Episode 61

Whispers. The town of Welch, Oklahoma was full of whispers after the bodies of Danny and Kathy Freeman were located in the burned out Freeman home. Whispers about drugs, wrongful deaths, police involvement, intentionally botched investigations, and whispers about where the girls were and who had taken them. The whispers swirled around allegations related to Shane Freeman's death after a Craig County Sheriff's Deputy shot him on a rural Oklahoma road nearly a year before. The whispers discussed accusations of drug debts and methamphetamine rings. The whispers built theories. And some of the whispers would eventually harden into statements, allegations, and testimony but it would take years, decades even. In this episode of Crime to Burn, we take you through the whispers and the theories swirling around the Freeman's deaths and the disappearances of Lauria Bible and Ashley Freeman in the early days of the investigation because whispers can spread through a community like wildfire, and the Bible family was willing to consider every whisper in their relentless search for their missing daughter. 

Background music by Not Notoriously Coordinated 

Get your Crime to Burn Merch! https://crimetoburn.myspreadshop.com

Please follow us on Instagram, X, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube for the latest news on this case. You can email us at [email protected] We welcome any constructive feedback and would greatly appreciate a 5 star rating and review. 

If you need a way to keep your canine contained, you can also support the show by purchasing a Pawious wireless dog fence using our affiliate link and use the code "crimetoburn" at checkout to receive 10% off. Pawious, because our dog Winston needed a radius, not a rap sheet. 

Source List:

Please see source list for Episode 60. In addition, Sirens, A Southern True Crime Podcast hosted by investigative journalist and victim advocate, Raven Rollins did a deep dive into this case including interviews with author Jax Miller and Lauria Bible's mother Lorene Bible. I highly recommend their coverage for additional information on the case. Raven's coverage and interviews are also used as source material for this episode.

Our primary source for this case remains the book Hell in the Heartland by Jax Miller which you can find on Amazon here. 

Episode 60

In the early hours of December 30, 1999, a mobile home in Welch, Oklahoma went up in flames. Inside, the bodies of Kathy and Danny Freeman were discovered—but their daughter Ashley and her best friend Lauria Bible were gone. In this episode, we unravel the tangled first 24 hours of the case that would come to haunt two families and an entire community. From missing evidence to missteps in the fire investigation, we explore how two teenage girls vanished into the smoke—and why it took nearly two decades for answers to emerge.

Background music by Not Notoriously Coordinated 

Get your Crime to Burn Merch! https://crimetoburn.myspreadshop.com

Please follow us on Instagram, X, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube for the latest news on this case. You can email us at [email protected] We welcome any constructive feedback and would greatly appreciate a 5 star rating and review. 

If you need a way to keep your canine contained, you can also support the show by purchasing a Pawious wireless dog fence using our affiliate link and use the code "crimetoburn" at checkout to receive 10% off. Pawious, because our dog Winston needed a radius, not a rap sheet. 

Source List:

KJRH Tulsa. 25 years: Mother, community mark anniversary of Bible, Freeman disappearance. January 2, 2024. People.com

KJRH Tulsa. Oklahoma's Cold Case Files: Lauria Bible & Ashley Freeman. May 8, 2025.

People Magazine. Polaroids Prompt Arrest in 1999 Disappearance of 2 Oklahoma Teens.

People Magazine. How an Overlooked Clue Cracked Open 1999 Murder Case More than a Decade After Teen Girls Were Killed. June 7, 2021. People.com

Miller, Jax. Hell in the Heartland: Murder, Meth, and the Case of Two Missing Girls. Berkley Books, 2020.

Episode 59

In this special episode of Crime to Burn, we go beyond the headlines with investigative journalist Liliana Segura of The Intercept, one of the first reporters to dig into the troubling details of the Michelle Taylor arson case. From flawed forensic science to systemic failures in the justice system, Liliana shares what drew her to the story, worrisome problems about the crime lab she learned while reporting, and why this case matters far beyond one woman’s conviction. If you've ever wondered what it takes to uncover the truth in a wrongful conviction case, this interview pulls back the curtain.

Read more of Liliana's work here: https://theintercept.com/staff/liliana-segura/

Background music by Not Notoriously Coordinated 

Get your Crime to Burn Merch! https://crimetoburn.myspreadshop.com

Please follow us on Instagram, X, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube for the latest news on this case. You can email us at [email protected] We welcome any constructive feedback and would greatly appreciate a 5 star rating and review. 

