of butoprenol, azaparone,
Starting point is 00:09:34 and metadiminine intoxication. Now, I know that those were a mouthful guys, but I'm gonna break down what they are. So the El Paso County Coroner said that these drugs are marketed as a compounded injectable chemical tranquilizer, a tranquilizer for wildlife. And they said that there was no indication of trauma to Suzanne's body at the time of her death as well.
Starting point is 00:09:56 Her biking clothes were found with her remains. And in addition, the autopsy noted a quote, weathered bullet that was found with her remains. However, the autopsy said that her feet and her shoes were missing. So like I said, very more few. Suzanne's husband was charged with her murder back in 2021, but those charges were dropped in April of 2022, just before a trial was supposed to begin. Now, at first, when the charges were dropped, people were saying that it was because her remains hadn't been found yet and they were waiting until everything like froze over so that they could
Starting point is 00:10:30 thaw the remains once they did find them all of these things. But his daughters have been standing by aside from day one saying he absolutely would never murder our mother. We believe in his innocence which we'll see what happens after this kind of feels very Chad Daybell like, right? But anyways, those charges were dropped in April of 2022. We've been silent for a long time and we've decided that we finally want to break the silence. This morning, just days before the second anniversary of her disappearance, the family of Suzanne Morphew is speaking out for the first time since the murder charges against her husband were dropped. It's been an emotional rollercoaster, but we feel like we can finally take our first steps
Starting point is 00:11:11 in healing, which is a blessing. And yeah, we just know our dad better than anyone else. And we know he was not involved in our mom's disappearance. Mallory and Macy Morphew, standing by their father, anyone else. And we know he was not involved in our mom's disappearance. Mallory and may see more few standing by their father who investigators believe was responsible for their mother's disappearance 2 years ago, the 3 seen walking out of court arm in arm just moments after the charges against him were
Starting point is 00:11:37 dropped. We want to heal. We feel like we haven't been able to heal these past 2 years. The family says Suzanne left her Colorado home for a bike ride but never returned. I just love my girls and I love my wife and I just want her to be found. But investigators told a different story arresting Barry Morphew. The charge is ranging from first degree murder to tampering with physical evidence. Prosecutors argued that Morphew discovered his wife was having an affair, then murdered her, disposed of her body and
Starting point is 00:12:09 staged a bike crash in a rural area. Releasing this body camera footage from the hours after she was reported missing, police say Morphew touched evidence. Hey, could you not touch the bike with your hands, please? Morphew's daughters say he isn't a killer and are celebrating the dismissal of the case. Now demanding district attorney Linda Stanley should do more. I just hope that Linda will step up to the plate and do everything she can to find our mom because what they've done is not fair and we're never gonna stop looking for a mom. Court filings say that while authorities are close to
Starting point is 00:12:48 discovering Suzanne's body, weather has complicated the efforts. The location where Suzanne's body is believed to be has five feet of snow concealing it. But the family's attorney says authorities have mishandled the case and are planning to file a complaint against the D.A. If you want to honor Suzanne and you want to honor the daughters go find Suzanne. The da's office telling ABC News they and law enforcement
Starting point is 00:13:11 have been diligently searching for Susan more few since she was reported missing and that they are continuing to do so. Prosecutors need to be held responsible. And they need to pay for the damage they've caused to Barry which is frankly nearly irreparable because it's hard for anybody to believe that Barry is not who they claim he was. Now the family spoke out this weekend it was Suzanne Murphy
Starting point is 00:13:36 Murphy's birthday and her daughter say of course they wished they were spending it with her the charges against Barry more few were dismissed without prejudice which means that if investigators do uncover new evidence, those charges can be filed again, Michael. But now, the fact that she died with animal tranquilizers in her body has a lot of people remembering about a certain detail in Barry's history.
