Sword and Scale

Episode 128

9-year old Omaree Varela’s lifeless, bruised, and tattered body was recovered at the base of toy bouncy horse just two days after Christmas in 2013.  His mother and stepfather claimed his death was the result of a freak accident while playing with his younger sibling.  However, the marks on Omaree’s body and a horrifying 22 minute 911 call just six months earlier paint a much more sinister picture of what really happened.

Episode 126

On Tuesday September 13th, 2016 a 911 call police responded to 363 Covert Court Ashland, Ohio, an abandoned house near a laundromat.  Minutes earlier, a frantic 911 call had been placed, from this location, by a woman who claimed she was being held captive and forced to perform sex acts with her captor.  The story that would emerge from this strange series of events would lead to the eventual conviction of a serial killer by the name of Shawn M. Grate.

Secret Project Preview

Behind the scenes preview of the new podcast by the creators of Sword and Scale, Dark Topic, and The Westside Fairytales.

Episode 124

In 1997, Shannon McCrossan moved with her two daughters, 8-year-old Kirsten Hatfield and 3-year-old Faith to a home on Jet Drive in Midwest City, OK. At the time, life seemed to be okay. The neighbors were friendly and there were children for the girls to play with. On May 13th, 1997, Shannon awoke to any mother’s worst nightmare. Kirsten was missing from her bedroom. Searches were made for the 8-year-old girl, but she was never found. The trail ran cold, until 2015 when the case was reopened and re-examined, leading investigators to a suspect in the unlikeliest of places…

Introducing American Scandal

Introducing Dr. Death

We’re at our most vulnerable when we go to our doctors. We trust the person at the other end of that scalpel. We trust the hospital. We trust the system. Christopher Duntsch was a neurosurgeon who radiated confidence. He claimed he was the best in Dallas. If you had back pain, and had tried everything else, Dr. Duntsch could give you the spine surgery that would take your pain away. But soon his patients started to experience complications, and the system failed to protect them. Which begs the question: who - or what - is that system meant to protect? From Wondery, the network behind the hit podcast Dirty John, DR. DEATH is a story about a charming surgeon, 33 patients and a spineless system. Reported and hosted by Laura Beil. Subscribe to Dr. Death on Apple Podcasts or visit www.wondery.fm/drdeath

Episode 120

Everyone loves the idea of having the perfect family and keeping everyone close together. Go to work, come home, play with the kids, eat dinner together. Unfortunately, that isn’t always how things go. In 2015, the Bever family was the perfect example of this. The family of nine stuck close together within the four walls of their home in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. But, stick a family together long enough, and eventually someone will blow their lid. On the evening of July 22nd, 2015, Robert and Michael Bever carried out a savage attack on their family, leaving most of their family dead, but their plans reached further than the closed doors of their home.

Episode 118

When you have a problem, you hire someone to fix it.  That's what you do.  Sometimes you don't have the benefit of Yelp reviews though...

Episode 117

During the early morning hours of September 22nd, 2010, 13-year-old Alexis Mitchell awoke to the sight of her father looming over her and wearing a Halloween mask. His hands were around her neck, but he let up after she elbowed and bit him. Either having passed out or fallen asleep again thinking it was all a dream, Alexis eventually woke again up to the sound of screaming.

Episode 115

31-year-old Nicole VanderHeyden was substitute teacher and mother of three. She lived with her boyfriend and father of her infant son, Doug Detrie, in Bellevue, Brown County, WI. The Green Bay metro area. Her body was found naked and strangled in a farm field on May 21, 2016. Her skull was fractured and she suffered blunt force trauma to the left side of her head breaking and dislocating her jaw as well as injuries to her esophagus, trachea, and neck consistent with strangulation. Her clothes were found off the side of a highway on-ramp. Doug reports her missing that same morning. Police arrest him a couple days later after Nicole’s blood is found on the pavement and the murder weapon, a “black cord,” outside his home.

Introducing American Innovations

This is just a preview of the newest podcast from Wondery called American Innovations. You can hear the first 3 episodes right now by searching for American Innovations on Apple Podcasts.

Episode 112

Some tales of human depravity are just unimaginable. Are they the actions of a monster, or simply a monstrous act? Sometimes the lines are not quite so clear, and perhaps monsters are not only real, but existing all around us, and hidden in plain site. This is the story of a young boy named Joshua Earl Patrick Phillips, an even younger girl named Maddie Clifton, and a waterbed.

Episode 110

Part 2 of the Natalie Bollinger Murder...

Episode 109

A teenage girl is stalked by a homeless man and suddenly goes missing two weeks later. WARNING: This is part one of a two-part episode. Part two will be available on 3/18 on the regular feed or you can get it now for just $5 on Patreon.com/SwordAndScale. Do yourself a favor and DO NOT Google this story. It will ruin the story for you. Trust us.

Episode 107

The human mind can go to such depths of depravity that, for the average well-adjusted person, it’s hard to even imagine. Kevin Ray Underwood’s mind was so far gone that his sexual fantasies started to include cannibalism. When 10-year-old Jamie Rose Bolin went missing, both of her parents lives were utterly destroyed. Little did they know that Jamie was literally just a few doors away in the same apartment building, and they were likely sitting there the moment she was killed.

