Going West: True Crime

In October of 2006, police responded to a call about someone jumping from the roof of a New Orleans hotel. When they arrived, they found a note in the man’s pocket, confessing to committing a horrific crime just streets away. But when police reported to the apartment in question, the circumstances of the crime were more shocking than they’d imagined. This is the story of Addie Hall and Zack Bowen.

BONUS EPISODES

Apple Subscriptions: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-west-true-crime/id1448151398

Patreon: patreon.com/goingwestpodcast

CASE SOURCES

https://vocal.media/criminal/the-horror-house-of-new-orleans

https://medium.com/p/6802cff46eb6

https://ghostcitytours.com/new-orleans/ghost-stories/zack-addie/

https://www.ranker.com/list/zack-and-addie-new-orleans/patrick-thornton

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/18823332/adriane-mathias-hall

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On Halloween night, 1981, a nun was murdered by a mysterious intruder in the Saint Francis Convent in Amarillo, Texas. Scrambling to put someone behind bars for this heinous crime, as well as others of its kind in the area, police accepted the help of a psychic. And soon after, they arrested the teenager they felt was responsible. But now, more than forty years later, the community is still wondering, was he really behind it? This is the murder of Sister Tadea Benz.

BONUS EPISODES

Apple Subscriptions: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-west-true-crime/id1448151398

Patreon: patreon.com/goingwestpodcast

CASE SOURCES

1. Tadea's Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/18771982/tadea-benz

2. All That's Interesting: https://allthatsinteresting.com/johnny-frank-garrett

3. Johnny's Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/143181388/johnny-frank-garrett

4. The York Dispatch: https://www.newspapers.com/image/614765114/?terms=tadea%20benz&match=1

5. KFDA: https://www.newschannel10.com/story/15894338/halloween-murder-reserected-30-years-later/

6. Daily News: https://www.newspapers.com/image/486178324/?terms=tadea%20benz%20%22obituary%22%20&match=1

7. Change.org: https://www.change.org/p/rep-louie-gohmert-clear-the-name-of-a-man-who-was-killed-on-death-row-for-a-crime-he-didn-t-commit

8. UPI: https://www.upi.com/Archives/1982/08/26/Nuns-who-found-Sister-Tadea-Benz-dead-in-her/3024399182400/

9. Chron: https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Lawyer-takes-1981-case-of-executed-man-1524310.php

10. The Press Democrat: https://www.newspapers.com/image/296684921/?terms=tadea%20benz%20%22obituary%22%20&match=1

11. The Daily Progress: https://www.newspapers.com/image/965590557/?terms=tadea%20benz%20%22obituary%22%20&match=1

12. The Herald-Palladium: https://www.newspapers.com/image/365953955/?terms=tadea%20benz%20%22obituary%22%20&match=1

13. Bloodshed Books: http://www.bloodshedbooks.com/upfiles/l68.pdf

14. UPI: https://www.upi.com/Archives/1981/11/05/A-police-investigator-brought-hair-and-fabric-samples-to/5165373784400/

15. The Skeptical Juror: http://www.skepticaljuror.com/2010/04/fine-folks-of-amarillo-wanted-justice.html

16. Paranormal Catalog: https://www.paranormalcatalog.net/unexplained-phenomena/the-curse-of-johnny-frank-garret

17. Murderpedia: https://murderpedia.org/male.G/g1/garret-johnny-frank.htm

18. MyPlainview: https://www.myplainview.com/news/article/Man-pleads-guilty-sentenced-to-45-years-for-1981-8547291.php

19. UPI: https://www.upi.com/Archives/1981/11/04/Police-have-suspect-in-rape-slaying-of-nun/7073373698000/

20. UPI: https://www.upi.com/Archives/1982/09/03/Teenager-gets-death-sentence-for-nuns-rape-murder/7874399873600/

21. Justia: https://law.justia.com/cases/texas/court-of-criminal-appeals/1991/14992-02-4.html#:~:text=In%201982%20applicant%20was%20convicted,Garrett%20v.

22. Fort Worth Star-Telegram: https://www.newspapers.com/image/642980263/?terms=johnny%20frank%20garrett&match=1

23. Fort Worth Star-Telegram: https://www.newspapers.com/image/642946304/?terms=tadea%20benz&match=1

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In October of 1999, a police officer reported near a lighthouse on a North Carolina island, when she was killed after arrival. With her fellow officers botching the crime scene, years of speculation followed about the circumstances regarding her death. Was it a murder? An accident? A suicide? To her loved ones, the conclusion was clear. This is the story of Davina Buff Jones.

