True Crime Brewery

Mary Jane Fonder was a 65-year-old woman living in Springfield Township, Pennsylvania. She was known to be a bit of a loner—socially awkward, emotionally fragile, and very involved in her local church, Trinity Evangelical Lutheran. But behind her reserved demeanor simmered a potent mix of envy and resentment, a hidden inner turmoil that would ultimately erupt into a shocking and tragic act of violence. Join us for Between the Pews: Faith, Envy & Murder. In early 2008, a new face appeared at the church: Rhonda Smith, a 42-year-old woman looking for comfort and a supportive community after a difficult life. She quickly became a beloved member of the congregation, receiving support and attention from the pastor and others—attention that Mary Jane would grow to resent. Sources A life in prison, Bucks County Courier Times, Amanda Cregan, 1/17/2010., retrieved 6/23/2025. Guilty: Jury says Mary Jane Fonder killed Hellertown resident Rhonda Smith, lehighvalleylive.com, retrieved 6/20/2025. Love Me or Else by By Colin McEvoy [https://www.thriftbooks.com/a/colin-mcevoy/256957/] and Lynn Olanoff [https://www.thriftbooks.com/a/lynn-olanoff/1599557/] Murder suspect noted church killing on calendar, police say. PennLive.com, retrieved 6/20/2025. Pastor says he asked Fonder to leave church, Unnerved: Testifies suspect’s behavior upset him, even before shooting. tribunedigital-mcall, retrieved 6/20/2025. Subscribe for ad-free, early, and bonus episodes [https://tiegrabber.com/subscribe/] Record a voicemail for a future show [https://www.speakpipe.com/truecrimebrewery] Contact Us [https://tiegrabber.com/contact-us/] Shop TCB Merch [https://tiegrabber.com/shop/] Join our True Crime Brewery Fan Discussion Group [https://www.facebook.com/groups/1910436809204400]

In the early morning hours of July 22, 1987, a motorist came across a black Cadillac that had crashed into a telephone pole on a secluded road in Santa Clarita, California. When police were called to the scene, they found two unresponsive young women inside the car. The driver, who was later identified as 45-year-old Claire Peernock, had severe head trauma and was pronounced dead at the scene. Claire’s 18-year-old daughter, Natasha, who was in the passenger seat, also suffered severe head trauma, but she miraculously was still alive. Join us for A Dangerous Mind: Robert Peernock. When Claire filed for a divorce that was still pending, she sought custody of Natasha and her younger sister. Claire had also asked the court for an order of protection from Robert, citing multiple instances of threats and abuse. So Claire had known that Robert could be a dangerous man, but not even she could have predicted his twisted plot to eliminate the people he was supposed to love and protect. Sources A Checklist for Murder by Anthony Flacco Family Secrets LA Forensics, 2/19/2014. Retrieved 6/25/2025. Man Charged with Soliciting Murders, Daily News of Los Angeles, 12/11/1987. Retrieved 6/20/2025. Man Tried to Kill Wife and Daughter by Staging a Fatal Car Wreck, Oxygen, Becca Van Sambeck, 1/24/2023. Retrieved 6/29/2025. Missing Man is Accused of Murdering Wife, Los Angeles Times, Gabe Fuentes, 8/23/1987. Retrieved 6/30/2025. Prosecutors: Short Fuse, S1 E11, 2000. https://tubitv.com/tv-shows/319989/s01-e11-short-fuse. Retrieved 6/30/2025. Subscribe for ad-free, early, and bonus episodes [https://tiegrabber.com/subscribe/] Record a voicemail for a future show [https://www.speakpipe.com/truecrimebrewery] Contact Us [https://tiegrabber.com/contact-us/] Shop TCB Merch [https://tiegrabber.com/shop/] Join our True Crime Brewery Fan Discussion Group [https://www.facebook.com/groups/1910436809204400]

Enjoy this public release of a members-only show from a few years back! If you want more episodes like this (but without the ads) please go to tiegrabber.com/subscribe or patreon.com/tiegrabber for access. Nailah Franklin was a young pharmaceutical sales rep for Eli Lilly. Until September 2007, she was casually dating Reginald Potts, a 32-year-old businessman. The two broke up when Nailah learned about Reginald’s lengthy criminal history and sexual relationships with other women.  But, unfortunately, things did not end there. Join us at the quiet end for our rewatch of Smoke & Mirrors. In this episode of Dateline Unforgettable, Keith Morrison looks back at the case of a Chicago woman from a big family who went missing. Investigators began to suspect a man in her life who was full of secrets.

