Inside Lenz Network

Hosts, Denny Griffin and Delilah Jones update listeners on what's happening within the Transparency Project. A forthcoming book is in the works, an anthology written by crime survivors describing their experiences with going up against the criminal justice system to get information to move cases forward. Many of the cases highlighted are very old cold cases, one nearly 50 years. Join the conversation and learn how we are working to give a voice to victims. The Transparency Project on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetransparenceyproject/ Crime Wire on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheNewCrimeWire/ Crime Wire on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheNewCrimeWire/ Crime Wire on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NewCrimeWire Crime Wire is Produced and Sponsored by ImaginePublicity: http://imaginepublicity.com      

Jerrica Laws was last seen August 17, 2015 on the 200 block of Lee Street in Park Forest, IL. At the time of her disappearance she was 24 years old. Her mother, Shantinel Howard joins the podcast to bring attention to her daughter's case. Description of Jerrica Laws: Missing From: Park Forest, Illinois Missing Since: 08/17/15 Date of Birth: 07/20/91 Age at Disappearance: 24 Female Black Height: 5’2 Weight: 140 Eyes: Brown Hair: Black Clothing: Dark colored shirt Nickname: Ric Ric Details of Disappearance: Jerrica Laws was last seen at the home of a family member on 08/17/16 in Park Forest Illinois. She hasn’t been seen since. Her case remains unsolved. Investigative Agency: Park Forest Police ( Illinois) 708-748-1309 If you have any information on this case please contact CUE Center For Missing Persons at (910) 343-1131 24 hour tip line (910) 232-1687. All information submitted to CUE Center For Missing Persons is confidential.    

Boston Redsox fan, Joe McGee joins the podcast to discuss his latest book, The White House is Fake, a fictional story with several unexpected plot twists that will leave you doubting all that you thought you knew. Synopsis of The White House is Fake It was the year 1956 with President Dwight Eisenhower signing the bill for the Federal-Aid Highway Act into law. It was also known as the National Interstate and Defense Highway Act. The law was executed on June 29, 1956 with an estimate of over 25 billion for the 41,000 miles of highway to be built. In 1957 Dwight Eisenhower modified the act to include a Presidential Protection Act. In 1992 Nelson Conrad was coming back from a fishing trip in Alexandria, VA. He walked by a DOT truck parked on the side of the road. What caught his eye was a DOT worker whirling his finger in the air. He decided to run into the woods and become invisible as he blended in with the tree line. As he watched he saw high level military men come out of a passage way under the highway. T

Sarah Stein of the Center for the Resolution of Unresolved Crime (CRUC) will discuss cold case investigations. Dr. Stein received her PhD in Criminal Justice from the University of Southern Mississippi, obtained her Master’s in Forensic Science with a concentration in Advanced Investigation, earned a certificate in Computer Forensics from the University of New Haven, and developed her own BA degree in The Victimology of Pedophilia (a combination of Criminal Justice, Sociology, and Psychology) at American University in Washington, D.C. Currently, Sarah provides both training and case consultation services to law enforcement. However, for families seeking a consultation regarding a case, Dr. Stein will provide a comprehensive action plan which includes an overview of the case facts, and a victimology and corresponding suspectology report all based on the facts of the case and the crime scene. The report will also include suggestions regarding hiring a private investigator, communicating effectively with l

Dottie Laster has a flair for transforming bondage into freedom – both in an artistic and physical sense. For 15 years Laster has tirelessly worked to free victims of human trafficking in America. Her career as an artist started in 2013 shortly after she helped a mother and her children escape their trafficker. The rescued children displayed a desire to paint, so Laster bought art supplies from an art school that was closing and sat down with them to create a picture. With their encouragement, Laster continued to paint and soon began selling her artwork and jewelry. She has sinced branched out to photography, especially flowers. She has created a book of her photos titles Flowers of Love. http://dottielaster.com Jane Lillian Vance is internationally known for creating oil paintings with brilliant detail and vivid, painstaking iconography, from Tibetan Buddhism and the folk arts of the Himalayas, as well as from rural Zambia, in her current thirty Africa Series paintings about medicine and hope. In February