BONUS EPISODES

Apple Subscriptions: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-west-true-crime/id1448151398

Patreon: patreon.com/goingwestpodcast

CASE SOURCES

1. Davina's Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/26388583/davina-elaine-jones

2. Charlotte Magazine: https://www.charlottemagazine.com/shadows-by-the-sea/

3. Asheville Citizen-Times: https://www.newspapers.com/image/198711857/?terms=davina%20buff%20jones&match=1

4. The Herald-Sun: https://www.newspapers.com/image/794046853/?terms=davina%20buff%20jones&match=1

5. Still A Mystery: https://www.amazon.com/North-Carolina-Unsolved/dp/B09NV5GDRN/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3CTIVXGAMLORD&keywords=still+a+mystery+davina+jones&qid=1696367772&sprefix=still+amaystery+davina+jone%2Caps%2C94&sr=8-1

6. Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/crime/2012/06/25/analysis-of-13-year-mysterious-death-of-cape-fear-police-woman/?sh=7083fc336ebd

7. Casetext: https://casetext.com/case/buff-v-nc-law-enforcement-offices

8. Star News Online: https://www.starnewsonline.com/story/news/2003/10/25/officers-death-still-leaves-questions/30528827007/

9. Harriet's Obituary: https://coastalcremationsnc.com/obituaries/harriet-emily-buff/

10. Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/1ofb16/murder_of_officer_davina_buff_jones/

11. ABC11: https://abc11.com/archive/8661279/

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In May of 2005, a large group of Alabama high school students headed off to Aruba for an unofficial graduation trip. The day before they were all set to leave, an 18-year-old girl from the group went off with young men from a bar and wasn't seen again. When the rest of the students headed back home with no sight of her, an intense investigation began, with the prime suspect confessing numerous times, including just recently on October 18, 2023. But is he telling the truth? This is the story of Natalee Holloway.

BONUS EPISODES

Apple Subscriptions: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-west-true-crime/id1448151398

Patreon: patreon.com/goingwestpodcast

CASE SOURCES



https://www.wvtm13.com/article/natalee-holloway-van-der-sloot-news/45564407

https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/seeking-info/natalee-ann-holloway

https://www.deseret.com/2005/6/12/19896907/lax-supervision-on-aruba-trip

https://www.foxnews.com/story/transcript-holloway-chaperone-speaks-out

https://www.eonline.com/news/1388112/joran-van-der-sloot-confessed-to-brutal-murder-of-natalee-holloway-judge-says

https://abcnews.go.com/International/caused-death-van-der-sloots-gory-peru-murder/story?id=10923141#:~:text=I%20had%20blood%20on%20my,of%20his%20assault%20on%20her.

https://www.cnn.com/2015/05/28/world/natalee-holloway-new-tip/index.html

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In May of 2014, two young girls lured their friend out to the woods during a game of hide-and-seek, and stabbed her 19 times, after claiming a fictional creature from the internet ordered them to do so. But once a cyclist came across the victim, clinging to life, the other girls’ plan veered off course. This is the story of Payton Leutner, also known, as the Slender Man stabbing.

BONUS EPISODES

Apple Subscriptions: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-west-true-crime/id1448151398

Patreon: patreon.com/goingwestpodcast

CASE SOURCES

1. Creepypasta: https://www.creepypasta.com/slenderman/

2. ABC: https://abcnews.go.com/US/mothers-teens-pleaded-guilty-slender-man-stabbing-case/story?id=52739807

3. Oprah: https://www.oprahdaily.com/entertainment/tv-movies/a29591703/slender-man-stabbing-true-story/

4. Good Morning America: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFiJvVGzdpo

5. SourceFedNerd: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKG81xQjPzc

6. The Game of Nerds: https://thegameofnerds.com/2017/11/24/the-slender-man-movie-from-photoshop-contest-entry-to-horror-film/

7. Beware the Slenderman: https://www.hulu.com/watch/2faf31a7-bee6-4357-aa18-8026fca1e2bb

8. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/waukesha/news/waukesha/2021/04/15/slender-man-stabbing-anissa-weier-should-released-attorneys-say/7236515002/

