WEBVTT - Beginnings (Bonus)

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<v Speaker 1>Hey listeners, Jessica here. Be sure to check out new

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<v Speaker 1>episodes of Undetermined every Tuesday for free wherever you get

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<v Speaker 1>your podcasts. For early and ad free listening, check out

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<v Speaker 1>Tenderfoot plus on Apple Podcasts. The views and opinions expressed

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<v Speaker 1>in this podcast are solely those of the individuals interviewed

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<v Speaker 1>and participating in the show, and do not represent those

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<v Speaker 1>of Tenderfoot TV and Resonate recordings. All individuals described or

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<v Speaker 1>mentioned in the podcast should be considered innocent until found

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<v Speaker 1>guilty in a court of law. This podcast contains subject

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<v Speaker 1>matter such as violence and graphic descriptions, which may not

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<v Speaker 1>be suitable for all audiences. Listener discretion is advised. I'm

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<v Speaker 1>Jessica Noll, an investigative journalist with twenty years of experience.

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<v Speaker 1>I've been covering crime stories for a good chunk of

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<v Speaker 1>my career, with a particular interest in unsolved and cold cases.

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<v Speaker 1>That's because these are cases that are often overlooked and undercovered.

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<v Speaker 1>If I can tell the victim's story, shed new light

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<v Speaker 1>on it, and give them a voice, maybe that can

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<v Speaker 1>help their case. In twenty eighteen, I produced my first

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<v Speaker 1>true crime podcast, covering two fifty year old cold cases

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<v Speaker 1>in Atlanta. I've gone on to produce several others since,

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<v Speaker 1>and at the heart of each and every one of

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<v Speaker 1>those stories is the victim. These aren't my stories to tell,

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<v Speaker 1>they're their stories. So I want to tell you the

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<v Speaker 1>story of Jessica Easterly Darning. She was the kind of

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<v Speaker 1>person who one of our friends told me, could make

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<v Speaker 1>you feel so special, so loved, and like you were

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<v Speaker 1>the most beautiful, most important person in the world to her,

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<v Speaker 1>and those who loved her back felt the same way

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<v Speaker 1>about Jessica. But in the summer of twenty eighteen, Jessica

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<v Speaker 1>vanished from her Lakeview neighborhood of New Orleans. Within days,

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<v Speaker 1>her body was found just two and a half blocks

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<v Speaker 1>from her home.

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<v Speaker 2>Her body was in an advanced state of decomposition. Now

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<v Speaker 2>her family in advanced stages of grief and disbelief that

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<v Speaker 2>something like this could happen.

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<v Speaker 1>She shouldn't be dead right now. My family's devastated.

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<v Speaker 3>They lost a cousin, a sister, a daughter.

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<v Speaker 2>Everything seems to be hush hushed.

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<v Speaker 4>The police don't know anything. The neighborhood is very upset

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<v Speaker 4>about it, and we would really like some answers as

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<v Speaker 4>to what happened to our neighbor.

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<v Speaker 2>While no cause or manner of death has been determined,

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<v Speaker 2>Jessica's family and friends are determined to get justice for Jessica.

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<v Speaker 1>Ultimately, her case and manner of death were classified as undetermined,

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<v Speaker 1>which has left the investigation into her death in limbo,

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<v Speaker 1>and because of that, more than three years later, her

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<v Speaker 1>case remains unsolved. I wanted to know more about Jessica,

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<v Speaker 1>more about her life and about her death, and I

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<v Speaker 1>wanted to find out what really happened in the days

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<v Speaker 1>leading up to and following August fourteenth, twenty nineteen. The

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<v Speaker 1>more I learned, the more convinced I became that her

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<v Speaker 1>story was one that I needed to tell, and that's

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<v Speaker 1>why I'm here today. But when I first learned about

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<v Speaker 1>Jessica's story, I didn't think I would be where I

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<v Speaker 1>am right now, behind the microphone telling her story to

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<v Speaker 1>the world. So before we dive into Jessica's story, I

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<v Speaker 1>want to share with you how we got here, because

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<v Speaker 1>a lot has happened over the last two years that's

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<v Speaker 1>brought me where I am today. It all started with

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<v Speaker 1>my partner, retired Detective Todd Macombas.

