A predator rarely “shows up” as a stranger in the dark. Sometimes he shows up as a trusted helper with a badge, a friendly smile, and the perfect reason to be near your child. In the final episode of Season 7, we talk with Conference on Crimes Against Women presenter Chris McGhee, the father of a survivor and a relentless advocate for criminal justice reform, to unpack how sexual assault grooming actually works and why it can fool entire families.

Chris breaks down grooming as a deliberate playbook: selecting vulnerability, building trust, crossing boundaries in small steps, then using shame and fear to keep a victim quiet. He shares how his daughter Grace was targeted by a school resource officer who first positioned himself as a mentor, then weaponized his authority, his community reputation, and Grace’s relationships to trap her. We connect these real-world details to the grooming model described by Dr. Georgia Winters and Dr. Elizabeth Jeglic so listeners can recognize the patterns, not just the headlines.

We also talk about the aftermath: PTSD, triggers, and the unique pain of watching a case end in a plea deal that doesn’t feel like justice. Chris explains how disappearing-message platforms like Snapchat can complicate investigations, and how survivors can experience secondary victimization while navigating reports, interviews, and court decisions. Finally, we focus on prevention and change: open parent-teen communication, removing blame from children who were manipulated, and pushing for anti-grooming laws and accountability when mandated reporters abuse power.

If you care about child safety, sexual assault prevention, and real criminal justice reform, listen through and share this with someone who needs the language to spot grooming sooner.

“What were you wearing?” sounds like a question, but it often functions like a verdict. From the the 2026 Conference on Crimes Against Women in Dallas, we sit down with Dr. Mary Simmerling and Dr. Denise Huskins Quinn to unpack the What Were You Wearing exhibit, a traveling art installation that recreates the everyday outfits survivors wore during sexual assault and pairs them with stories, audio, and case artifacts. The result is confronting and deeply human, designed to put the work of bearing witness back on the community and to dismantle victim blaming in real time.

Mary traces the exhibit back to a poem she wrote after her own assault at 18 and explains why art can reach places training manuals cannot. Denise shares the harrowing facts of her 2015 kidnapping and rape, and the second trauma that followed when police and media pushed a false narrative that the crime was fabricated. We talk about confirmation bias, interrogation tactics like the Reid technique, and the impossible “credibility tests” survivors get trapped in, from being judged as too emotional to not emotional enough.

We also dig into what it means to make a problem “visible” when shame and silence keep so many stories hidden, and how the team thoughtfully includes well-known cases, including their work with the family of Gabby Petito. Finally, we preview a new companion installation built around another loaded question: “Why didn’t she just leave?” and the life-or-death realities of domestic violence, resources, and lethality risk during separation.

Someone tells you they love you, mirrors your values, and makes you feel seen in a way you haven’t felt in years. Then they vanish, come back with an excuse, and your body floods with relief. That cycle is not romance. It’s a strategy, and it’s driving a surge in romance fraud, catfishing, and online dating scams that leave victims with financial loss and trauma that looks a lot like PTSD.

In this episode we sit down with Anna Rowe, founder of catchthecatfish.com and part of lovesaid.org, to map the real mechanics behind these crimes against women: mirroring, love bombing, isolation, and trauma bonding. Anna shares how a perpetrator can maintain overlapping relationships, how shame keeps people silent, and why the most damaging moment is often what happens after the fraud is exposed when victims meet disbelief from friends, banks, or even police.

We also get practical about what’s changing right now: deepfakes, face swap video, and voice cloning that can make a scammer look and sound “verified” on calls and voice notes. We unpack celebrity romance fraud, the “pig butchering” romance-plus-crypto investment scam, and the first responder toolkit Anna built to help law enforcement respond without blaming the victim and to safeguard people from repeat targeting, spyware, and data resale.

If you’ve ever dated online, have a loved one who has, or work in victim services, this conversation will change how you spot coercive control in a digital relationship. 

The law says “equal protection,” but Wendy Murphy argues the U.S. legal system still keeps women on the outside of that promise and the proof is in how gender-based violence gets handled. From rape statutes that require force to charging practices that slow-walk sexual assault complaints, we trace how constitutional doctrine, policing discretion, and courtroom culture combine to under-protect women and girls and to re-victimize survivors who try to seek justice. 

Wendy, an attorney and former child abuse and sex crimes prosecutor, breaks down the difference between equity and equality in plain language: equality is the constitutional floor that controls how government must treat people, while equity is impossible to achieve on top of a broken baseline. She explains how the legacy of coverture and the Supreme Court’s approach after Reed v. Reed produced what she calls “unequal equal rights,” leaving room for laws to be enforced differently and worse when the victim is female. We also dig into stark examples: rape laws that treat bodily autonomy as less protected than property, hate crime statutes that often exclude sex, and evidence rules and courtroom orders that burden victims in ways other crime victims never face. 

