Episode 166: The Shadow Over Eureka Springs - The Crescent Hotel & Spa

Episode 167: Sacrifice for Fame: The Murder of Elyse Pahler

On a warm summer night in July of 1995 15-year-old Elyse answered two phone calls. Nothing about those conversations appeared unusual. A short time later, she told her family she was tired and headed to bed. By morning, she was gone. What followed was an eight-month search filled with sightings, rumors, and desperate hope. Her parents refused to believe she had simply run away. But as the weeks turned into months, answers remained painfully out of reach. Then a confession changed everything. Investigators uncovered a crime so shocking that it would make national headlines and leave an entire community struggling to understand how something like this could happen. Three teenage boys. A carefully concealed secret. And an alleged motive that would involve satanic rituals. This story reminds us that evil is everywhere and that evil doesn’t always lurk in the shadows, sometimes it walks among us.   Sources: City of Arroyo Grande - City of Arroyo Grande Official Website. Zac Efron - Wikipedia  Wikipedia – Murder of Elyse Pahler - Murder of Elyse Pahler - Wikipedia [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Elyse_Pahler] The Tribune – Teen Sentenced to 26 Years – March 8, 1997 – Dave Wilcox Times-Press-Recorder – Memorial fund established for Elyse Pahler’s family – March 20, 1996 Santa Maria Times – Murder possibly gruesome ritual – Eric Firpo – March 20, 1996 The Tribune – Elyse Pahler murder case: Here’s a timeline of the 1995 satanic killing in SLO County – Matt Fountain – August 13, 2025 - Timeline: A look at the 1995 Nipomo murder of Elyse Pahler | San Luis Obispo Tribune [https://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/crime/article252167488.html] A Killer Among Friends – Season 1, Episode 3

Episode 166: The Shadow Over Eureka Springs - The Crescent Hotel & Spa

High above the Victorian town of Eureka Springs, Arkansas, the Crescent Hotel & Spa has stood watch in the Ozark Mountains since 1886. Originally built as a luxury resort for travelers intrigued by the area’s healing springs, the hotel would become much more. It once served as a women's college when tourism slowed, survived a devastating fire, and became the site of a particularly dark chapter when a fraud doctor turned it into a cancer clinic, promising miracle cures. But there was no cure. The treatments were described as torture, claiming at LEAST 42 desperate souls. Today though, it's known for something else entirely. There have been numerous reports of hearing disembodied children laughing, seeing Victorian figures appear and vanish, and other strange activity in some of the hotel's most infamous rooms. Stories have been spread of a ghostly child playing with a red ball, the spirit of a nurse who tidies up, an Irish stone mason who met a tragic fate and even sightings of the fraudulent doctor himself. Are these simply legends attached to the building? Or is there truly something lingering inside the corridors of what many call America's most haunted hotel?   SOURCES:  “1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa – History Mystery” on Historic Hotels of America (https://www.historichotels.org/us/hotels-resorts/1886-crescent-hotel-and-spa/history-mystery.php [https://www.historichotels.org/us/hotels-resorts/1886-crescent-hotel-and-spa/history-mystery.php])  “1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa History” on Historic Hotels of America (https://www.historichotels.org/us/hotels-resorts/1886-crescent-hotel-and-spa/history.php [https://www.historichotels.org/us/hotels-resorts/1886-crescent-hotel-and-spa/history.php]) “Ghostly Happenings at the Crescent Hotel” on Crescent Hotel & Spa on September 29, 2021 (https://crescent-hotel.com/blog/ghostly-happenings-at-the-crescent-hotel/ [https://crescent-hotel.com/blog/ghostly-happenings-at-the-crescent-hotel/]) “Haunted History of The Crescent Hotel” on America’s Most Haunted Hotel (https://www.americasmosthauntedhotel.com/haunted-history/ [https://www.americasmosthauntedhotel.com/haunted-history/]) “Norman Baker's Chilling Legacy” by Adir Segal on HISTORY (https://vocal.media/history/norman-baker-s-chilling-legacy [https://vocal.media/history/norman-baker-s-chilling-legacy]) “Mystery Solved!” on Crescent Hotel & Spa (https://crescent-hotel.com/blog/press-releases/mystery-solved/ [https://crescent-hotel.com/blog/press-releases/mystery-solved/]) “Mary Breckenridge: Nursing Visionary” by John Kooser https://marybreckinridgenursingvisionary.weebly.com/from-personal-tragedy-comes-a-purpose.html [https://marybreckinridgenursingvisionary.weebly.com/from-personal-tragedy-comes-a-purpose.html]) “The Crescent Hotel ‘America’s Most Haunted Hotel’” on US Ghost Adventures January 14, 2022 (https://usghostadventures.com/haunted-stories/the-crescent-hotel-americas-most-haunted-hotel/ [https://usghostadventures.com/haunted-stories/the-crescent-hotel-americas-most-haunted-hotel/]) “Haunted Locations: The Crescent Hotel in Eureka Springs, Arkansas” by Danielle Yvonne on Uncomfortably Dark on December 27, 2025 (https://www.uncomfortablydark.com/post/12-27-2025-haunted-locations-the-crescent-hotel-in-eureka-springs-arkansas [https://www.uncomfortablydark.com/post/12-27-2025-haunted-locations-the-crescent-hotel-in-eureka-springs-arkansas]) Project Fear Episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8DJF4n01es [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8DJF4n01es] https://crescent-hotel.com/about/history/ [https://crescent-hotel.com/about/history/] Lilly Belle Meads: https://www.lillybellemeads.com/ [https://www.lillybellemeads.com/]

