Little Part 2: “She Rode Alone”

Last week, I told you the story of the Cowden Family and how Richard, Belinda, David, and Melissa seemed to have vanished while camping near Carberry Creek Road over the Labor Day weekend of 1974. Over 7 months later, their skeletal remains were discovered- Belinda and the children in a cave- Richard, tied to a tree. With very little to go on, police began looking into local men who would have, not only known the area well but could have been capable of such a monstrous act. It was when they read Dwain Lee Little’s name on the list of recently paroled prisoners the hair on their neck stood up and they felt they might have found the first person of interest. Today, I’ll be telling you about the crimes Dwain committed that landed him in prison, how he came to be released so early, and the harm he was able to commit as a free man. Was he the killer of the Cowden family? Only Dwain and the Cowdens know.

For photos and sources for today’s episode, check out the Murder in the Rain Episode Blog. 

Episode Host: Alisha Holland

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A turn of luck had led the Cowden family to the Carberry Creek area for a last-minute camping trip. The young family of four were delighted to have the time to indulge in the stunning nature Jackson County offered them. They didn’t have big plans; they were just excited to have time with their two young children to fish and to swim. The cherry on top was the plan of wrapping up the weekend with a dinner at Mrs. Cowden’s mother’s home. For unknown reasons, the family never showed up for that meal. Now, 50 years later, their case remains mostly unsolved, although an early parolee has always held the most suspicion as being the person responsible for what happened to the young family. Today, I’ll be telling you the story of The Cowden family: Richard, Belinda, David and Melissa, and how Dwain Lee Little may be their killer.

For photos and sources for today’s episode, check out the Murder in the Rain Episode Blog. 

Episode Host: Alisha Holland

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For millennia, we've heard of Pandora's box and the dangers held within. For Fern Bowden, a warning to stay away wasn't enough to keep her from opening the strange container her husband kept in the basement. With the lift of a lid and the blink of an eye, lives would literally and figuratively be blown apart. Today I'll be talking about Portland's Pandora's Box murder- and how a man's paranoia drove him to build an infernal machine.  

For photos and sources for today’s episode, check out the Murder in the Rain Episode Blog. 

Episode Host: Josh McCullough

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In this week's episode of Murder in the Rain, we have a special feature from our Patreon series, "Welcome to…," where we delve into a case from the hometown of one of our Patreon listeners.

Love, a powerful emotion capable of inspiring boundless devotion, took a deadly turn in the summer of 2003. Sandee Rozzo, a bartender from Pinellas Park, FL, fell victim to the dark side of love when she was brutally murdered in her home. Join us as we dive into Sandee’s story and how love, obsession, devotion, and control ultimately took her life.

For photos and sources for today’s episode, check out the Murder in the Rain Episode Blog. 

Episode Host: Emily Rowney

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In our early episode “Wicked Part of Me” we touched on a few cases straight off of Washington’s, now former, Death Row. In today’s case, we’ll dive deep into one of those cases, the story of Cal Brown; a picture-perfect example of how parole can go very wrong and innocent people can end up dead.

For photos and sources for today’s episode, check out the Murder in the Rain Episode Blog. 

Episode Host: Alisha Holland

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Investigators worked outward from the location of the missing woman’s abandoned car, scouring a trail of digital footage. Her last known sighting was captured on a neighbor's home surveillance video. It shows Kassanndra driving off early on the morning she dropped out of contact. She was newly pregnant and scheduled that day for her first ultrasound appointment, which she missed. It was so out of character, her mother contacted the police and a search began. In a stroke of good fortune, a mass transit train line ran along the street where the car was found, and its dashcam captured a brief glimpse of a person walking from the vehicle. They wore black clothing, a brimmed hat, and blue latex gloves.

For photos and sources for today’s episode, check out the Murder in the Rain Episode Blog. 

Episode Host: Josh McCullough

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In 1978 Oregon saw an uptick of crimes against children and panic swelled to an all-time high when two girls went missing within weeks of each other. Our first case today revolves around the disappearance of 12-year-old Ann Marie Ellinwood who went missing during a March of Dimes Walk-a-thon in Corvallis. The second involves 11-year-old Stephanie Ann Newsom, who vanished while delivering newspaper advertisements near her home in Salem. Both girls were last seen walking on local paths and, in both cases, witnesses claimed to have seen them with a similar man.

For photos and sources for today’s episode, check out the Murder in the Rain Episode Blog. 

Episode Host: Emily Rowney

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A few months ago, Emily shared the stories of Tiffany and Danielle, survivors of the Jogger Rapist, Richard Gilmore, who has since been released to a halfway home in downtown Portland. We, along with so many of you listeners were rightfully outraged. We’ve yet to hear from newly crowned Gov. Tina Kotek whether she plans to change his low-level status. Sadly, a case like his, where the judicial system signs a piece of paper that releases someone that could put the public at risk happens daily. And in the case of Russell Obremski, it happened twice. In today’s episode, I’ll be sharing the case of Russell Obremski, LaVerna Lowe, Betty Ritchie, and the systemic failures that added to Russel’s list of victims.

For photos and sources for today’s episode, check out the Murder in the Rain Episode Blog.

Episode Host: Alisha Holland

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CW - Animal Abuse

He arrived in Corvallis, Oregon during the Autumn of 1902. His name was Franz Edmund Creffield. Slight and blonde-haired, he spoke with a noticeable German-slash-Swedish-ish accent, was born outside of Dusseldorf near a city named Crefeld (now Krefeld), he'd briefly studied to become a priest, and emigrated to the U.S. in the late 1890s. He had a great big bushy beard, so as to look more authentically prophetic, I suppose. He was described as hypnotic. That is just about all that is known of Franz, who came to believe he was Jesus Christ reborn.

Episode Host: Josh McCullough

For photos and sources for today’s episode, check out the Murder in the Rain Episode Blog. . 

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We want to thank everyone who came out to our live show in Portland, Oregon on June 24th! We admit it, we're a little bit tired after all of the live show excitement, so we wanted to change things up and share a Patreon exclusive episode with you today.

Almost exactly 26 years ago, a show premiered on Fox that asked viewers to test the limits of their imaginations. Originally hosted by James Brolin on May 25, 1997, the reigns were then passed to Jonathan Frakes for the next three seasons. With his dramatic delivery of cheesy lines and the most Canadian-looking production, the cult classic Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction found its way into our hearts and most frighteningly, our minds.

We hope you enjoy a sneak peek at our new Patreon exclusive series called Deduce! If you like the Deduce series, join us on Patreon for $5 per month or more to get episode 2 on Thursday.

Episode Host: Alisha Holland

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