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<v Speaker 5>I retired from law enforcement in twenty seventeen, and I

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<v Speaker 5>did so to take a job on a sports radio show,

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<v Speaker 5>host a comedy podcast, and focus on my career in

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<v Speaker 5>stand up. But by November of twenty nineteen, I had

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<v Speaker 5>fallen completely in love with true crime podcasts because that's

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<v Speaker 5>when I listened to the first season of Culpable, and

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<v Speaker 5>I mean I was hooked three minutes in to the

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<v Speaker 5>first episode and I binged it from beginning to end. Now,

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<v Speaker 5>at that time, I was hosting a podcast called Heartland

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<v Speaker 5>Radio for the Pat McAfee Show. And even though Heartland

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<v Speaker 5>Radio was a comedy podcast, I decided to throw our

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<v Speaker 5>listeners a little curveball and invite Dennis Cooper, the co

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<v Speaker 5>creator and host of Culpable, to be a guest on

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<v Speaker 5>the show. So a lot of weird, hinky things. You

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<v Speaker 5>would think that law enforcement in the scene would think,

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<v Speaker 5>you know what, maybe we need to take a little

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<v Speaker 5>a layer deeper than maybe just what the two people

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<v Speaker 5>that allegedly found the body are saying. And that really

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<v Speaker 5>wasn't done initially, right, it was just let's get it

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<v Speaker 5>looks like suicide. Us just wrap it up, boys, let's

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<v Speaker 5>go get some lunch.

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<v Speaker 6>That's what all indications point to and to not knock

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<v Speaker 6>bringing place too much, as once the family gave pressure,

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<v Speaker 6>they started to look into things. But you know, as

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<v Speaker 6>many other victims families have probably learned, it really hurts

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<v Speaker 6>when you don't do it right out the gate.

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<v Speaker 5>Dennis's guest spot was a big hit with our crowd,

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<v Speaker 5>and then he and I quickly became friends over text

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<v Speaker 5>and listen. I got so hooked on true crime podcasting

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<v Speaker 5>that I left my job. I just quit and I

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<v Speaker 5>went back to my detective roots and started my own

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<v Speaker 5>true crime podcast called ten forty one with Todd Macomas.

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<v Speaker 5>Then six months later, I get tagged in a tweet

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<v Speaker 5>from a woman named Audrey Schmidt. Now Audrey asked me

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<v Speaker 5>to bring her, her sister, and her sister's best friend

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<v Speaker 5>on ten forty one to talk about the suspicious death

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<v Speaker 5>of their sister, Jessica Easterly Dearning. So I did, and

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<v Speaker 5>that interview changed my life.

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<v Speaker 7>According to detectives, they can't hand it over from missing

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<v Speaker 7>persons to homicide until the coroner calls it specifically a homicide.

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<v Speaker 7>So as long as the coroner is calling it undetermined,

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<v Speaker 7>just can't do anything. Sorry, sooner or.

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<v Speaker 5>Later somebody's gonna have to do something for your sister,

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<v Speaker 5>and it's frustrating, right you guys are you guys are

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<v Speaker 5>all warriors and you're out there battling for her. And

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<v Speaker 5>I'm sure that Jessica is very proud of each and

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<v Speaker 5>every one of you. It's admirable. And any way that

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<v Speaker 5>I can help in the future, please don't hesitate to

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<v Speaker 5>let me know. Stay in contact and I'll try to

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<v Speaker 5>keep up on the case. If I can offer advice

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<v Speaker 5>or if I can help you get the word out

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<v Speaker 5>of anything, I definitely will do that. And I, as

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<v Speaker 5>a former detective, I just have to apologize to you.

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<v Speaker 5>This is injustice. It shouldn't be happening. I had interviewed

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<v Speaker 5>these three amazing women, let them tell Jessica's tragic story

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<v Speaker 5>in one single episode, and then it was on to

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<v Speaker 5>the next week's story. But I could not get that

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<v Speaker 5>conversation out of my head. I mean, I wanted to

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<v Speaker 5>help them find justice for their sister and her friend

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<v Speaker 5>so badly, yet I felt completely powerless. My inner detective

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<v Speaker 5>was screaming at me, man one episode and done, what

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<v Speaker 5>in the hell are you doing? Do something? But what

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<v Speaker 5>my following wasn't big enough. My reach wasn't far enough,

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<v Speaker 5>and I just didn't have the infrastructure or resources to

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<v Speaker 5>cover this story in the way it deserved, let alone

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<v Speaker 5>get it to the size of the audience it deserved.