Episode 165: The Tampa Double Murder Case - The Schenecker Family

What happens when all the warning signs are there but nobody can stop what's coming? Back in 2011, in Tampa, Florida, one family appeared to have everything together. A decorated military officer. A beautiful home. Two bright, talented teenagers with their entire futures ahead of them. From the outside, the Scheneckers looked like the kind of family people admired. But behind closed doors, something was quietly unraveling. For years, Julie Schenecker struggled with severe mental illness. There were hospitalizations. Psychiatric diagnoses. Family concerns. Emails warning that things were getting worse. And yet, life continued. School. Sports. Homework. Family dinners. Until January 27th, 2011. In a matter of hours, 16-year-old Calyx Schenecker and 13-year-old Beau Schenecker were dead. Their father was deployed overseas when he received the kind of phone call no parent could ever prepare for. As investigators dug deeper, they uncovered a disturbing trail of warning signs, family conflict, psychiatric crises, and evidence that raised one haunting question: Could this tragedy have been prevented? And when the case finally went to trial, the courtroom became divided over the question Was Julie Schenecker legally insane or did she know exactly what she was doing? This story reminds us that evil is everywhere even in the places that feel safest. Even behind the doors of seemingly ordinary homes. Because sometimes the most devastating tragedies don't come from strangers in the dark, they come from the people we trust most.   Calyx and Beau Memorial Fund [https://calyxandbeau.org/] Domestic Violence Hotline [https://www.thehotline.org/]   Sources: Visit Tampa Bay (official tourism board) — demographics, city size, and historical overview https://www.visittampabay.com [https://www.visittampabay.com] U.S. Census Bureau — Tampa population data and metro statistics https://www.census.gov [https://www.census.gov] Wikipedia – Murders of Calyx and Beau Schenecker - Murders of Calyx and Beau Schenecker - Wikipedia [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murders_of_Calyx_and_Beau_Schenecker] Fox 13 Tampa Bay – Tampa mother convicted of killing her two teen kids asks judge for new trial – April 27, 2022 – Gloria Gomez People – Tampa Mom Julie Schenecker Says She Has No Regrets About Shooting Her Teens – April 24, 2015 – Steve Helling - Julie Schenecker, 54, Says She Doesn't Regret Killing Kids [https://people.com/crime/julie-schenecker-54-says-she-doesnt-regret-killing-kids/] Calyx and Beau Schenecker Memorial Fund - Fund Promoting The Arts, Athletics, and Altruism [https://calyxandbeau.org/] Tampa Bay 28 – Judge denies new trial for convicted killer Julie Schenecker – WFTS Digital Staff – February 17, 2023 - Judge denies new trial for convicted killer Julie Schenecker [https://www.tampabay28.com/news/region-hillsborough/judge-denies-new-trial-for-convicted-killer-julie-schenecker] The Tampa Tribune – Divorce granted in killing of children – Tom Brennan – May 20, 2011 The Tampa Tribune – Mom blames dad in deaths – Josh Poltilove – December 6, 2011 The St. Petersburg Tribune – Schenecker Convicted – Elaine Silverstine – May 16, 2014 The Tampa Tribune – Family fretted mom’s mental state – Keith Morelli – January 28, 2014