From there we shift to what can actually change. Wendy walks us through the Equal Rights Amendment’s long fight, why litigation still matters, and why education is a missing catalyst for constitutional reform. We also talk about Title IX enforcement in schools and why treating sex-based civil rights as second-class shapes girls’ expectations of safety for life. If you care about criminal justice reform, victims’ rights, constitutional law, or ending violence against women, this conversation gives you a clearer map of the problem and a strategy for action. 

Check out Wendy's related article, "Unequal Protection of the Laws for Women is Constitutional
Terrorism, So How Come Nobody Knows About It?": https://digitalcommons.onu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1357&context=onu_law_review

Forty percent of homicides tied to intimate partner violence is not a “domestic issue.” It’s a community-wide prevention problem. I’m joined by Detective Brandon Wooten to explain how domestic violence high-risk teams (DVHRTs) are changing what happens before the worst day, using evidence-based lethality assessment and a coordinated response that actually moves cases forward. 

We dig into the DVHRT model step by step: how teams identify high-risk domestic violence cases early, connect survivors to supportive services, and increase offender monitoring and accountability. Brandon breaks down who belongs at the table and why community-based advocacy is the most critical role. We also clarify the difference between a broad coordinated community response and a high-risk team that builds concrete action plans, from stronger investigations to bond arguments that reflect validated lethality risk factors like firearm access, strangulation, stalking, and recent separation. 

You’ll hear why success is often rooted in relationships more than any tool, how teams measure impact through trends and reduced repeat offenses, and why this work doesn’t have to be cost prohibitive. We also talk about culturally responsive partnerships, including ways to better support Latinx survivors and reduce barriers that keep people from seeking help. If you work in law enforcement, prosecution, advocacy, pretrial services, probation, or courts and you want practical domestic violence homicide prevention strategies, this conversation lays out a clear place to start. 

This week we talk with Jessica Smith Wilcott, sister of Officer Jillian Smith of the Arlington Police Department about how one fateful domestic violence disturbance call changed two families forever. In this episode, Jessica shares the story of what happened to Jillian that December night in 2010, who Jillian was beyond the badge, and how remembrance turned into action can transform law enforcement responses to domestic violence.

Our conversation moves from stark national statistics to the on-the-ground reality of officer safety and victim safety. Jessica details the shifts since Jillian’s death: two-officer responses to domestic calls, pairing women and men on scene, and departments across Dallas–Fort Worth weaving Jillian’s story into training and recruitment. We examine what still needs work—more officers on high-risk calls, trauma-informed de-escalation, reliable advocacy referrals, and dedicated pathways at police departments where victims can seek help without fear. Along the way, we talk about representation in law enforcement, why diverse recruiting builds trust, and how belief and patience can open the door to lifesaving disclosures.

Jessica also offers a deeply personal look at living with loss: the hard holidays, the role of faith and church community, and the small daily practices—photos, stories, saying her name—that keep Jillian present for the family. She reflects on the offender’s actions and the complex relief of being spared a grueling trial, and she describes an enduring connection with the girl Jillian saved that proves legacy can be a living promise. If you care about domestic violence prevention, officer safety, advocacy partnerships, and the human heart behind policy change, this conversation will stay with you.

What if the moment you finally said “enough” became the spark that built your legacy? We sit down with DeShandra (Monet) Cullins—a survivor, mother of five, entrepreneur, and author of You Good, Sis?—who turned lifelong trauma into a blueprint for healing, purpose, and generational change. From escaping intimate partner violence to walking into a shelter with her daughters, she shares the precise steps that moved her from survival mode to building a beauty brand that began in a women's shelter and grew into a platform for women's empowerment.

DeShandra opens up about complex PTSD and why it’s often misread as “just depression.” She breaks down how chronic trauma reshapes a nervous system, how EMDR helped her separate triggers from identity, and how simple daily structure—miracle mornings, hydration, journaling—became anchors that outlast motivation. We also spotlight the insidious tactics of financial abuse and the practical pivots that counter them: turning tax refunds into startup capital, learning credit repair and business credit, and using honest landlord letters to rebuild housing stability.

At the heart of the episode is ROOTS, her five-part framework—Reveal, Own, Open, Turn, Sustain—that integrates inner work with business strategy. You’ll hear how bold lipstick shades named for power and courage helped her reclaim her voice, why “Monet” was armor and “DeShandra” is integration, and how the You Good, Sis? book and journal teach check-ins that prevent burnout before it breaks us. If you care about survivor advocacy, faith-informed healing, entrepreneurship, or building legacy from hard beginnings, this story will change how you think about resilience.