We are honored to host Beth Karas and her take on celebrity justice. She will enlighten us about celebrity defendants and celebrity victims, and high profile cases of people who were unknown until their arrest. For more than two decades, Beth Karas has offered insight, analysis, and on-the-spot reporting on legal stories across the country. In a 2007 interview, she was called her “one of the best in the business.” Over the years, numerous attorneys and journalists have expressed the same sentiment. Beth is distinguished by her unique expertise and knowledge of law and procedure drawn from experience in the trenches as a trial attorney. Beth is a sought-after analyst, especially when on location at high-profile, competitive stories. BethKaras.com KarasOnCrime.com The Transparency Project on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetransparenceyproject/

Brett Wittner Fourteen-year-old high school freshman Brett Wittner of Covington, Louisiana, was brought into  the St. Tammany Parish Hospital the morning of Feb. 25, 2012, with a gunshot wound an inch or so behind his right ear. The bullet had fragmented, and bits of it had made their way toward the left side of his head, causing extensive damage to his brain, according to medical records. He died later that day. The police determined that Brett had accidentally shot himself while at a friend’s house. A grand jury subsequently examined the case and declined to indict anyone. However, Brett’s parents don’t agree with that finding and are continuing to look for avenues that will lead to a different outcome. Brett’s mother, Donna Wittner, will discuss the case and where it will go from here. Follow us online The Transparency Project on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetransparenceyproject/ Crime Wire on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheNewCrimeWire/ Crime Wire on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NewC

This episode's guest is Liz Gonzalez who is the family spokesperson for Missing Noemi Gonzalez Noemi Gonzalez was last seen by her son at home in North Miami, FL on February 12, 2014. She left behind her purse, keys, cellphone and even her daily medication for epilepsy. Noemi was a former school crossing guard and 911 dispatcher who had also worked for the North Miami Police Department. If someone knows something, please come forward and help us find Noemi. Call in your anonymous tip to 305-471-TIPS (8477) or CUE Center for Missing Persons http://www.ncmissingpersons.org/index.php?s=noemi+gonzalez  Listen to the podcast on Apple Podcast (iTunes) along with all the other Inside Lenz Network podcasts. Please Subscribe and leave a review!   

Molly's Law   Following the tragic death of his daughter Molly, Larry Young embarked on a mission to get legislation passed in Illinois to benefit survivors of victims of homicides or suspicious deaths. His efforts led to the passage of Molly's Law. Larry will explain what was involved in achieving that goal.   HB6083 extends the statute of limitations for wrongful death cases and allows a lawsuit to be brought within five years after the date or the death, or within one year after a criminal case against a perpetrator concludes. HB4715 increases the fines for public bodies for not releasing information that has been requested under the Freedom of Information Act to $10,000, plus $1,000 for each day information is withheld. The Transparency Project on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetransparenceyproject/

Brenda Lacombe was just 19 years old when her badly beaten and decomposing body was found off Interstate 495 in Harvard, Mass in 1982, and no one has been charged with her killing in the 36 years since. The Worcester County District Attorney's unresolved-case squad continues to investigate the Lowell woman's killing, and now Lacombe's niece is trying to help by raising money to have her aunt's body exhumed so a new autopsy and DNA testing can be conducted. Lacey Kearns, 32, of Lowell, wasn't born yet when her aunt died, but she has spent years investigating her aunt's killing and believes the tests could provide new evidence. Lacey will discuss Brenda’s case. The Transparency Project on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetransparenceyproject/

The host of Shattered Lives, Donna Gore, discusses her experiences preparing for, and attending the most recent parole hearing of the man who murdered her father 37 years ago. She and her family believed that he would be behind bars for the rest of his life and not eligible for parole, that was not the case. Donna recounts an overview of her father's murder, along with each step she was forced to take to prepare for this parole hearing, not only from the aspect of being a surviving family member, but also how to find easy access due to her disability.  She offers easy solutions to many of the obstacles she was able to overcome by her tenacity and ability to get things done. Donna also stresses the importance of the Victim Impact Statement and how it should be used in the initial sentencing as well as during a parole hearing. For more information, refer to her website: http://donnagore.com

Dr. Ellen Graytak of Parabon NanoLabs will be discuss the Parabon Snapshot DNA Phenotyping Service. It is a truly amazing tool. Dr. Graytak will take listener calls and answer your questions. The Transparency Project on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetransparenceyproject/

