1 00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:05,160 Speaker 1: This story contains adult content and language. Listener discretion is advised. 2 00:00:19,560 --> 00:00:20,160 Speaker 2: We're coming out. 3 00:00:20,160 --> 00:00:22,840 Speaker 1: I don't know I time. 4 00:00:25,400 --> 00:00:30,400 Speaker 2: You need to find Yes, I know it's because. 5 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:30,680 Speaker 1: You're too short. 6 00:00:30,840 --> 00:00:31,280 Speaker 3: Howlut. 7 00:00:33,360 --> 00:00:35,720 Speaker 1: My family and I come to Portoransis a few times 8 00:00:35,760 --> 00:00:39,320 Speaker 1: a year. It's one of my most favorite vacations because 9 00:00:39,440 --> 00:00:42,040 Speaker 1: we rent a condo and we always invite my parents 10 00:00:42,080 --> 00:00:43,879 Speaker 1: to stay with us and we get to hang out 11 00:00:43,880 --> 00:00:48,800 Speaker 1: on the beach. You'll meet my parents later. We drive 12 00:00:48,800 --> 00:00:51,800 Speaker 1: through Ransis Pass to drive onto the ferry that will 13 00:00:51,840 --> 00:00:55,720 Speaker 1: take us to port A in just fifteen minutes. On 14 00:00:55,800 --> 00:00:57,800 Speaker 1: the ferry, my girls love to keep a lookout for 15 00:00:57,880 --> 00:00:59,960 Speaker 1: dolphins in the bay. 16 00:01:00,040 --> 00:01:03,840 Speaker 4: You're looking for dolphins, which we'll be right out somewhere 17 00:01:03,840 --> 00:01:09,319 Speaker 4: around in here. Did you see no? Is there one 18 00:01:09,319 --> 00:01:11,360 Speaker 4: over there that seems flashing in the water? 19 00:01:14,720 --> 00:01:15,640 Speaker 5: Okay? 20 00:01:18,880 --> 00:01:21,560 Speaker 1: Not a lot has changed since the nineteen thirties. Port 21 00:01:21,600 --> 00:01:24,600 Speaker 1: Auransis is still a tourist town, and Aransas Pass has 22 00:01:24,680 --> 00:01:28,080 Speaker 1: never really been able to compare, although there are fishing 23 00:01:28,080 --> 00:01:38,000 Speaker 1: boats that you can charter there in Aransas Pass. During Prohibition, 24 00:01:38,600 --> 00:01:41,560 Speaker 1: it seemed pretty easy for some folks to go missing 25 00:01:41,800 --> 00:01:45,040 Speaker 1: and never be found. But those were people who didn't 26 00:01:45,080 --> 00:01:48,240 Speaker 1: have loved ones looking for them. That was not the 27 00:01:48,280 --> 00:01:53,520 Speaker 1: case for eighteen year old Dorothy Simons. Dorothy went missing 28 00:01:53,560 --> 00:01:57,920 Speaker 1: on the final Thursday of July nineteen thirty one. Forty 29 00:01:57,960 --> 00:02:02,880 Speaker 1: hours later, on Saturday, August first, someone discovered a body. 30 00:02:03,720 --> 00:02:06,720 Speaker 1: Only one hand was visible because the rest of the 31 00:02:06,760 --> 00:02:11,080 Speaker 1: corpse was buried in the mud near the ocean. The 32 00:02:11,120 --> 00:02:13,280 Speaker 1: body was found by a man and his family who 33 00:02:13,360 --> 00:02:16,520 Speaker 1: were camping nearby. He raced to the police station and 34 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:21,760 Speaker 1: reported what he found. Local law enforcement officers responded immediately. 35 00:02:22,760 --> 00:02:25,760 Speaker 1: The body was covered with sea moss and shells. It 36 00:02:25,800 --> 00:02:28,000 Speaker 1: was lodged in a bar pit, which is a stretch 37 00:02:28,040 --> 00:02:30,440 Speaker 1: of still water going off to the side from a 38 00:02:30,520 --> 00:02:33,639 Speaker 1: river or a lake. The police climbed to the east 39 00:02:33,680 --> 00:02:36,680 Speaker 1: side of the Seawall Channel, which was nearly four hundred 40 00:02:36,760 --> 00:02:41,560 Speaker 1: yards south of the Aransas Harbor Terminal Railway tracks. Precision 41 00:02:41,639 --> 00:02:44,960 Speaker 1: and attention to detail are crucial at any crime scene. 42 00:02:45,240 --> 00:02:49,160 Speaker 1: Investigators and first responders and crime scene analysts have to 43 00:02:49,200 --> 00:02:53,000 Speaker 1: protect the site from contamination, and often the victim will 44 00:02:53,080 --> 00:02:56,640 Speaker 1: lay there for hours while the team gathers evidence, and 45 00:02:56,680 --> 00:02:59,640 Speaker 1: then after all potential evidence has been collected from the 46 00:02:59,680 --> 00:03:02,160 Speaker 1: scene and the removal of the body has to be 47 00:03:02,240 --> 00:03:11,440 Speaker 1: expertly executed. Fred Burton is a former federal agent, and 48 00:03:11,480 --> 00:03:14,840 Speaker 1: he's been an investigator on numerous high profile cases. He 49 00:03:14,919 --> 00:03:17,519 Speaker 1: says that doing all of that is sometimes tough for 50 00:03:17,639 --> 00:03:22,400 Speaker 1: police in small towns with few resources. Particularly in nineteen thirty. 51 00:03:22,120 --> 00:03:26,840 Speaker 3: One, there's no van with crime scene analysts showing up 52 00:03:26,880 --> 00:03:30,480 Speaker 3: in white suits. You're left your own skill set, which 53 00:03:30,520 --> 00:03:33,480 Speaker 3: is very limited in that timeframe, to do the best 54 00:03:33,520 --> 00:03:36,520 Speaker 3: you can to bring the body out of the mud 55 00:03:36,640 --> 00:03:39,720 Speaker 3: in all probability, transport that body to the funeral home 56 00:03:39,880 --> 00:03:42,200 Speaker 3: where you're going to try to do your best to 57 00:03:42,280 --> 00:03:46,080 Speaker 3: recover whatever physical evidence is remaining on the body, and 58 00:03:46,160 --> 00:03:49,120 Speaker 3: hopefully that has an ID. You know, something as basic 59 00:03:49,200 --> 00:03:52,480 Speaker 3: as not knowing who this person is might be, you know, 60 00:03:52,520 --> 00:03:54,280 Speaker 3: a factor during that time period. 61 00:03:55,400 --> 00:03:59,400 Speaker 1: In a town as small as ramsis, pass news travels fast. 62 00:04:00,000 --> 00:04:02,840 Speaker 1: At least at the scene must have known about Dorothy's disappearance. 63 00:04:03,920 --> 00:04:07,800 Speaker 1: Agnes Simons had reported her daughter missing just two days earlier. 64 00:04:08,480 --> 00:04:11,120 Speaker 1: Her friends reported that Dorothy was wearing her black and 65 00:04:11,200 --> 00:04:14,680 Speaker 1: yellow bathing suit under her dress. Agnes also said that 66 00:04:14,720 --> 00:04:17,520 Speaker 1: both she and her husband told Dorothy to skip swimming 67 00:04:17,560 --> 00:04:22,479 Speaker 1: at night. It was too dangerous if only Dorothy had listened. 68 00:04:26,240 --> 00:04:29,159 Speaker 1: When the authorities carefully pulled the body from the bar pit, 69 00:04:29,640 --> 00:04:33,400 Speaker 1: it turned out to be a woman, a woman clad 70 00:04:33,640 --> 00:04:37,880 Speaker 1: in a black and yellow bathing suit. An official identification 71 00:04:37,960 --> 00:04:40,320 Speaker 1: of the body would have to wait, but the color 72 00:04:40,360 --> 00:04:43,880 Speaker 1: of the bathing suit was enough. The local sheriff knew 73 00:04:43,960 --> 00:04:47,640 Speaker 1: that this was Dorothy Simon's, but there's one thing that 74 00:04:47,680 --> 00:04:50,520 Speaker 1: they couldn't have known at the time. Did she die 75 00:04:50,560 --> 00:04:56,760 Speaker 1: from an accident like drowning or was it murder. The 76 00:04:56,760 --> 00:04:59,200 Speaker 1: study of criminology is an important part of my job 77 00:04:59,240 --> 00:05:01,800 Speaker 1: as an investigator journalist, and it's one of my most 78 00:05:01,880 --> 00:05:05,320 Speaker 1: favorite parts. I talk a lot about criminology in my books. 79 00:05:05,760 --> 00:05:09,560 Speaker 1: It's an evolving academic discipline that goes beyond inquiry into 80 00:05:09,600 --> 00:05:13,920 Speaker 1: crimes and criminal behavior. Criminology includes the study of sociology 81 00:05:13,960 --> 00:05:18,760 Speaker 1: and psychology, anthropology, economics, and statistics. That's a lot to 82 00:05:18,880 --> 00:05:21,719 Speaker 1: juggle when you're sorting out a crime. I've talked to 83 00:05:21,760 --> 00:05:24,840 Speaker 1: many criminologists over the course of my reporting and teaching career. 