Cup Of Justice

Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and attorney Eric Bland break down where the four-month contempt saga stands now that proposed orders are submitted and the decision rests with the judge.  They unpack the bright spots: the deposition happened, it didn't delay the case, and how Greg Parker's team somehow claimed they needed two days for a deposition that was mostly Jim...

Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and attorney Eric Bland analyze everything that went down when Mandy (and Eric) took the stand last week during the absurd contempt proceedings.  Why did Parker's team show up with four partner-level attorneys, two binders, and zero affidavit? And why was Debbie Barbier demanding Luna Shark's private financials in open court — before an...

Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and attorney Eric Bland unpack a stunning South Carolina primary: Jermaine Johnson's grassroots gubernatorial win, Nancy Mace's fifth-place collapse, Lindsey Graham's surprising vulnerability, and the AG race that exposed how trial lawyers really profit. Is Dick Harpootlian's reign as ‘kingmaker’ finally over? Then the team turns to the...

What happens when a woman survives the violence done to her — and the state punishes her for it?  This week, Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ sit down with award-winning investigative journalist Justine van der Leun to talk about her new book, Unreasonable Women: Three Stories of Violence, Imprisonment, and Extraordinary Survival.  Over seven years, Justine mailed surv...

We’re starting today with Mandy’s first-ever ODC complaint against a Horry County attorney named Bert von Herrmann who chose to post about her courtroom testimony with a misogynistic, body-shaming Facebook post — then shared a non-apology blaming bots, copying devices, and the "misuse of podcasts." Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and attorney Eric Bland unpack why thi...

Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ were honored to sit down with Dr. Jermaine Johnson — basketball player turned state representative for parts of Kershaw & Richland Counties, now a candidate for governor of South Carolina.  But this conversation isn’t really about a campaign or politics. It’s about our justice system, and the uncomfortable truth that South Carolina runs...

On Friday, Mandy took the stand in York for a civil contempt hearing that, by any measure, never should have happened — while the co-defendants actually trying to depose Gregg Roman (the nucleus of the Parker conspiracy case) had to beg the judge to even hear their motion. The contrast is staggering. Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and attorney Eric Bland unpack what...

Eric Bland just had what he calls the worst day of his career outside of his father's cancer diagnosis — a brutal session before a commission of the South Carolina's Office of Disciplinary Counsel where one of the state's most decorated legal malpractice attorneys was made to feel like "a menace to the bar."  This week, investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and attorney Eri...

Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and Attorney Eric Bland pull no punches as a brutal week looms. With Mandy's May 15 contempt hearing approaching and Eric facing his own all-day ODC deposition Wednesday, the trio breaks down what they call a coordinated campaign of harassment dressed up as litigation.  Mandy responds — emotionally and on the record — to a paltry excuse...

Two years ago — on April 27, 2024 — Mica Francis was found dead in a North Carolina swamp after diverting from her normal routine to purchase a pawnshop firearm.  Her ex-husband JP Miller is charged with federal counts of cyberstalking and lying to investigators which may head to trial this June.  On this episode, investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ are joined by attorney...

Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and Attorney Eric Bland reunite after Mandy's harrowing "ambush hearing" in Gaffney, SC as a non-party witness in Beach v. Greg Parker civil conspiracy case. Eric, who sat in the courtroom, describes how Mandy was badgered and belittled, a bailiff-escorted her to the bathroom like a criminal, and, in her words, treated "with less respec...

We're taking a break from COJ this week journeying through Peru for an upcoming episode of Wherever It Leads... To keep y'all informed and entertained, please enjoy this LUNASHARK® Premium Soundbites Episode. True Sunlight returns this week on the public feed! Beth Braden's Soundbites episode from March 29 covers two of the most disturbing federal cases to come out of South Carolina in recent memo...

LUNASHARK® Producer David Moses walks Journalist ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and Attorney Eric Bland through the events leading up to Mandy's attempted deposition in Beach v. Parker — a civil conspiracy lawsuit alleging Greg Parker intentionally inflicted emotional distress on the Beach family to avoid accountability in a wrongful death case ultimately settled for over $15 million in July 2023. If awarded, tre...

Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and Attorney Eric Bland discuss Mandy’s deposition that wasn’t on Friday.  Mark Moore screamed. The Wi-Fi cut out. Greg Parker Zoomed in from some oddly decorated office with Debbie Barbier. And Mandy Matney sat 2,000 feet away from Moore at a secure location — armed guard protecting everyone, lemon pound cake on the table — waiting for...

Attorney Eric Bland tells investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ why he is fired up — and for good reason. Eric discusses twelve ODC complaints from a convicted felon and a looming all-day interview about his conduct from Murdaugh-related complaints filed by Parkers attorneys and Dick Harpootlian… from as early as 2021!  The team also takes a hard look at what the ODC actual...

The SLED investigation into Becky Hill has finally pulled back the curtain — and the name appearing over 90 times in that file belongs to fitsnews founder Will Folks… Liz and Mandy’s former employer.  Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and attorney Eric Bland break down exactly how sealed crime scene photos of Paul Murdaugh's body ended up in the hands of Jen Wood, a dis...

Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ sit down with Pulitzer Prize winning Journalist and Bone Valley podcast creator Gilbert King for a conversation that connects wrongful conviction, racial injustice, and the raw power of storytelling across decades of American history.  King shares how his research into Thurgood Marshall's landmark civil rights battles in the Jim Crow So...

Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and attorney Eric Bland pull no punches as they break down the relentless legal harassment campaign being waged against Luna Shark's journalists (and Premium Members) in the Beach v. Parker civil conspiracy to intentionally inflict emotional distress case.  The team exposes how Greg Parker's attorneys are using “scorched-earth” litigati...

Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and attorney Eric Bland break down the four-day hearing and the stunning moment when Judge Eugene “Bubba” Griffith ruled from the bench that Weldon Boyd does not receive “Stand Your Ground” immunity. The team analyzes Weldon Boyd's day-long testimony, which the judge found not credible.  Central to the ruling was the failure to prove a...

Today's Spivey v. Boyd/Williams hearing is available to all on our YouTube channel. Or Join LUNASHARK Premium to Join Our Hosts for all the context and community. But first... Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and⁠ ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and attorney Eric Bland break down the stunning oral arguments in Alex Murdaugh's murder conviction appeal before the South Carolina Supreme Court — and they hav...

Investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and⁠ ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ sit down with Matth Shaer, the journalist and co-founder of Campside Media behind some of the most compelling true crime podcasts of the past decade - Over My Dead Body, Suspect, and Origin Stories. Matt opens up about the evolution of true crime podcasting, from his early days working with Wondery to building Campside Media, and the e...

Today we need to address alarming developments in press freedom as independent journalists, including Don Lemon, face federal charges for violating the FACE Act of 1994. Then Liz reintroduces a case we covered on True Sunlight #134 involving Anijah Yarnell, who claimed self-defense after shooting Michael Pennington in 2020. However, South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson unusually appealed th...

In this episode, investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and⁠ ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and attorney⁠ Eric Bland confront a troubling throughline connecting professional discipline, prosecutorial discretion, and the rapid erosion of constitutional norms. Eric recounts a chilling professional reality: an SC Bar disciplinary investigation triggered by harsh—but truthful—excise of free speech, while far more...

Maggie Freleng, the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, joins ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and⁠ ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ to discuss her career trajectory, starting from her early days in journalism to her work on the pivotal "Suave" podcast. She shares insights on the Maura Murray case, which she investigated, and the impact of true crime podcasts on public perception and law enforcement. In this compelling episode, Fre...

In this gripping episode, investigative journalists ⁠⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and⁠ ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and attorney⁠ Eric Bland, confront a week that forces an uncomfortable but urgent question: what happens when power escalates faster than accountability? First, Liz Farrell reports firsthand from the federal arraignment of JP Miller—an appearance marked not just by legal gravity, but by a visible public demand...