9. Oxygen: https://www.oxygen.com/crime-news/anissa-weier-to-be-released-from-mental-health-facility

10. The Cinemaholic: https://thecinemaholic.com/where-is-the-survivor-payton-leutner-now/

11. KLTV: https://www.kltv.com/2021/09/14/slender-man-stabbing-victims-family-nervous-about-release/

12. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: https://www.jsonline.com/story/archives/2020/09/02/slender-man-stabbing-timeline-geyser-weier-cases-wisconsin/3803170002/

13. NBC: https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/slender-man-stabbing/slender-man-creator-speaks-stabbing-i-am-deeply-saddened-n122781

14. New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/15/movies/slender-man-timeline.html

15. All That's Interesting: https://allthatsinteresting.com/payton-leutner#:~:text=Born%20in%202002%2C%20Payton%20Leutner,was%20often%20sitting%20by%20herself.

16. Criminal Minds: https://criminalminds.fandom.com/wiki/Anissa_Weier_and_Morgan_Geyser#:~:text=Geyser%20was%20born%20on%20May,grew%20up%20in%20Waukesha%2C%20Wisconsin.

17. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: https://archive.jsonline.com/news/crime/critical-hearing-in-slender-man-case-to-begin-today-b99520903z1-307851871.html

18. TMJ4: https://www.tmj4.com/news/local-news/waukesha-slender-man-stabbing-case-morgan-geyser-withdraws-petition-to-be-released

19. New York Magazine: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2015/08/slender-man-stabbing.html

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In October of 1991, an 18-year-old woman left California bound for Mexico on a bicycle, hoping to volunteer along the way. But after a sudden lack of contact with her family, loved ones started to wonder if something had happened during her solo trip. With her belongings being found in a spot near where she was last seen and a suspicious final witness on police’s radar, everyone is wondering, what happened to her? This is the story of Jennifer Pentilla.

BONUS EPISODES

Apple Subscriptions: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-west-true-crime/id1448151398

Patreon: patreon.com/goingwestpodcast

CASE SOURCES

1. Charley Project: https://charleyproject.org/case/jennifer-lynn-pentilla

2. The Missoulian: https://www.newspapers.com/image/351299569/?terms=jennifer%20pentilla&match=1

3. Doe Network: https://www.doenetwork.org/cases/302dfnm.html

4. Montana Press: https://www.montanapress.net/post/jennifer-pentilla-a-montanan-forever-lost-in-new-mexico

5. Tapatalk: https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/porchlightusa/1991-pentilla-jennifer-lynn-october-17-1991-t12090.html

6. Websleuths: https://www.websleuths.com/forums/threads/nm-jennifer-pentilla-18-deming-17-oct-1991.60427/

7. Missoulian: https://missoulian.com/missoula-mom-hopes-appearance-on-maury-will-help-find-daughter/article_90d06bf6-0b15-50e5-bef3-838ebbb2d447.html

8. Cold Case Closure: https://web.archive.org/web/20150930041557/http://www.coldcaseclosure.com/montana-law-enforcement/chuy-vasquez/

9. Socorro's Obituary: https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/lcsun-news/name/socorro-vasquez-obituary?id=24412804

10. The Deming Headlight: https://www.newspapers.com/image/558679681/?terms=jesus%20chuy%20vasquez&match=1

11. NBC Montana: https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=CzKIAScinZo

12. Daily Record: https://www.dailyrecord.com/story/news/2016/10/20/pentilla-case-25-years-unsolved/92478404/

13. The Deming Headlight: https://www.newspapers.com/image/558596869/?terms=%22jesus%20chuy%20vasquez%22&match=1

14. The Deming Headlight: https://www.newspapers.com/image/558388962/?terms=jesus%20chuy%20vasquez&match=1

15. The Deming Headlight: https://www.newspapers.com/image/558288808/?terms=jesus%20chuy%20vasquez&match=1

16. The Deming Headlight: https://www.newspapers.com/image/558328954/?terms=jesus%20chuy%20vasquez&match=1

17. The Deming Headlight: https://www.newspapers.com/image/558570458/?terms=jesus%20chuy%20vasquez&match=1



Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In October of 1961, police reported to the home of a 31-year-old Massachusetts woman after a neighbor spotted blood inside her house. When police began investigating, it felt clear that she had been met with foul play. But after finding library books on murders and disappearances similar to her own, suspicions were raised, begging the question: what really happened to Joan Risch 

