Midwest Murder
We’ve all heard the phrase ‘that kind of thing doesn’t happen in our town’, but here on Midwest Murder, we will shatter that false reality. In fact, it happens more often than we know, and sometimes the details of the most horrific crimes that happen in our neighborhoods are lost in the back pages of newspapers, forgotten on our news channels, and eventually erased over time.
A Mother Erased E157
A message from beyond the grave casts suspicion around the untimely death of a loving mother. What follows is a nearly 25 year effort to convict the person behind it all.
Recorded live with a fantastic audience at the Icon Lounge in Sioux Falls, SD.
Episode title submitted by: Kayci H.
Location: WI
Victim: Julie Jensen
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The Surprise Vacation: One Voice E1
No Banter. No live audience. Just one host, in studio with a microphone.
The Surprise Vacation
In the last week of July 1993, five people walked out of their lives in Northern Iowa and did not come back. A single mom, her two little girls, and two men who knew too much. On paper, they hadn't been murdered.
It would take seven years and one of the most prolific informants in Iowa history to uncover the truth.
Victims: Lori Duncan, Kandace, Amber, Greg Nicholson, Terry DeGeus
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Alice in Murderland E156
A woman sends her mother the same simple message every morning, the one that means she’s okay. On December 21, 2020, it arrives right on time, and then she is never heard from again. Her house is locked, her car hasn’t moved, and the man living in her basement says he hasn’t seen her in days.
Recorded live at Rhythm City Casino
Episode title submitted by: Kari G.
Location: North Dakota
Victim: Alice Queirolo
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The Should've Used Autocorrect Killer E155
A globally recognized religious figure comes under public scrutiny, they suddenly start to receive menacing emails, the emails then become physical letters with escalating threats, but there's just one strange thing about it all: the threats are directed at the family of one of her employees.
Recorded with a pajama party packed house at 4 Bears Casino & Lodge in Newtown, ND.
Episode title submitted by: Alexis W.
Location: Illinois
Victims: Sheri, Garret, Gavin Coleman
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Trial by Fire E154
For years the beatings didn't stop, the police wouldn't help, and the courts looked the other way. Then one night something broke, and she set the bedroom on fire while he slept, then drove straight to the sheriff's office to confess. It's the story of the marriage, the night it ended, and the trial that helped change how the country treats domestic violence.
Victim: James “Mickey” Hughes
Location: Dansville, MI
Recorded live at, and in support of, the Roosevelt Park Zoo.
Sponsored in part by recoverycentersofmontana.com
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The Home Depot Creepo E153
When first responders arrive to the scene of a terrible accident to find a man crushed and burned by his own truck, the tragedy seems to explain itself, but questions arise when the coroner can't identify the body.
Recorded with a packed house at Phat Fish Brewing in Dickinson, ND.
Episode title submitted by: Emily H.
Location: Illinois
Victim: Justin Newman
Sponsored by https://www.recoverycentersofmontana.com/
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The Only Witness E152
In November 1973, five teenagers rode out to Gitchie Manitou to sit around a fire. Only one came back, and at first, no one believed what she said had happened out there. It’s the story of the night at the park, the three brothers behind it, and a motive that never once added up.
Sponsored by: https://www.recoverycentersofmontana.com/
Victims: Roger Essem, Stewart Baade, Dana Baade, Michael Hadrath
Location: Gitchie Manitou State Park, Iowa
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...Find the Helpers E151
Added Content Advisory
On a quiet spring morning in 1927, a small Michigan farm town became the site of the deadliest attack ever carried out on an American school and almost nobody has heard of it. For over a year, one of the town's own trusted neighbors moved through his community completely unnoticed, right up until the moment everything changed forever.
Sponsored by: https://www.recoverycentersofmontana.com/
Location: Michigan
Victims: Arnold Bauerle, Henry Bergan, Herman Bergan, Emilie Bromundt, Robert Bromundt, Floyd Burnett, Russell Chapman, Cleo Clayton, Bobby Cochran. Ralph Cushman, Earl Ewing, Katherine...