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<v Speaker 5>But fortunately I knew someone who did, my buddy Dennis Cooper,

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<v Speaker 5>and man, before I knew it, my world would come

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<v Speaker 5>full friggin circle.

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<v Speaker 6>As he said, I was wrapping up on Culpable Season one,

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<v Speaker 6>and he asked me to be on his comedy podcast,

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<v Speaker 6>And of course I'm nervous because I don't like doing

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<v Speaker 6>that stuff anyways, and also, why would they want to

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<v Speaker 6>talk to me about a true crime podcast. I just

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<v Speaker 6>didn't understand that. But I go on there, and Todd

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<v Speaker 6>and his co host took really good care of me,

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<v Speaker 6>and it ended up being this great experience, which I

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<v Speaker 6>did not expect whatsoever going into it. So Todd and

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<v Speaker 6>I exchanged information and from that point on we stayed

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<v Speaker 6>in touch. I learned that he had a background in

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<v Speaker 6>law enforcement and had done some work on some cases

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<v Speaker 6>that I was familiar with back in his home state

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<v Speaker 6>of Indiana. I figured, who knows, maybe someday we pair

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<v Speaker 6>up and make a podcast, or he tells me about

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<v Speaker 6>a case that I then feel compelled to make a

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<v Speaker 6>podcast about. Like Todd said, he had moved on from

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<v Speaker 6>comedy to true crime. And then I believe it was

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<v Speaker 6>near the end of twenty twenty that he reaches out

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<v Speaker 6>and he starts telling me about this case in New

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<v Speaker 6>Orleans that he covered on his show, and he's like, dude,

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<v Speaker 6>I cannot stop thinking about this one. So of course

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<v Speaker 6>I get sucked in and I start going down all

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<v Speaker 6>the same rabbit holes, and it wasn't long before he

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<v Speaker 6>connected me with the victim's family. The victim is jessicaate

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<v Speaker 6>Easterly Darning and her sisters are Audrey and Amanda, to

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<v Speaker 6>super strong women who have basically led the charge on

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<v Speaker 6>their own sister's investigation. And I'll just say it's amazing

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<v Speaker 6>what they've done. But we connected with them, we hit

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<v Speaker 6>it off on a zoom call, and from that point

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<v Speaker 6>I just felt like, we need need to take on

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<v Speaker 6>this story. The well, like I said, is to make

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<v Speaker 6>an impact on this and whether that's finding something new

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<v Speaker 6>or getting somebody to talk, or breaking this thing wide

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<v Speaker 6>open ourselves. I mean just really put a shit ton

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<v Speaker 6>of pressure on NPD to do something with this to

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<v Speaker 6>where they can't really do much about the amount of

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<v Speaker 6>questions they're receiving now related to this, and that's.

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<v Speaker 3>All I want, And I just want to put enough

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<v Speaker 3>pressure on them to where they'll they'll take it seriously.

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<v Speaker 6>God, we didn't know what it was going to be,

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<v Speaker 6>but we traveled in New Orleans anyways, and we spent

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<v Speaker 6>some significant time there in the field recording, and eventually

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<v Speaker 6>we came to this crossroad where we needed to decide

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<v Speaker 6>what is the show. So at the time what we

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<v Speaker 6>landed on was this would become season two of Culpable.

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<v Speaker 6>Obviously that's not what ended up happening. Resonate Recordings was

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<v Speaker 6>looking to hire our first producer to work on original shows,

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<v Speaker 6>Jessica Noll, an investigative journalist out of Ohio. We were

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<v Speaker 6>familiar with her name because being from Kentucky. We listened

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<v Speaker 6>to Vault Studios podcast Bargetown, which takes place in Bargstown, Kentucky,

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<v Speaker 6>and Jessica was a producer on that show and she

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<v Speaker 6>had a big presence in it, working alongside the host.

