️Content Warning: This episode contains detailed discussion of abduction, violence against women, and murder. Listener discretion is strongly advised.

They called themselves "the Toolbox Killers." But before they had a name, before the tape recorder, before the tools — there were two men who found each other inside a California prison and made a pact that would shock even the most hardened FBI profilers for decades to come.

In Part 1 of this two-part series, we go deep into one of the most disturbing true crime cases in American history—the murders carried out by Lawrence Sigmund Bittaker and Roy Lewis Norris in the summer of 1979 along the Southern California coast.

We start at the beginning. Who were these men? We trace the chilling biography of Lawrence Bittaker — a man with a tested IQ of 138 who spent his life exploiting every system he touched, racking up convictions from car theft to assault, slipping through the cracks of a justice system that failed again and again to see the predator underneath. Then we meet Roy Norris—convicted rapist, follower, and the man who would become Bittaker's willing instrument.

We walk you through their meeting inside the California Men's Colony in San Luis Obispo, where the two men didn't just become friends—they planned. They discussed, in explicit and meticulous detail, a shared fantasy: to abduct, torture, and kill one teenage girl for every year of a teen's age—one 13-year-old, one 14-year-old, all the way through 19. They called it a "project." They bought a silver GMC cargo van they nicknamed "Murder Mac." They installed a mattress. They mounted hooks in the ceiling.

They were ready.

We cover the first two confirmed murders—16-year-old Cindy Schaefer, abducted while walking to her grandmother's house in Redondo Beach, and 18-year-old Andrea Joy Hall, a hitchhiker who accepted a ride she could never have known would be her last. We discuss what happened to them with the gravity and respect these young women deserve, and what the evidence later revealed about their final hours.

And then—they kept driving. The van kept rolling up and down the Pacific Coast Highway. And Lawrence Bittaker was already watching the sidewalks.

This is not a story for the faint of heart. It is a story about institutional failure, about predatory partnerships, about the terrifying reality that evil can organize and plan and wait. It is a story we owe it to Cindy, Andrea, and the other victims to tell — with honesty, with detail, and without looking away.

Part 2 coming next week.

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#TrueCrime #ToolboxKillers #LawrenceBittaker #RoyNorris #SerialKiller #TrueCrimePodcast #ColdCase #CindySchaefer #AndreaHall #MurderMac #CaliforniaCrimes #1979Murders #TrueCrimeCommunity #SerialKillerHistory #CrimeJunkie #TrueCrimeJunkie #PodcastRecommendations #DarkHistory #PCHMurders #TrueCrimeAddict

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Joey Banis was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison. Jeffrey Mundt was acquitted of murder and released after one year. Same crime. Same house. Same body buried in the same basement. Two men who pointed at each other across three years of legal proceedings — and two juries that reached completely opposite conclusions.

In Part 2 of Buried Under Fourth Street, Kris and Rob go inside the courtrooms for the 2013 trials of Jeffrey Mundt and Joey Banis for the murder of Louisville hairstylist and drag queen Jamie Carroll — the case at the center of HBO's 2026 docuseries Murder in Glitterball City. [Start Part 1 Here]

We cover the February 2013 trial of Joey Banis, in which Mundt testified against him and the jury returned a guilty verdict on murder, robbery, and tampering with evidence. We cover the deal Banis struck to avoid the death penalty — giving up his right to appeal in exchange for life with the possibility of parole after twenty years. And then we cover the moment that changed everything in Jeffrey Mundt's May 2013 trial: a videotaped confession found on Banis's own computer, in which Banis appeared to admit to the killing, that the jury used to acquit Mundt of murder entirely.

We ask the question Louisville has been asking ever since: who really killed Jamie Carroll?

Detective Collin King, who worked the case from the night of the 911 call, put it plainly — both men were complicit. Banis's attorney went on record saying the jury got it completely wrong. And Jeffrey Mundt, after completing his probation in the mid-2010s, has not been publicly seen or heard from since. His whereabouts are unknown.

