TRUE CRIME with Bratterstein

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Phil Hartman with me today.

On May 28, 1998, comedian and actor Phil Hartman was shot to death in his sleep by his wife, Brynn, in the bedroom of their home in Encino, California. After an argument late that night, Phil went to bed; sometime before 3 a.m., Brynn entered the room and fired three shots at close range with a .38‑caliber handgun, hitting him in the head, throat, and chest and killing him instantly.

Brynn, who had alcohol, cocaine, and an antidepressant in her system, then drove to a friend’s house and confessed, returned with him to the home, and locked herself in the bedroom as police were called. A few hours after killing Phil, she died by suicide with a second handgun while officers were on the scene, leaving their two young children without parents and Hollywood stunned by the murder‑suicide.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Aliza Parsy with me today.

In August 2005, 18‑year‑old Aliza “Lizzy” Parsy was found murdered in the Staten Island home she shared with her mother, her body hidden under a mattress with a towel over her face and the house staged to look ransacked. At first, detectives focused on strangers and an ex‑boyfriend, but autopsy results showed Aliza had been killed by asphyxiation, her nose and mouth covered and her neck compressed, suggesting a personal, up‑close attack rather than a random break‑in.

Suspicion eventually turned to Aliza’s 27‑year‑old half‑brother, Raviv Gabbay, who lived in Brooklyn and had been given the family’s cookie‑delivery business but was in serious financial trouble. Prosecutors said Raviv went to Aliza’s house looking for cash, argued with her when he couldn’t find the money he believed was there, and then suffocated her with a pillow before trying to stage a burglary. Raviv was arrested and later pleaded guilty to first‑degree manslaughter; he was sentenced to 18 years in prison for killing Aliza.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Shari Faye Smith, Debra May Helmick, and Sandee Cornett with me today. The case of Larry Gene Bell is one that completely shook South Carolina in 1985, after two young girls, 17-year-old Shari Faye Smith and 9-year-old Debra May Helmick, were kidnapped and murdered just weeks apart in Lexington County and Richland County. Shari was taken from her own driveway in broad daylight, and what makes this case especially disturbing is that her killer didn’t just disappear, he actually called her family afterward, forcing her to write a heartbreaking final letter before he killed her. Not long after, Debra was abducted from her bus stop, and again, the killer inserted himself into the investigation, leaving behind eerie clues and taunting police. Through phone records, forensic evidence, and witness accounts, investigators were eventually able to track Bell down, leading to his arrest, conviction, and execution in 1996.

It’s a case that still sticks with people because it’s not just about the murders, it’s about the psychological terror, the manipulation, and the chilling possibility that there could be more victims that were never officially connected to him.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Danielle Keener and Daniel Zapp with me today.

On the night of January 8, 2000, 18‑year‑old college students Danielle Keener and Daniel Zapp were walking near a marina outside York, Pennsylvania, when a man in a red pickup truck blocked their path, pulled a 9mm handgun, and forced them into his vehicle at gunpoint. He drove them to an isolated stretch by the Susquehanna River, sexually assaulted Danielle, then marched them to the water’s edge, shot Daniel in the head and Danielle in the face and shoulder, and pushed both of them into the icy river, assuming they would drown and his witnesses were gone.

Miraculously, the shock of the cold water jolted Danielle and Daniel back to consciousness, and they managed to cling to each other and fight their way to shore, where a hunter spotted their badly wounded bodies and got help in time to save their lives. The gunman, identified as 37‑year‑old William Babner, was arrested weeks later and went to trial that summer; a jury found him guilty on all counts, including the attempted murders and rape of Danielle and Daniel. In August 2000, the judge handed William a sentence of 117 to 235 years in prison, effectively ensuring he will die behind bars with no chance of parole until well past a normal lifespan.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Chad, Margaret, and Cody Amato with me today.

