True Crime Today | Daily True Crime News & Interviews

What does the Kouri Richins defense actually have? That's the question this expert panel is built to answer. With the prosecution wrapping nearly forty witnesses and two mistrial motions already on the table, Bob Motta and Robin Dreeke dig into the strategy, the vulnerabilities, and the moments that could define how this case ends.The prosecution's case rests on three pillars: millions in debt, alleged access to fentanyl through an immunized housekeeper, and a marriage multiple witnesses described as broken. None of those three things alone gets you a murder conviction. But stacked together? That's where this panel gets into the real debate.Carmen Lauber. Robert Crozier. Two immunity witnesses, two sets of credibility problems. This discussion goes straight at how much that damages the prosecution — and whether the defense can turn it into reasonable doubt. Plus the bigger strategic question: is this defense team fighting the evidence, or fighting the optics of a case that looks uniquely bad on the surface?Kouri Richins has pleaded not guilty to the aggravated murder of Eric Richins.Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-vxmbhTxxG10sO1izODJg?sub_confirmation=1Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/TrueCrimePodThis publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.#KouriRichins #KouriRichinsTrial #EricRichins #TrueCrimeToday #UtahMurderTrial #FentanylMurder #KouriRichinsDefense #TrueCrime2026 #MurderTrial2026 #CarmenLauber

Jodi Hildebrandt was a licensed therapist who built a life coaching business called ConneXions. Former clients describe it as a cult. Seven told NBC News she "methodically separated spouses" and destroyed marriages through isolation, shame, and constant surveillance.Her niece reported abuse in 2009 — tied up, duct taped, forced to sleep in snow. Nothing happened.Fourteen years later, Ruby Franke's children were found bound and starving in Jodi's house. Both women are serving four to thirty years for aggravated child abuse.Part 2 of "The Good Mother" examines how Jodi gained total control over the Franke family — and what the case reveals about coercive control psychology.Ruby met Jodi around 2019 while seeking help with her eldest son. Jodi offered validation: a framework that justified Ruby's strict parenting as righteous, and labeled anyone who questioned her as "living in deception."By 2021, Jodi had moved into the Franke home. Kevin was pushed out. Ruby's siblings, parents, extended family — all tried to intervene. All were cut off.This is the mechanics of coercive control. Isolation. Dependency. A framework that makes the victim believe everyone else is the enemy.In a jail call after her arrest, Ruby reflected on being separated from Jodi for the first time in years: "Being gone and not hearing her has cleared a lot of things up for me."Jodi showed no reflection. She reportedly still recruits vulnerable people from prison.A federal lawsuit now accuses both women of fraud and racketeering through ConneXions — claiming "thousands" had their lives destroyed.This episode examines how helpers become captors, what coercive control looks like, and why families often can't stop what they see happening.Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-vxmbhTxxG10sO1izODJg?sub_confirmation=1Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/TrueCrimePodThis publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.#JodiHildebrandt #RubyFranke #CoerciveControl #ConneXions #CultTactics #ToxicTherapist #8Passengers #CultPsychology #TrueCrime #EvilInfluencer

True Crime Today brings you the complete listener Q&A session on the Nancy Guthrie disappearance and the Kouri Richins murder trial — examining the legal and procedural dimensions of both cases with former FBI behavioral analyst Robin Dreeke and host Tony Brueski.The Guthrie legal questions center on evidentiary foundations that haven't been publicly addressed with any precision. What evidentiary weight does a pacemaker sync timestamp carry in a criminal prosecution? Medical device data is an emerging category of digital evidence — and in a case this short on hard timeline anchors, its legal value is worth examining closely. The DNA mixture raises its own prosecutorial question: how does a mixed profile affect the strength of an identification, and what are the evidentiary challenges of building a case around a sample that may include more than one contributor? And if no remains are ever recovered in a case with this evidence profile — what does that mean for the legal path forward? Prosecutors have successfully tried homicide cases without a body, but the threshold is demanding and the defense opportunities are significant.The public statements from law enforcement also carry legal considerations. When a sheriff repeatedly declares on camera that he "personally believes" a victim is alive, that position creates expectations — and potential complications — if the investigation takes a different turn.The Richins legal questions are equally substantive. The immunity witness dynamic is one of the most consequential in the trial: two witnesses who changed their accounts under prosecutorial pressure, both carrying deals. How does that affect jury perception of prosecutorial credibility? What does defense cross-examination look like when a witness's original account contradicted their trial testimony? The defense's optical illusion framework — a perceptual ambiguity argument sustained across five weeks of specific evidentiary testimony — is examined for its legal coherence and jury impact. And the question of what legal mechanisms, if any, were available to protect Eric Richins given what was known before his death is one that carries implications beyond this verdict.Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-vxmbhTxxG10sO1izODJg?sub_confirmation=1PRE-ORDER Robin's NEW Book! - https://a.co/d/0iR9U8U0Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/TrueCrimePodThis publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.#TrueCrimeToday #NancyGuthrie #KouriRichins #CriminalLaw #KouriRichinsTrial #MissingPersonsLaw #RobinDreeke #HiddenKillers #DNAEvidence #TrueCrimePodcast