Half a Mile From Home E150
In July of 2016, a twenty-year-old woman went for a bike ride home in rural Ohio and never made it. Investigators found her bike in a cornfield within hours, but it would take three days and a chance conversation with a neighbor to uncover the truth about what happened to her. And the man responsible had done something almost identical twenty-six years earlier.
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Music City Ides of March E149
After falling in love while attending college in the Midwest, a promising young couple relocates to Nashville to live happily ever after. It doesn't take long for the relationship to start crumbling, and when it does, the wife suddenly leaves for an impromptu vacation.
Sponsored by: https://www.recoverycentersofmontana.com/
Recorded at the City Winery in Nashville, TN.
Episode title submitted by: Rebecca R
Location: TN
Victim: Janet March
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Not the One They Thought E148
In 1986, a thirty-eight year old woman was found murdered in a small Minnesota town. For decades the prime suspect was the man closest to her. It would be thirty-three years before anyone in law enforcement knew who actually killed her.
Sponsored by: https://www.recoverycentersofmontana.com/
Location: Minnesota
Victim: Nancy Daugherty
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Something Was Very Wrong E147
Behind the facade of a family man, church leader, soccer coach, and respected member of the community hides a vile, cruel, and sadistic serial killer.
Recorded with a sold out crowd at Swing Barrel Brewing in Moorhead, Minnesota.
Location: Kansas, Missouri
Victims: Paulda Godfrey, Lisa Stasi, Catherine Clampitt, Sheila Faith, Debbie Faith, Beverly Bonner, Izabela Lewicka, and Suzette Trouten.
Episode title suggested by: Jen Kapla
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Favorite Spot in the Yard E146
A young pregnant woman is shot in her bed before sunrise in rural Iowa. Her husband says he was in the shower when it happened, and he has a name ready for who he thinks did it. But nothing about this case ends up being as simple as it first appears.
Recorded at the historic Belle Mehus Auditorium.
Victim: Lisa Techel
Location: Agency, Iowa
Sponsored by recoverycentersofmontana.com
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Eye Care About You E145
A woman dies alone in her recliner, surrounded by pills, with no signs of struggle and no obvious suspects. What investigators find in her bloodstream months later changes everything. The story of Lynn Hernan is about poison, a quarter million dollars, and the specific kind of trust that takes a lifetime to build and one person to weaponize.
Recorded live at Hay Camp Brewing Company.
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Episode title submitted by: Kali S.
Victim: Lynn Hernan
Location: Wisconsin<...
Failure to Launch E144
A Wisconsin couple leaves for a holiday weekend and never comes home. Their son has all the answers, except the truth. And by the time investigators figure out why, it’s already too late.
Recorded with a nearly sold out audience at ICON in Sioux Falls, SD.
Episode title submitted by: Katie Crawford
Victims: Bart & Krista Halderson
Location: Windsor, WI
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Fundraising for Murder E143
A beloved pregnant teacher is found shot dead in her St. Louis apartment — no forced entry, no gunshot heard, and a strange residue splattered across the bedroom walls. Her boyfriend, a school principal, called 911, but that's not the only call he made.
Brought to you in part by: https://www.recoverycentersofmontana.com/
Recorded with a sold out audience at Phat Fish Brewing in Dickinson, ND.
Episode title submitted by: Erin O.
Location: Missouri
Victims: Jocelyn Peters, Micah Leigh
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Hello, My Name is Eric E142
A man pulls over on a bridge in Detroit and reports finding a body in the river below. At first, he’s just a witness. But as more victims are discovered and survivors come forward, investigators begin to realize they may have already met the man they’re looking for.
Recorded in support of the McClean Family Resource Center, you can find their work here: https://mcleanfrc.weebly.com/
Episode title submitted by: So many
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To Love is to Kill E141
A late-night pickup turns into a nightmare in a Green Bay basement. What followed was a confession so disturbing it left no mystery; only the question of how chaos, drugs, and violence collided so completely.
Location: Wisconsin
Victim: Shad Thyrion
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E140: Know Your Friends
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On a walking trail near an abandoned mine pit in northern Minnesota, investigators discovered a burned body with a broken knife blade still lodged in the chest. What began as a grim scene in the woods quickly led detectives back to a small apartment in Hibbing, where bloodstains conflicting stories, and a recliner told a far more complicated story.