Starting point is 00:13:59 And we covered this in the other episode, which again, I'll link it all in the show notes. But good old Barry has a history with tranquilizers. Specifically, during a search of the Morpheus family home after Suzanne disappeared, law enforcement officials reported finding a tranquilizer dart gun and empty darts and a needle that was used to inject tranquilizer chemicals
Starting point is 00:14:21 into the darts. They also found a cap that was used to cover the injecting needle in the clothes dryer at the home. And what else was in that clothing dryer at the house? Bedsheets and clothing. So at the time when that was found, people were like, oh, he 100% tranquilized her,
Starting point is 00:14:36 and then he forgot that he had the cap and it came off in the laundry. Now, prosecutors believed that on the afternoon of May 9th, 2020, Barry loaded a syringe for a tranquilizer dart, put his phone on airplane mode, then shot his wife Suzanne with the dart. He then chased her around the house until the tranquilizer took effect. And we talk about this in all of the various phone pings around his yard.
Starting point is 00:14:57 Now here's what Barry has told investigators in interviews over the years about his tranquilizer gun, his darts, and the chemicals. This all according to the police affidavit when he was arrested and charged with her murder. Barry first told investigators on May 28th, 2020 that he kept the darts in the home all in order to tranquilize deer, to then transport the animals and to sell them.
Starting point is 00:15:18 But he said that he only ever used it in Indiana, not in Colorado. Months later in March, 2021, Barry also told investigators that he used the darts to shoot and tranquilize deers so that he could cut off their antlers. And he said that he might have tranquilized two deer at his home in Colorado in late April. Then he told investigators he was afraid of getting in trouble with wildlife officials for the practice, and that's why he hadn't mentioned it any earlier. In April, 2021, Barry then told investigators
Starting point is 00:15:47 that he uses what's known as the BAM formulation. It's a mixture of the three drugs that were also coincidentally found in Suzanne Morphew's bones and that he said he used that formula to sedate deer. He told investigators that he bought the chemicals in Indiana and that he kept them on his workbench in vials. He said he mixed the chemicals in Indiana and that he kept them on his work bench in vials. He said he mixed the chemicals into darts himself rather than using a licensed veterinarian.
Starting point is 00:16:11 When investigators asked whether he could mix the tranquilizer without help from anybody, he said, yeah, absolutely. However, investigators didn't find any BAM formulation or tranquilizers in Barry Morphume's home after his wife Suzanne disappeared. One investigator asked Barry in April of 2021 whether he might have thrown those tranquilizers away in one of the five quote trash runs that he made in and around Broomfield on May 10th, 2020, which was the day after Suzanne was reported as missing. And he said to that, could have been. Yep, feeling like he has an answer for everything. And guys, this is why I'm telling you, this case was so crazy.
Starting point is 00:16:48 There was so much shady crap. The trash runs, the hotel. So you definitely need to listen to that full episode. So he said, okay, yeah, could have been. And now you might be thinking, okay, well, what about that tranquilizer needle cap that was found in the laundry room? Well, Barry admitted to investigators
Starting point is 00:17:04 that it did look a little suspicious. A little suspicious that a tranquilizer needle cap that was found in the laundry room. Well, Barry admitted to investigators that it did look a little suspicious, a little suspicious that a tranquilizer needle cap was found with bedsheets in the dryer, saying, quote, "'Because it looks like if I did something "'and ripped the sheet and got blood on them "'and then ripped them off and washed them, "'to me, looking at it through a detective's eyes, "'you would look a little suspicious.'"
Starting point is 00:17:23 Uh, yeah, dumb- dumb dumb, you think? Now during the interview, he said that he was confident that there was no evidence on the sheets, saying, I'm just being open with you. I obviously, things line up against me, coincidentally or for some reason. I mean, look back and see some of the things that happened and like, wow, gosh, that makes me look,
Starting point is 00:17:40 it makes me think that, why would God allow that? Those things in the situation to make me look like the sheets, the bed unmade, all these things, kind of kind of saying like kind of kind of spiraling being like I don't know why all those things are happening they're all making me look bad it's kind of weird that the sheets make me look bad it's unmade it's this it's ripped but it's like no it looks that way because in my opinion you did it and you made a lot of mistakes along the way then during a separate interview in April of 2021, Barry said that he had no idea
Starting point is 00:18:06 how that tranquilizer needle cap got into the dryer. He also denied using the tranquilizer gun on May 9th, 2020 when Suzanne disappeared, which is the day that Suzanne was last known to be alive. And he said, it's got nothing to do with me. I hate that because it just makes me look bad, being like, oh, it's everybody else. It makes me look bad, but I'm innocent.