84 00:05:25,440 --> 00:05:28,760 Speaker 1: I find the work totally fascinating, and I'm particularly interested 85 00:05:28,800 --> 00:05:33,520 Speaker 1: in their science based approach to criminal justice and social policy. 86 00:05:33,600 --> 00:05:36,599 Speaker 1: In researching Dorothy's case, I wanted to focus on a 87 00:05:36,600 --> 00:05:41,800 Speaker 1: particular aspect of criminology. It's called victimology. Paul Hols is 88 00:05:41,839 --> 00:05:44,400 Speaker 1: a former cold case investigator and he was one of 89 00:05:44,400 --> 00:05:47,119 Speaker 1: the people who helped solve the Golden State killer case. 90 00:05:47,560 --> 00:05:51,080 Speaker 1: Paul is an expert in victimology. Is that one of 91 00:05:51,120 --> 00:05:53,480 Speaker 1: the ways that we go from the victim to figuring 92 00:05:53,480 --> 00:05:56,080 Speaker 1: out who the killer was. Explain that for me right. 93 00:05:56,160 --> 00:06:01,080 Speaker 6: Victimology is a very broad term. It refers to, of course, 94 00:06:01,080 --> 00:06:04,840 Speaker 6: who the person is. You know, their name, their background, 95 00:06:05,000 --> 00:06:07,839 Speaker 6: where do they work, their education, you know, to try 96 00:06:07,839 --> 00:06:10,400 Speaker 6: to establish, okay, this is the type of person the 97 00:06:10,480 --> 00:06:14,920 Speaker 6: victim was. The victimology also encompasses their social circles. It 98 00:06:15,000 --> 00:06:18,719 Speaker 6: encompasses their personality. If they were confronted by an offender, 99 00:06:18,800 --> 00:06:21,280 Speaker 6: how would this person respond? Are they a fighter? Are 100 00:06:21,320 --> 00:06:25,039 Speaker 6: they somebody who would go passive and basically allow the 101 00:06:25,080 --> 00:06:28,679 Speaker 6: offender to command them? So that plays into not only 102 00:06:28,720 --> 00:06:32,920 Speaker 6: the investigative side, it also plays into the behavioral assessment 103 00:06:33,160 --> 00:06:35,600 Speaker 6: of what happened between the offender and the victim. 104 00:06:36,040 --> 00:06:38,400 Speaker 1: Why do we care so much about a victim's habits 105 00:06:38,560 --> 00:06:39,800 Speaker 1: or her personality? 106 00:06:40,200 --> 00:06:44,280 Speaker 6: Well, based on the victim's personality, This is how we 107 00:06:44,320 --> 00:06:47,520 Speaker 6: would expect that person to respond when confronted with a 108 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:51,960 Speaker 6: violent situation, a crime situation. And then of course there's 109 00:06:52,160 --> 00:06:56,920 Speaker 6: risk assessment in terms of is this victim somebody who 110 00:06:57,160 --> 00:07:02,440 Speaker 6: is partaking in certain aspects that is elevating their likelihood 111 00:07:02,440 --> 00:07:05,320 Speaker 6: of becoming the victim of a crime. Is this a 112 00:07:05,360 --> 00:07:07,240 Speaker 6: person that is going out on the street corner in 113 00:07:07,279 --> 00:07:09,440 Speaker 6: the middle of the night and buying drugs. They're more 114 00:07:09,640 --> 00:07:12,720 Speaker 6: likely to be shot by a drug dealer. It elevates 115 00:07:12,760 --> 00:07:16,520 Speaker 6: their risk than somebody who never does that. So understanding 116 00:07:16,600 --> 00:07:18,400 Speaker 6: victimology is huge. 117 00:07:19,400 --> 00:07:23,240 Speaker 1: Fred Burton also relied on victimology during his own investigations. 118 00:07:24,560 --> 00:07:27,560 Speaker 4: If I talk about when you're investigating a murder, we 119 00:07:27,640 --> 00:07:29,640 Speaker 4: know the victim is, but we're not sure who the 120 00:07:29,680 --> 00:07:31,880 Speaker 4: killer is just yet. What does it mean if I'm 121 00:07:31,920 --> 00:07:35,080 Speaker 4: saying that you are, as an investigator looking into the 122 00:07:35,200 --> 00:07:37,520 Speaker 4: victim's sphere their. 123 00:07:37,480 --> 00:07:42,360 Speaker 3: World from a victimology perspective, I think a lot of 124 00:07:42,480 --> 00:07:45,200 Speaker 3: cases and a lot of investigators tend to want to 125 00:07:45,240 --> 00:07:48,520 Speaker 3: focus on the suspects. Meaning as you step back and 126 00:07:48,640 --> 00:07:51,120 Speaker 3: let's say you have a body, you want to tend 127 00:07:51,120 --> 00:07:54,720 Speaker 3: to find the person that was responsible for that murder. 128 00:07:54,880 --> 00:07:57,520 Speaker 3: And what you don't see a lot of at times, 129 00:07:57,640 --> 00:08:01,640 Speaker 3: especially in rural department or departments that don't handle a 130 00:08:01,640 --> 00:08:06,760 Speaker 3: lot of homicides, is comprehensive understanding of the victim. 131 00:08:08,280 --> 00:08:11,200 Speaker 1: Talking about victimology got me thinking about a story that's 132 00:08:11,320 --> 00:08:15,840 Speaker 1: really attracted attention over the past year, the Gabby Petito case. 133 00:08:17,120 --> 00:08:20,080 Speaker 1: Gabby was an aspiring YouTube star and she was really 134 00:08:20,120 --> 00:08:24,280 Speaker 1: active on social media. Gabby and her fiance set out 135 00:08:24,320 --> 00:08:26,640 Speaker 1: on a cross country road trip in June of twenty 136 00:08:26,640 --> 00:08:32,120 Speaker 1: twenty one, and by August, just two months later, Gabby 137 00:08:32,160 --> 00:08:37,439 Speaker 1: Petito had gone missing. Remember that in the last episode 138 00:08:37,480 --> 00:08:40,200 Speaker 1: we talked about how young women go missing more than 139 00:08:40,240 --> 00:08:44,320 Speaker 1: any other age group. Gabby's disappearance caused a media frenzy. 140 00:08:45,120 --> 00:08:47,360 Speaker 1: The twenty two year old was just a few years 141 00:08:47,400 --> 00:08:51,920 Speaker 1: older than Dorothy. Karen Kilgareff covers true crime on her 142 00:08:51,960 --> 00:08:55,720 Speaker 1: podcast My Favorite Murder. She's also my colleague and an 143 00:08:55,800 --> 00:08:59,440 Speaker 1: executive producer of tenfold More Wicked. We talked a long 144 00:08:59,480 --> 00:09:03,320 Speaker 1: time about the Gabby Patito case. Let's talk about Gabby 145 00:09:03,360 --> 00:09:05,520 Speaker 1: Patito just because I want to get your impression on this. 146 00:09:06,200 --> 00:09:09,280 Speaker 1: What do you think made this case so interesting to people. 147 00:09:09,920 --> 00:09:11,920 Speaker 7: Well, first of all, there's lots of things. She was 148 00:09:11,960 --> 00:09:15,240 Speaker 7: a YouTuber, she was young and blonde and pretty, which 149 00:09:15,360 --> 00:09:18,840 Speaker 7: we all know. The media has been driving that story 150 00:09:19,120 --> 00:09:22,520 Speaker 7: since day one, and we all know that that's always prioritized. 151 00:09:22,800 --> 00:09:26,480 Speaker 7: The cynicism of that is just a reality. It should change, 152 00:09:26,480 --> 00:09:28,440 Speaker 7: It needs to change. It hasn't yet. 153 00:09:28,960 --> 00:09:31,800 Speaker 1: Karen's making an important point here, and it's one that 154 00:09:31,840 --> 00:09:35,960 Speaker 1: I find particularly disturbing and that Dereka and Natalie Wilson 155 00:09:36,080 --> 00:09:39,320 Speaker 1: have built their careers on. They are sisters in law, 156 00:09:39,480 --> 00:09:42,400 Speaker 1: and they co founded the Black and Missing Foundation in Maryland. 