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E139: The House Always Wins
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In Prohibition-era Chicago, beer meant power, and power meant enemies. When a high-profile kidnapping shakes the city, Roger “The Terrible” Touhy becomes the perfect villain. What follows is a decades-long battle through courtrooms, prison walls, and a justice system that may not have been looking for the truth at all.
Recorded at the legendary Anne Nicole Nelson Hall in support of the Minot Symphony Orchestra, into music performed live by Erik, Diana, and Erik Mychal Anderson/
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E138: Pulp Non-Fiction
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An employee at a paper mill in Wisconsin was murdered and found inside a pulp vat. What followed was a case shaped by fear, investigative failures, and ended with six people on trial, and even more questions.
Recorded with a fabulous crowd at the Sanctuary Events Center in Fargo, ND.
Episode sponsored in part by Lilac Lane Media https://www.lilaclanemedia.com/
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E137: Shady Sharon
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A young mother says her toddler pulled the trigger. Months later, another woman disappears. What begins as a domestic tragedy in 1960 Missouri quietly grows into one of the most baffling and enduring mysteries in Midwest crime.
Recorded with a nearly sold out crowd at the Dickens Festival in Garrison, ND
Location: Missouri, Mexico
Victims: James Kinne, Patricia Jones, Francisco Paredes Ordoñez
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E136: Secrets Don't Exist
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What began as the horrendous murder of a beloved elderly woman in Beatrice, Nebraska turned into a case defined by pressure, false confessions, and irreversible consequences. The eventual truth raised troubling questions about how just is pursued and who pays the price when it goes wrong.
Victim: Helen Wilson
Location: Beatrice, Nebraska
Episode title submitted by Michelle Kiefer
This episode was recorded before a great live audience in the fabulous Hook & Ladder Theatre in Minneapolis, MN.
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E135: Homeplace Horror
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On Halloween night, 1975, a young farm family in rural Iowa went to bed and never woke up. What followed was one of the most controversial murder cases in state history; built on a highway timeline, forensic science that no longer exists, and a conviction still debated nearly fifty years later.
Episode title submitted by: Kelly C and Bekah
Recorded live with a fabulous audience at Rhythm City Casino.
Location: Iowa
Victims: Les, Jorjean, Julie, and Jeff Mark.
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E134: Doom & Bloom
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When a Minnesota woman is promoted, thanks to her hard work at a major corporation, a coworker feels he deserves it more and begins bullying her at work. Would he have anything to do with her disappearance and eventual murder?
Victim: Sharon Bloom
Location: Woodbury, MN
Episode title submitted by: Katie Jackson
This episode was recorded at the 109 Club in Lignite, ND
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E133: the Sacrificial Mother
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A woman doctor, a dead daughter-in-law, evidence that doesn't add up, and a confession written on no sleep. In a house full of secrets, the biggest one may have walked free.
Recorded with a fabulous crowd at the Roughrider Center in Watford City, ND.
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E132: Okay, Judith
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A father dies in an accidental shooting while teaching his son gun safety, but the manipulation, gaslighting, and deceit uncovered prove it’s much darker than that.
This episode was recorded at the historic Maddock Opera House in Maddock, ND.
Victim: Robert Breininger
Location: Mark Center, OH
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E131: Charlie's Angels
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A quiet Midwestern boy once did the unthinkable. Decades later, in the Florida Keys, that same man built a life so ordinary no one saw the darkness beneath it, until it finally came roaring back.
Recorded in Jamestown, ND in support of Safe Shelter.
Episode title submitted by: Alyssa T.
Location: Indiana, Florida
Victims: Isle Brandt, Michelle Jones, Teresa Helfrich, Sherry Perisho, Darlene Toler
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E130: Big Trouble in Little Norway
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In 1926, a young woman planned to elope with her beloved to hide a secret pregnancy. But when she never returned home, whispers of romance turned to rumors of murder, and the truth was darker than anyone imagined.
