Murder, She Told

Happy Halloween! This week I wanted to bring you a fun and fascinating Halloween season bonus from my friend, Laurah Norton of The Fall Line.  This is One Strange Thing: a podcast that brings you witty true stories of ghost sightings, strange disappearances, supernatural events and famous cryptids, creatures, UFOs and lore from small town America.  This episode is The Cure: "Mercy Brown,...

2003. Wilton, Maine. For Raymond “Butch” Weed, the days leading up to Christmas in 2003 were supposed to be an ordinary time spent with friends and family. But on December 23, the holiday season took a devastating turn when friends stopped by his home to deliver gifts and discovered that Butch had been murdered. Butch was a fixture in the Wilton, Maine, community. That evening, he had made the sho...

1952. Burlington, Vermont. In November 1952, 19-year-old Rosamond Burrington was simply making her way home after running errands in Brattleboro, Vermont, expecting nothing more than an ordinary walk on a November evening. But somewhere along that route, she encountered a man she didn't know, and her life was brutally cut short. With few answers, no clear suspect, and little to go on, police strug...

1991. Portsmouth, New Hampshire. On a bitter February night in 1991, the quiet of a Portsmouth neighborhood was shattered when flames erupted from a neighbor’s home. By the time the fire was under control, two beloved members of the community were dead. Stella Bolton, 68, and James "JJ" Moore, 73, were familiar and well-loved faces around the Seacoast area. They were longtime friends who shared a...

At just nine months old, in April 1987, Jacob Landin was murdered. His future, his laughter, and the love he deserved were taken from him in an instant. But Jacob’s story is far from forgotten. His case remains unsolved, yet his name has become a symbol of resilience, justice, and the unwavering determination of those who refuse to let his memory fade. AdvocacyCon was created in part because of Ja...

1961 - Lincoln, Massachusetts. What happened inside Joan Risch’s Lincoln home on October 24, 1961 may never be fully known. Blood stained the kitchen floor. Someone appeared to have tried to wipe it away. Her two young children were left behind, but Joan herself was nowhere to be found. As investigators worked to reconstruct Joan’s final known hours, unsettling witness accounts and conflicting clu...

1961 - Lincoln, Massachusetts. On the afternoon of October 24, 1961, a quiet suburban neighborhood in Lincoln, Massachusetts became the setting for one of New England's most haunting mysteries. When neighbors realized something was wrong at the home of 31-year-old Joan Risch, they stumbled on a scene that has puzzled investigators for more than six decades. Bloodstains marked the kitchen floor, wi...

1993 - Kittery, Maine. On a cold night in January 1993, an intruder broke into the home of 73-year-old Maxine Bitomski, killing the beloved widow in the quiet coastal town of Kittery, Maine. The following day, Maxine's grandson stopped by for a visit and made the heartbreaking discovery: she had been murdered. For decades, investigators revealed very little about the case, leaving the community to...

1989 - Worcester, Massachusetts. June 5, 1989, was supposed to be a day of celebration for 17-year-old Nereida “Nettie” Melendez. The responsible and ambitious teenager was set to graduate from high school and begin the next chapter of her life. But when Nettie failed to appear at her graduation ceremony, her family immediately knew something was wrong. Their worst fears were realized the followin...

2019 - Manchester, NH. On December 31st, 2021, the Manchester, NH police went to the media with an alarming press release: a little girl named Harmony Montgomery was missing, and she hadn't been seen in 2 years. In 2024, her father, Adam Montgomery, was convicted of second degree murder for the death of his daughter. In June of 2026, there was a major update in Adam's conviction. This is what you...

1977 - Elwood, Illinois. In September 1977, 84-year-old Alice Sturm was murdered in her bed inside her home in Elwood, Illinois. Suspicion quickly fell on Alice’s live-in granddaughter, Sheila, and her friend, Ernest Stanberry. But almost as quickly as the charges were filed, they were dropped — and Alice’s case quietly faded into obscurity for decades. What investigators didn’t know at the time w...

1987 - Westbrook, Maine. In October of 1987, 23-year-old Alice Hawkes was brutally murdered inside the apartment she shared with her boyfriend in Westbrook, Maine. Her killer left her dying on the bathroom floor, locked the door behind them, and disappeared into the night. For nearly four decades, Alice’s case remained unsolved. But now, after 39 years of unanswered questions, there has been an ar...

1990 - Springfield, Massachusetts. On the morning after Christmas in 1990, a parks employee at Blunt Park in Springfield, MA, made a grim discovery: the body of 17-year-old Shana Renee Price. Initially, police suspected she had been shot, but an autopsy later revealed the brutal truth behind her death. Shana was a young mother to a baby boy, living a vibrant life surrounded by her friends and fami...

