True Crime Reality

The state of Oklahoma has just executed 52-year-old Raymond Eugene Johnson for the 2007 brutal murders of his ex girlfriend and her infant daughter. During last month’s clemency hearing, Johnson apologized to the family of 24-year-old Brooke Whitaker and her 7 month old baby girl Kya for beating Whitaker and then setting her and her baby on fire in their Tulsa home. Johnson confessed to the crime and his attorneys didn’t file any last minute appeals on his behalf.   

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Death penalty opponents are waiting to see if Texas will proceed with what they say would be an unconstitutional execution. Texas’ Attorney General has appealed to the nation’s highest court to lift a stay on Edward Busby’s scheduled execution for today. There are reports that Texas officials plan to move forward with the execution despite a federal appellate court ruling last week that put a temporary hold on it pending a Supreme Court decision on a separate case. The issue at hand, whether or not Edward Busby is intellectually disabled, which would make him ineligible for the death penalty. Busby was convicted in the 2004 robbery and murder of a retired Texas Christian University professor.

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Robach and Holmes cover the latest news headlines and entertainment updates and give perspective on current events in their daily “Morning Run.”

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28-year-old Dalton Eatherly who goes by “Chud the Builder” and livestreams himself saying racially derogatory statements to black people in public settings was arrested and charged with attempted murder. Police say Eatherly shot a man following an altercation outside a Tennessee courthouse, and accidentally shot himself in the arm in the process. Eatherly has been trying to get social media attention by taking video of himself using racial slurs against black people, challenging them to fight him.

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A Utah judge gave 35-year-old Kouri Richins the harshest sentence possible following an emotional day of victim impact statements. In court, we heard directly from Richins’ sons who each wrote statements to the court, asking the judge to make sure their mom never gets out of prison. Eric Richins’ sisters and father also addressed the court, all before Kouri herself took more than 40 minutes offering life advice to her sons and proclaiming her innocence. 

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In a unanimous decision, the South Carolina Supreme Court has overturned Alex Murdaugh’s 2023 convictions of murdering his wife and son and ordered a new trial. The justices wrote they had no choice but to make their ruling because the county clerk of court, Rebecca Hill improperly influenced the jury at trial, by suggesting they could not trust Murdaugh’s testimony. South Carolina’s attorney general has vowed to aggressively seek to retry Murdaugh as soon as possible. Murdaugh will not be getting out of prison in the meantime, as he is currently serving 40 years for state and federal financial crimes. 

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The grief author mom of three who was convicted of poisoning her husband with five times the lethal dose of fentanyl, will be sentenced later today in Utah. Prosecutors have given the judge statements from Kouri Richins’ three sons, all of whom pleaded with the judge to send their mom to life in prison.  In their sentencing memo, prosecutors also laid out some damning evidence of why they believe Richins should never be freed from jail, including a text message that threatens everyone from the judge, the Richins family to the prosecution and its investigators.

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Robach and Holmes cover the latest news headlines and entertainment updates and give perspective on current events in their daily “Morning Run.”

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The French woman who was medically cleared to fly home from the Hantavirus cruise ship, is now in “the final stage of supportive care” according to doctors. It is a frightening and quick turn of events, as world health officials say to expect more cases over the coming days and weeks. As of this recording, the number of suspected cases has risen to 11, with 9 confirmed cases around the world. We go over how each country is monitoring and testing passengers and any known contacts. 

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FBI Director Kash Patel squared off with Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen today and it got ugly.  Senator Van Hollen asked Patel about “The Atlantic” article alleging excessive drinking on the job and Patel fired back, accusing Van Hollen of “slingin’ margaritas” with a “gangbanger.” Patel was referring to a meeting the Senator had with a mistakenly deported man, where margaritas were placed on the table, but Van Hollen denied drinking them.

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