When he was a teenager, Jens Soering confessed to committing one of Virginia's most shocking crimes. He later recanted, but says he understands why some people still question why he would ever admit to killing two people if he did not really do it.

In spring 1985, Soering, the son of a German diplomat, was a first-year student at the University of Virginia when he and his then-girlfriend Elizabeth Haysom were accused of killing her parents at the Haysom family home in Bedford County, Virginia.

It became one of the most talked-about cases in the United States, and five years later, it became one of the first trials to ever be broadcast on television.

Soering was ultimately convicted of the murders and sentenced to life in prison. Haysom pleaded guilty to being an accessory to murder before the fact and was given a 90-year sentence.

Both Soering and Haysom were granted parole in 2019.

Soering, who now lives in Germany, joined Catie Beck on the most recent episode of "Untold – A WTVR Podcast," and spoke about the latest effort to clear his name: a petition for a writ of actual innocence before the Virginia Court of Appeals.

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His life's journey has taken him from the cradle of Western civilization to the West End. Along the way, Henrico County Manager John Vithoulkas has become one of the most powerful men in Central Virginia.

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It has been eight years since Jason Kamras took the job of superintendent for Richmond Public Schools, but he has no plans of leaving anytime soon. And the former math teacher says he is encouraged by the numbers he is seeing.

"Last year seniors hit an 80% graduation rate, which is the highest in about a decade," said Kamras. "And our black students and economically disadvantaged students hit the highest rates in 20 years. We've also seen back to back years in growth in our SOL scores, math, reading, science, history."

Kamras sat down with Catie Beck on the most recent episode of 'Untold - A WTVR Podcast.' They discussed numerous topics, including the RPS budget situation, and the cuts that Kamras recently proposed.

"Let me be clear: I don't want to make those cuts, I don't want to make those reductions, but I felt it was important to give the school board a road map for what seemed likely at the time to be the situation," said Kamras. "Since then, it looks a little bit better for us. There are bills going through the General Assembly that might give us a lot more money."

Kamras also talked about the challenges he faces in running the historically troubled school system, including the poverty, hunger, and community violence that many of his students have to live in and around.

"I've been to a lot of funerals of kids, you know, over 50 kids have died from gun violence since I've been superintendent RPS students," said Kamras. "And probably two, three times that number have been shot, and that fortunately, it has been, knock on wood, a little bit better this year, but still, that's just horrific."

As far as what the future holds, Kamras says he remains focused on the task at hand.

"I'm open to any opportunity that can help continue to broaden the impact for kids, but at least for the next few years, I know I'm here, and I'm committed," said Kamras. "And I think we're just on the beginning of the upswing, and I want to make sure that we keep pushing forward so have no plans of going anywhere anytime soon.

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More than a year after his inauguration, and almost 12 months after he was the inaugural guest on 'Untold - A WTVR Podcast," Richmond mayor Danny Avula returned to talk with host Catie Beck about the highs and lows of 2025, and the icy start to 2026.

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It was one of the most puzzling missing persons cases that Virginia has ever seen. In October 2009, a Virginia Tech student named Morgan Harrington traveled to Charlottesville for a Metallica concert. She got separated from her friends and vanished without a trace.

Three months later, Morgan’s body was found on a remote part of a nearby farm. But it would take years for her killer to be caught.

In the wake of what happened to their daughter, Dan and Gil Harrington have fought to protect others from suffering the same fate, forming the Help Save The Next Girl non-profit organization and also the Morgan Dana Harrington Memorial Scholarship Fund.

"We both think our lifespans will be foreshortened because of the stress of that loss, but despite that, and because we have been determined not to devolve into hatred, we have navigated and established a great deal of wholeness, and I'm so glad that we were able to do that,” Morgan's mother said Gil Harrington. "It ain’t an easy journey."

The Harringtons joined Catie Beck on the most recent episode of ‘Untold – A WTVR Podcast.’ Beck first interviewed the couple inside their Roanoke home just one month after Morgan disappeared.