Before the death sentence. Before the backyard graves. Before the "zombie" doctrine.Chad Daybell was a gravedigger in Idaho who claimed the dead spoke to him.This is Part 2 of "The Chosen Ones," our psychological examination of spiritual abuse and religious trauma through the Vallow-Daybell case. Today we analyze Chad Daybell — not just what he did, but how he built the authority to make others believe he spoke for God.Chad Daybell couldn't find significance through normal channels. He wasn't a prophet in the mainstream LDS church. So he built a space where he could be one — through self-published apocalyptic novels, fringe conferences, and online communities like AVOW.He charged for books, charged for speaking appearances, charged for "readings" where he'd tell followers their light ratings and past lives. The more people paid for access to his "visions," the more power he accumulated.Then the beliefs became operational.According to testimony, Chad Daybell taught that some people had been possessed by demons — that they were "zombies" who could only be destroyed, not saved. He kept spreadsheets rating people as light or dark. Everyone rated dark ended up dead.If you've experienced religious narcissism or spiritual abuse from a charismatic leader — you'll recognize how this authority gets built.Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-vxmbhTxxG10sO1izODJg?sub_confirmation=1Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/TrueCrimePodThis publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.#ChadDaybell #LoriVallow #TrueCrimeToday #CultLeader #HighControlReligion #SpiritualAbuse #ReligiousTrauma #ZombieDoctrine #ReligiousNarcissism #Deconstruction

A federal judge has rejected former Stoughton police detective Matthew Farwell's bid to have murder charges dismissed in the death of 23-year-old Sandra Birchmore. The October 2026 trial will proceed — and the full story of what allegedly happened to Birchmore is one of the most chilling law enforcement abuse cases in the country.Birchmore was found dead in her Canton, Massachusetts apartment in February 2021, three months pregnant. Her death was initially ruled self-inflicted by state medical examiners. Local prosecutors declined to act. It took a federal investigation to bring charges.Prosecutors allege that Farwell first encountered Birchmore through the Stoughton Police Department's Explorer Program — a youth outreach initiative she joined at age 12. By the time she was 15, according to federal charging documents, Farwell had allegedly begun a criminal sexual relationship with her that would continue for nearly a decade. He allegedly met with her for sex while on duty and fraudulently logged those hours as police work.Two additional law enforcement figures connected to the same program have faced accountability: former Deputy Chief Robert Devine was decertified by a state oversight board, and Farwell's twin brother William lost his law enforcement certification in Massachusetts.Prosecutors believe Farwell was tipped off through department channels about a friend's report regarding the relationship — and that Sandra was dead within two weeks. Surveillance footage places him at her apartment the night she was last seen alive.The defense argued the indictment lacked the specificity required for federal jurisdiction. The judge disagreed. Trial is on.True Crime Today has the full breakdown.Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-vxmbhTxxG10sO1izODJg?sub_confirmation=1Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/TrueCrimePodThis publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.#SandraBirchmore #MatthewFarwell #TrueCrimeToday #FarwellTrial2026 #StoughtonPolice #JusticeForSandraBirchmore #TrueCrimeNews #PoliceMisconduct #FederalMurderCase #ColdCaseJustice

