Hot Justice Podcast

Before Dryden, New York became known as the "Village of the Damned," it was a quiet, close-knit community where neighbors trusted one another and families felt safe. But in December 1989, everything changed.

In this episode of the Hot Justice Podcast, Heather and Ciara take you back to the beginning of Dryden's devastating decade of tragedy.

First, the Harris family murders.

Just days before Christmas in 1989, Warren "Tony" Harris, his wife Dolores "Dodie" Harris, and their children, 15-year-old Shelby and 11-year-old Mark, were brutally murdered inside their Ellis Hollow home.

What followed was a disturbing investigation involving stolen credit cards, Michael Anthony Kinge, his mother Shirley Kinge, and a shocking revelation about fabricated fingerprint evidence that would expose corruption within the New York State Police.

Then, the heartbreaking case of Aliza May Bush.

In February 1990, 23-month-old Aliza May Bush was reported missing by her mother, Christine Lane. As the community rallied to search for the little girl, investigators began uncovering troubling inconsistencies in her mother's account.

The truth behind Aliza's disappearance would devastate a town already struggling with unimaginable loss.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE:

Although this is the second episode in our Dryden murders series, it was originally recorded as Part 1. We've decided to release it as a prequel to our previously published episode, taking you back to where Dryden's decade of darkness began.

You can listen the episodes in either order, but this installment covers the earliest events chronologically.

Beyond the crimes, we also explore the community of Dryden itself, including its remarkable history of residents coming together to protect their town.

These stories aren't just about the violence that made headlines. They're about the victims, the families left behind, and a community forever changed.

Subscribe to Hot Justice Podcast for more true crime, legal discussions, victim advocacy, and the stories that deserve to be heard.

New episodes every Monday.

#DrydenMurders #HarrisFamilyMurders #AlizaMayBush #ShirleyKinge #HotJusticePodcast #TrueCrime #TrueCrimePodcast #VillageOfTheDamned #NewYorkTrueCrime #VictimAdvocacy

On October 5, 2026, former American Idol contestant Caleb Flynn was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the murder of his wife, Ashley Flynn. Prosecutors said he killed Ashley at their Tipp City, Ohio, home in February and staged the scene to make it look like an intruder was responsible. A Miami County jury convicted him of aggravated murder and other charges.

In under three minutes, we break down the case, the verdict, and the sentencing, including the powerful victim impact statements from Ashley's family.

Ashley deserved so much more than to become a headline. We're honoring her by telling her story accurately and keeping her at the center of it.

New to Hot Justice? We're a true crime and victim advocacy podcast bringing you the cases that matter, with opinions included. Subscribe and follow along for new Minute Files and full episodes.

#AshleyFlynn #CalebFlynn #TrueCrime #VictimAdvocacy #HotJusticePodcast

For years, Dryden, New York was known as the kind of small town where everyone knew everyone—a close-knit community built around families, schools, sports, and familiar faces.

But between 1989 and 1996, a series of devastating tragedies would forever change the town. In Part One of A Decade of Darkness: Dryden, New York, we focus on the cases connected to Dryden High School and the families whose lives were changed forever. Drydenp1

We begin with beloved Dryden teacher and varsity football coach Stephen Starr, whose daughter Amber was being relentlessly stalked by her former boyfriend, J.P. Merchant. After months of escalating threats, Merchant entered the Starr family home on December 30, 1994. Stephen confronted him in an effort to protect his daughter and was killed—an act the Starr family would later describe as the ultimate sacrifice for his family. Drydenp1 Drydenp1

Nearly two years later, tragedy struck Dryden High School again when 16-year-old best friends and varsity cheerleaders Sarah Hajney and Jennifer Bolduc disappeared. Their absence from school and a Friday-night football game immediately alarmed their friends, and investigators soon discovered evidence of a violent struggle inside Sarah’s home. Drydenp1 Drydenp1

The investigation eventually led police to Sarah’s next-door neighbor, John Andrews, and to a remote hunting cabin in Otselic, New York. The discovery there confirmed the community’s worst fears and became one of the darkest chapters in Dryden’s history. Drydenp1 Drydenp1

This episode remembers Stephen Starr, Sarah Hajney, Jennifer Bolduc, and the families and friends whose lives were forever affected by these events. As the episode makes clear, Dryden was not a “cursed” town—it was a community where terrible things happened to good people.