1984 - Windham, New Hampshire 25-year-old Chris Bird was missing. According to his friend, Richard Brunt, he was last seen at DQ Stables after the pair returned from a camping trip in July of 1984. Days later, Chris's car was found abandoned at a nearby mall. Chris was nowhere to be found. But Richard Brunt was hiding a violent past. Years earlier, he had been convicted of murdering his partner in...

1984 - Windham, New Hampshire 1975 - Plantation, Florida When 25-year-old Chris Bird didn't return home after a camping trip in New Hampshire with a friend in July of 1984, alarm bells began to ring. Days later, his car was found abandoned at a nearby mall with a flat tire-Chris was nowhere to be found. Nearly a decade earlier, on New Year's Day in 1975, the Broward County Sheriff's Office in sout...

Listen to My Victorian Nightmare, a podcast about mysterious deaths, morbid fascinations, true crime and disturbing stories from the Victorian era. This preview is from episode 82, “Madame Vesta la Viesta’s Galactic Love Affairs & The Meek’s Family Murders.” In this episode, Genevieve discussed the eccentric Madame Vesta la Viesta, the galactic mystic and clairvoyant, suicidal ghosts, mediums in s...

1993. Chelmsford, Massachusetts. 23-year-old Deborah Lynne Bates, known as Debbie, was trying to start over after leaving her abusive ex, George, with whom she shared a child. She wasn't perfect, but she was determined to build a better life. One February night in 1993, seven months pregnant, Debbie stepped out of her apartment for a pack of cigarettes and vanished. She never came home. Police tre...

Back in November 2024, I spoke with investigative genetic genealogist Cairenn Binder of Ramapo College about the basics of investigative genetic genealogy and how it helps solve cold cases and restore the names of unidentified people. Now, in an interview with Laurah Norton of The Fall Line, Cairenn returns to discuss a recent development that has shaken the field. Changes to the terms of service...

1975 - Concord, New Hampshire. In May 1975, a rent collector knocked on the door of 22-year-old Judith Lord’s apartment. There was no answer—only the sound of her baby crying. When he went inside, he found Judy dead in her upstairs bedroom. From the beginning, police had suspects. The case moved quickly. An arrest felt imminent. But then, a single scientific conclusion shifted the trajectory of th...

1937 - Mexico, Missouri On the eve of Thanksgiving in 1937, 46-year-old Margaret Mortimer, who went by Peggy, was just steps from her front door when she was attacked and killed by an unknown assailant. Investigators found few clues and no obvious suspects, despite a city-wide manhunt. And as early leads faded, local police turned to Ira Cooper, the St. Louis Police Department’s first Black lieute...

1981 - Winchendon, Massachusetts. On January 30, 1981, 19-year-old Nancy Williams picked up a last-minute shift at the Cumberland Farms in Winchendon, Massachusetts. Just two hours before closing, an unknown assailant entered the store, robbed it, and brutally stabbed Nancy, leaving her for dead behind the counter. The crime stunned locals, who struggled to believe something so violent could happe...

1963 - Wytopitlock, Maine. In April of 1963, a violent discovery was made inside a tiny, one-room cabin in the woods off Route 2A in Aroostook County. 68-year-old Emil Andrew Martens was found brutally beaten to death, setting off a brief and fragmented investigation that produced a swirl of suspects, rumors, and unanswered questions. Today, Emil Martens’ name does not appear on any official unsol...

This special episode to kick off the New Year brings together fellow true crime podcasters Aaron Habel of Generation Why, and Lucy Fitzgerald from Wine & Crime for a wide-ranging, candid conversation. We dive into our work as podcasters, the very real flaws of the justice system, debate the possibility of quantifiable alien activity, relive Kristen's hilarious and slightly surreal encounter in Ire...

Tis the season for true crime chaos! Hosts Kristen Seavey from Murder, She Told, Javier Leiva from PRETEND, and Shaun from Sins & Survivors join forces to explore Christmas crimes gone horribly wrong. From a bath salts-fueled home decorator in suburban Ohio to a serial burglar stealing Robert De Niro's wrapped presents right from under his tree, these real-life Grinches prove that the holidays bri...

Special bonus episode! Kristen is joined by fellow true crime podcasters Javier Leva from Pretend, and Shaun from Sins and Survivors for a special "Podcasters on Podcasters" style crossover conversation where we let our guard down and talk shop. Follow Pretend and Sins and Survivors wherever you're listening now. Support the show: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.murdershetold.com/support⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@mur...