Listen to us on our friend Taylor Ruddle's podcast, Ruddle Me This right here: https://www.ruddlemethis.com/118-april-leland-from-crime-to-burns-tiny-joys/

If you need a way to keep your canine contained, you can also support the show by purchasing a Pawious wireless dog fence using our affiliate link and use the code "crimetoburn" at checkout to receive 10% off. Pawious, because our dog Winston needed a radius, not a rap sheet. 

Episode 58

When Michelle Taylor lost her son in a tragic house fire, she thought the nightmare couldn’t get worse. She was wrong. Fueled by junk science, broken forensics, and a crime lab running on expired credibility, the prosecutors turned a grieving mother into a murder suspect. Twelve debris samples. Twelve false positives. And a justice system more interested in closing a case than finding the truth. This is the story of how bad science—and worse judgment—can burn an innocent life to the ground. Michelle Taylor stands for sentencing on May 30th. The fire didn’t destroy her life. The system did.

A mother’s grief.

A lab’s lies.

A system that chose conviction over truth.

This is Michelle Taylor’s story.

This podcast is a true crime podcast about arson and criminal fires. Listener discretion is recommended. 

Background music by Not Notoriously Coordinated 

Get your Crime to Burn Merch! https://crimetoburn.myspreadshop.com

Please follow us on Instagram, X, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube for the latest news on this case. You can email us at [email protected] We welcome any constructive feedback and would greatly appreciate a 5 star rating and review. 

Listen to us on our friend Taylor Ruddle's podcast, Ruddle Me This right here: https://www.ruddlemethis.com/118-april-leland-from-crime-to-burns-tiny-joys/

If you need a way to keep your canine contained, you can also support the show by purchasing a Pawious wireless dog fence using our affiliate link and use the code "crimetoburn" at checkout to receive 10% off. Pawious, because our dog Winston needed a radius, not a rap sheet. 

Source List:

Episode 57

An illegal nightclub in the Bronx was the scene of the largest mass murder in US HIstory at the time it occurred in 1990. A scorned lover went to the club to persuade his ex-girlfriend to take him back and when his attempts were unsuccessful, he did the unthinkable. With a bottle he found in the street and a dollar worth of gasoline purchased at a nearby gas station, he returned to the club and committed an arson attack that would claim 87 lives. What could drive a man to such drastic measures and how could one fire be so deadly? Listen to this week's episode on the Happy Land Social Club Fire to find out. One man may be responsible for setting the fire, but a series of failures by city officials contributed to the scope of the tragedy. 

This podcast is a true crime podcast about arson and criminal fires. Listener discretion is recommended. 

Background music by Not Notoriously Coordinated 

Get your Crime to Burn Merch! https://crimetoburn.myspreadshop.com

Please follow us on Instagram, X, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube for the latest news on this case. You can email us at [email protected] We welcome any constructive feedback and would greatly appreciate a 5 star rating and review. 

If you need a way to keep your canine contained, you can also support the show by purchasing a Pawious wireless dog fence using our affiliate link and use the code "crimetoburn" at checkout to receive 10% off. Pawious, because our dog Winston needed a radius, not a rap sheet. 

Source List:

Modjeska, OJ. (2020). Happy Land - A Lover’s Revenge. Reality Plus - A Next Chapter Imprint.

Brandt, S. and Sowder, A.M. ‘Contextualising tragedy in places of assembly through cases of New York City social club fires’. Architecture_MPS 24, 1 (2023): 4. DOI: https://doi.org/10.14324/111.444.amps.2023v24i1.004.

https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=916658

https://www.firerescue1.com/fatal-fires/articles/reflecting-on-the-happy-land-social-club-fire-and-similar-incidents-o4qdT2ZGt97QnWIT/

https://allthatsinteresting.com/happy-land-fire

https://pix11.com/news/happy-land-fire-25-years-on-wpixs-original-coverage-of-bronx-tragedy/

https://www.nytimes.com/1990/11/16/nyregion/prosecutor-clears-landlords-in-fatal-social-club-arson.html

https://www.nydailynews.com/2015/03/17/fire-kills-87-people-at-the-happy-land-social-club-in-the-bronx-in-1990/