BONUS EPISODES

Apple Subscriptions: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-west-true-crime/id1448151398

Patreon: patreon.com/goingwestpodcast

CASE SOURCES

1. Joan's Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/196335677/joan-carolyn-risch

2. Martin's Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/172928385/martin-donald-risch

3. Anderson Independent-Mail: https://www.newspapers.com/image/812685762/?terms=joan%20risch&match=1

4. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle: https://www.newspapers.com/image/52772631/?terms=harold%20bard%20josephine%20bard&match=1

5. A Kitchen Painted in Blood: https://www.google.com/books/edition/A_Kitchen_Painted_in_Blood/EbUEEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PR3&printsec=frontcover

6. Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/swhph8/the_bizarre_disappearance_of_joan_risch/

7. Medium: https://icestationpoetry.medium.com/into-thin-air-what-is-the-likeliest-explanation-for-the-disappearance-of-joan-risch-1bdd4953b4e

8. Wicked Horror: https://wickedhorror.com/features/february-2022-missing-person-of-the-month-joan-carolyn-risch/#:~:text=Joan%20graduated%20with%20honors%20from,Crowell%20Co.

9. Prabook: https://prabook.com/web/martin_donald.risch/406588

10. Uncovered: https://uncovered.com/cases/joan-risch

11. The Boston Globe: https://www.newspapers.com/image/433749083/

12. Lost n Found Blog: https://lostnfoundblogs.com/f/into-thin-air

13. I Can't Believe It's Not Fiction: https://icantbelieveitsnonfiction.com/2017/07/05/joan-risch/

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In October of 2018, dismembered remains of a male body started turning up along the highway in Ohio. At the same time, a 39-year-old father from Michigan was reported missing by his family. When the disappearance and the scattered remains were found to be linked, his family had only one potential suspect in mind. But when police were forced to release them due to a lack of evidence, they fled the area, and haven’t been seen since. This is the murder of David Carter. 

BONUS EPISODES

Apple Subscriptions: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-west-true-crime/id1448151398

Patreon: patreon.com/goingwestpodcast

CASE SOURCES

1. Newsweek: https://www.newsweek.com/tammy-renee-williams-where-she-now-david-carter-murder-unsolved-mysteries-body-bags-1753163

2. WXYZ-Detroit TV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkQ6Vdz2tlY

3. America's Most Wanted: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CC8Hr0-AEQ

4. David's Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LHUFRESH313

5. Cosmopolitan: https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/entertainment/a41853658/unsolved-mysteries-new-information-david-carter-case/

6. Radio Times: https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/documentaries/true-crime/where-is-tammy-williams-david-carter-unsolved-mysteries/

7. Daily Mail: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11373481/Netflix-Unsolved-Murders-hands-90-tips-law-enforcement-2018-Ohio-murder-case.html

8. Fox 2 Detroit: https://www.fox2detroit.com/news/hundreds-honor-life-of-murdered-melvindale-dad-david-carter

9. Unsolved Mysteries: https://www.netflix.com/search?q=unsolved%20mysteries&jbv=81026055

10. Click On Detroit: https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/local/2021/10/29/us-marshals-want-help-finding-woman-accused-in-brutal-mutilation-murder-of-melvindale-man/

11. WXYZ: https://www.wxyz.com/news/detroits-most-wanted-girlfriend-wanted-in-murder-of-melvindale-father-found-on-ohio-road

12. Uncovered: https://uncovered.com/cases/david-carter-melvindale-mi

13. The Rayne-Arcadian Tribune: https://www.newspapers.com/image/472273569/?terms=%22david%20darnell%20carter%22&match=1

14. ESPN: https://www.espn.com/college-football/player/_/id/4686754/david-carter-jr

15. The Cinemaholic: https://thecinemaholic.com/where-are-david-carters-dad-and-sister-now/

16. Fox 2 Detroit: https://www.fox2detroit.com/news/cruises-travel-car-washes-ex-detroit-firefighter-accused-of-living-lavish-lifestyle-on-unions-dime

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In July of 1902, a wealthy Tennessee plantation owner went on a murderous rampage in the middle of the night, killing his entire family with an ax. But what they found at his home after his death was even more horrifying. Since the tragic slaying of six innocent people that night, and dozens of others over the years, the home has been turned into one of the scariest haunted houses in America: Frightmare Manor. This is the story of murderer Jeremiah Lexer. But 10 years earlier, an even more well-known ax murder case occurred just a few states away when a young woman is believed to have murdered her father and stepmother. So this is also the story of Lizzie Borden.

