Nobody Should Believe Me

This week we're sharing Andrea's extended Season 7 conversation with professor and author Alan Dettlaff. Together they explore the history of the child welfare system, the tension between protecting children and preserving families, and the difficult questions that emerge when both goals are in conflict. It's a thoughtful conversation that embraces complexity without pretending there are easy answ...

During our Season 7 conversation about the parents' rights movement, Andrea spoke with Professor Elizabeth Bartholet, who recently retired from Harvard Law School after more than three decades focused on child welfare, children's rights, and adoption. In this bonus episode, we're sharing more of that important conversation as they dig deeper into children's rights, the influence of advocacy groups...

In this extended conversation from season 7, Andrea sits down with journalist and author Roxanna Asgarian. Together, they explore how media narratives shape public understanding of child protective systems and the parents' rights movement. *** Try out Andrea’s Podcaster Coaching App: https://studio.com/apps/andrea/podcaster Order Andrea’s book The Mother Next Door: Medicine, Deception, and Munchau...

Andrea and Myrriah are back for part two of our season seven mailbag, revisiting some of the conversations that generated the most discussion this season. As they reflect on some of the biggest themes of season seven, they unpack ongoing debates around child abuse investigations, public perceptions of child welfare, and the stories we tell about families, medicine, and harm. Along the way, they di...

Andrea and executive producer Myrriah are back on the mic for part one of our season seven mailbag episode: answering listener questions, reflecting on the stories that resonated most this season, and sharing some behind-the-scenes thoughts on the reporting process. From the reactions to John Stewart and the Knowellan Kelly case to ongoing conversations about abusive head trauma, media narratives,...

Betrayal Weekly is back. Aaron was committed to supporting the woman he loved, no matter the cost. Then one day, he asked for receipts.   *** Listen to Betrayal Weekly: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/betrayal-weekly/id1615637724 If you would like to share your story, you can reach out to the Betrayal Team by emailing them at betrayalpod@gmail.com and follow them on Instagram at @betrayalpod...

In the season seven finale, Andrea spoke with Kyle about his experience surviving Munchausen by proxy abuse. In this bonus episode, we're sharing an extended cut of that conversation, giving Kyle the space to tell his story in full. Despite losing years of his childhood to abuse, Kyle's journey is ultimately one of extraordinary resilience, survival, and reclaiming his own story. *** Try out Andre...

In this bonus conversation, Andrea sits down with intimate partner violence researcher Jacquelyn Campbell to look at how complex issues like domestic violence and child abuse really are, compared to how simply they’re often portrayed. Together they explore what it might look like to intervene earlier and what it would take to build systems that recognize danger before tragedy strikes. *** Try out...

As we close our season, we hear from two people whose lives were forever altered by child abuse; and in doing so examine what’s really at stake when the media misrepresents child abuse cases and the work of child abuse doctors.   Featuring: Tara Haelle, Science Journalist *** Try out Andrea’s Podcaster Coaching App: https://studio.com/apps/andrea/podcaster Order Andrea’s book The Mother Next Door:...

In 1996, Sarah DeJonghe was a 20-year-old Navy Seabee stationed in Okinawa, Japan. Two guys in uniform approached her on base and invited her to church. She said no. They came back anyway. Four months later, Sarah was out of the Navy and on her way to a Bible seminary in Washington State. She didn't see it coming. Neither did the dozens of other military members who found themselves drawn into the...

As the media weaves a narrative about evil doctors kidnapping children: the real harms caused by the child welfare system go unnoticed. Today we look at the case for strengthening children's rights as well as the case for replacing the child welfare system altogether.   Featuring: Roxanna Asgarian, Child Welfare Journalist Elizabeth Bartholet, Professor of Law at Harvard Law School Alan Dettlaff,...

Why do all of these stories purporting false allegations of child abuse sound the same? If enough people have experienced the same thing, that must mean it’s true, right?  The truth is, as soon as you do a little digging, these cases begin to unravel. By taking a closer look into the cases featured in Serial’s The Preventionist and Mike Hixenbaugh’s Do No Harm, the copy and paste storytelling beco...

Stories of “false” allegations of child abuse build on each other to paint the picture of a widespread problem that can affect anyone who brings there child into a hospital. None have made more of an impact than those featured in Take Care of Maya. The first half of this season was dedicated to John Stewart, and 15-month-old Knowellan Kelly, but what about the other 3 families shown at the end of...