Dennis Jurgens was a chubby, joyful, and active toddler when Harold and Lois Jurgens adopted him in White Bear Lake, Minnesota. Unable to have children of their own, Lois and Harold adopted several children over the years. Dennis wasn’t their first or last. From the very beginning, case workers from the adoption agency had their concerns about whether Lois would accept Dennis, but homes were scarce and there was nothing factually wrong that would prevent the placement. The signing of the adoption papers sealed Dennis’ fate. Join us today for The Terrible and Totally Preventable Death of Dennis Jurgens. One cold and wet Sunday morning, a local doctor responded to a call from Harold Jurgens, who said, “I think my son is dying.” When Doctor Peterson arrived, he found a 3-year-old’s body, long dead and clearly beaten. The cause of Dennis’ death was peritonitis from a ruptured bowel. But why had Dennis’ bowel ruptured? Lois and Harold claimed that Dennis had taken a fall, but that would not explain the multiple bruises of every shape and color that peppered his tiny body. On his death certificate, where “homicide” should have been, the coroner wrote “deferred.” This failure to acknowledge that a crime had even occurred or punish the perpetrator would leave five more children at risk of leading tortured lives, being murdered, or both. Sources The Battered Child Syndrome, Journal of the American Medical Association, C. Henry Kempe, MD et al., 1962, 1984. Retrieved 6/25/2025. The Battered Child Syndrome [https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.kempe.org%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2015%2F01%2FThe_Battered_Child_Syndrome.pdf&data=05%7C02%7C%7C59cff7f4de58414443c908ddb4e6ee50%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638865626111025513%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=eKwidxTiDSVg378b6fGdAxRsYbhB35%2FGJjQeDlr%2BXsU%3D&reserved=0] A Death In White Bear Lake by Barry Siegel A Mother Denies Guilt In Adopted Son’s Death, New York Times, 1/ 31/1987, retrieved 5/11/2-25. A Mother’s Love,  Jerry Sherwood in Her Own Words, Twin Cities Magazine, 2/1988, retrieved 6/14/2025. State v. Jurgens, Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 5/3/1988, retrieved 5/11/2025. Subscribe for ad-free, early, and bonus episodes [https://tiegrabber.com/subscribe/] Record a voicemail for a future show [https://www.speakpipe.com/truecrimebrewery] Contact Us [https://tiegrabber.com/contact-us/] Shop TCB Merch [https://tiegrabber.com/shop/] Join our True Crime Brewery Fan Discussion Group [https://www.facebook.com/groups/1910436809204400]

On December 16, 2004, Becky Harper made a call to 911 after checking in on her 23-year-old daughter, Bobbie Jo. Bobbie Jo, who was 8 months pregnant, was lying on the floor in her home and something was horribly wrong. Paramedics raced to the scene, where they found Bobbie Jo dead with devastating injuries to her abdomen. Bobbie Jo had been brutally killed and her unborn baby was missing. In today’s episode, A Life for a Life, we will discuss this case as well as a couple of similar cases and the phenomenon of fetal abductions. Investigators found no signs of forced entry into Bobbie Jo’s home, suggesting that she may have known her killer. An Amber Alert was put out for the baby as detectives canvassed the neighborhood. They found one witness, who reported seeing an unfamiliar car parked out front. Investigators would learn that Bobbie Jo’s murder was premeditated and the motive was the abduction of Bobbie Jo’s baby. Efforts to find the baby and solve this murder would lead investigators to a twisted plot and perpetrator. Sources Baby Be Mine by Diane Fanning, 2006. Biden Administration orders Halt on Federal Executions After Surge Under Trump, Forbes, Walsh Joe, retrieved 6/4/2025. Murder in the Heartland by William Phelps, 2006. United States v. Montgomery, Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, 4/5/2011. The women who kill for babies, BBC news, Summers Chris, 10/1/2007, retrieved 6/5/2025. Subscribe for ad-free, early, and bonus episodes [https://tiegrabber.com/subscribe/] Record a voicemail for a future show [https://www.speakpipe.com/truecrimebrewery] Contact Us [https://tiegrabber.com/contact-us/] Shop TCB Merch [https://tiegrabber.com/shop/] Join our True Crime Brewery Fan Discussion Group [https://www.facebook.com/groups/1910436809204400]