True Crime Brewery

Please enjoy this TCB Premium episode from 2022!   

Caroline Byrne was off to a good start in her life. She was a college graduate, she did some modeling, and she taught at a modeling school. Caroline had a large circle of friends and a handsome, athletic boyfriend. But Caroline was not happy. She was depressed.  In fact, she had previously been hospitalized for a drug overdose. Caroline was scheduled to be seen by a psychiatrist, but she wouldn’t keep that appointment.

Join us at the quiet end for Into the Gap. A contributor to Caroline’s depressed state of mind was her boyfriend, Gordon Wood. Caroline’s relationship with Wood was sometimes loving but oftentimes abusive. Caroline was ready to break things off with him when she suffered a fatal fall. But did she fall, or was she pushed to her death by the man who claimed to love her?

Sources:

The Killing of Caroline Byrne: A Journey to Justice by Robert Wainright

Wood v R |2012| New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal 21

Lexington County, South Carolina in the 1980s was a place where doors were left unlocked, neighbors knew one another, and high school graduation marked the beginning of summer and endless possibilities.

For eighteen-year-old Shari Smith, the future was wide open. Talented, outgoing, and days away from celebrating graduation, she was making plans for college, family vacations, and everything that comes with starting a new chapter.

Then she vanished.

Join us for When a Stranger Called. What happened to Shari would shatter a community and launch one of the most chilling criminal investigations in South Carolina history. Mysterious phone calls, a killer who seemed to relish control, and a family forced into an unimaginable nightmare.

But the terror didn’t end with Shari. Just weeks later, a young girl named Debra May Helmick disappeared. As investigators searched for answers, one haunting question emerged: Were these tragedies connected—and could the person responsible strike again?

In this episode, we unravel the story of two young women whose lives were stolen, the fear that gripped an entire state, and the hunt for a predator who hid in plain sight. This is the story of Shari Smith and Debra May Helmick. And this is a case South Carolina has never forgotten.

Sources

On the Case with Paula Zahn, S7, E10: One Month of Terror, HBO Max, 2/24/2013.

Shari Smith Death by Force, Murder or Homicide Case, Crime Solvers Central, 6/11/2026.

State v. Bell, 293 S.C. 391, 360 S.E.2d 706, South Carolina Supreme Court, South Carolina Supreme Court, 8/24/1987.

Suspected Serial Killer Executed Nearly 30 Years Ago Connected to Charlotte Cold Case, WCCB Charlotte, Jeff Monheit, 2/24/2025.

When a Killer Calls by John Douglas & Mark Olshaker

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Near Oregon’s southern coast, something unthinkable happened among family members—a crime so personal and so violent that it was hard for anyone to fully grasp. A mother and her partner were found dead, killed in an act of violence that did not point to a stranger, but to someone within the family. As investigators worked to understand what happened, one name kept coming up… and then he suddenly disappeared.

Join us for Fugitive with a Family in Tow. Gabriel Morris did not stay to answer questions. Instead, he went on the run, taking his wife and young child with him—leaving behind a trail of blood and a mystery that only deepened.

As sightings of Gabriel Morris surfaced and faded across the country, the search for him became a tense, fast-moving chase. In this episode, we explore the violence, the escape, and the moment everything finally caught up with him. Because fugitives run to escape—but they don’t always leave everyone behind.

Sources

Gabriel Morris and Family Apprehended, CBS News, Neil Katz, 2/24/2020, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/gabriel-morris-and-family-apprehended-ex-cop-wanted-for-mothers-murder/

Kill the Ones You Love by Robert Scott

Wife facing new charge in murder case. Idaho State Journal, Debbie Bryce, 3/2/2010.

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Please enjoy this re-release of one of our favorite premium episodes from 2019!

Doc Waterman and his daughter Rachelle returned to their home in tiny Craig, Alaska on a cold night in November, 2004. They had been away for a Girl Scout Council meeting for Doc and a volleyball tournament for Rachelle. When they arrived at their home, Lauri Waterman, wife and mother, was nowhere to be found. Neither was her purple minivan.