Starting point is 00:18:24 I had nothing to do with it. Now, Barry's attorney previously said that the tranquilizer gun was broken when the authorities discovered it after Suzanne's disappearance. And she also screened body cam footage in the court that showed the county sheriff's deputies, stating that they didn't believe that a tranquilizer gun that was found in Barry's gun safe functioned. But then Barry changed his story yet again. This time he said that he sometimes shot deer in the backyard from his back door. He also admitted that he sometimes shot the tranquilizer gun from a little breezeway between the garage and the laundry room. Which let me just say how convenient
Starting point is 00:19:00 since that breezeway was also close to the area where Suzanne was last known to be alive. She had been sunbathing right behind their home. She also sent a selfie to her secret boyfriend around 2 p.m. on May 9, 2020. And that photo is the last time that investigators can prove that she was alive. And it's been suspected that he knew that Suzanne was about to leave him, so did he come home, he saw her send this selfie, did he just like fly into a rage, or had he already been planning this because he knew that she was going to be leaving him?
Starting point is 00:19:29 But here's another weird detail. Barry put his phone into airplane mode at 2.47 p.m. that day, and Suzanne never responded to messages from that guy that she had been texting, which were sent at 2.44 and 2.46 p.m. So as I mentioned, Barry's original murder charges were dropped and you would probably be wondering like how? Look at all the evidence against him,
Starting point is 00:19:50 which that's what my thoughts were exactly too. But since then, Barry has doubled down on his innocence going as far as to sue the prosecutors because he believes that he was wrongfully charged in the statement. Barry Morphew's attorney with a call for action. What needs to be done instead of pointing fingers at Barry Morphew is asking the officials about the number of missing people and the number of human remains that have been
Starting point is 00:20:12 recovered in or from Sawatch County in recent past. And Barry Morphew's attorney concluded with this statement, when law enforcement focuses in on one person and refuses to review of evidence objectively and fairly, it is a disservice to the community and creates exactly what has come to light. Years of unsolved murders." End quote. A defense attorney clearly on the offensive there.
Starting point is 00:20:39 And ever since Suzanne's body was found, Barry and their two adult daughters also accused investigators of not telling them whether they tested the bullet or the clothing for any DNA evidence. And according to Barry's lawyers, they've also spoken out and said that her autopsy results do not implicate Barry at all and that he's still innocent. They said, Barry Morphew is innocent and he could not have killed his wife. She got up the morning of Mother's Day. She had her cup of coffee. That is now confirmed with the autopsy report because, side note, caffeine was found in her body. It's also confirmed with the
Starting point is 00:21:10 autopsy report that she put on her bike clothes. She was on a bike ride and abducted. The tranquilizer that was found in her bones, allegedly, is a very common animal tranquilizer that could have been used on farms or by hunters, which are people who are very prevalent in that area of Salida. Salida is where Suzanne went missing. Which let me just say, I get attorneys need to defend. That is their job. I don't know about all of that. It seems like a huge stretch that coincidentally the same compounded tranquilizer that Barry
Starting point is 00:21:42 used, that he tried to lie about using in Colorado then finally admitted to using maybe once in Colorado was also found inside his dead wife's bones after she disappeared when his cell phone was pinging all around the yard chasing her when he also had a dark cap that was mysteriously left in a dryer I mean come on come on. So my question here is, will there be an arrest and more charges to come down the pike for Barry? We don't know yet. Personally, I hope so, because I truly believe that Barry killed Suzanne. Allegedly. And this seems like even more proof that he did do this. Plus, when he was first charged, investigators had not found Suzanne's body yet, if you remember. So, I know murder charges can be filed without a body, but I do think that Suzanne's new
Starting point is 00:22:29 autopsy results would be key in getting a conviction against Barry, and so maybe that's why they've waited to recharge him to add new charges, all of these things. And I'm just wondering, are the daughter still going to stand by his side through all of this, now that this is out, now that this autopsy result has been made public, it's not looking good for Barry. I again have thought he was guilty from day one. I could be wrong, but I really don't think I am. And I'm interested to know what you guys think.