157 00:09:42,640 --> 00:09:46,840 Speaker 1: It's a nonprofit organization that draws awareness to missing persons 158 00:09:46,880 --> 00:09:50,120 Speaker 1: of color. Instead of saying why are people of color 159 00:09:50,160 --> 00:09:53,000 Speaker 1: ignored to a certain extent when they are missing? I 160 00:09:53,080 --> 00:09:55,920 Speaker 1: want to flip it and say, can someone explain to 161 00:09:55,960 --> 00:09:59,200 Speaker 1: me why missing white woman syndrome is in true crime 162 00:09:59,400 --> 00:10:02,520 Speaker 1: and why Ga Patito is the perfect example of why 163 00:10:02,559 --> 00:10:04,280 Speaker 1: this has happened with this case. 164 00:10:05,160 --> 00:10:08,240 Speaker 8: Well, I think it first and foremost. You know missing 165 00:10:08,320 --> 00:10:11,760 Speaker 8: white woman syndrome that was coined by the late great 166 00:10:11,880 --> 00:10:17,360 Speaker 8: Gwen Eiffel. Unless it's a white female, blonde hair, blue eyes, 167 00:10:17,480 --> 00:10:22,040 Speaker 8: fairly attractive, the case just isn't sensational enough. And we 168 00:10:22,160 --> 00:10:25,839 Speaker 8: see this so often, so many years, and it's bound 169 00:10:25,840 --> 00:10:31,160 Speaker 8: to happen again. It's like there's this media obsession in 170 00:10:31,280 --> 00:10:35,480 Speaker 8: law enforcement. When you look at Gabby Patito's case, I 171 00:10:35,480 --> 00:10:41,920 Speaker 8: mean you had every police jurisdiction, every federal jurisdiction, all 172 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:47,840 Speaker 8: the resources, the cadaverdogs, the drones, the divers, the four wheelers. 173 00:10:48,200 --> 00:10:51,160 Speaker 1: Meanwhile it's the families of people of color who most 174 00:10:51,240 --> 00:10:52,800 Speaker 1: frequently don't get answers. 175 00:10:53,600 --> 00:10:57,960 Speaker 2: Yes. So there has been a longstanding issue where these 176 00:10:58,080 --> 00:11:03,240 Speaker 2: cases one aren't taken serily by law enforcement, and they 177 00:11:03,360 --> 00:11:06,480 Speaker 2: are the first line of defense, so the first gatekeepers 178 00:11:06,480 --> 00:11:10,400 Speaker 2: to get in that media coverage. There is a stereotype 179 00:11:10,440 --> 00:11:13,000 Speaker 2: that you know, our missing are involved with some type 180 00:11:13,000 --> 00:11:17,280 Speaker 2: of criminal activity or you know, their children who left 181 00:11:17,280 --> 00:11:21,120 Speaker 2: home voluntarily or ran away. So again, the cases aren't 182 00:11:21,120 --> 00:11:24,679 Speaker 2: taken seriously. They are no Amber alerts for them, so 183 00:11:24,720 --> 00:11:28,120 Speaker 2: there's definitely no media coverage at all. But this has 184 00:11:28,160 --> 00:11:31,800 Speaker 2: been a longstanding issue and we're trying to change the 185 00:11:31,920 --> 00:11:35,400 Speaker 2: narrative to show that these are missing mothers and fathers, 186 00:11:35,440 --> 00:11:38,599 Speaker 2: you know, our valuable members of our community. 187 00:11:38,960 --> 00:11:41,320 Speaker 1: It's unbelievable, so it really isn't. 188 00:11:41,520 --> 00:11:45,440 Speaker 8: I would say that it's race based. It's like, damn 189 00:11:45,440 --> 00:11:47,560 Speaker 8: if you you know, if you're black and brown and 190 00:11:47,600 --> 00:11:51,320 Speaker 8: you're missing, you're basically on your own. You know. That's 191 00:11:51,360 --> 00:11:54,320 Speaker 8: how I view it, and we have to change that. 192 00:11:55,240 --> 00:11:57,679 Speaker 1: I'll go into more details about this issue later and 193 00:11:57,720 --> 00:12:02,079 Speaker 1: we'll talk about some of those cases, both professionally and personally. 194 00:12:02,200 --> 00:12:05,400 Speaker 1: I think it's a conversation that deserves more attention, a 195 00:12:05,440 --> 00:12:09,120 Speaker 1: lot more. Karen Kilgareff has covered a wide range of 196 00:12:09,120 --> 00:12:12,760 Speaker 1: missing person cases, and not all of them involve attractive, 197 00:12:12,840 --> 00:12:15,360 Speaker 1: young white women. I wanted to get her take on 198 00:12:15,440 --> 00:12:18,240 Speaker 1: another reason why the Gabby Patito case has gotten so 199 00:12:18,360 --> 00:12:21,000 Speaker 1: much attention. I just wonder if we would have gotten 200 00:12:21,000 --> 00:12:23,480 Speaker 1: the same reaction if it was both of them who 201 00:12:23,480 --> 00:12:25,679 Speaker 1: were missing. If we don't know who the killer is 202 00:12:25,840 --> 00:12:27,520 Speaker 1: and we're trying to find this woman, would we have 203 00:12:27,520 --> 00:12:30,160 Speaker 1: gotten the same response as we knew who the boogeyman 204 00:12:30,320 --> 00:12:31,720 Speaker 1: was and he's on the run somewhere. 205 00:12:32,160 --> 00:12:35,200 Speaker 7: Yes, that was a man hunt story. It's a little 206 00:12:35,240 --> 00:12:40,000 Speaker 7: bit horrifying. Never before have we seen it discussed almost 207 00:12:40,040 --> 00:12:43,280 Speaker 7: real time, which I think is incredible. And then there 208 00:12:43,360 --> 00:12:45,400 Speaker 7: was the man on the run aspect of it. It 209 00:12:45,559 --> 00:12:48,720 Speaker 7: was like, could we catch him as a nation, as 210 00:12:48,760 --> 00:12:51,120 Speaker 7: a group of people tracking this. What if in the 211 00:12:51,160 --> 00:12:54,480 Speaker 7: alternate reality he didn't do it, and people are tracking 212 00:12:54,520 --> 00:12:56,360 Speaker 7: him down and believing that he did do it. There's 213 00:12:56,360 --> 00:13:02,800 Speaker 7: a lot of issues. Are we innocent until proven guilty? 214 00:13:04,160 --> 00:13:07,400 Speaker 1: That issue comes up in this case too. A formal 215 00:13:07,440 --> 00:13:12,199 Speaker 1: investigation began in Ransa's pass almost immediately after Dorothy's body 216 00:13:12,240 --> 00:13:15,800 Speaker 1: was discovered. Sheriff Frank Hunt led the inquest into her 217 00:13:15,840 --> 00:13:18,840 Speaker 1: cause of death, and when he made his findings public, 218 00:13:19,160 --> 00:13:22,040 Speaker 1: they shocked the residents of the town and a collective 219 00:13:22,080 --> 00:13:30,200 Speaker 1: sense of fear and suspicion would frighten just about everyone. 220 00:13:30,400 --> 00:13:35,120 Speaker 1: The coroner lifted the sheet covering Dorothy's unclothed body. Of course, 221 00:13:35,160 --> 00:13:38,280 Speaker 1: he had seen it ever before, but this seemed really different. 222 00:13:39,200 --> 00:13:41,800 Speaker 1: She was young, she didn't seem to have an at 223 00:13:41,920 --> 00:13:45,040 Speaker 1: risk life, but the wounds on her body told him 224 00:13:45,080 --> 00:13:48,720 Speaker 1: a story. He picked up Dorothy's right arm. It was bruised, 225 00:13:49,640 --> 00:13:52,720 Speaker 1: her throat seemed to have internal bleeding like she had 226 00:13:52,760 --> 00:13:57,040 Speaker 1: been choked, and her chest was caked with blood. He 227 00:13:57,120 --> 00:14:00,360 Speaker 1: looked inside her nose, it was filled with blood. Blood 228 00:14:00,400 --> 00:14:04,400 Speaker 1: was dripping down her face. This was a violent death, 229 00:14:04,840 --> 00:14:10,240 Speaker 1: not an accidental drowning. The coroner believed that someone strangled 230 00:14:10,240 --> 00:14:13,120 Speaker 1: Dorothy to death while he or she held her underwater. 231 00:14:13,679 --> 00:14:18,679 Speaker 1: He was certain that it was murder. Over the next 232 00:14:18,720 --> 00:14:22,480 Speaker 1: few weeks, the sheriff and his deputies continued investigating the 233 00:14:22,560 --> 00:14:27,120 Speaker 1: death of Dorothy Simons. Here's what he says happened. There 234 00:14:27,200 --> 00:14:30,320 Speaker 1: was an argument and the killer strangled Dorothy with her 235 00:14:30,320 --> 00:14:35,480 Speaker 1: hands before she died. They shoved her head underwater, and 236 00:14:35,600 --> 00:14:39,280 Speaker 1: once she stopped struggling, they needed to cover up the murder. 237 00:14:42,200 --> 00:14:45,120 Speaker 1: They dragged Dorothy through the water and then dragged her 238 00:14:45,200 --> 00:14:48,760 Speaker 1: over a man made sea wall separating the channel from 239 00:14:48,760 --> 00:14:52,960 Speaker 1: a small area of breakwater on Redfish Bay. That must 240 00:14:53,000 --> 00:14:57,160 Speaker 1: have taken a tremendous amount of effort and someone pretty strong. 