True Crime Therapist

Step inside the criminal mind with renowned criminologist, Dr Scott Bonn. I really enjoyed this interview and he delivered with expert insights into my most burning questions about serial killers. In this episode, Dr Bonn - author, professor, and media commentator dives deep into the psychology of the most disturbing criminals including serial killers. His expert analysis and behind the scenes ins...

Jessica Reale, author of "I'm Not Broken Surviving the House Of Demons," experienced horrific child abuse by her mother abd stepfather, Larry. She and her sister, Alexa were forced to drink bleach milkshakes, which ultimately caused Alexa's death. Afterwards, Jessica was forced at gunpoint to watch her stepfather dismember Alex's body. In this episode, Jessica shares her story in graphic detail, a...

On January 1, 2022, 17 year old Olivia Passaretti was violently run off the road by a habitual offender who drove his car into hers at 90 MPH. Earlier that day, the offender had posted on Facebook his intent to cause harm to a stranger with his "benz" that night. This episode about the impact of this heinous crime on Olivia's mother, Janine Passaretti-Molloy, who has been fighting for justice whil...

In this episode, I speak with retired FBI agent, Jeff Rinek. During his 30 year career, Jeff investigated some of the worst child sexual crimes and murders. Listen in as Jeff explains how he subconsciously created "tapes" in his mind of the horrific details he saw at gruesome crime scenes. This exposure led to the development of PTSD including intrusive thoughts, mood changes, agitation, flashback...

Imagine your best friend and 7 other people are horrfiically murdered in a small town. There are 8 dead, four crime scenes and over 30 bullets. The local police didnt immediatly know who the killer or killers were creating a mass panic around Pike County, Ohio. There was mistrust, fear of retailation and the uncertainity of not knowing who was next. Whitney Galloways' best friend, Hannah Gilley, w...

I was curious about how women might take a different approach to studying the development of killers and investigating cold cases. This led to Dr Sasha Reid, a Canadian Developmental Psychologist, who created two databases to track down killers and find missing and murdered people.  In Spring of 2024, I attended Crime Con in Nashville, where Dr Reid was a guest speaker. She graciously agreed to si...

Holly K Dunn was raped, beaten, stabbed and left for dead. After recovering physically, Holly began the lifelong process of emotional healing. Holly shares her personal story in detail to promote trauma understanding, safety, awareness and to be an inspiration for recovery. In an effort to be a victim centered podcast, I wanted to create a safe space for Holly to share her story and discuss the tr...

In April of 1994, Consolee Nishimwe was an ordinary 14 year old girl living a happy life with her family in Rwanda. This was until April 7, 1994 when the Hutu majority went on a 100 killing spree with machettes murdering Tutsi women, men and children. During this period Hutu men also raped an estimated 100,000 to 250,000 Tutsi females. Consolee and her family were being hunted by Hutu's for 30 day...

Dr Robert Wolf takes us back to Hungary in 1944, when almost half a million Jewish Hungarians are deported to Auschwitz. He lost both his grandparents to the Nazis and his father narrowingly escaped the same fate. His father, Ervin Wolf, was forced into a brutal labor service and cut from the outside world. Dr Wolf was inspired to document this true story and never forget the memory of his family...

One day, while walking with my mother she mentioned the name "Gloria Coppola." I asked who is she? My mother explained that Gloria was a retired 35 year veteran of law enforcement from New York. She had worked all levels of police work from cold cases, homocides, crisis negotiations, false allegation investigations and served on the FBI Lewis Lent (child serial killer) task force. My mind wandered...

Masayo Halpin is a retired FBI agent specilizing in human trafficking. In this episode, True Crime Therapist, Melissa Rondeau, explores the victims backgrounds and the trauma bond between victim and trafficker. Masayo Halpin provides a transparent view of how working these cases triggered her own childhood vulnerabilites. This episode is a fascinating conversation to learn more about trauma, menta...

This podcast discusses situations that involve mature topics, including violence and sex. Listener discretion is advised.  Instead of focusing on those who commit heinous crimes, in this episode we speak with somone who helped to track them down. I had the priviledge to interview Julia Crowley, a retired FBI crimial profiler who spent 22 years investigating crimes and who was also a member of the...