Jesse James: Civil War Guerrilla, Outlaw, and American Myth

A View to a Kill? A Blue Ridge Parkway Mystery

In this episode of the Blue Ridge True Crime podcast, we unravel the disturbing mystery of the Chestoa View Overlook deaths: a case that has haunted North Carolina for decades. On October 17, 1988, tourists discovered abandoned camera equipment and heard a woman's terrified scream echoing from the gorge below. Early the next morning, rescuers found the bodies of Susan Haire and Helen Gibbs on the steep, tangled slope below. Helen's husband, James Gibbs, claimed it was a tragic accident that the women had slipped while posing for sunset photos. But investigators quickly realized the story didn't add up. The overlook faces east. You can't photograph a sunset there. And the deeper the authorities dug, the darker the story became. An insurance agent told investigators that a $100,000 life insurance policy was taken out on Helen Gibbs just months before the incident. James Gibbs had allegedly burned her with a stun gun in a "torture session" to get her to confess to an affair that summer. He had ordered books on how to beat lie detector tests and how crime scenes are investigated. And his story about what happened kept shifting. Was this an accident, a double suicide, or a calculated murder on a dark mountainside? Plus a brief profile of Paladin Press, "the most dangerous publisher in the world," and the book that cost them millions, Hit Man. Find everything: all episodes, articles, and videos at: https://blueridgetruecrime.com/ [https://blueridgetruecrime.com/] Direct Links: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Blue Ridge True Crime Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://blueridgetruecrime.substack.com/]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.youtube.com/@BlueRidgeTrueCrime-op7qe] ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Blue Ridge True Crime YouTube Channel⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.youtube.com/@BlueRidgeTrueCrime-op7qe]

Jesse James: Civil War Guerrilla, Outlaw, and American Myth

Jesse James is one of the most famous outlaws in American history—but the real story is more complicated than the movies. In this episode, we map the James-Younger Gang's robberies across the Midwest, discuss how Jesse James used newspapers to forge his legend, and trace his rise to folk hero. Plus: a simulated death match between Jesse James and Al Capone. Yes, really. Companion Substack Article with images, map, and sources. [https://blueridgetruecrime.substack.com/publish/post/201041935?r=fddb7&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true] Find everything: all episodes, articles, and videos at: https://blueridgetruecrime.com/ [https://blueridgetruecrime.com/] Direct Links: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Blue Ridge True Crime Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://blueridgetruecrime.substack.com/]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.youtube.com/@BlueRidgeTrueCrime-op7qe] ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Blue Ridge True Crime YouTube Channel⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.youtube.com/@BlueRidgeTrueCrime-op7qe]

Moonshine Murder in the Dark Corner

Mountain folk have a code all their own. In the winter of 1924, deep inside South Carolina’s infamous “Dark Corner,” a prohibition agent and a volunteer constable closed in on a moonshine still at the foot of Hogback Mountain. What happened next would leave one man dead, two families shattered, and a mountain code put to the test in a courtroom. This is the story of betrayal, loyalty, and a father and son sentenced to die. Companion Substack Article [https://blueridgetruecrime.substack.com/p/a-moonshine-murder-in-the-dark-corner] * A full timeline of the crime, trial, and appeals * Sources and documents * Images Find everything: all episodes, articles, and videos at: https://blueridgetruecrime.com/ [https://blueridgetruecrime.com/] Direct Links: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Blue Ridge True Crime Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://blueridgetruecrime.substack.com/]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.youtube.com/@BlueRidgeTrueCrime-op7qe] ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Blue Ridge True Crime YouTube Channel⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.youtube.com/@BlueRidgeTrueCrime-op7qe]

Death in Briar Bottom: A 1972 Shooting in Yancey County

In 1972, 25 young people camped in the North Carolina mountains on their way to see The Rolling Stones. Sheriff Kermit Banks and six deputies arrived with shotguns. Within minutes, 20-year-old Stanley Aultman was dead. No officer was ever charged. Historian Tim Silver joins us to break down the evidence, the cover-up, and why this forgotten case still matters. YouTube Video: Death in Briar Bottom [https://youtu.be/0AA3r-63RZQ?si=wGatiDCKeZwomw48] Death in Briar Bottom: The True Story of Hippies, Mountain Lawmen, and the Search for Justice in the Early 1970s by Timothy Silver [https://www.amazon.com/Death-Briar-Bottom-Hippies-Mountain/dp/B0DNNRRVRB] Find everything: all episodes, articles, and videos at: https://blueridgetruecrime.com/ [https://blueridgetruecrime.com/] Direct Links: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Blue Ridge True Crime Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://blueridgetruecrime.substack.com/]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.youtube.com/@BlueRidgeTrueCrime-op7qe] ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Blue Ridge True Crime YouTube Channel⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.youtube.com/@BlueRidgeTrueCrime-op7qe]

The Appalachian Trail Double Murder in Virginia

In May 2008, two lifelong friends, Scott Johnston and Sean Farmer, headed into the woods of Giles County, Virginia, for a simple fishing trip. They met a friendly stranger named “Ricky” and shared dinner by a campfire. But within hours, they were fighting for their lives, bleeding from gunshot wounds, and navigating a dark mountain road with one man steering from the passenger seat and the other working the pedals. This wasn’t the killer’s first time on the trail. Nearly three decades earlier, the same man committed the first documented double homicide on the Appalachian Trail, murdering two hikers from Maine. In this episode, we unpack both crimes, discuss the bizarre handwritten note that broke the case, and ride along on the frantic escape down Brushy Mountain. Check out the companion Substack article for this episode. Click Here [https://blueridgetruecrime.substack.com/p/the-appalachian-trail-double-murder?r=fddb7] Find everything: all episodes, articles, and videos at: https://blueridgetruecrime.com/ [https://blueridgetruecrime.com/] Direct Links: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Blue Ridge True Crime Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://blueridgetruecrime.substack.com/]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.youtube.com/@BlueRidgeTrueCrime-op7qe] ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Blue Ridge True Crime YouTube Channel⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.youtube.com/@BlueRidgeTrueCrime-op7qe]