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-03-28-mn-237-story.html

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1991/03/26/5-billion-suit-filed-over-ny-club-fire-that-cost-87-lives/9bc0fa60-992e-4864-91ab-0e5f3827e9bf/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1990/03/26/87-die-in-fire-at-illegal-ny-social-club/2245f278-6847-4894-95b4-f67bfd93b278/

Episode 56

This is the finale of our coverage of the Sydney Ghost Train fire that took 7 innocent lives. Was the fire accidental as the original inquest determined or was it arson and murder orchestrated to allow a greedy man to get control of the valuable real estate the park occupied? While the circumstantial evidence pointing to corruption is very convincing, just how high did the corruption extend into Sydney's government? Some allege that it went all the way to the top and in this episode, we explore those theories. What do you think? Were the Ghost Train's seven victims murdered or do you think it was an accidental fire? 

There is a very powerful documentary titled Exposed: The Ghost Train Fire listed in the source list below that we recommend anyone wanting additional information on this case watch for a more clear picture of the allegations contained in this episode. At the time of this recording, it is available on Netflix. 

This podcast is a true crime podcast about arson and criminal fires. Listener discretion is recommended. 

Background music by Not Notoriously Coordinated 

Get your Crime to Burn Merch! https://crimetoburn.myspreadshop.com

Please follow us on Instagram, X, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube for the latest news on this case. You can email us at [email protected] We welcome any constructive feedback and would greatly appreciate a 5 star rating and review. 

Source List (for a complete list of sources, please also see Episode 54 and 55 show notes, additional sources used for this episode are listed below):

Mavety, John (Director), (2021). Exposed: The Ghost Train Fire [Streaming]. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 

https://theconversation.com/the-lionel-murphy-papers-shed-more-light-on-a-controversial-life-83876

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/sep/14/lionel-murphy-files-secret-papers-reveal-allegations-of-links-with-boss-abe-saffron

https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/politics/federal/abc-ghost-train-series-misleading-in-linking-wran-and-saffron-20210830-p58nar.html

https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/niece-links-abe-saffron-to-luna-park-deaths-20070526-ge8ps8.html

And finally, the source for the story about Paul McCartney from the discussion in the outtakes. 

https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/why-was-paul-mccartney-arrested-and-deported-from-hamburg/

Episode 55

This week we continue our coverage of the Ghost Train fire that occurred in July of 1979 at Luna Park in Sydney, Australia. The fire ultimately claimed 7 lives and investigators initially told the public it was an accidental electrical fire. However, an electrical engineer showed up at the inquest explaining that there was no way this fire was an electrical fire. Many people believe it was intentional arson arranged by an organized crime boss that wanted the valuable real estate upon which Luna Park sat. Thus begins our trek through a twisted web of crooked cops, corrupt politicians, and of course, greedy criminals with a long history of using arson to get their way. Is it possible that the families of the Luna Park victims have been lied to for over 40 years and that this fire was intentional arson all to gain some real estate advantages? We'll tell you what journalists have uncovered. Now you tell us if you think the Luna Park fire was arson or a tragic accident. 

There is a very powerful documentary titled Exposed: The Ghost Train Fire listed in the source list below that we recommend anyone wanting additional information on this case watch for a more clear picture of the allegations contained in this episode. At the time of this recording, it is available on Netflix. 

This podcast is a true crime podcast about arson and criminal fires. Listener discretion is recommended. 

Background music by Not Notoriously Coordinated 

Get your Crime to Burn Merch! https://crimetoburn.myspreadshop.com

Please follow us on Instagram, X, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube for the latest news on this case. You can email us at [email protected] We welcome any constructive feedback and would greatly appreciate a 5 star rating and review. 

Source List (for a complete list of sources, please also see Episode 54 show notes, additional sources used for this episode are listed below):

Mavety, John (Director), (2021). Exposed: The Ghost Train Fire [Streaming]. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 

https://www.museumoffire.net/single-post/the-luna-park-ghost-train-incident-1979

https://www.the-sun.com/news/12953789/ghost-train-blaze-burned-alive-clue-crack-case/

https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/132382283

https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/rooklyn-israel-jack-30530

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-03-30/police-claims-abe-saffron-behind-luna-park-fire/12321044

https://codes.iccsafe.org/content/IBC2021P2/chapter-4-special-detailed-requirements-based-on-occupancy-and-use#IBC2021P2_Ch04_Sec411

