Ghoulish Tendencies

In this episode, we’re diving into the Schmatzenden Todten, aka the dead who supposedly could not mind their own business and kept chewing from beyond the grave while everyone in Europe was losing their minds. What started as plague-era panic, religious drama, and the absolutely miserable mechanics of decomposition somehow turned into one of history’s most unsettling undead (and maybe even vampire) trends, which is honestly rude behavior for a corpse and deeply on brand for the 1500s.

Edited by Maxwell Holechek

A shocking arrest, a trial full of contradictions, and the truth behind La Mataviejitas.

In Part Two, we pick up with the investigation closing in on Juana Barraza and the moment everything finally unravels. After years of missed leads and a profile that pointed in the wrong direction, police make a stunning arrest that forces them to rethink the entire case. We break down the evidence, Barraza’s confession and contradictions, and the trial that followed as her past, motives, and possible victim count come into focus. As the story comes to a close, we examine how she was caught, what may never be fully known, and the lasting impact of one of Mexico City’s most chilling cases.

Edited by Max Holechek

A grandmother. A wrestler. And a serial killer hiding in plain sight.

In Part One, we begin the story of Juana Barraza, one of Mexico’s most infamous serial killers. Known as “La Mataviejitas,” or The Little Old Lady Killer, Barraza targeted elderly women across Mexico City, slipping into their homes under the guise of a government worker before murdering them. We explore her early life, the patterns behind the killings, and how the investigation struggled to keep up as fear spread throughout the city. As the body count rises and police chase the wrong profile, a disturbing truth begins to take shape.

Edited by Max Holechek

A change of pace! 
ROUND TWO! You asked, and we answered. Thanks to those who are curious about the pod and what we do, this episode focuses on a Q&A posed to Kim and Gabi about the podcast, and it's our second one! Thank you to those of you who asked questions and stay curious (and spooky). 

Edited by Max Holechek

In part two, we follow Ronald Cotton from his decision to talk to police through two trials, decades in prison, and his ultimate DNA exoneration after another man, Bobby Poole, was identified as the true perpetrator. We unpack how racial bias, prior records, blocked expert testimony, and juries’ overreliance on confident eyewitnesses fueled Cotton’s wrongful convictions, and how his and Jennifer Thompson’s advocacy, alongside over 600 DNA exonerations nationwide, has driven reforms in interrogation, lineup procedures, and the use of eyewitness evidence.

Edited by Maxwell Holechek

In part one of this two-parter topic, we tell the story of Jennifer Thompson, a 22‑year‑old college student whose courageous attempt to memorize her rapist’s face led to the wrongful conviction of Ronald Cotton. We focus closely on the crime itself and Jennifer’s immediate aftermath experience, from her escape to the hospital exam and early police interviews, to show how trauma and flawed identification procedures shaped her memory and, ultimately, the case.

Edited by Maxwell Holechek

TW: Discussions of sexual assault. 

A rushed arrest, a collapsing case, and a sensational trial that put everyone on display.

Part Two picks up immediately after the arrest of Clifford Hayes, the first man charged in the Hall Mills murders. We break down how police built a case on a coerced confession, why it quickly fell apart, and how Hayes was cleared while Raymond Schneider was convicted of perjury instead. From there, the investigation lurches forward through botched evidence, unreliable witnesses, and a courtroom spectacle that culminates in the infamous 1926 trial of Frances Hall and her family. We unpack the prosecution’s theories, the defense’s brutal dismantling of key testimony, and how the trial ultimately left the case exactly where it started, unresolved, controversial, and haunted by what might have been done differently.

Edited by Maxwell Holechek

A secret relationship. Two bodies under a crabapple tree. A century-old case that begins with a compromised crime scene.

In Part One, we examine the 1922 Hall Mills murders in New Brunswick, New Jersey. A minister and a choir singer are found dead in a known lover’s lane, arranged side by side with their love letters scattered around them. Before authorities can secure the area, reporters and onlookers flood the scene, disturbing crucial evidence and muddying the investigation from the very beginning. We walk through who the victims were, the origins of their relationship, the tensions in their marriages, and the early timeline that shaped the first wave of suspicion. It is one of the most enduring unsolved cases of its era, and this episode sets the stage for everything that followed.

Edited by Max Holechek

This episode dives into the lonely Rosicrucian childhood of Manly P. Hall, his meteoric rise in 1920s occult Los Angeles, and the creation of his magnum opus, The Secret Teachings of All Ages, which cemented him as one of the most influential esoteric philosophers of the twentieth century. Along the way, we'll talk about his years at the Philosophical Research Society, his legendary residence in Frank Lloyd Wright’s eerily iconic and possibly haunted Ennis House, and the still‑unsolved, sinister circumstances surrounding his 1990 death and contested will.

Edited by Max Holechek

Tucked into rural Thurston County, Bucoda is not just another small Northwest town. It carries a chilling legacy and transforms every October into Boo Coda, Washington’s self-proclaimed haunted hotspot.

In this episode, we uncover the ghost-laced story of Bucoda. From its original name, Seatco, meaning “evil spirit” or “devil” in a native language, to the dark remains of Washington’s first territorial prison, the town carries whispers of tortured inmates, tragic accidents, and restless souls. We explore the haunted gym that hosts the annual Scary Nights Haunted House, the legends of ghostly figures along the train tracks, and how the living residents embrace Bucoda’s eerie reputation as both a point of pride and a source of fear.

Edited by Maxwell Holechek