Joey Banis remains incarcerated at the Southeast State Correctional Complex in Wheelwright, Kentucky. His first opportunity for parole is June 2, 2030.

Jamie Carroll was a hairstylist, a drag queen known as Ronica Reed, and a beloved member of Louisville's LGBTQ+ community. He was 37 years old. He deserved to go home that December night in 2009. At Hitched 2 Homicide, we are committed to remembering how he lived — not just how he died.

Hitched 2 Homicide is hosted by thriller author Kris Calvert and Emmy-nominated composer Rob Pottorf. New episodes every week. Til death do us part.

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The content presented in this podcast and any associated video, blog, or social media is produced for entertainment and informational purposes only. Hitched 2 Homicide is not a legal authority, and nothing contained herein constitutes legal advice, factual findings, or editorial conclusions of any kind. All opinions expressed are solely those of the hosts and do not represent the views of any affiliated network, platform, or sponsor.

All cases discussed are researched using publicly available sources, open records, court documents, and archived materials. We make every effort to ensure accuracy; however, we make no warranties — express or implied — regarding the completeness or reliability of the information presented.

PRESUMPTION OF INNOCENCE
All individuals referenced in connection with pending or concluded criminal matters are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. All individuals referenced in connection with pending or concluded civil matters are presumed not liable unless and until adjudicated otherwise by a court of competent jurisdiction.

FAIR USE
Some material incorporated into this podcast is presented under the Fair Use doctrine (17 U.S.C. § 107) for purposes of commentary, criticism, and education. Copyright in such material is retained by the respective original author or rights holder. Hitched 2 Homicide makes no claim of ownership over third-party copyrighted content.

OUR COMMITMENT TO VICTIMS
At Hitched 2 Homicide, we are committed to honoring the lives of the victims at the center of every case we cover — not just the circumstances of their deaths. We approach each story with respect for victims, their families, and their loved ones, and we strive to ensure that every person we discuss is remembered as a whole human being first.

All sources relied upon in the production of each episode are credited to the best of our ability. Any errors brought to our attention will be promptly corrected.

Hitched 2 Homicide. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Jamie Carroll murder Louisville Kentucky, Jeffrey Mundt trial acquitted, Joey Banis convicted life in prison, Murder in Glitterball City HBO, 1435 South 4th Street Louisville, Old Louisville Victorian mansion murder, drag queen murder Kentucky, Louisville true crime 2009, Banis confession video trial, Kentucky true crime podcast, Hitched 2 Homicide, Ronica Reed drag queen, true crime podcast southern, Joey Banis parole 2030, Jeffrey Mundt whereabouts unknown

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In December 2009, a Louisville hairdresser and beloved drag queen named Jamie Carroll walked into a Victorian mansion in Old Louisville — and never walked out. For seven months, he lay buried beneath the basement floor while the two men who killed him went on with their lives above his grave. Nobody reported him missing. Nobody came looking. Until a 911 call, a domestic dispute, and four words spoken in the back of a squad car changed everything.

In Part 1 of Buried Beneath Fourth Street, Kris and Rob introduce you to Jamie Carroll — hairstylist by day, drag queen Ronica Reed by night — and to the two men at the center of one of Kentucky's most twisted true crime cases: Jeffrey "Jase" Mundt, the polished IT professional hiding a dangerous double life, and Joey Banis, the persistent felon fresh out of prison who was tangled up with Jamie long before he ever moved into that mansion on South 4th Street.

We lay out the love triangle, the fatal December night, the horrifying cover-up, and the thread that finally unraveled everything — from a counterfeit $100 bill at a Chicago hotel to the words that sent detectives straight to that basement floor.