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9416263/Crime-boss-nicknamed-Mr-Sin-Luna-Park-Ghost-Train-fire-killed-six-kids-cops-say.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abe_Saffron

https://theconversation.com/how-ghost-train-fire-exposed-remarkable-police-corruption-yet-also-failed-abcs-high-journalistic-standards-167042

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-03-30/police-claims-abe-saffron-behind-luna-park-fire/12321044

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/king-of-the-cross-sydney-crime-boss-abe-saffron-s-secret-friends-and-properties-20210312-p57abq.html

Episode 54

In July of 1979, seven people would walk through the iconic clown face gates at the Luna Park amusement park in Sydney, Australia but they would not walk out. That July night, a horrific fire occurred in the Ghost Train ride that would claim the lives of six children and one adult. The fire was devastating and despite the nearly total destruction of the site, investigators would announce less than 24 hours after the fire that they'd identified the cause, an electrical fault. However, one man spent the next 3 decades of his life on a crusade to prove that the fire was not a tragic accident but was intentionally set. This is Part 1 of our coverage of Sydney's Luna Park Ghost Train fire and one man's mission to uncover a web of deceit, lies, and astounding corruption that robbed the families of the 7 victims of justice for over 40 years. Keep your arms and legs inside the car at all times, this is going to be a bumpy ride. 

This podcast is a true crime podcast about arson and criminal fires. Listener discretion is recommended. 

Background music by Not Notoriously Coordinated 

Get your Crime to Burn Merch! https://crimetoburn.myspreadshop.com

Please follow us on Instagram, X, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube for the latest news on this case. You can email us at [email protected] We welcome any constructive feedback and would greatly appreciate a 5 star rating and review. 

Source List:

Mavety, John (Director), (2021). Exposed: The Ghost Train Fire [Streaming]. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 

https://www.northweststar.com.au/story/8758705/fresh-report-into-deadly-luna-park-fire-to-stay-secret/

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2021/aug/30/independent-review-criticises-abcs-luna-park-ghost-train-fire-series-over-neville-wran-claim

https://coroners.nsw.gov.au/documents/findings/1979/luna_park_fire_1977_-_findings.pdf

https://quadrant.org.au/news-opinions/uncategorized/the-abc-wont-let-facts-ruin-a-good-beat-up/

https://www.smh.com.au/culture/art-and-design/luna-park-s-big-smile-gets-a-facelift-to-honour-those-who-saved-it-20230502-p5d4zx.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luna_Park_Sydney

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-09-10/nsw-luna-park-ghost-train-fire-redacted-police-report-coroner/104331968

https://www.museumoffire.net/single-post/the-luna-park-ghost-train-incident-1979

https://waverley.nsw.edu.au/conversations/luna-park-tragedy-exposed-with-second-inquiry-possible/

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2021/mar/24/exposed-the-ghost-train-fire-review-a-devastating-and-revelatory-series

https://findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au/news/29775-how-ghost-train-fire-exposed-remarkable-police-corruption--yet-also-failed-abc%27s-high-journalistic-standards

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9349201/Luna-Park-Ghost-Train-fire-survivor-breaks-silence-four-decades-tragedy.html

Episode 53

This is the conclusion of our coverage of the horrific fire that claimed 41 lives at the St. Elizabeth Hospital and Davenport, Iowa in January 1950. The fire, wtill the deadliest fire in state history, was set by a patient at the hospital and this week we cover her confession and the subsequent legal proceedings. We also take a look at the heroes that stepped up to help save lives during the fire, including some very unlikely heroes. Ultimately 40 patients and one nurse lost their lives. Those 40 patients were at St. Elizabeth Hospital for help and their tragic deaths have helped write the fire and building codes for these types of occupancies with the intent to prevent another disaster like this one. These women that died helped us far more than we ever helped them by showing us how we needed to do better to protect heathcare occupancies. 

This podcast is a true crime podcast about arson and criminal fires. Listener discretion is recommended. 

Background music by Not Notoriously Coordinated 

Be sure to check out Season 2 of the You Should Be Here Podcast for the limited series, Or No by Fire Eyes Media. This this collaborative podcasters-give-back series is to bring awareness to and stand against domestic violence. All proceeds will go to a charity taking a stand against domestic violence and human trafficking. Your support of this project is so greatly appreciated. You deserve a safe love. 