Victim: Clara Olson
Location: Prairie du Chien, WI
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E129: The Perfect American Boy
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When young female college students start turning up brutally murdered around Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor, Michigan, fear spreads faster than the investigation. Law enforcement can’t connect the killings. Angry parents turn on the university. A self-proclaimed psychic steps into the spotlight, claiming he can see what police can’t. And while headlines chase hysteria, the real killer moves quietly among them, hiding in plain sight.
This is the story of the Michigan Murders: how a summer of love turned into a season of terror, and how one woman’s death finall...
E128: Fatal Rivalry
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A single mother was brutally murdered in her own home while her children slept upstairs. For years, the case remained unsolved, until a shocking tip revealed a hidden, one-sided rivalry that turned deadly.
Victim: Patti Wolzen
Location: Hastings, NE
***Heads up! The next Midwest Murder episode (episode 129) will release October 6th instead of September 29th.***
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E127: Dinner with the Devil
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When two healthy retirees die weeks apart of so-called natural causes, their neighbors refuse to buy it. What starts as suspicion in a Midwest retirement village sparks an investigation that unearths arsenic, greed, and a serial killer hiding at the family table.
Victims: Mary Lambert, Marion Mueller, Michael Albanese Sr.
Location: Illinois
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E126: Settle Down, Cinderella
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What started as a welfare check in suburban Rochester ended with a chilling crime scene, and an investigation no one saw coming.
This episode was recorded at Oak Park Theatre in Minot, ND.
Title submitted by: so many
Victims: Bernard, Paulette, Diane, Ricky Brom
Location: Rochester, MN
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E125: the Latch Key Kid
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A small town community is devastated by the sudden, inexplicable murder of a beloved 12 year old girl. As investigators work the case, a grieving mother becomes a catalyst for change.
Recorded at Phat Fish Brewing
Episode title submitted by: Jessica Taecker
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E124: Sick to Death
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When two sudden deaths strike the same Missouri family, illness is blamed… until a third family member is hospitalized. What began as a quiet string of tragedies unravels into a chilling plot rooted in manipulation, control, and cold calculation.
Victims: Mark & Shawn Staudte
Location: Springfield, MO
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E123: the Backburner Killer
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When Dewayne Barrentine started asking questions about his girlfriend's past, her strange and inconsistent answers pushed him to dig deeper. He never expected the effort would help solve a murder.
Location: Missouri
Victim: Mitchell Kemp
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E122: The Killer's Cutlery
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A woman is murdered in a quiet Iowa town, leaving the community stunned and suspicion quickly falls on someone close to her. But as the investigation unfolded, one question lingered: were the clues leading detectives down the right path?
This episode was recorded before a wonderful crowd at the Rhythm City Casino in Davenport, IA.
Victim: Cynthia Borton
Location: Shenandoah, IA
Episode title submitted by: Emma Koetz
Correction note from Dawn (SPOILER ALERT!):
I misspoke r...
E121: Ragebaby Ken & Congirl Barbie
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A sudden, tragic murder in an affluent Spokane, Washington neighborhood is linked to the disappearance of an oilfield worker in North Dakota. At the center of it all; a charismatic, flashy, and devious couple hellbent on screwing over every person they come in contact with.
Recorded live with a packed house at the Sanctuary Events Center in Fargo, ND.
Episode title submitted by: Jazmyn H
Victims: Doug Carlisle, KC Clarke
Locations: North Dakota, Washington
Special thanks to au...
E120: Big Lake Lover
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A murdered woman is found in her bedroom by her husband when he came home from work. The wounds so horrific, it had to have been personal. Could it have been her current husband? A former husband? Her oldest child? It would take years to find out who, and it would come down to DNA, but it wasn’t as big of a gotcha moment as people expected.
This was recorded at Severance Brewing in Sioux Falls, SD.
Episode title submitted by: Dan Fitzpatrick
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...E120: Big Lake Lover
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A murdered woman is found in her bedroom by her husband when he came home from work. The wounds so horrific, it had to have been personal. Could it have been her current husband? A former husband? Her oldest child? It would take years to find out who, and it would come down to DNA, but it wasn’t as big of a gotcha moment as people expected.
This was recorded at Severance Brewing in Sioux Falls, SD.
Episode title submitted by: Dan Fitzpatrick
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