Murder Shelf Book Club Podcast

Part 1: In Baton Rouge, Louisiana, a gruesome murder is discovered, with the Sheriff's office investigating, but the case goes cold. Repeat this over and over, and over as serial killer, Sean Vincent Gillis, kills and mutilates all over the area.  An elderly woman and a housewife, he mostly preys largely on sex workers. But--no woman is safe-- the fear real. And he's NOT the only one! WHO is Sean...

Part 3: Now deep into the murder motive, each of the suspects are investigated and the evidence scrutinized fully.  Who had a motive and opportunity to commit murder?  Who benefitted from the death of Amy Robsart? Given the court verdict, what happened to the suspects?  And Jill shares her theory on how Lady Dudley, Amy Robsart died! 2nd cast looks ahead to 1567: Seven year later, Elizabeth I's co...

Part 2: Jill discusses Crimecon 2023 in Orlando!  Being on Podcast Row, meeting her Murder Bookies and meeting so many in the True Crime community! ~Then, she continues the story of Lady Amy Robsart, found dead at the bottom of the stairs.  In every royal court in Europe, and across every town and hamlet in England, the people of England wonder what to believe of their beautiful, young and unmarri...

Part 1: 1560: Tudor England. Amidst rumors of adultery, poisoning divorce, and murder, Lady Amy Dudley, nee Robsart, was found dead at the foot of the stairs. Immediately, suspicion fell upon her husband, Lord Robert Dudley, favorite of the newly ascended Queen of England, Elizabeth I. Had he done away with his wife to marry the Queen?  The investigation, interviews, interrogations, and inquest do...

And find Jill on PODCAST ROW AT CRIMECON 2025 DENVER!!!  So EXCITED! Use cod  murdershelf  and save 10% on your badge!  www.crimecon.com/CC25   UPDATE!  We met Russ Faria after he was charged with the murder of his wife, Betsy.  Wrongfully convicted, Russ spend 3 years in prison, until he was finally exonerated (Ep 40-44). Enter new DA, Mike Wood, who begins investigating the investigators for cor...

Part 4: Our author, the " most prolific cold case investigator in the United States for single-event homicides" , Chief Clay Bryant chats with Jill, discussing his cold case investigations and a bit on life itself.  His common sense and down to earth brilliance shines through, as Clay shares moments that simply take your breath away— What were the odds THAT could have happened? Get the inside stor...

Part 3: We see Connie Quedens ensnaring Fred Wilderson in her web, entangling finances, escalating demands, culminating with Fred abruptly vanished, leaving his beloved daughter and son behind. Who had a life insurance policy on Fred?  Connie.  But nothing tied her to his disappearance.  17 yrs later, Clay Bryant begins to investigate this cold case, and he finds a witness that sets the case on fi...

A horrendously abused wife, Gwendolyn Moore, is found at the bottom of an old well in 1970. The investigation deliberately went nowhere, for 32 years. Pt 2 tells the story, begun in 2003, with a chance phone call that brought the case to the attention of Investigator Clay Bryant, who not only recalled the case; he watched her body being recovered that terrible day, as a teenager!!    Delving in, C...

Part 1: Back in 1970, the beaten body of a young wife and mother was lifted from an old well just outside Hogansville, Georgia.  The victim, Gwendolyn Moore, had long been married to her violent and abusive husband, Marshall Moore.  Yet, mysteriously, this homicide investigation went cold the day Gwendolyn died, with Hogansville Chief of Police, Buddy Bryant, haunted by the case for decades. 32 ye...

Pt 3: What happens when you are on Death Row?  How does the appeal process work?  What is the human toll?  Is it justice?  We will follow Velma's loved ones as they struggle with new revelations and hear from the families of the victims as human endurance is tested.  Jill walks you through Velma Barfield's maze of appeals, arguments for a new trial, and the final emotional outcome.  And Jill tells...

In Part 2, on trial for premeditated murder, Velma Barfield's attorney, Bob Jacobson has an uphill battle—she confessed to poisoning Stuart Taylor- and 3 other people . With the defense team facing the "World's most deadly prosecutor" Joe Freeman Britt, only Velma could explain herself. Was she too impaired from her drug abuse to understand what she was doing?  Would she sway the jurors? Could thi...

Part 1: After a childhood of poverty and abuse, 17-year-old Margie Velma Bullard eloped with Senior Thomas Burke while they were both in high school. Building a happy life, they welcomed a son and daughter, becoming a normal American family. That is, until addiction reared its ugliness, triggering a cascade of painful, inexplicable deaths. Why did so many people around Velma die? Then, the world i...