241 00:14:58,520 --> 00:15:03,840 Speaker 1: The killer was likely a He dug a shallow grave 242 00:15:03,960 --> 00:15:06,280 Speaker 1: near the edge of the water. The whole thing was 243 00:15:06,320 --> 00:15:09,640 Speaker 1: covered with heavy seaweed. He placed her body inside the 244 00:15:09,680 --> 00:15:14,680 Speaker 1: grave and covered it with sand and more seaweed. Seashells 245 00:15:14,680 --> 00:15:18,840 Speaker 1: became entangled with the seaweed. It was a horrible final 246 00:15:18,920 --> 00:15:34,880 Speaker 1: resting place for Dorothy Simon's The coroner slid a document 247 00:15:34,960 --> 00:15:38,760 Speaker 1: onto his desk a death certificate, and I found it 248 00:15:39,320 --> 00:15:42,440 Speaker 1: in cursive writing using a black pen. He added details 249 00:15:42,440 --> 00:15:46,560 Speaker 1: from Dorothy's life. She was born on May seventh, nineteen thirteen. 250 00:15:46,840 --> 00:15:50,400 Speaker 1: She was female, white and single. Agnes had told the 251 00:15:50,440 --> 00:15:54,320 Speaker 1: coroner where she herself was born in Indiana, but Agnes 252 00:15:54,360 --> 00:15:58,320 Speaker 1: didn't know where Dorothy's father was born. Seems kind of odd, 253 00:15:58,360 --> 00:16:02,080 Speaker 1: but Ralph Johnson was so shady it doesn't surprise me. 254 00:16:03,240 --> 00:16:06,440 Speaker 1: Then near the bottom of the document, it read cause 255 00:16:06,440 --> 00:16:13,040 Speaker 1: of death was as follows from violence, strangulation, homicide. Dorothy 256 00:16:13,080 --> 00:16:17,000 Speaker 1: Simons had been identified, her death had been officially declared 257 00:16:17,120 --> 00:16:20,560 Speaker 1: a murder, and the search for Dorothy's killer was just 258 00:16:20,600 --> 00:16:31,360 Speaker 1: getting started. Dorothy Simons was buried on August second, nineteen 259 00:16:31,400 --> 00:16:34,400 Speaker 1: thirty one. It was a Sunday, the same day when 260 00:16:34,440 --> 00:16:37,280 Speaker 1: Dorothy would typically be singing in the Saint Mary's Church 261 00:16:37,360 --> 00:16:42,840 Speaker 1: choir during services. She really loved doing that, but this Sunday, 262 00:16:43,160 --> 00:16:48,040 Speaker 1: most of Oransi's pass mourned her death instead. The Simon's 263 00:16:48,120 --> 00:16:52,760 Speaker 1: family was devastated. Agnes, her husband Howard, and their sons 264 00:16:52,840 --> 00:16:56,240 Speaker 1: David and Joe, watched as Dorothy was laid to rest. 265 00:16:57,240 --> 00:17:00,720 Speaker 1: Agnes in particular, would be haunted by this day for decades. 266 00:17:01,320 --> 00:17:03,960 Speaker 1: She never seemed to be able to heal from the 267 00:17:04,040 --> 00:17:08,240 Speaker 1: loss of her only daughter. There was no closure, no goodbye, 268 00:17:08,840 --> 00:17:13,800 Speaker 1: just sorrow for now. JB. Simons was Dorothy's nephew. 269 00:17:14,920 --> 00:17:18,000 Speaker 9: I have never asked, mom, you know, has Grandma ever 270 00:17:18,040 --> 00:17:20,960 Speaker 9: talked to you about Doroth or anything like that. It 271 00:17:21,080 --> 00:17:24,480 Speaker 9: just kind of left it in the air. 272 00:17:25,680 --> 00:17:28,679 Speaker 1: Joe's widow, Helen, talked to me about how difficult it 273 00:17:28,840 --> 00:17:31,680 Speaker 1: was to discuss the tragedy with her mother in law Agnes. 274 00:17:32,480 --> 00:17:34,160 Speaker 1: It was just too painful. 275 00:17:35,280 --> 00:17:40,200 Speaker 5: She told me that she was killed and I said, no, 276 00:17:40,400 --> 00:17:45,000 Speaker 5: I've understood that. I'm sorry to hear that. It sounded 277 00:17:45,000 --> 00:17:49,280 Speaker 5: like she was a pretty nice girl, and she piped 278 00:17:49,359 --> 00:17:51,000 Speaker 5: up she was a perfect girl. 279 00:17:51,680 --> 00:17:56,119 Speaker 1: Even into adulthood. Joe Simons barely talked about his older sister. 280 00:17:57,560 --> 00:18:01,639 Speaker 5: He talked about it after we got to talking about it. 281 00:18:01,920 --> 00:18:04,240 Speaker 5: When he finally told me he had had a sister 282 00:18:04,359 --> 00:18:07,280 Speaker 5: that was killed. I said, how is she killed? Do 283 00:18:07,320 --> 00:18:10,720 Speaker 5: you know you're going to ask? And he said, well, 284 00:18:10,840 --> 00:18:13,080 Speaker 5: come right down to it. I guess she'd call her 285 00:18:13,119 --> 00:18:15,840 Speaker 5: she was murdered. And I said, what a horrible thing. 286 00:18:15,880 --> 00:18:19,479 Speaker 5: No wonder Agnes had a attitude about things and people. 287 00:18:21,920 --> 00:18:25,040 Speaker 1: My conversation with Helen Simons made me circle back to 288 00:18:25,080 --> 00:18:28,439 Speaker 1: the start of the season. I mentioned how little the 289 00:18:28,520 --> 00:18:32,440 Speaker 1: Simon's descendants knew about their family's heartbreaking legacy and how 290 00:18:32,480 --> 00:18:37,320 Speaker 1: a distant family tragedy can reverberate through generations. I tracked 291 00:18:37,320 --> 00:18:40,000 Speaker 1: down some of the relatives of Dorothy's older brother, David. 292 00:18:40,520 --> 00:18:43,160 Speaker 1: David and Joe have both died. I had a long 293 00:18:43,200 --> 00:18:47,399 Speaker 1: conversation with David's daughter Nancy. I started calling it the 294 00:18:47,440 --> 00:18:50,439 Speaker 1: trickle down effect, and it seems like a ton of 295 00:18:50,480 --> 00:18:53,800 Speaker 1: bricks landing on several different families in the future based 296 00:18:53,840 --> 00:18:54,800 Speaker 1: on what happened. 297 00:18:55,200 --> 00:18:58,919 Speaker 10: I think that's a good analysis, especially since Agnes, the 298 00:18:59,040 --> 00:19:04,600 Speaker 10: mother of Dorothy, was so terribly devastated and obviously that 299 00:19:04,640 --> 00:19:07,680 Speaker 10: affected how her family moved on and then how they 300 00:19:07,760 --> 00:19:08,680 Speaker 10: moved on from there. 301 00:19:09,720 --> 00:19:09,960 Speaker 8: JB. 302 00:19:10,119 --> 00:19:13,880 Speaker 1: Simons and his mother Helen agree that Agnes was really 303 00:19:13,960 --> 00:19:18,200 Speaker 1: affected by Dorothy's death and her reaction really affected her 304 00:19:18,240 --> 00:19:18,960 Speaker 1: son Joe. 305 00:19:19,359 --> 00:19:22,320 Speaker 9: On one Mother's Day, we were in church and the 306 00:19:22,400 --> 00:19:25,760 Speaker 9: very first time I ever saw my father cry. The 307 00:19:25,800 --> 00:19:28,879 Speaker 9: men in the church were standing up giving testimonials about 308 00:19:28,880 --> 00:19:30,560 Speaker 9: how much they loved their mother and what their mother 309 00:19:30,640 --> 00:19:33,000 Speaker 9: meant to My dad's stands up and said, I'm really 310 00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:35,720 Speaker 9: glad you all can say those kinds of things, because 311 00:19:36,680 --> 00:19:39,359 Speaker 9: I've never heard my mother ever say I love you. 312 00:19:42,240 --> 00:19:43,439 Speaker 9: So that guy stuck with me. 313 00:19:45,240 --> 00:19:46,159 Speaker 5: Well, that's true. 314 00:19:46,440 --> 00:19:47,280 Speaker 9: That's pretty tough. 315 00:19:47,760 --> 00:19:52,560 Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean poor Agnes, my goodness. 316 00:19:51,800 --> 00:19:53,359 Speaker 5: Yeah, she had hard life. 317 00:19:54,080 --> 00:19:58,160 Speaker 4: Do you think that if Dorothy had not been killed, 318 00:19:58,640 --> 00:20:01,000 Speaker 4: that Agnes would have been a person. 319 00:20:00,880 --> 00:20:08,240 Speaker 5: Oh, my goodness, yes, absolutely, in what way. 320 00:20:08,800 --> 00:20:13,160 Speaker 9: She'd been happy. 321 00:20:14,000 --> 00:20:17,359 Speaker 1: The sheriff held an official inquest into Dorothy's murder, but 322 00:20:17,440 --> 00:20:21,440 Speaker 1: boy was it fast. He quickly arrested their main suspect 323 00:20:21,480 --> 00:20:24,520 Speaker 1: just shortly after her body was discovered. It was her 324 00:20:24,600 --> 00:20:30,360 Speaker 1: on again, off again boyfriend, Newton Yarberry. Sheriff Hunt placed 325 00:20:30,440 --> 00:20:34,439 Speaker 1: Yarberry under arrest, and then he was transferred to the 326 00:20:34,480 --> 00:20:37,879 Speaker 1: county jail in Stinton, Texas, a small town about twenty 327 00:20:37,920 --> 00:20:41,719 Speaker 1: five miles west of Ransa's Pass. Local press, of course, 328 00:20:41,840 --> 00:20:46,199 Speaker 1: jumped on the story. The media reported that Newton had 329 00:20:46,240 --> 00:20:49,000 Speaker 1: been dating Dorothy off and on for about two years. 