Starting point is 00:22:55 Now let's talk a little bit about Karen Reed because Karen Reed's murder trial is officially underway. Opening statements and testimony started on Monday and they continued through Thursday. However, the court did have the day off on Wednesday and they're restarting today on Thursday. But as a reminder, Karen is charged with second degree murder in the 2022 death of her boyfriend,
Starting point is 00:23:16 who also happened to be a Boston police officer, John O'Keefe. He was found in the snow outside a fellow Boston police officer, Brian Albert's home in Canton, Massachusetts, and it has been shady from the jump. Prosecutors say that Karen hit John with her SUV, while Karen says that she's been framed, and this is a huge wide-ranging cover-up. Now, if you're interested in the deep dive on this case, I will link an episode of everything up until the trial in the show notes below so that you can get fully caught up as this mega long trial goes down because I think it's going to be two months they're estimating. But what's so fascinating about this case is everybody is asking if it's
Starting point is 00:23:55 a cover-up and a conspiracy which very very rarely do we ever see that in mainstream media. They're always usually very careful to not question if there's a cover-up or conspiracy and it's on every single header of every news channel. And I think that is very interesting and kind of speaks volumes about this case in addition to the fact that so many people are outside of the courthouse advocating for Karen saying free Karen, free Karen, she's been framed, this is all a cover-up by all of these officers and I'm gonna keep it real the evidence is pretty damning Not necessarily the evidence against Karen, but the evidence that this very well could be a cover-up
Starting point is 00:24:35 So definitely listen to that episode. It's I think it's one of the best performing episodes We've ever put out because it is that wild of a case now during opening statements put out because it is that wild of a case. Now during opening statements, prosecutors said that a cracked tail light and Karen's own words to the first responders when she says she hit him proves that she's guilty, saying, "'The defendant, Karen Reed, is guilty of murder in the second degree, striking the victim, Mr. O'Keefe,
Starting point is 00:24:58 with her car, knocking him back onto the ground, striking his head on the ground, causing the bleeding in his brain and swelling, and then leaving him there for several hours in a blizzard. From all of those people within that house that evening, none of them at any point in time was there when John O'Keefe came into the house. They see the vehicle out front, they see the vehicle pull away, and they just assume that they left, that no one was coming. Now the defense had a far different story, saying Karen Reed was framed.
Starting point is 00:25:28 Her car never struck John O'Keefe. She didn't cause his death and that means that somebody else did. You will learn that there are other major problems with the Commonwealth's area. You'll learn that when John O'Keefe was found, he did not look like he had been hit by a car. You'll learn that he looked to have been attacked and beaten up. You'll learn that John O'Keefe was a large six foot two man who, if positioned behind a Lexus SUV, would have had his torso completely exposed to the rear of that vehicle,
Starting point is 00:26:00 including to the tail light. You'll learn that no part of his torso was injured. There was no bruising, no redges, no scratches, no punctures. You'll learn that his chest and hips and legs were pristine, despite the Commonwealth's contention that he was hit by a six-pound vehicle. The evidence will show that what was not pristine was his right arm. You will take one look at that arm and you will conclude that a car did not cause those injuries. The injuries to John O'Keefe's arm appear to be consistent with scratch marks and claw marks, marks that make it look as though an animal had attacked the sign. But you won't have to rely just on your common sense when you look at those photos. You'll hear from an expert forensic pathologist who is world-renowned,
Starting point is 00:26:57 who has personally conducted thousands of autopsies, and he will testify that those marks are consistent with scratch and claw marks and bite marks from an animal, the thousands of autopsies. And he will testify that those marks are consistent with scratching claw marks and bite marks from an animal, including a German shepherd. You'll learn that on
Starting point is 00:27:22 January 29th of 2022, Brian Albert's family dog Chloe was a German shepherd. You'll learn that Brian Albert has admitted that this dog is not good around strangers. You'll learn that on January 29th of 2022, John O'Keefe would have been a stranger through that dog. And you'll learn that Chloe had been the beloved family dog for the Alberts for seven years. The Albert family loved Chloe. Strangely, as we discussed this dog today, the Albert family doesn't have its beloved Chloe anymore. You will learn that there is no competent evidence that Karen Reed's tail light shattered at Brian Albert's property in the early morning hours of January 29th of 2022. To the contrary, you'll learn that when Karen left John at Brian Albert's house, she drove back to John's