In January 2019, 29‑year‑old former nurse Grant Amato murdered his parents, Chad and Margaret Amato, and his younger brother Cody inside the family home in Chuluota, Florida, shooting each of them in the head and then attempting to stage the scene as a murder‑suicide by placing a handgun near Cody’s body. Investigators and prosecutors later argued that Grant killed his family after they confronted him over more than 200,000 dollars he had stolen and spent on a Bulgarian webcam model, cutting him off financially and ordering him to end the online relationship.

Grant was arrested after a manhunt and charged with three counts of first‑degree murder. In July 2019, a Seminole County jury found him guilty on all counts; although the state sought the death penalty, the jury did not unanimously agree, and Grant was automatically sentenced to three consecutive life terms in prison without the possibility of parole.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Grace Packer, Stoni Blair, Stephen Berry and Dylan Groves with me today.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Adrianne Marie Reynolds with me today. The murder of Adrianne Reynolds is one of those true crime cases that’s hard to wrap your head around because of how senseless and calculated it was. In January 2005, 16-year-old Adrianne was lured out of her home in East Alton by someone she thought was her friend, Sarah Kolb, along with Sara's "boyfriend". What she believed was just a normal hangout turned into a planned attack, reportedly fueled by jealousy and petty drama. The pair drove her to a secluded area where she was stabbed and strangled, then hid her body in the trunk of a car. In an attempt to cover it up, they later tried to burn and dismember her remains, but investigators quickly caught on, and both were arrested within days. The Adrianne Reynolds case is now widely known as a deeply disturbing example of teen betrayal, jealousy, and premeditated murder that shocked communities across the country.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Kim Tae-Hyun's victims with me today.

In March 2021, 25‑year‑old Kim Tae‑hyun traveled to the northern Seoul apartment of a young woman he had met through an online game and had been stalking for weeks after she cut off contact with him. Disguised as a deliveryman, Kim forced his way inside, stabbed the woman’s younger sister to death while she was home alone, then waited in the apartment and murdered the woman and her mother when they returned, leaving all three bodies at the scene.

Kim was arrested in the apartment with self‑inflicted injuries and later admitted the killings, which prosecutors described as carefully planned and motivated by rejection after his stalking was rebuffed. In 2021, the Seoul Northern District Court sentenced Kim to life in prison on multiple charges including murder, housebreaking, and theft; higher courts upheld the ruling, and in April 2022 South Korea’s Supreme Court confirmed the life sentence and ordered him to wear an electronic monitoring device for 30 years, effectively keeping him in permanent isolation with no realistic chance of release.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Alesha MacPhail with me today.

In 2018, six‑year‑old Alesha MacPhail vanished from her grandparents’ home on the Isle of Bute in Scotland, and was found hours later in a wooded area, sexually assaulted and murdered. Her disappearance triggered an island‑wide search and intense media attention, as the quiet holiday community struggled to understand how a child could be taken in the night.

Police quickly focused on a 16‑year‑old local boy, Aaron Campbell, after CCTV, witness statements, and forensic evidence, including DNA, linked him to Alesha’s abduction and death. He was tried in adult court, found guilty of rape and murder, and given a life sentence with a minimum term (punishment part) of 27 years before he can be considered for parole.

As always, thank you for hanging out and remembering Dr. James Edward Kohnle with me today. In June 2007, a house fire in Ringgold, Georgia left 57-year-old chiropractor Dr. James Kohnle dead in his bedroom, and at first, it looked like a tragic accident. But as investigators dug deeper, they began to suspect arson, uncovering evidence that the fire may have been intentionally set while he was still inside. The investigation quickly turned toward his wife, Teresa Kohnle, as details about financial problems, life insurance, and claims that he may have been drugged before the fire started began to surface. What followed was a shocking true crime case involving alleged murder for money, a staged house fire, and a last-minute guilty plea to felony murder in 2010. The Teresa Kohnle case remains a chilling example of how a deadly house fire can hide something much darker beneath the surface.