BONUS EPISODES

Apple Subscriptions: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-west-true-crime/id1448151398

Patreon: patreon.com/goingwestpodcast

CASE SOURCES

1. Frightmare Manor: https://frightmaremanor.com/history-jeremiah-lexer-plantation-crockett/

2. The Southern Voice: https://thesouthernvoice.com/evil-isnt-new-the-jeremiah-lexer-story/

3. The Knoxville News-Sentinel: https://www.newspapers.com/image/777973849/?terms=jeremiah%20lexer&match=1

4. Historic Archaeology: https://historicarchaeology.weebly.com/journal/small-town-cover-up-of-serial-killer-responsible-for-30plus-deaths

5. UT Daily Beacon: https://www.utdailybeacon.com/opinion/columns/east-tennessees-hidden-history-serial-killers-in-knoxville/article_70a8c42a-bfd6-11e7-ab64-5300d0bb2906.html#:~:text=The%20notorious%20Harpe%20Brothers%20are,in%201798%2C%20beginning%20in%20Knoxville.

6. WBIR: https://www.wbir.com/article/news/local/five-at-four/haunted-house-frightmare-manor-specializes-in-screams-and-scares/51-c30cffa1-ae5f-4d8d-bc4d-2b45b730bc55

7. Serial Killer Calendar: https://serialkillercalendar.com/PAUL-REID-THE-FAST-FOOD-KILLER.php

8. Bizarrepedia: https://www.bizarrepedia.com/when-nashville-bled-paul-dennis-reid-jr/

9. JustThoughtLounge: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSfuBN0c_A4

10. Associated Press: https://bobbyrossjr.com/2003/04/27/april-2003-the-associated-press/

11. Casetext: https://casetext.com/case/state-v-reid-224

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In October of 1953, a 15-year-old girl went missing while babysitting in her Wisconsin neighborhood. A cursory search of the home revealed blood, making it obvious that she had been met with foul play. And it didn’t take long for her to be linked to one of the country’s most prolific serial killers. But was he actually involved, or was it another local? This is the story of Evelyn Hartley.

BONUS EPISODES

Apple Subscriptions: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-west-true-crime/id1448151398

Patreon: patreon.com/goingwestpodcast

CASE SOURCES

1. Charley Project: https://charleyproject.org/case/evelyn-grace-hartley

2. Thomas' Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/196827399/thomas-gordon-hartley

3. Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/8tpc5t/breaking_down_what_mightve_happened_to_evelyn/

4. What Happened to Evelyn Hartley? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_esp5uXuK7o

5. Evelyn's Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/153817195/evelyn-grace-hartley

6. Stories of the Unsolved: https://storiesoftheunsolved.com/2021/03/09/the-disappearance-of-evelyn-hartley/

7. Medium: https://medium.com/@bayar93/breaking-down-what-mightve-happened-to-evelyn-hartley-and-where-her-remains-could-ve-been-83535a1f01f5

8. The Winona Daily News: https://www.newspapers.com/image/518102834/?terms=janice%20rasmusen&match=1

9. Tapa Talk: https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/porchlightusa/1953-hartley-evelyn-october-24-1953-t13990-s10.html

10. The La Crosse Tribune: https://www.newspapers.com/image/513685608/?clipping_id=128601574&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjUxMzY4NTYwOCwiaWF0IjoxNjk1MDA3NzE3LCJleHAiOjE2OTUwOTQxMTd9.7K4xJ2vPaB5ikYVP0XkR60URDMGHpxPuyrkUIR-wtEc

11. The Lineup: https://the-line-up.com/evelyn-hartley

12. You might be from La Crosse if... Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/fromlax/posts/1433741616775789/

13. La Crosse Public Library Archives: https://archives.lacrosselibrary.org/local-history/history-repeats/evelyn-hartley/

14. Clyde Peterson's obituary: https://lacrossetribune.newspapers.com/article/61131341/tywee-peterson-obituary-9-23-1974/

15. Websleuths: https://www.websleuths.com/forums/threads/wi-evelyn-hartley-15-la-crosse-24-oct-1953.9532/page-46

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.