330 00:20:49,800 --> 00:20:52,439 Speaker 1: That put him at the top of their list of suspects. 331 00:20:54,880 --> 00:20:59,040 Speaker 1: I uncovered conflicting accounts of Newton's character, but some definitely 332 00:20:59,080 --> 00:21:01,840 Speaker 1: made him seem untrustworthy. 333 00:21:02,160 --> 00:21:02,360 Speaker 5: JB. 334 00:21:02,480 --> 00:21:03,920 Speaker 1: Simons had heard them too. 335 00:21:04,200 --> 00:21:07,080 Speaker 9: My father had a conversation with a lady in Amanda's past. 336 00:21:07,480 --> 00:21:09,960 Speaker 9: The town was very, very sure that Yarborough killed her. 337 00:21:11,160 --> 00:21:13,639 Speaker 9: He was known to be somewhat of a bully and 338 00:21:13,680 --> 00:21:15,359 Speaker 9: an arrogant little crap. 339 00:21:15,960 --> 00:21:18,320 Speaker 1: I alluded to this earlier. There seemed to be a 340 00:21:18,359 --> 00:21:22,480 Speaker 1: general sense of distrust surrounding Newton Yarbery, or maybe I 341 00:21:22,480 --> 00:21:26,959 Speaker 1: should say confusion. Newspapers had printed inconsistent information about his 342 00:21:27,040 --> 00:21:30,320 Speaker 1: age and his profession. It's almost as though he didn't 343 00:21:30,320 --> 00:21:33,879 Speaker 1: want people to know who he really was. Maybe he 344 00:21:33,920 --> 00:21:37,359 Speaker 1: didn't want people to know his business, maybe because he 345 00:21:37,600 --> 00:21:42,080 Speaker 1: harbored a frighteningly dark side aside that Dorothy was unaware 346 00:21:42,119 --> 00:21:47,320 Speaker 1: of until it was too late, and there were more 347 00:21:47,359 --> 00:21:50,560 Speaker 1: discrepancies in the press, well more of an attempt to 348 00:21:50,680 --> 00:21:54,600 Speaker 1: highlight that Newton was a Yarbery, because the Yarberies were 349 00:21:54,720 --> 00:21:58,320 Speaker 1: a really well known family in Ransa's Pass. Newton was 350 00:21:58,359 --> 00:22:01,720 Speaker 1: the son of mister and Missus Alex Sharbury. They were 351 00:22:01,920 --> 00:22:05,720 Speaker 1: very respected residents of Aransa's Pass and they were good people, 352 00:22:05,880 --> 00:22:09,119 Speaker 1: pillars of the community. At least that's what people said. 353 00:22:09,880 --> 00:22:13,840 Speaker 1: Even decades later, some locals still talked about the Yarbery's 354 00:22:13,920 --> 00:22:18,120 Speaker 1: good reputation. On a visit to Aransa's Pass, JB. Simons 355 00:22:18,160 --> 00:22:20,040 Speaker 1: met a woman who actually knew them. 356 00:22:20,480 --> 00:22:24,720 Speaker 9: Yes, she knew that the yardberries were I think her 357 00:22:24,800 --> 00:22:31,760 Speaker 9: term was uppercross, which is kind of strange for Aranda's Pass. 358 00:22:31,840 --> 00:22:35,560 Speaker 9: And she made a comment about the mayor had gone 359 00:22:35,560 --> 00:22:39,720 Speaker 9: around to all of the people that were either owners 360 00:22:39,760 --> 00:22:42,520 Speaker 9: of businesses and bankers and that kind of stuff and 361 00:22:42,560 --> 00:22:46,520 Speaker 9: had them sign the document saying how much Newton and 362 00:22:46,560 --> 00:22:55,160 Speaker 9: the family were upstanding citizens had no problem with them. 363 00:22:55,280 --> 00:22:58,240 Speaker 1: The sheriff brought Newton Yarbery into the interview room and 364 00:22:58,320 --> 00:23:01,480 Speaker 1: stared at him. This was his main suspect, the man 365 00:23:01,520 --> 00:23:06,159 Speaker 1: who likely killed sweet and lovely Dorothy Simons. Newton seemed 366 00:23:06,160 --> 00:23:09,119 Speaker 1: bright and if he were innocent, he would do his 367 00:23:09,240 --> 00:23:13,399 Speaker 1: best to help the sheriff fright, No, he refused to 368 00:23:13,440 --> 00:23:19,800 Speaker 1: talk one caveat here. Innocent people do refuse to talk 369 00:23:19,840 --> 00:23:23,240 Speaker 1: to the police, and they do call attorneys. My father 370 00:23:23,400 --> 00:23:25,679 Speaker 1: always told me to call an attorney first if I 371 00:23:25,720 --> 00:23:30,560 Speaker 1: were ever arrested. Newton Yarbury remained calm throughout his arrest, 372 00:23:30,640 --> 00:23:32,920 Speaker 1: and his time in jail. But he refused to make 373 00:23:32,960 --> 00:23:37,200 Speaker 1: any kind of an official statement to investigators. But his father, Alex, 374 00:23:37,400 --> 00:23:40,159 Speaker 1: was willing to talk to the authorities. He claimed that 375 00:23:40,240 --> 00:23:43,480 Speaker 1: Newton was at home the night that Dorothy disappeared. That's 376 00:23:43,520 --> 00:23:46,320 Speaker 1: a lousy alibi, by the way, I think that most 377 00:23:46,359 --> 00:23:50,119 Speaker 1: fathers would probably lie to protect their sons, especially if 378 00:23:50,160 --> 00:24:16,280 Speaker 1: they thought they were innocent. Earlier I mentioned the idea 379 00:24:16,400 --> 00:24:20,080 Speaker 1: of being innocent until proven guilty. It can be hard 380 00:24:20,119 --> 00:24:22,119 Speaker 1: to keep that in mind, especially when you have a 381 00:24:22,160 --> 00:24:27,159 Speaker 1: strong suspicion that someone is guilty. The sheriff thought that 382 00:24:27,240 --> 00:24:31,280 Speaker 1: Newton was guilty, but he needed more evidence. That's one 383 00:24:31,280 --> 00:24:33,440 Speaker 1: of the hard things about the law. There's a difference 384 00:24:33,440 --> 00:24:36,280 Speaker 1: between thinking someone is guilty and being able to prove it. 385 00:24:36,800 --> 00:24:40,400 Speaker 1: My dad always said that legal professionals deal with dilemmas 386 00:24:40,480 --> 00:24:44,560 Speaker 1: like that all the time. I asked defense attorney Bill 387 00:24:44,600 --> 00:24:49,679 Speaker 1: Allison about his approach to complicated cases where everyone suspects 388 00:24:49,720 --> 00:24:50,320 Speaker 1: his client. 389 00:24:52,000 --> 00:24:56,600 Speaker 4: It must be unpleasant to defend someone who has done 390 00:24:56,640 --> 00:25:00,880 Speaker 4: something heinous. How as any defense attorney, how did you 391 00:25:01,040 --> 00:25:02,000 Speaker 4: reconcile that? 392 00:25:02,480 --> 00:25:04,840 Speaker 11: You're talking about the age old question of how can 393 00:25:04,880 --> 00:25:07,840 Speaker 11: you represent that guy? I don't think we'll ever solve that. 394 00:25:08,080 --> 00:25:10,520 Speaker 11: I never had any problems with it. I had kind 395 00:25:10,560 --> 00:25:13,840 Speaker 11: of two rules. One was that my job was to 396 00:25:13,880 --> 00:25:17,359 Speaker 11: defend the despised. That was my job, and I like 397 00:25:17,600 --> 00:25:20,080 Speaker 11: doing it. I got a certain thrill out of being 398 00:25:20,240 --> 00:25:22,600 Speaker 11: pretty much out there on my own and that I 399 00:25:22,760 --> 00:25:25,920 Speaker 11: was the only person who could stand between this man 400 00:25:26,560 --> 00:25:28,959 Speaker 11: and whatever the power of the government could bring forward. 401 00:25:29,400 --> 00:25:31,480 Speaker 1: That's part of defending people. That's your job. 402 00:25:31,680 --> 00:25:34,080 Speaker 4: And everybody deserves a defense no matter what they've done, 403 00:25:34,119 --> 00:25:35,840 Speaker 4: no matter what we think, because that's the way the 404 00:25:35,880 --> 00:25:37,439 Speaker 4: criminal justice system works. 405 00:25:37,920 --> 00:25:39,919 Speaker 11: The only way to deal with them was to just 406 00:25:40,040 --> 00:25:45,520 Speaker 11: be slightly better at what you did and know your procedure, 407 00:25:45,840 --> 00:25:48,639 Speaker 11: know your evidence. Those are two things that if you 408 00:25:48,720 --> 00:25:51,240 Speaker 11: can get a handle on them, you pick up a 409 00:25:51,359 --> 00:25:54,680 Speaker 11: lot of advantages over the other person. 