When the sun rose over Lincoln on July 15, 1878, the town wasn’t waking up — it was bracing for war.

Billy the Kid, Doc Scurlock, Tom O’Folliard, Jim French, and nearly sixty Regulators fortified the McSween home and Tunstall store, carving rifle portholes into adobe walls as they prepared for the inevitable clash with Sheriff George Peppin, The House, and their hired guns.

Across the street, Peppin and James Dolan transformed the Wortley Hotel and Murphy-Dolan store into military strongholds. Reinforcements thundered in from the west — the Jesse Evans Gang, John Kinney’s fighters, the Seven Rivers Warriors — men who weren’t there for law, but for blood and pay.

By mid-morning, Lincoln’s single dusty street had become a war zone. Civilians hid behind adobe as volleys cracked across the valley. The Torreón fell into a mini-siege. A newborn and her mother were caught in the crossfire. And the law — the real law — never came.

Day 1 of the Lincoln Siege was defined not by high casualties but by the birth of inevitability.

This episode takes you inside that first day — the fortifications, the failed warrants, the battlefield psychology, and the quiet moments between gunfire when every man wondered whether dawn would be his last.

If you think you know Lincoln… you’ve never stood inside the smoke.

⭐ Like, follow, rate, and review Gallows & Gunfights to keep these stories alive.

Episode 3: “The Breaking Point — Arrests & Confessions”

When Chicago police arrested Robin Gecht on October 20, 1982, they didn’t yet realize they were dismantling one of the most sadistic cults in American history.

Over the next twelve days, detectives arrested Edward Spreitzer, Andrew Kokoraleis, and Thomas Kokoraleis, unraveling a ritual network that turned murder into ceremony. Through firsthand statements, investigative records, and survivor accounts, John and Angela take you inside the interrogation rooms, the forensic evidence, and the confessions that finally broke the case wide open.

This episode exposes the moment when police, prosecutors, and the public first faced the unthinkable truth — and the women who refused to be erased by it.

🔦 Calls to Action

If this story mattered to you, help keep the dialogue alive:

🔚 Closing Line

Because every story deserves to be told, every victim deserves to be remembered…

In the final chapter of the Lisa Marie Kimmell series, Rocky Mountain Reckoning returns to the courtroom, the desert, and the decades-long legal maze that followed Dale Wayne Eaton’s conviction.

We break down:

This episode closes one of Wyoming’s most defining cases… and opens the door to the next.

Next on Rocky Mountain Reckoning:

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If this episode moved you, follow the show, leave a rating, drop a review, and tap the thumbs-up wherever you listen. Your engagement keeps cold cases alive and supports independent investigative storytelling.

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For tips, case suggestions, or media inquiries, email: [email protected]

Chicago wasn’t just terrified—

In Part 2 of our Chicago Ripper Crew series, Dark Dialogue descends into the darkest chapter of the investigation: the rituals, methods, mutilations, and psychology behind a murder cult that operated in broad daylight and believed every killing was an act of worship.

Through rare survivor accounts, forensic reconstruction, and psychological analysis, this episode exposes the cold, structured system behind the Crew’s violence:

The rituals of mutilation and why the left breast became the Crew’s signature

The hierarchy inside the red van — Gecht the manipulator, Spreitzer the enforcer, the Kokoraleis brothers the obedient disciples

How a sexual sadist turned routine murder into religious ceremony

The forensic reconstruction of confirmed and suspected victims

Cynthia Smith’s early survival and how it was ignored

The failed rituals, the “unnamed” victims, and the murders erased by time

The night Rafael Tirado and Alberto Rosario broke the pattern

The miracle survival of Beverly Washington, the woman who brought the Ripper Crew to justice

The myth, rumor, and truth behind Carole Pappas’ disappearance

Chicago’s geography of fear — industrial corridors, riverbanks, motels, and alleys that became killing grounds

This episode also includes a powerful tribute segment honoring the lives of the women — and the few men — whose stories were taken but not forgotten.