The next day, a burned-out car and a charred, unrecognizable body were found several miles away. The car turned out to be Lauri’s minivan. The body was hers.

Police quickly focused on two young men as the perpetrators of this heinous crime. The men confessed, but in a surprise move, they implicated Rachelle in the plot. They said they carried out the abduction and murder at Rachelle’s request. According to them, Rachelle claimed she was abused by her mother and wanted her dead.

Join us at the quiet end today for A Daughter Accused, as we discuss whether Rachelle was a naïve, guileless young woman intimidated by police, or a cold-blooded killer who organized the brutal murder of her own mother.

On this episode of True Crime Brewery, we turn our attention to a case that shook a quiet community and left a trail of questions in its wake. In 2015, three people vanished without explanation, sparking concern, confusion, and a growing sense that something sinister had occurred. As investigators found clues and began piecing together the timeline, attention shifted toward someone who seemed unlikely to be at the center of this crime—Kit Martin, a neighbor, a commercial pilot, and a former military officer whose past stood in stark contrast to the accusations that would follow.

As we step through the details in this case, we will explore how a series of disappearances turned into a complex investigation uncovering hidden tensions, troubling relationships, and a web of secrets.

Join us for The House on Old Mill Road. Today we examine the evidence, the contradictions, and the events that brought this case into the spotlight—raising difficult questions about trust, reputation, and what people are truly capable of behind closed doors.

Sources

Christian Richard Martin v. Commonwealth of Kentucky, Appeal, Supreme Court of Kentucky, 10/26/2023.

I Will Ruin You by Emilio Corsetti III

KY v. Christian Martin: Pilot Triple Murder Trial, Court TV Archives, Retrieved 6/14/2026.

The Evil That Watches, Dateline, 9/24/2021.

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There are some nights that settle into silence… and others that echo long after they’ve passed. On February 2nd, 1986, the city of Sydney, Australia, was winding down on a warm summer evening. Streets emptied, lights dimmed, and the night quieted. But something went terribly wrong that night—something that would leave a mark on a family and countless other lives. Anita Cobby was a nurse and a daughter. Just a kind and pretty woman who was just trying to make her way home that night.

What happened to Anita would become one of Australia’s most haunting criminal cases—a story filled with unanswered questions, chilling revelations, and a darkness that is almost impossible to comprehend.

Join us for Shadows Over Sidney as we step into that night and trace Anita’s last known movements, examining the investigation that followed and confronting the events that shook a nation to its core.

Sources

Anita Cobby Murder: Crime Investigation Australia. S1, E8, Crime & Investigation Network, 9/2006. Retrieved 4/20/2026.

Chilling Recordings of Cobby Murder Confession, The Australian Women’s Weekly, 2/9/2016. Retrieved 4/20/2026.

MURPHY v. THE QUEEN AND MURDOCH v. THE QUEEN AND MURPHY v. THE QUEEN, 5/30/1989.

Someone Else’s Daughter: The Life and Death of Anita Cobby by Julia Sheppard.

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Please enjoy this re-release of a premium episode from 2023!

Tina Faelz was not having a good freshman year in high school. She was not doing well academically and was being bullied by some “Mean Girls.” Her home life was no picnic either. Her parents were divorced when she was a toddler and her mother liked to party a bit too much. But Tina loved her little brother, who she cared for like a second mom. She was so young, and she had so much potential in life.

Join us at the quiet end for The Wrong Way Home. When Tina’s blood-covered body was found in a ditch near the path where she walked home from school, the community of Pleasanton, California, was shocked. The police had several suspects. But with no physical evidence, the case went cold.  It was nearly 30 years after her murder when DNA analysis identified one of Tina’s high school classmates as her killer. But no one was surprised.

Today we´re talking about the kind of crime that makes you stop and ask a simple question: what were they thinking?

In November 1992, Sidney Reso—a respected executive, a husband, and a father—stepped out of his home on what should have been an ordinary morning. Then within moments, he was gone.

What followed is a case that shocked a quiet New Jersey suburb and baffled investigators. A planned kidnapping. A million-dollar ransom demand. And a crime that, at first, seemed calculated… deliberate… even ruthless. But as the truth began to unravel, the story became something else entirely. Not a master plan—but a series of bad choices. Decisions layered with desperation, arrogance, and a remarkable failure to think through the consequences.