Episode 164: Dark Family Secrets - The Murder of Sara Raras

In Elkridge, Maryland, a quiet suburb between Baltimore and Washington, D.C., people move there for the peaceful neighborhoods, hiking trails, and family life.  But in November of 1998, that illusion shattered. Thirty-five-year-old Sara Raras was a brilliant and kind woman who worked as a statistician for the NSA. She was also a deeply devoted mother to her one-year-old son, the type of person who would do anything for the people she loved. But behind closed doors, her marriage was falling apart. A bitter divorce. A custody battle. Allegations of abuse. Then one Sunday night, police entered Sara’s home after a worried friend hadn’t heard from her. Inside, investigators found one of the most horrific crime scenes Howard County had ever seen, the definition of overkill. Suspicion first fell upon Sara’s estranged husband, Lorenzo. But there wasn’t any evidence to prove it. For months, the case went nowhere. It wasn’t until 7 months after when a jailed nineteen-year-old began bragging about murdering a woman, describing details only the killer could know. What detectives uncovered next would expose a murder-for-hire plot fueled by resentment, family conflict, and betrayal from someone shockingly close to Sara herself. This case reminds us evil is truly everywhere, even inside those no one would suspect.   Sources: “Woman, 35, Found Slain in her Home” in The Baltimore Sun on November 17, 1998 “Court Hears Jailhouse Tape in '98 Slaying” by Raja Mishra in The Washington Post on January 7, 2000 (https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2000/01/07/court-hears-jailhouse-tape-in-98-slaying/b2e869bd-14e1-48b4-b423-106435c37a2f/ [https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2000/01/07/court-hears-jailhouse-tape-in-98-slaying/b2e869bd-14e1-48b4-b423-106435c37a2f/]) “Slain Elkridge Woman Described as Dedicated Mother, Employee” by Del Quentin Wilber in The Baltimore Sun on November 18, 1998 “'Showing Disrespect To A Mother Is Death,' Grandma Says After Arranging Daughter-In-Law’s ‘Brutal’ Murder” by Sharon Lynn Pruitt on Oxygen True Crime on March 12, 2021 (https://www.oxygen.com/an-unexpected-killer/crime-news/emilia-raras-has-daughter-in-law-sara-killed-over-disrespect [https://www.oxygen.com/an-unexpected-killer/crime-news/emilia-raras-has-daughter-in-law-sara-killed-over-disrespect]) “Team of Detectives Work to Solve Slaying” by Del Quentin Wilber in The Baltimore Sun on November 19, 1998 “Sara Raras Murder: Where Are Ardale Tickles and Emilia Raras Now?” by Shraman Mitra on TheCinemaholic on July 22, 2022 (https://thecinemaholic.com/sara-raras-murder-where-are-ardale-tickles-and-emilia-raras-now/ [https://thecinemaholic.com/sara-raras-murder-where-are-ardale-tickles-and-emilia-raras-now/]) “Slain Howard Woman Eulogized as Earthly Angel” by Del Quentin Wilber in The Baltimore Sun on November 24, 1998 “Family, Friends Haunted by Killing of Woman” by Del Quentin Wilber in The Baltimore Sun on July 9, 1999 “Jail Inmate and Victim’s Mother-in-Law are Charged in Killing of Elkridge Woman” by Nancy A. Youssef in The Baltimore Sun on August 25, 1999 http://visithowardcounty.com/neighborhoods/elkridge/ [http://visithowardcounty.com/neighborhoods/elkridge/] https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/21234481/sara_jane-raras [https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/21234481/sara_jane-raras] “Deadly Disrespect” on An Unexpected Killer, Season 2, Episode 9 on Peacock