Graphic descriptions of mutilation, torture, sexual assault, cannibalistic ritual elements, and extreme violence. Listener discretion is strongly advised.

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It genuinely helps the show grow and brings more attention to unsolved and overlooked cases.

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Investigating the cases that haunt small towns and big cities alike…

Distilled: Reopened — Episode 1

The Fire, The Lies, and the Vanishing of Brookelyn Farthing

Welcome to the brand-new evolution of Distilled — a sharper, more uncompromising format where I take cases back off the shelf, strip away old assumptions, correct past mistakes, and confront the evidence without a rigid structure or a co-host filter.

And today, we’re reopening one of the most infuriating unsolved disappearances I’ve ever covered:

This episode digs deep into the contradictions, the suspicious house fire, the abandoned personal belongings, the bizarre timeline, and the single person who had the opportunity, proximity, and motive to make Brookelyn vanish — yet has never faced a day of scrutiny in court.

Inside this episode:

This isn’t the old Distilled.

If you know the case, you’re about to hear it in a way you’ve never heard before.

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If this episode matters to you, here’s how to support the work:

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Sixteen years after an 18-year-old vanished from a Wyoming highway, the truth finally reached the courtroom.

From the emotionally charged jury selection to the forensic testimony that sealed his fate, this episode retraces each day of a landmark capital trial. Hear how science, law, and the unwavering resolve of a family collided inside Casper’s historic Natrona County Courthouse — where Lisa’s voice echoed once more after sixteen years of silence.

We examine the DNA breakthroughs, the psychological unraveling of Eaton’s defense, the rare death sentence handed down by a Wyoming jury, and the extraordinary civil judgment that gave Lisa’s family ownership of the very land where her car was buried. What they did with that land — and why — became one of the most powerful acts of reclamation in true-crime history.

This is justice, Wyoming-style: unflinching, human, and long overdue.

🔔 Calls to Action

If you believe in telling stories that give voice to the silenced—

Join the Dark Dialogue Collective, our boots-on-the-ground volunteer network that assists with searches, logistics, and family support.

Support our work directly on Patreon or Ko-fi, and subscribe on Substack for exclusive updates, case files, and behind-the-scenes analysis.

🌐 Visit www.darkdialogue.com for full case archives, updates, and ways to get involved.

Welcome back to Shadow Chat Sessions, where the news is weird, the crimes are dumb, the universe is probably haunted, and John is fueled entirely by sarcasm and caffeine.

This episode delivers one of our wildest mixes yet:

🐙 A psychic octopus predicts the election and leaves oceanographers questioning their degrees.

🌐 The Dead Internet Theory crawls back from the digital grave.

🔮 The 2025 Dystopia Forecast — because apparently we needed more things to worry about.

🍲 A cook is arrested for stealing “secret recipes” from his own restaurant.

📞 An inmate pretends to be a judge and tries to call the jail to free his buddy.

🛁 A man breaks into a home, takes a drunken bath, and refuses to leave, boasting a blood alcohol level that could strip paint.

✨ Strange lights return over the Nevada desert (of course they do).

👣 Ghost Soldiers appear again on the Appalachian Trail.

🦍 Bigfoot DNA from Oregon heads for testing.

🪬 A Roman cursed tablet surfaces in Bath, England.

💥 Sky quakes shake the Eastern U.S. — but scientists are still shrugging.

Every story comes with full breakdowns, deep-dive details, and John’s signature sarcastic takes, including the now-iconic response to the bathtub bandit:

“Somewhere there’s a mugshot of this guy in a towel looking like a criminally hydrated Buddha.”

If you love bizarre headlines, haunted forests, glitch-in-the-matrix moments, and criminals who should honestly have to pass a sobriety test before attempting a crime — this episode is for you.

If you enjoy the show, keep the chaos alive:

👍 Like the episode

Chicago, 1981.