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<v Speaker 6>We knew they'd done a phenomenal job on that show,

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<v Speaker 6>and Jessica had twenty plus years of experience, so needless

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<v Speaker 6>to say, it was an easy decision. And when she

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<v Speaker 6>comes on board, she says, Hey, I have this story

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<v Speaker 6>in my hometown and I really think we should do

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<v Speaker 6>a podcast on it. And that case was about a

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<v Speaker 6>young mother, Britney Stikes, who'd been murdered in Brown County, Ohio,

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<v Speaker 6>and we start doing some research and we say, yeah,

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<v Speaker 6>let's do it. Well, as I started getting pulled more

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<v Speaker 6>and more into that project, I asked Jessica to fill

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<v Speaker 6>in and do some work on the project that I

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<v Speaker 6>had been working on, that being the Jessica Easterly Darning case.

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<v Speaker 6>Long story short, the case in Ohio became a perfect

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<v Speaker 6>fit for Culpable, so it ended up becoming season two.

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<v Speaker 6>And while Jessica is digging into the Jessica Easterly case,

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<v Speaker 6>it's eventually decided that she could use some assistance while

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<v Speaker 6>she's on the ground recording and investigating. And immediately I

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<v Speaker 6>think of Todd McComas. He's got the background and experience

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<v Speaker 6>to help make a difference in a case like this,

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<v Speaker 6>he knows the story, he's passionate about it. He brought

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<v Speaker 6>it to us no brainer. So, like Todd said, it

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<v Speaker 6>did in fact go full circle. And now all of

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<v Speaker 6>a sudden, they're going to tag team this new series

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<v Speaker 6>of ours. And I say new series because when Jessica

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<v Speaker 6>and Todd went to New Orleans, they quickly realized what

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<v Speaker 6>this podcast should have been all along.

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<v Speaker 1>One of the first things that captivated me was her

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<v Speaker 1>sisters and their tenacity. It not only captured my attention,

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<v Speaker 1>it fueled me. It made me realize what I would

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<v Speaker 1>do if I ever lost one of my daughters and

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<v Speaker 1>couldn't get any answers, no matter what doors I knocked down,

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<v Speaker 1>I would go to the ends of the earth. I

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<v Speaker 1>would fight with everything inside of me to get the

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<v Speaker 1>justice she deserves. And that's exactly how her sisters have been,

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<v Speaker 1>especially Audrey. She has had to be Jessica's voice for her,

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<v Speaker 1>and so with that, she's had to raise her voice

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<v Speaker 1>just a little bit louder each time she's been told no,

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<v Speaker 1>until she was heard. Todd and I heard her, and

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<v Speaker 1>now we want to give Jessica and her whole family

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<v Speaker 1>the voice they so deserve. When Todd and I hit

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<v Speaker 1>the ground in the Big Easy, we knew investigating this

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<v Speaker 1>case was going to be anything but easy. It's when

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<v Speaker 1>we started talking to people about the case, specifically the

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<v Speaker 1>police in the corner's office. We knew this case was unique.

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<v Speaker 1>It just felt different from any case I've ever covered.

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<v Speaker 1>It felt unfinished. Of course, it was unsolved, but it

0:14:14.800 --> 0:14:17.880
<v Speaker 1>was more than that. The one word that kept coming

0:14:17.960 --> 0:14:22.840
<v Speaker 1>up in our investigation was undetermined. And during a two

0:14:22.880 --> 0:14:26.280
<v Speaker 1>am epiphany, sitting in the lobby of our hotel in

0:14:26.280 --> 0:14:31.160
<v Speaker 1>the French Quarter, it hit us that is what Jessica's

0:14:31.160 --> 0:14:37.840
<v Speaker 1>story is undetermined. It goes beyond unsolved and reaches far

0:14:37.920 --> 0:14:42.520
<v Speaker 1>past the simplistic term cold case, because this case wasn't

0:14:42.600 --> 0:14:48.360
<v Speaker 1>just cold. It was dusty sitting dormant. No one was

0:14:48.440 --> 0:14:52.840
<v Speaker 1>investigating her death all because of that one word in

0:14:52.880 --> 0:14:57.880
<v Speaker 1>the coroner's report, and that word continues to haunt her

0:14:57.920 --> 0:15:03.440
<v Speaker 1>family and ultimately is kept her keys void of answers

0:15:03.480 --> 0:15:11.280
<v Speaker 1>for now. Coming up on undetermined.