Listen on Apple Podcasts:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/you-should-be-here/id1779150686

or on Spotify: 

https://open.spotify.com/show/2VqlmgQxwn55tdY7td9IM9?si=e19fffdc24064f7b&nd=1&dlsi=e6920c0f7e4c4d65

Listen to our episode with our friends over at Sasquatch and Sourdough where we talk more about the fire in Centralia, Pennsylvania that's been burning for over 62 years. 

Listen on Youtube:

https://youtu.be/e2rq340s6c8?si=t2-hEsbC-V0DTdhs

Get your Crime to Burn Merch! https://crimetoburn.myspreadshop.com

Please follow us on Instagram, X, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube for the latest news on this case. You can email us at [email protected] We welcome any constructive feedback and would greatly appreciate a 5 star rating and review. 

Source List:

For a complete list of sources, see the source list for Episode 52. Additional sources used for this episode are below.

https://www.wheelanpressly.com/obituary/Elnora-Epperly

https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-dispatch-obituary-for-deirdre-e-epp/77063117/

https://dailyiowan.lib.uiowa.edu/DI/1950/di1950-01-13.pdf

Episode 52

Today we are revisiting the deadliest fire in Iowa's history. On January 7, 1950, a fire occurred at a mental health facility called St. Elizabeth Hospital on the Mercy Hospital campus in Davenport, Iowa. When a diagnosed schizophrenic woman, due to be released that day, acted in paranoid desperation, she caused a fire that claimed the lives of 41 people including one staff member. What factors led her to take such drastic measures? More importantly, why was the fire so deadly? We cover entire case including the fire and building code issues that exacerbated the fire and hampered the escape of dozens of patients as we remember the victims of the St. Elizabeth Hospital fire.

This podcast is a true crime podcast about arson and criminal fires. Listener discretion is recommended. 

Background music by Not Notoriously Coordinated 

Be sure to check out Season 2 of the You Should Be Here Podcast for the limited series, Or No by Fire Eyes Media. This this collaborative podcasters-give-back series is to bring awareness to and stand against domestic violence. All proceeds will go to a charity taking a stand against domestic violence and human trafficking. Your support of this project is so greatly appreciated. You deserve a safe love. 

Listen on Apple Podcasts:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/you-should-be-here/id1779150686

or on Spotify: 

https://open.spotify.com/show/2VqlmgQxwn55tdY7td9IM9?si=e19fffdc24064f7b&nd=1&dlsi=e6920c0f7e4c4d65

Listen to our episode with our friends over at Sasquatch and Sourdough where we talk more about the fire in Centralia, Pennsylvania that's been burning for over 62 years. 

Listen on Youtube:

https://youtu.be/e2rq340s6c8?si=t2-hEsbC-V0DTdhs

Get your Crime to Burn Merch! https://crimetoburn.myspreadshop.com

Please follow us on Instagram, X, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube for the latest news on this case. You can email us at [email protected] We welcome any constructive feedback and would greatly appreciate a 5 star rating and review. 

Source List:

Grimes, Bret. The St. Elizabeth Hospital Fire in Iowa. The History Press, 2024 https://a.co/d/aXDBXSU

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insulin_shock_therapy

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoke_detector#:~:text=The%20first%20automatic%20electric%20fire,a%20sensor%20for%20poison%20gas.

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/9302-ect-electroconvulsive-therapy

https://www.ifsecglobal.com/fire-news/a-history-of-fire-sprinklers/#:~:text=1872%20%E2%80%93%201874:%20From%20Pratt%20to,the%20design%20in%20his%20factory.

https://www.fireranger.com/history-of-the-fire-extinguisher/

https://johnbrassardjr.com/2023/01/21/beyond-recognition-what-started-the-st-elizabeths-fire/

https://blogs.davenportlibrary.com/sc/2015/01/14/the-st-elizabeths-tragedy-part-i-of-ii/

https://blogs.davenportlibrary.com/sc/2015/01/21/the-st-elizabeths-tragedy-part-ii-of-ii/

https://www.wqad.com/article/news/local/st-elizabeth-hospital-fire-davenport-iowa-75-years/526-9b2c51ba-86e9-49ed-b48d-79c00a2271e5

https://www.firehouse.com/operations-training/news/21120288/davenport-ia-firefighter-still-haunted-by-grisly-1950-hospital-blaze

https://www.notesoniowa.com/post/iowa-history-daily-january-7-st-elizabeth-s-fire