Introducing American History Tellers

A point we’ve made here on Sword and Scale, over and over again, is that the stories we think we’ve heard, the people we think we know are never quite what we think they are - nothing is ever as it initially appears. The worst monsters are real, and the worst stories are true... and we can see example after example of that when we go through the pages of American History. How well do you really know the stories that made this country? The backroom wheeling and dealing that led to the creation of our nation, or the laws of prohibition passed in the early 20th century that turned almost every citizen into a law breaker? We live in a time of identity politics, where countless mindless drones head to twitter to retweet someone else’s political stance. Many of us don’t even take the time to understand our own political beliefs or where they come from… Don’t be a drone. American history is the greatest story ever told, and there’s a new show, from Wondery, which will tell you this grand story of our American History. It’s called American History Tellers, and it launches January 3rd.  Go subscribe right now at smarturl.it/AHT They will take you to the events, times, and people that shaped America and the Americans. The show uses immersive sound design with a compelling narrative put you in the shoes of everyday citizens living through the Cold War, or Prohibition, the Space Race, or the Gold Rush. American History Tellers has teamed up with PhD historians to make sure you get the right story. And they show you how our history affected the people of this nation, their families… and affects you even today. Here’s a special preview of American History Tellers. If you like it be sure to subscribe so that you don’t miss a thing. Again that’s American History Tellers. Look for it on iTunes, and everywhere podcasts are available…

Sword and Scale Rewind Episode 105

In this very special end-of-year/end-of-season episode of Sword and Scale Rewind, Lynette and Stefanie break down the latest episode of Austin Harrouff, the Centaur from Florida. Special guests include creator and host of Sword and Scale Mike Boudet, and famed defense attorney from the Scott Peterson case Mark Geragos. Subscribe to Sword and Scale Rewind here:  iTunes - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/sword-and-scale-rewind/id1242416794?mt=2 TuneIn - https://tunein.com/radio/Sword-and-Scale-Rewind-p1014369/ Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/sword-and-scale-rewind Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/episode/5ouKVjXnlEc269IoJhqH63 Podbay - http://podbay.fm/show/1242416794 PlayerFM - https://player.fm/series/series-1089234/introducing-sword-and-scale-rewind

Episode 104

Love is often expressed with gifts such as flowers and chocolates, but those same gifts can be used to manipulate, control and threaten in the hands of a stalker. That is a lesson that Alice Ruggles learned the hard way from her obsessed ex-boyfriend Trimaan Dhillon who couldn't handle her rejection.

Episode 103

Nothing quite says fear like a machete. In this episode we bring you to distinct stories of some of the most barbaric and utterly inexplicable attacks with a blade to poor souls who did nothing to deserve such brutality. The first story comes from Apex, North Carolina, where an 18-year-old girl named Priyanka Kumari is savagely attacked on her way home from school. The second comes from South Florida of course, where 17-year-old Jose Amaya-Guardado is ganged up on and killed by his classmates at a live-in trade school for troubled youth. They then have sex near Jose's corpse because nothing quite says romance like hacking up a kid to pieces.

Sword and Scale PLUS Episode 17 Preview

A volatile wannabe gangster, a rural farm and four missing young men... the events that lead investigators to a 12½-foot-deep makeshift grave in Bucks County, Pennsylvania are so bizarre that they hardly make any sense.

Introducing Dirty John

Today I have a special presentation for you, and a question. We hear horror stories from real-life monsters on our show all the time, which I’m sure leaves you wondering - who can I trust? Who are you closest to? It’s supposed to be your significant other, and who you marry may be the most important decision you ever make. It may also be the least rational. Debra thought she met the love of her life in John. A doctor, a Christian, her perfect match, but her family thought his stories didn’t add up. Soon they became entangled, in an increasingly complex web of deception, forgiveness, love and ultimately survival. Dirty John is the latest podcast from Wondery and the Los Angeles Times. Stay tuned for a sneak peek of the first episode, and go listen and subscribe to Dirty John wherever you listen to podcasts. Subscribe Now: https://smarturl.it/dirtyjohn

Episode 99

Underreported and underdiscussed, male sexual child abuse is a topic that is often brushed under the rug due to social norms and the child's fears of being labelled a homosexual or future perpetrator. Data from various studies indicates that the problem is much more widespread than initially thought, but because such a small percentage of victims ever come forward, the data is skewed. In this episode we delve into this topic and discuss it freely and openly. If you want to tell us your story, please call us at +1-954-889-6854 and leave your story on our voicemail.

Episode 97

Becoming a parent can be one of the most joy-filled experiences in one's life. It has been a long-standing tradition for friends, family and neighbors to all gather to celebrate this special experience with a baby shower. In the last decade or so, a new trend called "gender-reveal parties" has emerged for expectant parents to have another opportunity to celebrate. But when the celebration of a new life is suddenly visited by death, a new bundle of questions emerge.

Episode 95

Escapism is something most of us are guilty of. We retire to our TV shows, video games, podcasts... One would not assume that even the most esoteric escapes could be dangerous, but for two gay men in the mid 80's living in rural Northern Georgia, that would be a dangerous assumption. This is the story of a place called Corpsewood. The handbuilt manor castle in the remote woods was meant to be a solitary retreat for Dr. Charles Scudder and Joseph Odem, but instead it would become their final resting place in which a carnival-like media atmosphere of victim-blaming would descend.

Episode 94

Randy Stair secretly identified as a female for years. She ditched her given name for the pseudonym Andrew Blaze and also ditched the YouTube channel she had worked on for a large part of her life to pursue animation. The cartoons she created were dark, angst-ridden creations derived from an existing Nickelodeon character that she was infatuated with and believed existed in some otherworldly plain which she planned to be welcomed into after murdering three of her coworkers.