Tonight, we’re not just asking what happened to Sid Reso. We’re asking something deeper—and maybe more unsettling: How did the people behind this crime convince themselves it would work? Where did it all go so wrong? And at every critical moment…what were they thinking?

This is the story of the Sidney Reso kidnapping. Join us for From Routine to Ruin.

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Sources

Details Given on Suspects in Abduction, The New York Times, McQuiston, John T.  6/21/1992. Retrieved 4/5/2026.

Mystery, Millions & Murder in North Jersey: The Tragic Kidnapping of Exxon’s Sidney Reso by John E. O’Rourke

Reso’s Last Days, Time, CNN, 3/10/2002. Retrieved 4/4/2026. https://web.archive.org/web/20070310152822/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,975990,00.html

A tragedy of errors: Remembering the murder of Morris Township resident Sidney Reso, MorristownGreen.com, 10/21/2019. Retrieved 4/4/2026. https://morristowngreen.com/2019/10/21/a-tragedy-of-errors-remembering-the-murder-of-morris-township-resident-sidney-reso/

On the night of January 23rd 2006, Jennifer Kesse spoke to her boyfriend before going to bed. She set out her clothes for work. She went to sleep. And then she vanished. Jennifer was 24 years old. Independent. Smart. Safety conscious. She would never blow off work and she would never take off without an explanation. And yet, the next morning, Jennifer was just… gone.

Join us for Behind the Fence: The Vanishing of Jennifer Kesse. This isn’t just a mystery. This is Jennifer’s story. Her car would later be found abandoned about a mile from her home. Her phone would never ring again. And the only image investigators have of her suspected abductor is a blurred figure walking away from a parking lot— his face hidden behind fence posts. For over twenty years, Jennifer’s family has lived with unanswered questions. No arrests. No closure. No idea what happened to the woman they love. So, what went wrong?

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Sources

Disappearance of Tiffany Sessions – Wikipedia, Missing since Feb. 9, 1989, retrieved 4/29/2026.

Inside the Florida Condo Where Jennifer Kesse Was Last Seen

Jennifer Kesse Case Timeline – Solve the Case, Documented timeline including car discovery, surveillance footage, and 2016 legal death declaration, retrieved 4/29/2026. https://www.solvethecase.org/case/2006-2/timeline

Jennifer Kesse’s Condo – Odd Stops, Detailed location, parking layout, and vehicle evidence discussion

Jennifer Kesse Case No Longer Cold, Family Says, Click Orlando,  10/23/ 2025.

Missing: Jennifer Kesse – Uncovered, Case overview, investigative context, and source links, retrieved 4/29/2016.

What Happened to Jennifer Kesse? Surveillance & Updates, Michael Knox, 2/12/2026, retrieved 4/16/2026.

This story begins with a question that plagued investigators, doctors, and a jury: how did the life of an infant end, and how can we tell who was responsible when science and the law collide? In the hours, days, and years after Garrett Michael Wilson’s death, explanations moved from natural causes to something far more deliberate. As grief gave way to scrutiny and accusation, a case that had remained a family tragedy led to a criminal prosecution.

Join us for Crime or Tragedy? The Garrett Wilson Story. In this episode, we follow the evidence that moved the case from the realm of unexplained loss into a courtroom, the testimony that carried extraordinary weight, and the decisions that closed the case officially while leaving lasting questions behind. This is not a story about reopening a verdict, but about understanding how investigators and courts decided that a death was a crime.

Sources

American SIDS Institute publishes top research priorities in sudden unexpected infant death, ttps://sids.org/american-sids-institute-publishes-top-research-priorities-in-sudden-unexpected-infant-death/, retrieved 4/18/2026.

48 Hours: “Unmasking the Mastermind,” CBS News, 7/20/2001.

Criminal Minds & Methods, Garrett Wilson – Crime Library, retrieved 4/16/2026.

While Innocents Slept: A Story of Revenge, Murder, and SIDS by Adrian Havill, 2011.

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