Absent from public discussion is the fact that the steady rise in suicide is contrasted by a steady decline in homicide in the U.S. These unusual and conflicting patterns have co-existed for a number of years. Incredibly, there are now nearly three suicides for every murder committed in the U.S. The only category of homicide that has been increasing over the last ten years is mass murder, specifically mass public shootings.  Dr. Scott Bonn discusses the correlation between suicide and mass murder. Read more of Scott Bonn's articles at Wicked Deeds on Psychology Today: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/wicked-deeds

Bullied to Death? The Story of Bullying, Social Media, and the Suicide of Sherokee Harriman True crime author Judith A. Yates peels back the sensationalism and rumors, revealing the truth of what happened that day in Mankin Park, attempting to answer the question everyone was asking: did Sherokee Harriman kill herself because she was bullied? Exploring the truth about “bullicide” while telling Sherokee Harriman’s story, taking a look at the role of social media in our lives, and defining the myriad definitions of “bullying.” Revealing bullying does exists … it lives within the family dynamic, it exists in the mental health care system, walks the hallways of the educational system, and grows within all peer groups. This books looks at bullying in an entirely different light than we have previously studied. And it takes a hard look at the myth of “bullicide.” When I first read Sherokee Harriman’s story,  I looked at her photograph and wondered, Why would this sweet, pretty, fourteen year old girl take her own

The filing of a wrongful death lawsuit can be a valuable tool in getting an alleged perpetrator to answer questions about the death under oath. It worked well in the OJ Simpson case, for example. However, there are drawbacks, as well, such as filing on time, finding a lawyer and the costs involved. Today, four members of The Transparency Project will discuss their experiences when filing wrongful death suits: the good, the bad and the ugly. The Transparency Project on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetransparenceyproject/

A brutal murder has haunted a Bellingham family and baffled state police investigators for almost 40 years. A teenage girl trying to get home was found murdered on the side of the road. Now, Theresa Corley's family is renewing its search for justice for the unimaginable violence that took her life. On Tuesday, December 5, 1978, Corley was a vibrant 19-years-old woman working hard while attending Holliston Junior College with the intention of eventually becoming a pediatrician. But that night, Corley had just one thing on her mind – getting home. She never got home and three days later, her body was found in a ditch on the side of Route 495 not far from where the Bellingham, Milford and Medway city limits converge. Almost 40 years later, her family is still trying to find out why. The Transparency Project on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetransparenceyproject/

Shattered Lives: Kevin Isenhoward, Grief Diaries Cold Cases Lieutenant Kevin Isenhoward is a 20 year veteran of the Richland County Sheriff’s Department in Columbia, SC, one of the largest Sheriff’s Departments in the United States. He has worked in several capacities in his career but primarily as a violent crimes investigator and supervisor. He is a native of Columbia, South Carolina and possesses a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from South University. He is a graduate of the University of Louisville, Administrative Officer’s Graduate program (136th session).

“In the world of organized crime, the bosses grab the headlines, as the names Capone, Gotti, Bonnano, Catroni and Rizzuto attest. But a crime family has many working parts and the young mobster known as The Weasel was the epitome of a crucial, invisible cog—the soldier, the muscle, the driver, the gopher.” Taken from the inside flap of the Weasel—A Double Life in the Mob, by Adrian Humphreys. The Weasel is Marvin Elkind. He will be our guest to talk about the Mob and the death of Jimmy Hoffa. Follow us online Crime Wire on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheNewCrimeWire/ Crime Wire on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NewCrimeWire

Robin P. McHaelen, MSW is the Executive Director of True Colors, Inc.  She has co-authored two books and several articles on LGBTQ youth and is a nationally recognized thought leader. Robin is the recipient of numerous awards including the 2016 CCSU Women of Influence Award, the 2014 HRC  Upstander Award, the 2011 UCONN Award for Excellence in Public Engagement; 2008 National Education Association’s Award for Creative Leadership in Human Rights and the 2008 Social Worker of the Year (NASW, CT Chapter).  In 2017 she was named one of the Advocates’, 50 States; 50 Heroes.

Chad Keller is the author of "Beyond Avery Road" which delves into the political agenda going on behind the scenes of Steven Avery’s 2003 exoneration, before his conviction of the alleged murder of Teresa Halbach in 2005. Keller also works to advocate for the wrongfully convicted Avery and his nephew, Brendan Dassey. He claims there are other developments in the case which go beyond what was presented in the Netflix show Making A Murderer. Trailer for the book BEYOND AVERY ROAD: https://youtu.be/RduAxv0l2-c