"You know, the initial shock of Morgan missing was just overwhelming and horrible," father said Dan Harrington. "It was such a relief that someone found her because we know from previous interactions with parents whose kids or loved ones have never been found, how difficult that is."

Beck and the Harringtons discussed what it takes to get past grief, despite dealing with such an immense loss. They also talked about Docs for Morgan, an annual basketball game fundraiser that benefits Morgan’s scholarship fund. This year’s event takes place January 28.

"It is a celebration," said Gil Harrington. "It's Americana at its best. In these times people are seeking connection and belonging and boy do we have it here with this community. We are so grateful."

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Rob Ukrop on 'Untold - A WTVR Podcast'

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Few people know more about Richmond’s nooks and crannies than Harry Kollatz Jr. The Central Virginia native has spent the last three plus decades at Richmond Magazine, exploring the city’s bygone eras and its culture, in addition to spotlighting the ever-expanding local arts scene.

“Everything comes from somewhere, and that's what I enjoy doing, as far as I can, delving into the origin story of people and places,” said Kollatz.

The writer/historian, wearing one of his trademark hats, sat down with Catie Beck for the most recent episode of ‘Untold – A WTVR Podcast.’ They took a deep dive into the River City’s past, present, and future, including the magnetism Richmond seems to have in both attracting new residents, and getting those who have left to one day return.

“So much of Richmond was built before the automobile, and/or grew as a result of streetcars, which, you know, traveled at a breakneck speed of 20 miles an hour,” said Kollatz. “So, Richmond is a place to appreciate, to observe. I walked to work for 20 years, zigzagging through the alleys of the Fan… and I always saw something different.”

Beck and Kollatz discussed everything from the rise of Scott’s Addition to the removal of the Confederate statues from Monument Avenue to the opportunities that might emerge if the city were to develop more of its waterfront.

Along those lines, Kollatz spoke about his latest project, the West by Water exhibit currently on display at The Valentine.

"You learn a little bit about the history of the James River and Kanawha Canal and its importance to the city and perhaps how it could be again in the future," said Kollatz.

Beck also asked Kollatz about how city leaders can make Richmond a more sophisticated and advanced city while also preserving its historic nature. He said embracing and supporting arts and culture is important, while also being more cognizant of the environment in future development.

“Let's be smart about it, let's make technology, you know, our friend in terms of what we can do with it in terms to make our lives better, not just for a few people, but for everybody,” said Kollatz. “There are people on social media that have not been to downtown Richmond since 1972 and they're really proud of that, but they don't live here really, and so, you know, let's make Richmond for the Richmonders that are here now and let's not turn into a turnstile city either.”

“We’re getting there. We’re getting somewhere.”

Read Harry in Richmond Magazine here, order Harry’s books here.

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John Reid returns to Untold to discuss his recent campaign for Lieutenant Governor of Virginia, highlighting the challenges he faced as an openly gay Republican candidate.

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Chaz Nuttycombe, 26, has taken the election prediction world by storm, becoming one of the most talked about and sought after forecasters in the country.

He’s quick to share the credit.

“When it comes to my job as a forecaster, and now a pollster, I work with a brilliant polling committee,” Nuttycombe told Catie Beck during an appearance on the most recent episode of ‘Untold – A WTVR Podcast.’

And for good reason. Nuttycombe and his teammates at the nonprofit operation State Navigate were stunningly accurate when it came to calling the outcomes of the various 2025 Virginia contests.

“We did pretty well this year, especially in our polling,” said Nuttycombe. “There was only one other pollster by margin of victory, YouGov, that did better than us for the governor race. They had Spanberger by 15, we had 13 in both of our surveys….Of every pollster that asked about the races here in Virginia for governor and lieutenant governor and attorney general, we did the best.”

After high school, the western Hanover native took his growing passion to Virginia Tech, where he honed his craft and created an election prediction company called CNalysis, a sort of predecessor to State Navigate.

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Brad Bradley returns to give host Catie Beck an exclusive update on all the recent developments that have occurred concerning the case of his sister, Amy, who vanished aboard a cruise ship in 1998.

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