Part 2 of A Decade of Darkness: Dryden, New York arrives October 19.

⚠️ Content Warning: This episode discusses stalking, domestic violence, murder, sexual violence, and suicide.

If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis or suicidal thoughts, call or text 988 in the United States to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

Research for this episode also draws from “The Cheerleaders” by E. Jean Carroll, which includes interviews with several people directly affected by these cases. Drydenp1

⏰TimeStamps:
00:00:00 A Decade of Darkness 
00:01:47 Welcome, Updates, and Recommendations 
00:05:21 Meet the Starr Family 
00:13:16 Amber Starr Meets JP Merchant 
00:17:44 The Attack on the Starr Home 
00:22:05 Lawsuit and Legal Aftermath 
00:23:52 Tiffany Starr Speaks Out 
00:29:35 Sarah and Jennifer Disappear 
00:33:28 Police Begin Their Investigation 
00:38:37 A Crucial Tip Breaks Case 
00:41:09 What Happened to the Girls 
00:43:22 Remembering Dryden’s Victims 
00:47:24 Part Two Preview and Outro

🔥 Like, subscribe, and share the episode if you enjoy Hot Justice.

#HotJusticePodcast #DrydenNY #TrueCrime #StephenStarr #SarahHajney #JenniferBolduc #DrydenMurders #NewYorkTrueCrime #TrueCrimePodcast #ColdCase

On June 23, 2021, 24-year-old hydrogeologist Daniel Robinson left a job site in the Arizona desert and seemingly vanished. Nearly a month later, his Jeep Renegade was discovered at the bottom of a remote ravine with his phone, wallet, keys, clothing, and other belongings still inside — but there was no sign of Daniel. This is the case of Daniel Robi… This is the case of Daniel Robi…

Daniel is 5'8", with black hair and dark brown eyes, and was born without his right hand and part of his right forearm. If you have any information about his disappearance, contact the Buckeye Police Department at 623-349-6411. This is the case of Daniel Robi…

What happened to Daniel Robinson?

#DanielRobinson #MissingPerson #TrueCrime #MissingPersons #Arizona #HotJusticePodcast

Edward Rulloff wanted the world to remember him as a genius. Instead, he became one of Upstate New York’s strangest and most notorious criminals.

Known as “The Genius Killer,” Rulloff was a teacher, self-proclaimed scholar, thief, escape artist and murderer whose story stretched from Ithaca and Cayuga Lake to Auburn, Binghamton and Sing Sing. His wife Harriet and infant daughter Priscilla vanished in 1845, beginning a decades-long legal saga filled with murder accusations, overturned convictions, escapes and a case that helped establish what became known as the “Rulloff Rule.”  

But Rulloff’s story didn’t end when he was executed in 1871.

After his death, scientists examined his unusually large brain, adding another bizarre chapter to the legend. More than 150 years later, Edward Rulloff’s preserved brain can still be seen at Cornell University, just miles from the waters of Cayuga Lake where Harriet and Priscilla may have disappeared forever.  

Was Rulloff really the brilliant criminal mastermind he believed himself to be—or simply a violent man who became very good at escaping consequences?

Join Heather and Ciara as Hot Justice dives into the disturbing, fascinating story of Edward Rulloff: The Genius Killer.

#EdwardRulloff #TheGeniusKiller #TrueCrime #HotJusticePodcast #IthacaNY #CornellUniversity #CayugaLake #NewYorkTrueCrime #TrueCrimePodcast #SerialKiller

For more than 12 years, the murder of Aliza Sherman remained unsolved.

On March 24, 2013, the 53-year-old nurse and mother of three went to downtown Cleveland for a scheduled meeting with her divorce attorney, Gregory Moore. Instead, surveillance footage captured a hooded figure chasing Aliza down the street before she was stabbed 10 times. She managed to call 911, but later died from her injuries.

Then, in 2025, the case took a stunning turn.

Moore was arrested and charged with aggravated murder, conspiracy, multiple counts of murder, and kidnapping. Prosecutors allege he had been plotting for months to prevent Aliza’s contentious divorce trial from moving forward—and intended to make her unavailable by causing serious physical harm or death.

Now, more than a decade after Aliza’s death, Moore’s murder trial is scheduled to begin September 14, 2026.