410 00:25:58,920 --> 00:26:01,920 Speaker 1: So mister Jarberry had given Newton an alibi. His son 411 00:26:02,000 --> 00:26:05,000 Speaker 1: was home with him and his wife all night. But 412 00:26:05,200 --> 00:26:08,520 Speaker 1: there was a problem. Newton's mother was asked to give 413 00:26:08,600 --> 00:26:14,800 Speaker 1: a separate statement, and it was pretty different. Hattie Yarbury 414 00:26:14,840 --> 00:26:18,080 Speaker 1: told the sheriff that she had last seen Dorothy on Thursday, 415 00:26:18,160 --> 00:26:22,080 Speaker 1: July thirty first. Dorothy had visited Newton around one thirty 416 00:26:22,119 --> 00:26:26,280 Speaker 1: that afternoon, and after they talked, Newton walked Dorothy home 417 00:26:26,359 --> 00:26:32,119 Speaker 1: in the early evening. That's what his mother said. Newton 418 00:26:32,160 --> 00:26:39,160 Speaker 1: then returned to his parents' house for dinner around seven thirty. 419 00:26:40,080 --> 00:26:43,560 Speaker 1: According to missus Yarberry, Newton left after supper, but he 420 00:26:43,640 --> 00:26:46,960 Speaker 1: was home by nine thirty, so he was gone for 421 00:26:47,040 --> 00:26:49,479 Speaker 1: less than two hours that night. She said he went 422 00:26:49,520 --> 00:26:53,280 Speaker 1: straight to bed. The next morning, he was at the 423 00:26:53,280 --> 00:26:57,800 Speaker 1: breakfast table by eight am. Clearly, something's not right here. 424 00:26:58,200 --> 00:27:00,439 Speaker 1: Mister Garberry gave the impression that had his son had 425 00:27:00,480 --> 00:27:03,680 Speaker 1: been home all night long, but his wife acknowledged that 426 00:27:03,760 --> 00:27:06,280 Speaker 1: Newton had left the house even though it wasn't for 427 00:27:06,400 --> 00:27:10,879 Speaker 1: very long. Their stories were clearly inconsistent, which makes me 428 00:27:10,960 --> 00:27:16,359 Speaker 1: wonder did Newton's father just forget those details or was 429 00:27:16,400 --> 00:27:21,960 Speaker 1: someone lying. This feels like a good time to start 430 00:27:22,000 --> 00:27:25,639 Speaker 1: on a list of suspects. Obviously, there's Newton, there's just 431 00:27:25,680 --> 00:27:28,800 Speaker 1: no solid evidence to tie him to the crime. But 432 00:27:28,880 --> 00:27:31,840 Speaker 1: Dorothy was very popular in town, and she had many friends, 433 00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:35,000 Speaker 1: and some of them were men. Maybe she had been 434 00:27:35,080 --> 00:27:38,719 Speaker 1: out with someone other than Newton that night, and maybe 435 00:27:38,760 --> 00:27:43,280 Speaker 1: that someone had a serious jealous streak. We know that 436 00:27:43,320 --> 00:27:47,280 Speaker 1: Dorothy's biological father had once threatened to kidnap her. Was 437 00:27:47,400 --> 00:27:51,480 Speaker 1: Ralph Johnson involved? Would he have really killed his own daughter? 438 00:27:52,240 --> 00:27:54,919 Speaker 1: Or was this a random act of violence? What if 439 00:27:54,920 --> 00:27:58,120 Speaker 1: a stranger had wandered into town, someone who was capable 440 00:27:58,160 --> 00:28:01,240 Speaker 1: of murder. If your mind works the way mine does, 441 00:28:01,280 --> 00:28:03,600 Speaker 1: and I know most of yours do, you might be 442 00:28:03,720 --> 00:28:06,880 Speaker 1: wondering how there could have been so little evidence, If 443 00:28:06,920 --> 00:28:09,760 Speaker 1: this were a crime of passion, how would the killer 444 00:28:09,800 --> 00:28:13,639 Speaker 1: have gotten away without leaving any latent clues? Or you 445 00:28:13,760 --> 00:28:17,160 Speaker 1: might even start to wonder if we're actually dealing with 446 00:28:17,320 --> 00:28:22,720 Speaker 1: an experienced killer. Paul Hols knows a lot about those. 447 00:28:23,640 --> 00:28:26,720 Speaker 6: Over the decades, I ended up being involved in many, 448 00:28:26,760 --> 00:28:31,040 Speaker 6: many cold cases that had a broad spectrum of different 449 00:28:31,080 --> 00:28:35,720 Speaker 6: types of circumstances, But my specialty generally was leaning towards 450 00:28:35,880 --> 00:28:38,440 Speaker 6: the serial predator, the fantasy motivated predator. 451 00:28:38,480 --> 00:28:39,800 Speaker 4: Well, and I think that's why you're going to be 452 00:28:39,840 --> 00:28:41,600 Speaker 4: really helpful for me in this cold case. 453 00:28:41,840 --> 00:28:45,400 Speaker 6: So your intelligent offender can do some things that oftentimes 454 00:28:45,440 --> 00:28:49,840 Speaker 6: I've seen investigators or even other experts make the mistake of, oh, 455 00:28:49,880 --> 00:28:53,480 Speaker 6: this person must have done this before. Not necessarily you 456 00:28:53,640 --> 00:28:56,400 Speaker 6: have deep thinkers out there that commit crimes, and the 457 00:28:56,400 --> 00:28:58,400 Speaker 6: first time they do it, they do a good job. 458 00:28:59,560 --> 00:29:02,320 Speaker 1: There's other name on the suspect list, one that I 459 00:29:02,400 --> 00:29:08,720 Speaker 1: didn't really expect, Michael Straine's grandfather, Bill Strain's dad. 460 00:29:09,880 --> 00:29:13,200 Speaker 12: I think my dad said that my grandpa had testified. 461 00:29:13,240 --> 00:29:16,520 Speaker 12: He also remembered my grandfather had been questioned that they 462 00:29:16,560 --> 00:29:19,040 Speaker 12: had come and I think asked my grandfather to come 463 00:29:19,040 --> 00:29:21,000 Speaker 12: down to the police station and talk with them. 464 00:29:21,560 --> 00:29:24,320 Speaker 1: He worked for a car dealership and he occasionally asked 465 00:29:24,320 --> 00:29:25,840 Speaker 1: Dorothy to help with deliveries. 466 00:29:26,440 --> 00:29:29,120 Speaker 12: Dorothy would sometimes go with him and drive a car 467 00:29:29,160 --> 00:29:32,000 Speaker 12: for him to drive back. I remember hearing my mother 468 00:29:32,240 --> 00:29:34,480 Speaker 12: tell him that people were apt to talk if he 469 00:29:34,560 --> 00:29:36,800 Speaker 12: were out in a car with a young single girl. 470 00:29:37,080 --> 00:29:40,120 Speaker 1: Michael stopped reading the excerpt to clarify something for me. 471 00:29:40,840 --> 00:29:43,440 Speaker 12: It's not really clear there he's talking about my grandfather. 472 00:29:43,760 --> 00:29:45,280 Speaker 12: He made it sound like it was a lot of 473 00:29:45,320 --> 00:29:48,560 Speaker 12: times that when my grandpa would go to sell a car, 474 00:29:48,680 --> 00:29:51,920 Speaker 12: he needed to ride back, and that Dorothy would take 475 00:29:51,960 --> 00:29:56,240 Speaker 12: another car and follow him and then you know, give him, 476 00:29:56,360 --> 00:29:58,080 Speaker 12: you know, then he would ride back with her. 477 00:29:58,400 --> 00:29:59,760 Speaker 1: Did that strike your dad as on. 478 00:30:00,920 --> 00:30:05,120 Speaker 12: I don't think so, but but I think he thought 479 00:30:05,120 --> 00:30:07,840 Speaker 12: that it would strike my grandma's odd that you know that, 480 00:30:08,080 --> 00:30:10,800 Speaker 12: and you know, he says here that she you know, 481 00:30:10,840 --> 00:30:13,600 Speaker 12: she he remembers hearing her telling you know that that 482 00:30:13,640 --> 00:30:15,000 Speaker 12: could look real bad, but. 483 00:30:14,960 --> 00:30:17,840 Speaker 10: Not enough for her to. 484 00:30:16,840 --> 00:30:18,720 Speaker 12: Put her foot down and go, no, you can't do it. 485 00:30:18,960 --> 00:30:22,320 Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, that has been horribly embarrassing for her. 486 00:30:22,560 --> 00:30:26,400 Speaker 12: I'm sure. I'm sure. I don't think that was her 487 00:30:26,440 --> 00:30:30,600 Speaker 12: first time with that, though, probably from what I understand 488 00:30:30,600 --> 00:30:33,040 Speaker 12: of my grandpa's life before, probably there had been other 489 00:30:33,120 --> 00:30:36,280 Speaker 12: embarrassments that, you know, that had happened in a little town. 490 00:30:36,600 --> 00:30:38,680 Speaker 12: And when your husband drinks and goes to bars and 491 00:30:38,720 --> 00:30:41,800 Speaker 12: you're the church lady, you know, I don't think that 492 00:30:41,800 --> 00:30:43,240 Speaker 12: would be her first embarrassment. 