Forensic Tales

#359 - In August 1987, a freight train struck 16-year-old Don Henry and 17-year-old Kevin Ives as they lay motionless on railroad tracks in Arkansas. The medical examiner called it an accident, claiming marijuana had left them too deeply asleep to react. Their families demanded another look.

A second forensic examination uncovered evidence of violence before the train’s arrival, challenging the original ruling and turning the case into a homicide investigation. But answers remained elusive.

This week on Forensic Tales, we examine the evidence, the disputed investigation, and the unanswered questions surrounding the “Boys on the Tracks.”

Forensic Tales is a Rockefeller Audio production, written and produced by Courtney Fretwell.

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Website & Episode Sources:

https://www.forensictales.com/jonathan-luna

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#358 - In December 2003, federal prosecutor Jonathan Luna was found dead in a Pennsylvania creek, far from his Baltimore office. He had suffered 36 stab wounds and drowned. Toll records and banking activity traced a puzzling overnight journey—but couldn’t explain why he’d taken it.

His death was officially ruled a homicide, yet some federal investigators questioned whether his injuries were self-inflicted. This week on Forensic Tales, we examine the evidence, competing theories, and what his long-withheld autopsy report reveals about a case that still leaves more questions than answers.

Forensic Tales is a Rockefeller Audio production, written and produced by Courtney Fretwell.

Support the show on Patreon (get early ad-free access to episodes, monthly bonus episodes & more):

patreon.com/forensictales

Website & Episode Sources:

https://www.forensictales.com/jonathan-luna

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#357 - When Sharon Causse was shot and killed inside her Las Vegas home in 2008, her husband, Thomas Randolph, claimed he had killed the intruder responsible. But the physical evidence raised questions about his story.

From cartridge cases to a ski mask without blood or bullet holes, investigators began reconstructing a suspected staged home invasion—and uncovering the troubling history of a man who had been married six times. This week on Forensic Tales, we examine Sharon’s murder, the case against the so-called “Black Widower,” and the forensic evidence that challenged his account.

Listener discretion: domestic violence

If you recognize parts of your own relationship in this story, or you’re worried about someone you love, support is available. In the United States, you can contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline by texting the word START to 88788, or chat online at thehotline.org. 

Forensic Tales is a Rockefeller Audio production, written and produced by Courtney Fretwell.

Support the show on Patreon (get early ad-free access to episodes, monthly bonus episodes & more):

patreon.com/forensictales

Website & Episode Sources:

https://www.forensictales.com/thomas-randolph

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#356 - When 71-year-old Alan Abrahamson was found shot dead near his gated Florida community, the missing weapon pointed investigators toward murder. But unusual purchases, a puzzling timeline, and a digital trail revealed a different story. This week on Forensic Tales, explore how physical evidence and digital forensics helped unravel Alan’s death—and why his life deserves to be remembered beyond the headlines.

Content warning: Discussion of suicide and self-harm.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, call 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call the network, previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, at 800-273-8255, or text HOME to 741741. 

Forensic Tales is a Rockefeller Audio production, written and produced by Courtney Fretwell.

Support the show on Patreon (get early ad-free access to episodes, monthly bonus episodes & more):

patreon.com/forensictales

Website & Episode Sources:

https://www.forensictales.com/alan-abrahamson

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#355 - In 2015, healthy 60-year-old chiropractor Mary Yoder suddenly became violently ill and died less than 48 hours later. Toxicology revealed that she had been poisoned with colchicine, but identifying who gave it to her would divide her family and community for years.

A suspicious letter, a bottle hidden inside her son’s Jeep, conflicting digital evidence, and touch DNA eventually led investigators to his ex-girlfriend, Katie Conley.

But after two trials, a conviction, and its eventual reversal, one question remains: Who really poisoned Mary Yoder?

Forensic Tales is a Rockefeller Audio production, written and produced by Courtney Fretwell.

Support the show on Patreon (get early ad-free access to episodes, monthly bonus episodes & more):

patreon.com/forensictales

Website & Episode Sources:

https://www.forensictales.com/mary-yoder

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#354 - When 74-year-old Bill and Peggy Stephenson failed to attend church on Memorial Day weekend in 2011, their family immediately knew something was wrong. Inside their secluded Kentucky condo, investigators discovered a brutal double murder and one of the strangest staged crime scenes they had ever encountered.

More than 15 years later, unknown DNA, a partial fingerprint, and disturbing evidence withheld from the public have yet to reveal who killed the beloved couple or why.

Forensic Tales is a Rockefeller Audio production, written and produced by Courtney Fretwell.

Support the show on Patreon:

patreon.com/forensictales

Website & Episode Sources:

https://www.forensictales.com/the-unsolved-murders-of-bill-and-peggy-stephenson

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#353 - Five long weeks after a 16-year-old girl is brutally murdered, a chilling letter arrives on a police desk. The arrogant killer boasts about wearing a plastic Halloween mask and details exactly how he strangled her. He ends with a chilling promise to the investigators: “You will never get me.” 

For more than 25 years, he was right… He disappeared into the crowd, completely undetected. 

But he didn’t realize he left behind a microscopic witness that would eventually hunt him down.

Forensic Tales is a Rockefeller Audio production, written and produced by Courtney Fretwell.

Support the show on Patreon:

patreon.com/forensictales

Website & Episode Sources:

https://www.forensictales.com/the-murder-of-colette-aram

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#352 - Four children from the same family died suddenly before reaching their second birthdays.

To investigators, the pattern seemed too extraordinary to be natural. And when their mother’s private diaries appeared to contain admissions of guilt, she was branded Australia’s worst female serial killer.

But there were no witnesses. No physical evidence of smothering. And no one could explain exactly how the children had died.

Then, decades later, advances in genetic testing uncovered something that no one involved in the original investigation could have known.

Forensic Tales is a Rockefeller Audio production, written and produced by Courtney Fretwell.

Support the show on Patreon:

patreon.com/forensictales

Website & Episode Sources:

forensictales.com/kathleen-folbigg

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#351 - A mother of three suddenly disappears after discovering that her husband has been cheating on her.

He insists she simply left—but investigators soon uncover evidence suggesting something far more sinister happened to her involving a commercial woodchipper.

Although her body would never be recovered, forensic scientists pieced together the horrifying truth from tiny fragments of bone, human tissue, strands of hair, and a single tooth. The evidence would ultimately lead to the first murder conviction in Connecticut history without the victim’s body.

Forensic Tales is a Rockefeller Audio production, written and produced by Courtney Fretwell.

Support the show on Patreon:

patreon.com/forensictales

Website & Episode Sources:

forensictales.com/the-woodchipper-murder-helle-crafts

Follow Forensic Tales:

Instagram: @forensictales

TikTok: @forensictales

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Contact:

[email protected]

Sources for this episode can be found at ForensicTales.com.