We’ll be following the trial and providing updates as they happen.

Justice for Aliza. ❤️

#AlizaSherman #GregoryMoore #TrueCrime #TrueCrimeNews #ColdCase #JusticeForAliza #Cleveland #HotJusticePodcast #MinuteFiles #CrimeTok

This week's episode is NOT like the others! 🚨 We're switching it up and bringing on Heather’s childhood best friend, Sarah, for a totally unhinged, no-true-crime edition of Hot Justice.

We're talking Florida Man true or false, the most absurd state laws you didn't know existed, and some "what would you do?" scenarios that got way too real, way too fast.

Still justice-adjacent. Still chaotic. Just funnier, and slightly less murder this week. 😂 

#HotJusticePodcast #SpecialEpisode #FloridaMan #TrueCrimePodcast #Whatwouldyoudo 

Betsy Faria was undergoing chemotherapy when she was found brutally stabbed dozens of times inside her Missouri home in 2011.

Police quickly focused on her husband, Russ Faria, despite an alibi supported by multiple witnesses. He was convicted of her murder and spent years behind bars before eventually being acquitted.

But another person had been there that night: Betsy’s friend, Pamela Hupp — who had recently been made the beneficiary of Betsy’s $150,000 life insurance policy.

Then, in 2016, another man was dead.

Pam Hupp killed Louis Gumpenberger in what investigators said was a staged home invasion designed to divert suspicion surrounding Betsy’s murder. Hupp is now serving life without parole for Gumpenberger’s death.

In 2021, prosecutors finally charged Hupp with Betsy Faria’s murder. She has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting a bench trial scheduled for January 2028.

How did an innocent husband end up in prison while investigators overlooked the person prosecutors now accuse of committing the crime?

🔥 This is the Pam Hupp case — on The Minute Files.

Had you heard of this case before?

#PamHupp #BetsyFaria #RussFaria #TrueCrime #TrueCrimeCommunity #CrimeTok #MurderCase #WrongfulConviction #TheMinuteFiles #HotJusticePodcast #TrueCrimeShorts

How many “accidents” can happen to one family before they stop looking like accidents?

In 1991, Christina Karlsen died in a fire at her family’s California home. Her husband, Karl Karlsen, collected a $200,000 life insurance payout. Years later, tragedy struck again when Karl’s 23-year-old son, Levi Karlsen, was crushed beneath a pickup truck in New York. His death was initially considered an accident as well — and Karl ultimately collected roughly $700,000 from Levi’s life insurance.

But investigators would eventually uncover a much darker story.

Karl pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in Levi’s death, and the investigation reopened questions surrounding Christina’s 1991 death. In 2020, a California jury convicted him of murdering Christina by arson for financial gain.

And there was another chilling detail: Karl’s second wife discovered that a $1.2 million life insurance policy had been taken out on her — and she ultimately helped investigators expose the truth.

In this episode of Hot Justice, Ciara and Heather break down the deaths of Christina and Levi Karlsen, the insurance policies, the suspicious fires, the investigation that finally unraveled Karl Karlsen’s story, and the question hanging over it all:

Was tragedy following Karl Karlsen… or was Karl Karlsen creating it?

🔥 The Devil in the Dollars: The Karl Karlsen Case

#KarlKarlsen #ChristinaKarlsen #LeviKarlsen #TheDevilInTheDollars #TrueCrime #TrueCrimePodcast #HotJustice #HotJusticePodcast #MurderCase #TrueCrimeCommunity #CrimeStory #MurderForMoney #LifeInsuranceMurder #Dateline #TrueCrimeYouTube

The Idaho 4 case continues to spark strong opinions — and we’ve got a **Hot Justice Hot Take**. 🔥⚖️

Ciara weighs in on the case, Bryan Kohberger, the aftermath of the proceedings, and the questions that still have people talking.

If you were one of the roommates, how would you act differently?

Do you agree with the takes, or are you completely on the other side? 👀

Drop your opinion in the comments.

🔥 **Hot Justice Hot Takes** — where true crime meets unfiltered opinion.

#Idaho4 #IdahoMurders #BryanKohberger #MoscowMurders #TrueCrime #TrueCrimeCommunity #HotJustice #HotJusticePodcast #HotJusticeHotTakes