Episode 163: The Devil Behind the Tattoos

There are some killers whose crimes are so disturbing, they almost feel unreal. And then there’s Jaime Osuna. Covered head to toe in tattoos including a horrifying smile across his face. Osuna became infamous long before the world learned what happened inside a California prison cell in 2019. By then, he was already serving life without parole for a brutal murder that had occurred in 2011. But what took place inside that motel room back in November of 2011 wouldn’t be the first time that the community saw the true evil residing with Jamie Osuna. In 2019, what correctional officers discovered during a routine prison check would and turn Osuna into one of the most talked-about inmates in America. In this episode, we examine the life of Jaime Osuna: the abuse and instability that shaped his childhood, the crimes that escalated over time, and the warning signs many believe were ignored. We’ll break down the prison killing that made national headlines, the psychology behind extreme violence, and the disturbing questions this case raises about the prison system itself. But this story is about more than gore and headlines. It’s about how someone becomes capable of unimaginable acts and whether anyone ever had a chance to stop it.   Sources: KGET Crime Watch – 6 years after grisly slaying, Osuna case continues to drag on – Jason Kotowski – May 14, 2025 - 6 years after grisly slaying, Osuna case continues to drag on | KGET 17 News [https://www.kget.com/news/crime-watch/6-years-after-grisly-slaying-osuna-case-continues-to-drag-on/] Los Angeles Times – A self-styled satanist beheaded his cellmate, but the guards didn’t notice, report says – Richard Winton – May 27, 2021 - Guards lied about California prison inmate beheading: report - Los Angeles Times [https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-05-27/satanist-beheading-prison-guards-cellmate-california] YouTube – FilmRise True Crime – The Dark World of Jaime Osuna – World’s Most Evil Prisoners – The Cinemaholic – Jaime Osuna: Where is the Killer Now? – Aahana Swrup – June 26, 2024 - Jaime Osuna: Where is the Killer Today? [https://thecinemaholic.com/jaime-osuna/] True Crime Avenue – Inside Jamie Osuna’s Crimes: From Abuse to Murder – March 5, 2025 - Inside Jamie Osuna’s Crimes: From Abuse to Murder [https://www.truecrimeavenue.com/2025/03/inside-jamie-osunas-crimes-from-abuse.html#google_vignette] Encyclopaedia Britannica — “Bakersfield” - https://www.britannica.com/place/Bakersfield [https://www.britannica.com/place/Bakersfield] University of Texas — “The History of the Bakersfield Sound” https://sites.dwrl.utexas.edu/countrymusic/the-history/the-bakersfield-sound/ [https://sites.dwrl.utexas.edu/countrymusic/the-history/the-bakersfield-sound/] Visit Bakersfield — “History of the Bakersfield Sound” https://www.visitbakersfield.com/blog/history-of-the-bakersfield-sound/ [https://www.visitbakersfield.com/blog/history-of-the-bakersfield-sound/] Reddit discussion referencing “Lords of Bakersfield” local history and urban legends https://www.reddit.com/r/Bakersfield/comments/194ehuo/ [https://www.reddit.com/r/Bakersfield/comments/194ehuo/] HubPages — “Jaime Osuna: The Cringeworthy Story of a Sadistic Killer Who Decapitated His Cellmate” https://discover.hubpages.com/true-crime/jaime-osuna-the-cringeworthy-story-of-a-sadistic-killer-who-decapitated-his-cellmate [https://discover.hubpages.com/true-crime/jaime-osuna-the-cringeworthy-story-of-a-sadistic-killer-who-decapitated-his-cellmate] KGET Bakersfield — family interviews and local coverage referenced in secondary reporting https://www.kget.com [https://www.kget.com/] Turn to 23 (KERO Bakersfield) — “A man serving life for murdering a Bakersfield woman is suspected of killing his cellmate” https://www.turnto23.com/news/local-news/a-man-serving-life-for-murdering-a-bakersfield-woman-is-suspected-of-killing-his-cellmate [https://www.turnto23.com/news/local-news/a-man-serving-life-for-murdering-a-bakersfield-woman-is-suspected-of-killing-his-cellmate]