493 00:30:43,280 --> 00:30:43,480 Speaker 6: Ever. 494 00:30:44,400 --> 00:30:48,040 Speaker 1: That dynamic between Michael Strain's grandparents wasn't unusual for the 495 00:30:48,120 --> 00:30:51,960 Speaker 1: time and the nineteen thirties, especially in small southern towns, 496 00:30:52,120 --> 00:30:57,160 Speaker 1: women were often devoutly religious, but their husbands sometimes prioritized 497 00:30:57,280 --> 00:31:04,080 Speaker 1: their secular interests. That's certainly true of the Simons. Dorothy's mother, Agnes, 498 00:31:04,120 --> 00:31:08,520 Speaker 1: favored the Bible and Howard, Dorothy's stepfather preferred a strong drink. 499 00:31:10,760 --> 00:31:13,600 Speaker 1: During the depression, small town churches were more than just 500 00:31:13,680 --> 00:31:18,000 Speaker 1: houses of worship. With so many people struggling economically, religious 501 00:31:18,040 --> 00:31:21,960 Speaker 1: institutions were a place of refuge. Also, local churches provided 502 00:31:22,000 --> 00:31:25,080 Speaker 1: a center for community events as well as social support. 503 00:31:27,280 --> 00:31:30,280 Speaker 1: Maybe Dorothy attended Saint Mary's Church because she was a 504 00:31:30,320 --> 00:31:34,040 Speaker 1: committed Christian. Maybe she joined the choir to be social 505 00:31:34,080 --> 00:31:36,360 Speaker 1: and to spend time with friends, or maybe she just 506 00:31:36,480 --> 00:31:40,080 Speaker 1: liked to sing. I asked Walter Banger what the religious 507 00:31:40,120 --> 00:31:43,720 Speaker 1: landscape was like back when Dorothy was growing up. What 508 00:31:43,920 --> 00:31:47,800 Speaker 1: about religion in Texas during the Great Depression the. 509 00:31:47,880 --> 00:31:53,760 Speaker 13: Thirties, Texas is very much Protestant dominated place. Then there 510 00:31:53,800 --> 00:31:58,840 Speaker 13: are Catholics. There are German and Czech and ethnic Mexican 511 00:31:58,960 --> 00:32:06,120 Speaker 13: Catholics mainly an ethnic faith then, but the overwhelming churches 512 00:32:06,400 --> 00:32:11,520 Speaker 13: in Texas are Baptists, Methodists, and to a lesser degree 513 00:32:11,520 --> 00:32:15,120 Speaker 13: of Presbyterian, sort of what we now call the mainline 514 00:32:15,440 --> 00:32:20,600 Speaker 13: Protestant churches. And most of these Protestant churches were staunchly 515 00:32:20,720 --> 00:32:21,720 Speaker 13: anti Catholic. 516 00:32:22,920 --> 00:32:25,360 Speaker 1: Dorothy and her family were Catholic, and there were certainly 517 00:32:25,440 --> 00:32:29,160 Speaker 1: hate crimes against Catholics in the nineteen thirties. Ted Eubanks 518 00:32:29,200 --> 00:32:32,200 Speaker 1: works for Saint Mary Cathedral in Austin. He knows a 519 00:32:32,240 --> 00:32:35,440 Speaker 1: lot about Catholicism in the nineteenth century. I asked him 520 00:32:35,440 --> 00:32:36,560 Speaker 1: for the bigger picture. 521 00:32:36,960 --> 00:32:41,239 Speaker 14: You know, the anti Catholic movement certainly was there. I 522 00:32:41,280 --> 00:32:45,600 Speaker 14: also think it's always been this sort of total misunderstanding 523 00:32:45,640 --> 00:32:48,000 Speaker 14: of the church. One is the power of the pope 524 00:32:48,080 --> 00:32:51,080 Speaker 14: or the power he doesn't have within the church. And 525 00:32:51,120 --> 00:32:54,280 Speaker 14: the second thing is just somehow that the Catholic Church 526 00:32:54,320 --> 00:32:57,080 Speaker 14: is sort of mysterious. What goes on in that church? 527 00:32:57,280 --> 00:32:59,400 Speaker 14: What are they actually you know, they believe in the 528 00:32:59,440 --> 00:33:01,320 Speaker 14: real body and blood, that sort. 529 00:33:01,160 --> 00:33:04,600 Speaker 4: Of thing, fearing something that's different. 530 00:33:05,080 --> 00:33:09,600 Speaker 14: Absolutely, so I think it was part ignorance, part Protestantism, 531 00:33:09,680 --> 00:33:12,800 Speaker 14: part popism, you know, kind of a combination. 532 00:33:12,400 --> 00:33:12,880 Speaker 9: Of all that. 533 00:33:13,440 --> 00:33:16,680 Speaker 1: There had been violence against Catholics a decade earlier in 534 00:33:16,720 --> 00:33:21,120 Speaker 1: the nineteen twenties, including several high profile cases involving the 535 00:33:21,200 --> 00:33:25,000 Speaker 1: murders of priests in different areas of the country. Much 536 00:33:25,040 --> 00:33:28,800 Speaker 1: of that widespread violence and intimidation came from the KKK, 537 00:33:29,840 --> 00:33:34,560 Speaker 1: members targeted Catholics, accusing them of being separatists and un American. 538 00:33:35,000 --> 00:33:38,080 Speaker 1: When the clan's power began to wane in the nineteen twenties, 539 00:33:38,240 --> 00:33:41,920 Speaker 1: so did violence against Catholics, but still the sheriff in 540 00:33:42,080 --> 00:33:45,920 Speaker 1: Aransa's Pass did need to at least consider whether Dorothy's 541 00:33:45,960 --> 00:33:51,240 Speaker 1: death was because of her religion. Widespread speculation about the 542 00:33:51,280 --> 00:33:55,000 Speaker 1: case engulfed Ransa's Pass. There was too little physical evidence 543 00:33:55,040 --> 00:34:00,520 Speaker 1: to arrest a murder suspect, let alone convict one. Local 544 00:34:00,560 --> 00:34:04,920 Speaker 1: media outlets defended yrbery. And that's a big deal because, 545 00:34:05,000 --> 00:34:08,759 Speaker 1: unlike today's world with its fast spreading internet content, in 546 00:34:08,800 --> 00:34:12,080 Speaker 1: the nineteen thirties, newspapers were the main source of information. 547 00:34:12,880 --> 00:34:16,719 Speaker 1: John Bowers publishes the only paper in Aransas Pass for 548 00:34:16,800 --> 00:34:20,480 Speaker 1: a paper like yours, What is the role of a 549 00:34:20,760 --> 00:34:22,560 Speaker 1: community newspaper in the. 550 00:34:22,560 --> 00:34:27,080 Speaker 15: Small What we try to provide to our readers, our subscribers, 551 00:34:27,120 --> 00:34:31,240 Speaker 15: and all that they're interested in seeing city news, school news, 552 00:34:31,440 --> 00:34:34,240 Speaker 15: county news that applies to this end of the county. 553 00:34:34,440 --> 00:34:37,319 Speaker 15: But our role mainly is to provide news in those 554 00:34:37,320 --> 00:34:37,840 Speaker 15: three areas. 555 00:34:37,880 --> 00:34:39,479 Speaker 9: People love to see what their kids are. 556 00:34:39,400 --> 00:34:43,200 Speaker 15: Doing in athletics and academics. They want to know what 557 00:34:43,239 --> 00:34:45,399 Speaker 15: the city's doing, whether it's bad or good. And most 558 00:34:45,400 --> 00:34:47,319 Speaker 15: of the time the city stuff is good, and we 559 00:34:47,440 --> 00:34:51,000 Speaker 15: report the good news. We want to play the good guy. Really, 560 00:34:51,040 --> 00:34:52,880 Speaker 15: we don't want to be bad guy. We don't want 561 00:34:52,920 --> 00:34:55,320 Speaker 15: to assume that role. We want to paint a pretty picture. 