Part 4: Jill chats with the author of She Married the Green River Killer, Pennie Wood. The women speak of serendipity in forging friendships and healing, while uncovering lost memories from Judith Ridgway's life that enabling the construct the book. Truth revealed, they delve into the normality of Gary Ridgway's dual life, the roots of his murderous deviance, and a marriage made in deception. Do n...

Part 3: Denial shattered forever, Gary Ridgway confesses and is sentenced, enveloping wife Judith with the incomprehensible reality- Her Prince Gary did it.  Ridgway best friends, Jim and Linda Bailey share their remembrances; then Gary Ridgway shares, providing disturbing insights. What did he tell Judith, who emerges from the Dark Ages, reborn as she builds a new life, her personal Renaissance....

Part 2: Happily married, Judith Ridgway settles into being the wife of her Prince, Gary Ridgway, nurturing their dogs and cats, her daughters, grandchildren, and Gary's son.  Living the American dream, Judith gardens and Gary works hard and attends union meetings, life is good—until it all abruptly ends: Gary is arrested for killing 48 women.  World imploding, with him denying he is the killer, Ju...

Part 1: This story begins on the worst day of Judith Ridgway's life, when detectives came to her home after her husband of 14 year, Gary Leon Ridgway, was arrested. DNA evidence would tie him to victims of the notorious Green River Killer, murdering for over 20 years.  Completely shell shocked, Judith is in denial. How had she gotten here? There's no way Gary did this! Jill examines Judith's life,...

Part 3: Convicted in the Natalie Kirov case, Joel Courtney is finally extradited to Oregon to stand trial for the murder of Brooke Wilberger.  With no body, Prosecutors knew this was not the easiest case to win. What shenanigans will Courtney pull? Police and the media begin examining other cases that could possibly be linked to Courtney- Katie Eggleston, Stephanie Condon, Leah Freeman, and Kristi...

Part 2: Brooke Wilberger is missing.  The eager public cooperates fully, sending in over 4500 tips that need investigating, with critical evidence buried in the pile. Of the number of suspects, the most viable is Sung Koo Kim, a man with an underwear fetish, and a trove of evidence on his computer.  But then, a phone call from New Mexico changes everything! There was a similar case in Albuquerque,...

Part 1: 19-year-old Brooke Wilberger lit up the room when she walked in.  She'd just completed her 1st year at Brigham Young University and coming home to her big LDS family in Veneta, Oregon. May 24, 2004, while cleaning lampposts at the apartment complex her sister managed, Brooke vanished.  The resulting investigation would unify the town of Corvallis, Oregon in their determination to find Broo...

Part 3: The murder count continues to rise, as killing spreads to San Antonio, Gainesville, and all the way to London, England, where 5 women are slaughtered. With fallout impacting every aspect of society, devastating secrets are revealed, leading to shocking trials, which have electrifying legal and political consequences for the people of Austin and their leaders that last through the next two...

Part 2: Like phantoms, a killer or killers walks among the people of Austin, Tx.  Desperately seeking solutions, blood hounds, private detectives, and the famous Chicago Pinkerton Detective Agency are employed to catch the 'remarkable ghoul', who slaughters women, vanishing in the inky darkness.  Fear continues to rise as the victims shift from black servant women to white society wives, death the...

Part 1: It is 1884 and Austin, Tx is poised at the precipice of a new Golden Age, shifting from a frontier town to a cosmopolitan city of culture and prosperity.  Until a shadow grows, threatening everything as the slaughter of black servant women begins. Terrified, the community demands the murderous gang be caught, but with multiple arrests of suspects, the jail remains empty. Who is the servant...

Merry Christmas, Murder Bookies! UPDATE on Ep 40-44! This is a very special Christmas mini-cast! We met Russ Faria, convicted of murdering his wife, Betsy Faria in 2011 when we covered the book, Bone Deep by Charles Bosworth and Joel Schwartz, Epi 40-44.  Eventually, Russ was exonerated, as the case took a major twist!  Now, the case continues to turn once again, with a new announcement by Lincoln...

Part 3: The fate of the five Jurgens kids falls to the court to determine, as another trial that creates the legal foundation of battered child syndrome takes place. This eases the way for murder charges against Lois Jurgens, as family ties and memories are tested. Does justice for Dennis Jurgens happen after 22 years?  How has society changed after all this? Has it?   Sources, notes, photographs,...

Part 2: With Lois's mental health deteriorating, a hearing explores the question, should Lois and Harold Jurgens keep custody of their 5-year-old adopted son, Robert after the death of this brother, Dennis.  Meanwhile, as more children die, three medical professionals' team up to try to understand why children were being killed by their seemingly loving parents, founding the medical concept of "ba...