Listeners can enjoy a recap of the most popular episodes this past year, an updated look at listener demographics, what was new in the podcast in 2025, and more.

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In 2008, tragedy struck just after the holidays at the popular Hudler Christmas tree farm on the border of North Carolina and Virginia. Also, a North Carolina true crime story from 1929 that inspired a murder ballad.

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In December of 1970, 13-year-old Peg Cuttino went missing in the middle of the afternoon in Sumter County. Police wondered if her father's job as a state senator made her a target for kidnapping and ransom. Peg was found murdered a few weeks later, and while a man was convicted of the crime and sent to prison, many in the area wonder if he was really responsible for Peg's death.

Co-Writer: Mia Roberson

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While Tennessee native Stephanie Tinsley has always been a fan of true crime, she never expected to make the career pivot into podcaster. After her family became part of a national murder trial in South Carolina, she wondered how she could make a difference in the justice system. Her podcast, "Everything They Missed," explores a case from Memphis, where an innocent man may be sitting in prison for a crime he didn't commit.

Check out "Everything They Missed."

If the name Dick Harpootlian sounds familiar to you, it’s probably because he was involved one of the most high-profile murder cases in the past 20 years. He was one of Alex Murdaugh’s defense attorneys in South Carolina, and represented Alex during his trial in 2023. One of the most notorious criminals Harpootlian ever crossed paths with was a man named Pee Wee Gaskins, a South Carolina man who was known to have murdered over a dozen people, and didn't let incarceration temper his homicidal tendencies. The attorney turned author shares his thoughts on what made Pee Wee tick, how his views on the death penalty have changed, and why he decided to write his own true crime book now.

Learn about "Dig Me a Grave" here.

Renee shares stories of people who went missing in North Carolina during the month of November from the show catalogue. Jeffrey Mays, Ted Wall, Bill Hollingsworth, and Joseph Johnson all are presumed to be lost at sea. Young Chang walked away from a nursing home more than 20 years ago. Theresa Fetter disappeared from Wilmington after falling in with the wrong crowd. And Horry County officials have identified a man whose identity was unknown after he drowned in a hotel pool in 2016.

Episodes Mentioned:

Episode 55-Missing in the Water

Episode 58-Missing and Murdered in Wilmington

Ep. 73-Missing Senior Citizens From the Carolinas

Ep. 120-Jeffrey Mays, Ted Wall, Bill Hollingsworth, and the Missing in America Program for Veterans

When a South Carolina couple went missing in the fall of 2016, their friends and family knew something was wrong. Using cell phone data, investigators tracked the pair to an isolated piece of property in Woodruff, and what they found there was shocking. The discovery would also provide answers to an unsolved quadruple homicide from 2003.

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Teens Gary Locklear and Kristina Porco both went unexpectedly missing from two South Carolina towns in the 70s and 80s. Although rumors have swirled with theories, they have never been found. Three-year-old Paul Baker went missing from his home in 1987, and although law enforcement believes there is a family connection, it has never been proven. We also have an update on the identity of New Hope Jane Doe from North Carolina.

This episode originally aired on Sept. 29, 2023.

Research Coordinator: Renee Roberson

Co-Writers: Erin Settlemier and Nicole Pyles

In November of 2006, a quiet residential neighborhood in Raleigh was stunned when 29-year-old Michelle Young was found murdered in her home, while her 2-year-old daughter was emotionally distraught but unharmed physically. Michelle's husband had been traveling for work at the time of her death. When he learned of the crime, he cooperated with investigators only to a certain extent, staying quiet about all other details of their life or the night she was murdered until a civil lawsuit finally prompted a criminal trial three years later.

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South Carolina physician and assistant county coroner Dr. Joe Smith, Jr. probably never expected to be the subject of a murder investigation. But when he was found murdered in his home on October 29, 1979, all signs pointed to his killer being someone who knew him well.

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