562 00:34:55,400 --> 00:34:57,560 Speaker 15: But we will report things that are going on that 563 00:34:57,640 --> 00:34:59,960 Speaker 15: are not good. But we're not looking to cruise five 564 00:35:00,000 --> 00:35:02,719 Speaker 15: a city manager or Chris Fider mayor or anything kind. Now, 565 00:35:03,000 --> 00:35:04,160 Speaker 15: that's not our role. 566 00:35:04,440 --> 00:35:07,200 Speaker 4: Has it been like that for the beginning, I mean 567 00:35:07,280 --> 00:35:10,040 Speaker 4: from the very beginning this paper has been kind of 568 00:35:10,200 --> 00:35:10,520 Speaker 4: like that. 569 00:35:10,880 --> 00:35:15,600 Speaker 15: Uplifter and hometown newspapers, all hometown newspapers that way. That's 570 00:35:15,600 --> 00:35:19,920 Speaker 15: whether they're still doing so well because metro papers, like 571 00:35:20,000 --> 00:35:24,640 Speaker 15: The Caller, they report picky, bad stuff, metro news, bad news, 572 00:35:24,880 --> 00:35:28,120 Speaker 15: the protests. We had a little protest here. We covered it, 573 00:35:28,160 --> 00:35:30,640 Speaker 15: but it didn't amount to anything, but we covered it. 574 00:35:30,680 --> 00:35:32,120 Speaker 15: We had a picture in the paper of it. 575 00:35:32,440 --> 00:35:35,640 Speaker 1: The power of the press can be extremely influential in 576 00:35:35,680 --> 00:35:40,239 Speaker 1: places like Arensa's pass. Now, what about crime, crime in 577 00:35:40,840 --> 00:35:41,720 Speaker 1: a small town? 578 00:35:42,040 --> 00:35:45,800 Speaker 15: I mean, was that addressed in We carry a police 579 00:35:45,840 --> 00:35:49,440 Speaker 15: report weekly of all the arrests that are made each 580 00:35:49,560 --> 00:35:53,800 Speaker 15: week and who all was charged with DWI, d u I, 581 00:35:53,920 --> 00:35:56,719 Speaker 15: drug crimes, that kind of stuff. We carry that in 582 00:35:56,760 --> 00:36:00,640 Speaker 15: our newspaper. On page two of my round Past paper 583 00:36:00,680 --> 00:36:02,640 Speaker 15: and page two of my English sized paper. We have 584 00:36:02,960 --> 00:36:05,759 Speaker 15: community calendar which talks about all the events going on 585 00:36:06,000 --> 00:36:07,880 Speaker 15: in the area, and then right below it is the 586 00:36:08,000 --> 00:36:10,600 Speaker 15: arrest report of the police department. They provide that to us. 587 00:36:12,760 --> 00:36:16,160 Speaker 15: They love it, they love it. They just want to 588 00:36:16,160 --> 00:36:17,920 Speaker 15: read about it. They just want to know. They want 589 00:36:17,920 --> 00:36:19,120 Speaker 15: to know who got bested for what. 590 00:36:19,360 --> 00:36:21,880 Speaker 1: Well, what if you were one of the people busted? 591 00:36:22,800 --> 00:36:24,880 Speaker 15: It's public record. Once you get a ticket, are you 592 00:36:24,880 --> 00:36:27,000 Speaker 15: get arrested, it's public record. 593 00:36:27,120 --> 00:36:29,080 Speaker 1: Isn't that kind of a little bit of like a 594 00:36:29,120 --> 00:36:30,200 Speaker 1: little public. 595 00:36:29,880 --> 00:36:32,160 Speaker 15: Shaming, But that's what the public wants to see. 596 00:36:34,040 --> 00:36:37,960 Speaker 1: Dorothy's public persona seemed flawless. According to her family. 597 00:36:40,040 --> 00:36:43,160 Speaker 5: She was really really pretty. I've seen pictures of her. 598 00:36:43,280 --> 00:36:46,839 Speaker 5: She was really pretty, and she was perfect as far 599 00:36:46,880 --> 00:36:49,920 Speaker 5: as her personality was, because she was good in school, 600 00:36:51,040 --> 00:36:54,239 Speaker 5: but anyway, she was highly thought of. 601 00:36:54,680 --> 00:36:58,880 Speaker 1: But after Dorothy died, rumors swirled about a secret life, 602 00:36:59,280 --> 00:37:02,279 Speaker 1: and her good girl reputation began to unravel. 603 00:37:03,200 --> 00:37:06,600 Speaker 12: You know, there's a there's an old country thing about 604 00:37:06,640 --> 00:37:08,960 Speaker 12: Texas that, you know, in a murder case, you know, 605 00:37:09,000 --> 00:37:11,800 Speaker 12: you want to prove the person needed killing, and I 606 00:37:11,840 --> 00:37:13,640 Speaker 12: don't I don't know that the things they were talking 607 00:37:13,640 --> 00:37:16,000 Speaker 12: about did that, but that that really used to be 608 00:37:16,040 --> 00:37:17,560 Speaker 12: a thing. You know, It's like, well, he was a 609 00:37:17,600 --> 00:37:19,720 Speaker 12: really bad guy or whatever he needed killing. 610 00:37:20,080 --> 00:37:23,080 Speaker 1: I've read these articles that just sound like she was 611 00:37:23,200 --> 00:37:25,880 Speaker 1: raked over the coals, you know, Dorothy's habits of smoking 612 00:37:25,920 --> 00:37:28,560 Speaker 1: cigarettes and drinking whiskey and swimming with boys. 613 00:37:28,960 --> 00:37:32,239 Speaker 5: Most people didn't have anything to say, or they put 614 00:37:32,239 --> 00:37:36,000 Speaker 5: her down, like you say, for cigarettes. I did talk 615 00:37:36,040 --> 00:37:39,080 Speaker 5: to one lady. She said every girl out there was 616 00:37:39,120 --> 00:37:40,239 Speaker 5: smoking cigarettes. 617 00:37:41,040 --> 00:37:45,759 Speaker 12: They brought out that she smoked cigarettes. They brought out 618 00:37:45,840 --> 00:37:49,520 Speaker 12: that she drank beer her mother. They asked her, you know, 619 00:37:49,560 --> 00:37:51,520 Speaker 12: did you ever see her drink whiskey? Well, I saw 620 00:37:51,640 --> 00:37:53,759 Speaker 12: her drink a you know, a shot of whiskey, and 621 00:37:54,400 --> 00:37:56,880 Speaker 12: and you know, I guess in nineteen thirty one, maybe 622 00:37:56,920 --> 00:37:58,200 Speaker 12: that was really scandalous. 623 00:38:00,680 --> 00:38:06,200 Speaker 1: It was really scandalous. Who was Dorothy drinking with? Was 624 00:38:06,239 --> 00:38:10,680 Speaker 1: it someone capable of murder? Did she meet someone after 625 00:38:10,880 --> 00:38:14,360 Speaker 1: she met Newton, someone who wanted to take her for 626 00:38:14,400 --> 00:38:21,799 Speaker 1: a walk on the beach. Now, there were two key questions, 627 00:38:22,320 --> 00:38:27,720 Speaker 1: who committed this murder and just who was the real 628 00:38:27,840 --> 00:38:39,600 Speaker 1: Dorothy Simon's On the next episode of Tenfold War wicked 629 00:38:39,680 --> 00:38:40,600 Speaker 1: on exactly right. 630 00:38:41,440 --> 00:38:43,680 Speaker 14: The defense attorney's job is to try to undermine the 631 00:38:43,760 --> 00:38:48,759 Speaker 14: credibility of her testimony, and that's a very unpleasant thing 632 00:38:48,800 --> 00:38:49,760 Speaker 14: for a defense attorney. 633 00:38:50,239 --> 00:38:54,000 Speaker 10: Oh, she's a loose woman out there, and yet I'm 634 00:38:54,040 --> 00:38:58,000 Speaker 10: sure she had some issues with her mom being who 635 00:38:58,000 --> 00:38:58,759 Speaker 10: her mom was. 636 00:39:00,160 --> 00:39:02,640 Speaker 1: Sound like someone who's done this before? Or is it 637 00:39:02,760 --> 00:39:06,080 Speaker 1: possible that someone could be this organized, this good just 638 00:39:06,120 --> 00:39:07,120 Speaker 1: on the first go round? 639 00:39:07,600 --> 00:39:09,680 Speaker 6: You could have somebody who has been involved in this 640 00:39:09,760 --> 00:39:14,880 Speaker 6: body disposal process before. 641 00:39:15,840 --> 00:39:18,200 Speaker 1: My new book, All That Is Wicked, is available for 642 00:39:18,320 --> 00:39:21,760 Speaker 1: pre order now, including the audiobook. All That Is Wicked 643 00:39:21,800 --> 00:39:24,480 Speaker 1: is based on our first season of tenfold More Wicked. 644 00:39:24,920 --> 00:39:27,240 Speaker 1: You might think you know the whole story of killer 645 00:39:27,360 --> 00:39:30,919 Speaker 1: Edward Ruloff's crimes, but there's so much more. My book 646 00:39:30,960 --> 00:39:35,800 Speaker 1: American Sherlock is also available. This has been an exactly 647 00:39:35,880 --> 00:39:40,320 Speaker 1: right tenfold war. Media production producers Jason Whaling, Laura Soble, 648 00:39:40,480 --> 00:39:43,839 Speaker 1: and Alexis m Rossi. Co writers Laura Soble and Kate 649 00:39:43,840 --> 00:39:48,680 Speaker 1: Winkler Dawson, sound designer Eric Friend, composer Curtis Heath, artwork 650 00:39:48,880 --> 00:39:54,240 Speaker 1: Nick Toga. Executive producers Georgia Hartstark, Karen Kilgarriff and Daniel Kramer. 651 00:39:56,080 --> 00:39:59,320 Speaker 1: Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at tenfold more Wicked 652 00:39:59,360 --> 00:40:02,239 Speaker 1: and on Twitter a tenfold more and if you know 653 00:40:02,320 --> 00:40:05,360 Speaker 1: of a historical crime that could use some attention, email 654 00:40:05,480 --> 00:40:10,480 Speaker 1: us at info at tenfoldmore wicked dot com. Listen, subscribe 655 00:40:10,560 --> 00:40:14,160 Speaker 1: and leave us a review on Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, 656 00:40:14,280 --> 00:40:17,440 Speaker 1: or wherever you get your podcasts and don't forget. You 657 00:40:17,480 --> 00:40:21,360 Speaker 1: can hear every episode one week early and ad free 658 00:40:21,719 --> 00:40:24,760 Speaker 1: by subscribing to Wondry Plus in the Wondery app