When the Summit County Sheriff's Office investigation into Eric Richins' death stalled, his family hired their own investigator. That investigator just finished testifying — and the defense had no answer for him.Todd Gabler spent roughly a year building an independent case before Kouri Richins was arrested. Without a warrant, he obtained phone billing records through Eric's business and discovered that between January and May 2022, Carmen Lauber — the housekeeper who has testified she procured drugs for Kouri on multiple occasions — was Kouri's third most frequent phone contact. Her mother was first. Eric was second. The woman allegedly at the center of the drug supply chain was third. Gabler noticed Lauber's extensive criminal history and drug court violations and alerted the Sheriff's Office before detectives had made that connection themselves.He placed covert GPS trackers on Kouri's car and her mother's vehicle. He conducted nearly 50 interviews — Kouri's family refused every request. He searched the Richins home, found apparent attorney-client documents, placed them in a manila envelope unread, and delivered them untouched. He handed prosecutors two hard drives containing audio, video, photographs, computer forensics, and a cloned copy of Eric's iPhone. When asked on cross whether he had considered other fentanyl sources in Summit County as a possible explanation for Eric's death, he said he had — and found no connection.His testimony was the final civilian witness in the prosecution's case, arriving on a day that already featured a celebration video from the day after Eric died, a likely forged insurance signature, a chilling 911 call, and a detective who said Eric's own sister pointed toward Kouri at the scene.The prosecution rests after one more witness. Then the defense has to explain all of it.Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-vxmbhTxxG10sO1izODJg?sub_confirmation=1Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/TrueCrimePodThis publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.#KouriRichins #KouriRichinsTrial #CarmenLauber #EricRichins #TrueCrime #FentanylMurder #UtahMurderTrial #TrueCrimeToday #HiddenKillers #MurderTrial

The legal mechanics of the Kouri Richins murder trial raised questions that go beyond the headline details — questions about witness reliability, prosecutorial strategy, and how a defense team constructs a viable theory against five weeks of damaging testimony. True Crime Today examines the trial's legal architecture in this listener Q&A with former FBI behavioral analyst Robin Dreeke and host Tony Brueski.The immunity witnesses are a significant focal point. Carmen Lauber and Robert Crozier both changed their accounts after receiving immunity deals from prosecutors. In legal terms, a witness who required immunity to testify — and who revised their story in the process — is a double-edged asset. True Crime Today addresses how defense attorneys exploit that dynamic, what prosecutors risk by depending on such witnesses, and whether their testimony ultimately held up under cross-examination based on what observers reported from the courtroom.The prosecution's text message evidence — particularly the word "relieved," sent to Josh Grossman after Eric Richins died — represents a classic case of what attorneys call consciousness of guilt evidence. What is the legal weight of a single word in a text message? How do prosecutors frame it, how do defense attorneys contextualize it, and how much does a jury typically rely on it?The defense's opening framing — the optical illusion argument, the idea that the same facts can yield two completely different conclusions depending on perspective — is an unusual and strategically ambitious approach. Tony and Robin assess whether that theoretical framework is sustainable across a lengthy trial and how the jury ultimately appeared to receive it.And the question of what failed Eric Richins, legally speaking — his own precautions and the system's response — carries implications beyond this verdict.Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-vxmbhTxxG10sO1izODJg?sub_confirmation=1PRE-ORDER Robin's NEW Book! - https://a.co/d/0iR9U8U0Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/TrueCrimePodThis publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.#KouriRichins #TrueCrimeToday #KouriRichinsTrial #ImmunityDeals #WitnessCredibility #EricRichins #MurderTrial #DefenseStrategy #RobinDreeke #TrueCrimePodcast

From a legal and investigative standpoint, several developments in the Nancy Guthrie disappearance carry significant implications that haven't been fully examined. True Crime Today addresses them directly in this listener Q&A with former FBI behavioral analyst Robin Dreeke and host Tony Brueski.The DNA evidence. Investigators have indicated the sample recovered at the scene is a mixture — a profile consistent with more than one contributor. What does a mixed DNA profile mean for building a prosecutable case? How does it affect identification, exclusion, and the evidentiary weight a prosecutor can attach to it? Robin and Tony examine what this detail signals about both the investigative direction and eventual legal strategy.The reward has been escalated to one million dollars, payable in cash. From an investigative management standpoint — not just a public relations one — what does a reward of that scale accomplish? Does it generate credible, actionable intelligence, or does it primarily create investigative noise that investigators then have to filter through? True Crime Today looks at what the historical record on high-dollar rewards tells us about actual case outcomes.There's also the absence of remains. In cases involving serious violence where no body has been recovered after this amount of time, what are the legal implications? Can a prosecution proceed without physical remains? What's the evidentiary threshold, and what are the challenges?And the pacemaker sync at 2:28 AM — what weight can digital medical device data carry in an investigation and eventual prosecution? This is an underexamined detail with real legal significance.Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-vxmbhTxxG10sO1izODJg?sub_confirmation=1PRE-ORDER Robin's NEW Book! - https://a.co/d/0iR9U8U0Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/TrueCrimePodThis publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.#NancyGuthrie #TrueCrimeToday #GuthrieDNAEvidence #MissingPersonsLaw #NancyGuthrieMissing #CriminalInvestigation #RobinDreeke #HiddenKillers #DNAMixture #TrueCrimePodcast