0:15:11.640 --> 0:15:15.520
<v Speaker 7>My phone dinged and I was like, it's Justin, but

0:15:15.640 --> 0:15:18.160
<v Speaker 7>it's from Jessica's account, and he's saying he doesn't know

0:15:18.160 --> 0:15:21.920
<v Speaker 7>where she is, and like, my whole body just went cold.

0:15:22.320 --> 0:15:24.080
<v Speaker 7>I don't know how to describe it other than that,

0:15:24.320 --> 0:15:25.760
<v Speaker 7>but I just felt a chill all.

0:15:25.640 --> 0:15:29.320
<v Speaker 3>Over about right there where that white thing is. It

0:15:29.360 --> 0:15:31.480
<v Speaker 3>was down on the ground and I tried to get

0:15:31.520 --> 0:15:34.680
<v Speaker 3>down there, and I slid down and my foot hit it,

0:15:34.960 --> 0:15:37.800
<v Speaker 3>and I remember just thinking, Oh God, please don't let

0:15:37.840 --> 0:15:39.720
<v Speaker 3>my sister be underneath this tart.

0:15:40.960 --> 0:15:44.359
<v Speaker 2>It boggled my mind that there would be less investigation

0:15:44.520 --> 0:15:48.280
<v Speaker 2>because her cause of death was undetermined. That doesn't make sense.

0:15:48.800 --> 0:15:52.200
<v Speaker 4>If it seemed like some sort of foul play to

0:15:52.400 --> 0:15:55.880
<v Speaker 4>three amateurs, I can only imagine how it would look

0:15:55.920 --> 0:16:00.720
<v Speaker 4>to someone who does this every single day.

0:16:01.240 --> 0:16:05.160
<v Speaker 1>Undetermined is a production of Resonate Recordings and Tenderfoot TV

0:16:05.680 --> 0:16:10.080
<v Speaker 1>in conjunction with Cadence thirteen, written and hosted by me

0:16:10.560 --> 0:16:14.920
<v Speaker 1>Jessica Nole and produced by Dennis Cooper and Todd McComas,

0:16:15.240 --> 0:16:20.360
<v Speaker 1>with additional production by Whitney Bozart. Executive producers are Dennis Cooper,

0:16:20.840 --> 0:16:26.080
<v Speaker 1>Mark Minnery, Jacob Bozart, Donald Albright, and Payne Lindsay. Our

0:16:26.120 --> 0:16:31.560
<v Speaker 1>senior producer is John Street. Editing, mixing, mastering and sound

0:16:31.560 --> 0:16:35.960
<v Speaker 1>design by Caleb Melcher, Dayton Cole and Pat kick Glider

0:16:36.360 --> 0:16:39.680
<v Speaker 1>of the Resonate Recordings team. If you have a podcast

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<v Speaker 1>or are looking to start one, check us out at

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<v Speaker 1>resonate Recordings dot com. Our theme song and original score

0:16:47.720 --> 0:16:51.520
<v Speaker 1>is by Dirt Poor Robbins, with additional scoring by Dayton Cole.

0:16:52.360 --> 0:16:56.360
<v Speaker 1>Our cover art is by Station sixteen. Sources used in

0:16:56.400 --> 0:17:01.200
<v Speaker 1>this episode include Partland Radio, Tin forty one podcast with

0:17:01.280 --> 0:17:07.480
<v Speaker 1>Todd Macoma's and WDSU News. You can follow Undetermined Podcast

0:17:07.680 --> 0:17:12.840
<v Speaker 1>on Facebook and on Twitter at undetermined Pod. Show notes

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<v Speaker 1>as well as bonus content can be found on our website,

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<v Speaker 1>undeterminedpod dot com. If you enjoyed this episode, please take

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<v Speaker 1>time to subscribe, rate, and review. Your feedback is greatly

0:17:26.359 --> 0:17:27.040
<v Speaker 1>appreciated