From the first victim, Linda Sutton, to the escalating ritual murders that followed, this episode exposes how four men — Gecht, Edward Spreitzer, and brothers Andrew and Thomas Kokoraleis — carried out some of the most sadistic crimes Chicago has ever seen. Through forensic detail, survivor testimony, psychological insight, and meticulous research, we trace the rise of a cult built on fear, manipulation, and ritual mutilation.

Angela provides a full breakdown of Chicago and DuPage County in the early ’80s — the environment that allowed the Crew to operate in plain sight.

And ultimately, the survivor who brought the truth into the light: Beverly Washington — the woman whose testimony placed Gecht behind bars for 120 years.

This is Part 1 of a four-episode investigation that exposes the rituals, psychology, and forensic realities surrounding Chicago’s most terrifying cult murders.

⭐ Support the Show & Join the Community

If you believe in what we’re doing — honoring victims, exposing failures, and shining light on the darkest corners of crime — you can support us directly:

Join the Dark Dialogue Collective — our boots-on-the-ground volunteer network of researchers, analysts, and advocates who help move cold cases forward.

Adopt-a-Victim Program: Take on a real case through research, advocacy, or field work and help keep their story alive.

All links are on DarkDialogue.com.

📩 Contact & Socials

Have a tip, theory, correction, or case suggestion? Email us anytime: [email protected]

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🎙️ Closing Note

Stay curious. Stay compassionate.

Billy the Kid wasn’t born a legend — the road made him one.

This episode dives deep into the pivotal stretch of 1877–1878, when Billy fled Arizona, returned to New Mexico, and walked right into the storm that would define his life forever. Using immersive sound design, historical transcripts, and narrative reconstruction, we take you through:

Billy’s chaotic escape from Arizona after killing Frank “Windy” Cahill

His near-death trek across the desert and rescue by the Jones family

Joining Jesse Evans’ gang and drifting north into Lincoln County

The theft that landed him in jail — and the unexpected mercy of John Tunstall

Life on the Tunstall Ranch and the bond that forged Billy’s loyalties

The escalating legal warfare between Tunstall’s faction and The House

The murder of John Tunstall — the shot that ignited the Lincoln County War

The birth of the Regulators and their bloody oath of vengeance

The ambush of Sheriff William Brady

The Battle at Blazer’s Mill and the death of Dick Brewer

Frank McNab’s brief leadership, Seven Rivers retaliation, and the rise of Doc Scurlock

The frontier’s descent into chaos as Lincoln braces for the coming siege

This is one of the most important episodes in the entire Billy the Kid arc — the moment where the lines between justice, vengeance, and survival dissolve into gunsmoke.

If you enjoy our work and want to help keep these stories alive across the Dark Dialogue Podcast Network:

👍 Like, follow, thumbs up, and ring the bell on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you listen.

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Thank you for supporting independent true crime storytelling — and for helping us keep the legends, the victims, and the history alive.

In this haunting installment of Dark Dialogue: Rocky Mountain Reckoning, host John McColl and co-host Angela return to the desolate plains of Wyoming, where justice finally clawed its way to the surface.

What investigators found beneath that earth rewrote a fifteen-year mystery. From the chilling excavation to the forensic science that proved Eaton’s guilt, to the strength of Sheila Kimmell’s unbreakable advocacy, this episode chronicles how truth can survive even when it’s buried in silence and dust.

You’ll walk the property, feel the tension of the dig, and stand in the quiet moment when the earth itself gave up its secret. Because sometimes justice doesn’t speak — it rises.

Follow and Review: Like, follow, and rate Dark Dialogue: Rocky Mountain Reckoning on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, or YouTube. Tap the bell or leave a review to help others find these stories.

Support the Mission: Join the fight for truth through Patreon or Ko-fi — your support keeps independent investigations alive.

Get Involved: Visit darkdialogue.com to join the Dark Dialogue Collective, volunteer for boots-on-the-ground research, or explore the Adopt-a-Victim Program to help preserve cold-case legacies.

Stay Connected: Follow @DarkDialogue on social media for case updates and behind-the-scenes investigations.