Learn more about DeShandra and her work at www.deshandracullins.com or www.discoveringdeshandrasolutions.com and on Instagram at @discovering.deshandra

What happens when the place teens go to connect becomes a channel for control? We dig into the real dynamics of tech-facilitated dating violence—how it starts, how it spreads across platforms, and how teens, parents, and advocates can disrupt it without demonizing the tools young people love.

Joined by Audace Garnett, director of SafetyNet at the National Network to End Domestic Violence, we unpack the core idea that technology isn’t the problem—abuse is. Audace brings two decades of survivor-centered expertise to explain how common features like DMs, location sharing, and shared passwords turn into leverage for power and control. We explore the rise of AI-generated intimate images, the emerging “Take It Down” efforts to remove harmful content, and why evidence preservation matters before blocking. You’ll hear the warning signs of grooming, the subtle shift from “care” to surveillance, and how social media culture often normalizes stalking and boundary violations as jokes or romance.

We also shine a light on the disproportionate impact on Black teen girls and the broader social and historical forces that drive those disparities. Rather than prescribing one-size-fits-all rules, we share realistic, teen-driven safety planning: privacy checkups, strong passwords and two-factor authentication, location limits, code words, trusted adult networks, and the simple “two-beat pause” before posting or replying. For parents, teachers, and coaches, we offer ways to turn doomscrolling into dialogue—using the very videos teens watch to spot red flags and rebuild media literacy and trust.

If you care about a teen in your life—or you’re a teen navigating digital relationships—this conversation brings clarity, language, and next steps you can use today. Subscribe, share this episode with someone who needs it, and leave a review to help more families find practical tools for safer, healthier online relationships.

Crises don’t just knock out power—they unravel the safeguards that keep predators at bay. We dig into how traffickers exploit natural disasters, pandemics, and even major events by stepping into system failures with promises of food, shelter, and work that morph into coercion and control. From labor trafficking in post-hurricane rebuilds to targeted online recruitment of displaced single mothers, we connect the dots between vulnerability, policy loopholes, and criminal opportunity.

Our guest, Benjamin Greer, a trafficking subject-matter expert who trains law enforcement and advises a state threat assessment center, breaks down real-world case studies and the modalities behind them: forced labor disguised as reconstruction, illicit adoption pipelines after the Haiti earthquake, and the way suspended wage protections can trigger a “gold rush” of poorly monitored contracts. We talk frankly about data gaps around big sporting events, why preparedness still matters, and how to turn these high-attention moments into training, service mapping, and smarter plans.

We also shift to a public health lens. Pandemic closures revealed new disruption tools—like utility shutoffs and health code enforcement—that pushed illicit businesses out of the shadows. Then we widen the circle: code enforcement, utility workers, delivery drivers, rideshare drivers, shelter intake teams, and building inspectors can all be first identifiers with the right signals and anonymous reporting paths. In court, we unpack why expert witnesses on trauma and coercive control help juries make sense of texts, timelines, and victim behavior that seem contradictory but align with science.

Finally, we go after the motive: money. Stronger fines, meaningful restitution, and modern asset forfeiture that targets the instrumentalities of coercion—homes, vehicles, farms, business premises—can make exploitation a losing proposition. Pair that with multidisciplinary task forces, shared intel platforms, and survivor-centered services, and communities can close the space traffickers rely on. 

What if “I do” isn’t a choice? We sit down with Hellitz Villegas, Project Manager of the Forced Marriage Initiative at the Tahirih Justice Center, to expose how forced marriage operates in the U.S.—and why consent must include the partner, the timing, and the freedom to say no without fear. We move beyond stereotypes to examine the hidden machinery of coercion: family pressure, spiritual manipulation, financial dependence, and the weaponization of immigration status that keeps survivors silent.

Hellitz shares how Tahirih’s integrated model—legal services, social services, and policy advocacy—supports immigrant survivors of gender-based violence while the Forced Marriage Initiative serves people facing forced or child marriage across statuses. We clarify the difference between arranged and forced marriage, trace the links to domestic and sexual violence, and highlight the unique vulnerability window before a ceremony when a survivor senses what’s coming. The conversation covers high-control religious groups, family-based trafficking, and cases where marriage is used to “correct” a survivor’s identity or life choices.

We also dive into child marriage in America: why loopholes still allow minors—mostly girls—to wed adult men, the lifelong consequences of early marriage, and the policy momentum to end it. From local bans to the federal Child Marriage Prevention Act, we explore how closing immigration loopholes and setting a bright-line age of 18 with no exceptions can change lives. Along the way, we name the real barriers to help—fear of deportation, mistrust of systems, and cultural stigma—and share practical pathways to safety, rights, and support.

If you care about consent, community safety, and human dignity, this is a vital listen. Subscribe to the show, share this episode with a friend, and leave a review with the one policy change you think should happen first. Your voice helps push this movement forward.