Law enforcement doesn't go back to a neighborhood a month later and knock on doors again without a reason. That second canvass in the Nancy Guthrie disappearance is one of several investigative signals that True Crime Today is breaking down in this listener Q&A — alongside former FBI behavioral analyst Robin Dreeke and host Tony Brueski.What prompts a follow-up canvass weeks after the initial sweep? Typically, investigators return when new information has surfaced that makes a specific detail — a car, a face, a timeframe — worth re-asking about. Tony and Robin discuss what that behavioral and procedural signal means for where the investigation stands.The case has also raised questions about the public statements coming from law enforcement. Sheriff Nanos has appeared on camera repeatedly, saying he "personally believes" Nancy is alive and that he's "definitely closer." True Crime Today examines what those statements are designed to accomplish — and whether they carry any investigative risk. Are on-camera declarations about a living victim a strategic tool, or do they create complications down the line?There's also the matter of tips. They've slowed down significantly. From a case management standpoint, what does that mean for investigators? At what point do dried-up tip lines signal exhausted public knowledge versus someone sitting on critical information who hasn't come forward?Robin also addresses the legal and behavioral implications of the internet outage in Nancy's neighborhood the night she disappeared — and what deliberate disruption of that kind would mean for characterizing this as a premeditated act.This is what the procedural and investigative picture looks like right now.Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-vxmbhTxxG10sO1izODJg?sub_confirmation=1PRE-ORDER Robin's NEW Book! - https://a.co/d/0iR9U8U0Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/TrueCrimePodThis publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.#NancyGuthrie #TrueCrimeToday #GuthrieInvestigation #FBICanvass #LawEnforcementStrategy #MissingPersonsCase #RobinDreeke #TrueCrime #CriminalInvestigation #TrueCrimePodcast

Ruby Franke's YouTube channel "8 Passengers" had 2.5 million subscribers watching her parent six children. She posted five days a week for eight years. The world saw a devoted Mormon mother with all the answers.In August 2023, her twelve-year-old son escaped through a window — emaciated, bound with rope, wounds on his wrists and ankles. Police found his ten-year-old sister malnourished in a closet. Both had been tortured.Ruby Franke is now serving four to thirty years for aggravated child abuse. Her case has spawned documentaries on Netflix, Hulu, and Investigation Discovery. Her eldest children are processing publicly. Her ex-husband is speaking out.But Part 1 of "The Good Mother" goes beyond the headlines to examine the psychology underneath: What creates a performance parent? What does it do to children when love is conditional on maintaining the image? Why do systems fail to recognize abuse hiding behind a polished exterior?The warning signs were visible on Ruby's channel for years. A teenager sleeping on a beanbag for seven months. A six-year-old denied lunch at school. Children humiliated on camera. Viewers reported her to CPS. A petition was launched. Nothing changed.Narcissistic parenting doesn't always look like abuse. Sometimes it looks like high standards. Sometimes it looks like involvement. Sometimes it looks like a mother who documents everything because she cares so much.This episode examines the emotional architecture of performance parenting — and why it resonates with anyone who grew up with a parent who was one person in public and another person at home.Ruby Franke taught parenting to millions. Her children are still recovering from being raised by her.Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-vxmbhTxxG10sO1izODJg?sub_confirmation=1Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/TrueCrimePodThis publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.#RubyFranke #NarcissisticMother #8Passengers #JodiHildebrandt #PerformanceParenting #NarcissisticAbuse #FamilyVlogger #TrueCrime #MomfluencerAbuse #CultPsychology