Child abuse pediatricians have become increasingly villainized in the media despite being among the most specialized and cautious doctors in child abuse medicine. Andrea looks at what these doctors actually do and why their role is so often misunderstood. Andrea also explores the rise of paid defense experts who offer alternative explanations in abuse cases that fall far outside the medical consen...

Infamous Bachelor Clayton Echard’s real drama began after the rose. He left the show disgraced and determined to start over. That’s when a one-night fling spiraled into a nightmare that would lead Clayton into a years-long battle to prove the truth. Host and reporter Stephani Young investigates the twisted case.    If you would like to reach out to the Love Trapped team, email them at lovetrappedp...

John Stewart is arrested shortly after Knowellan’s death, but despite what appears to be strong evidence of abuse, the case against John is never taken to court. Andrea traces how we ended up here, ten years later, with no one held accountable for taking the life of a child. Featuring Experts: Dr. Sally Smith, Child Abuse Pediatrician Mike Weber, Former Crimes Against Children Detective Dr. Cathy...

On Easter Sunday in 1993, the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility in Lucasville erupted into chaos. Tensions between prisoners and staff had reached a breaking point, sparking one of the longest prison sieges in U.S. history. Over eleven days, nine inmates and one corrections officer would lose their lives. But what caused the riot? And for the hundreds trapped inside, what did it mean to survive...

Investigators work to reconstruct Knowellan Kelly’s final hours in the care of John Stewart and his grandfather. John claims there is exculpatory evidence that proves he didn’t hurt Knowellen, but is that really the story the evidence tells?  Featuring: Dr. Sally Smith, Child Abuse Pediatrician Dr. Russell Vega, Medical Examiner *** Try out Andrea’s Podcaster Coaching App: https://studio.com/apps/...

After 15-month old Knowellan Kelly is rushed to the hospital following a seizure, doctors discover catastrophic injuries. Andrea walks through the medical evidence with experts whose findings point to repeated inflicted trauma. As investigators struggle to reconcile conflicting accounts from John Stewart and Knowellan’s mother and grandfather, a tangled web emerges.  Featuring: Dr. Sally Smith, Ch...

After John Stewart, a Florida man charged with–but never prosecuted for–the death of his girlfriend's 15-month old son reaches out to Andrea to tell her she’s all wrong about his case Andrea goes on a deep dive to find out what really happened to Knowellan Kelly, the baby who lost his life ten years ago. John–who was featured in Take Care of Maya–claims that doctors and investigators falsely accus...

Welcome to Season Seven of Nobody Should Believe Me. Andrea revisits the case of Maya Kowalski—the story at the center of the Netflix film Take Care of Maya–and the family’s high-profile lawsuit against Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. What became widely framed as a story about “medical kidnapping” began when hospital staff reported suspected medical child abuse after Maya arrived with a his...

Season 7 of the groundbreaking true crime podcast Nobody Should Believe Me investigates why so many Americans believe doctors are “medically kidnapping” children from innocent parents. Florida man John Stewart insists he was falsely accused of the murder of 15-month-old Knowellan Kelly—a story media outlets and documentary filmmakers have echoed in sympathetic portrayals. But a months-long investi...

In this final recap episode, we revisit the final months of Maya Kowalski’s sheltering at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital and the tragic events that followed. While the dependency case and abuse investigation continued, tensions within the Kowalski family were escalating. After a difficult court hearing in January 2017, Beata Kowalski died by suicide, leaving behind emails asking others to “...

In the third part of our Kowalski recap, Andrea walks through the events that led to Maya’s hospitalization and what hospital staff observed in those first days. As doctors quickly became concerned about both Maya’s condition and the unusual treatments she had been receiving, the hospital brought in a child abuse pediatrician and an investigation into possible medical child abuse began.  *** Try o...

In this episode, Andrea sheds light on the disconnect between the narrative presented publicly vs the medical records and trial testimony. She traces how ketamine became the driving force in Maya Kowalski’s treatment from Dr. Anthony Kirkpatrick. What followed was a rapid escalation: four-day ketamine infusions, increasingly alarming blog posts written in Maya’s voice, and ultimately a controversi...