Starting point is 00:28:07 house on Meadows Ave across town in Canton. At John's home, where he lived with his two adopted children, Karen was drifting in and out of sleep, but she woke up for good in a panic sometime around 4 a.m. because John hadn't come home. And that was not like him at all. He had never done that before. Karen had a sinking feeling that something was wrong. Something was seriously wrong. The first witness in the trial was John's brother Paul,
Starting point is 00:28:45 who described having to rush to the hospital that morning and also overheard Karen screaming, is he alive, is he alive? Paul said, quote, he was pretty banged up. And what really stood out to me was the eyes. It was as if there were ping pong balls under his eyelids. The second witness to take the stand was Paul's wife, Erin. She testified about the Aruba trip, saying that Karen had reached out to her to say that
Starting point is 00:29:08 she had seen John O'Keefe kissing somebody else in the lobby of the hotel that they were staying at. She also mentioned that when she talked to Karen after John's body was found, Karen yelled into the phone, John's dead. Next, the first responders testified about the scene when they first arrived. It was described as chaotic and that John was laying face up with Karen trying to give him CPR. Karen had blood on her mouth from her attempts to perform CPR and they said that Karen was just absolutely distraught that she was screaming and she was screaming that John wasn't breathing. They also
Starting point is 00:29:41 described interactions with Karen. One firefighter testified that Karen repeatedly was saying, I hit him, I hit him, I hit him, when she was first asked about what had happened. Another officer testified that Karen said, this is my fault, this is my fault, I did this. However, when cross-examined by the defense, they were able to get two police officers to acknowledge that they never actually heard Karen say that she hit John. They were also able to get two police officers to admit that they never saw broken pieces of taillight at the scene, which really goes to one aspect of why the defense believes that Karen Reed was framed. So like I said, court will be back in session today and the
Starting point is 00:30:20 trial is expected to last six to eight weeks with full days on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and then half days on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and then half days on Tuesdays and Thursdays. So we're gonna follow this closely. I'm gonna keep you updated. I think we might do what we did or what we're doing, I should say with Chad Daybell, where we're doing full weekly recaps
Starting point is 00:30:39 of what's going down in the trial at the end of every week to catch you up since I know it's difficult to not only even watch one full trial that's 40 hours a week, but now two. So if that's something you want, let me know because we're trying to figure out should we do it every week, should we do it every two weeks. It feels like we should do it every week because otherwise the information gets old and it's hard to keep up as you're checking in and out in a case. So I think we're going to do that starting next week.
Starting point is 00:31:03 But again, let me know what you guys think and if that's something you want. Other than that, that is what we have going down this week in the true crime world. It has been a lot. I am happy that the rapist got castrated. That just, again, not to harp on it too much. It just makes me very, very happy. I feel like that should be the new rule of thumb for everybody. But I know I'm not gonna be the only one that thinks that way but I and I also know people probably won't agree with me on that and that's okay we are all allowed to have our own opinions. Other than that we just launched merch we are already sold out of quite a few items so if you want to grab any of the new items it's at AnnieElease.com very limited quantities available so go snag it now and hopefully we're not sold out by the time you go and check it out,
Starting point is 00:31:46 and hopefully we won't be sold out by the time you check it out, but you can find all of that at annieelyse.com, and that is what I've got for you. I will be back on the mic with you with an exclusive bonus episode, ad free this Friday, and then of course, brand new Monday super mega deep dive. Guys, the Monday case is going to blow your mind.
Starting point is 00:32:07 It is like, ugh, God, it's a roller coaster, it's a roller coaster. So I'll be back on the mic with you, probably, what, the next few days. So just keep checking back. If you're not following the podcast yet, make sure you are so that you don't miss any time these new episodes get uploaded
Starting point is 00:32:21 and that way you can fully be in the know and keep up with us. Alright guys, thank you so much for tuning into another episode and until the next one, be nice, don't kill people, stay safe, and do all the things. Alright guys, talk to you soon. Bye.

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