In this episode:

• Who was Jamie Carroll? Hairstylist. Drag queen Ronica Reed. A man everyone loved.
• Who were Jeffrey Mundt and Joey Banis? Two very different men bound together by drugs and obsession.
• The love triangle that ignited a deadly night in December 2009
• The cover-up inside the mansion at 1435 South 4th Street
• The Chicago counterfeiting arrest that started the unraveling
• The 911 call, the squad car, and the words that cracked the case wide open

Hitched 2 Homicide is hosted by thriller author Kris Calvert and Emmy-nominated composer Rob Pottorf. Real cases. Real crimes. Til death do us part.

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DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY

The content presented in this podcast and any associated video, blog, or social media is produced for entertainment and informational purposes only. Hitched 2 Homicide is not a legal authority, and nothing contained herein constitutes legal advice, factual findings, or editorial conclusions of any kind. All opinions expressed are solely those of the hosts and do not represent the views of any affiliated network, platform, or sponsor.

All cases discussed are researched using publicly available sources, open records, court documents, and archived materials. We make every effort to ensure accuracy; however, we make no warranties — express or implied — regarding the completeness or reliability of the information presented.

PRESUMPTION OF INNOCENCE
All individuals referenced in connection with pending or concluded criminal matters are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. All individuals referenced in connection with pending or concluded civil matters are presumed not liable unless and until adjudicated otherwise by a court of competent jurisdiction.

FAIR USE
Some material incorporated into this podcast is presented under the Fair Use doctrine (17 U.S.C. § 107) for purposes of commentary, criticism, and education. Copyright in such material is retained by the respective original author or rights holder. Hitched 2 Homicide makes no claim of ownership over third-party copyrighted content.

OUR COMMITMENT TO VICTIMS
At Hitched 2 Homicide, we are committed to honoring the lives of the victims at the center of every case we cover — not just the circumstances of their deaths. We approach each story with respect for victims, their families, and their loved ones, and we strive to ensure that every person we discuss is remembered as a whole human being first.

All sources relied upon in the production of each episode are credited to the best of our ability. Any errors brought to our attention will be promptly corrected.

Hitched 2 Homicide. All rights reserved.

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She was 26 years old, self-employed, literate, and by every account exceptional. Bridget Cleary was a dressmaker in rural County Tipperary who made her own money, kept her own chickens, and lived life largely on her own terms — which, in 1895 Ireland, made her unusual. It may also have made her a target.

When Bridget fell ill in late February 1895, her husband Michael didn't call a doctor. He called Jack Dunne — a local man known throughout the community as an expert in fairy belief and folk cures. Dunne's diagnosis was swift and devastating: the woman in the bed was not the real Bridget Cleary. The fairies had taken her. What lay in that cottage was a changeling — a fairy impostor wearing his wife's face.

What followed was nine days of escalating ritualistic abuse, witnessed and participated in by Bridget's own father, her cousins, and her neighbors. There were multiple people in that cottage on the night of March 14th, 1895. There were multiple opportunities to stop what was happening. Nobody did.

Michael Cleary dragged his wife to the fireplace. He demanded she repeat her own name three times to prove she was human. She did. He didn't believe her. He held her over the flames, then seized a household oil lamp and poured the burning fuel over her body. Bridget Cleary died that night, burned beyond recognition, while the people who knew and loved her stood in the room and watched.

In this episode of Hitched 2 Homicide, we tell the complete story of the burning of Bridget Cleary — from the remarkable life she lived, to the fairy belief system that made her murder possible, to the cover-up, the shallow grave near a fairy fort, and the trial at Clonmel Assizes in July 1895 that sent nine people to the dock including her husband, her father, her cousins, her neighbors, and the so-called fairy expert Jack Dunne himself.

This is Irish true crime at its most haunting. It is a story about superstition and obsession, about community silence and female independence, about a woman who was too much herself in a world that couldn't handle it. And it is, ultimately, a story about what happens when the people who are supposed to protect you decide you are something other than human.

Bridget Cleary was not a fairy. She was not a changeling. She was a woman. And she deserved so much better than the world she lived in.

• CHAPTERS
• 00:00 Introduction
• 05:14 Who Was Bridget Cleary?
• 12:06 Fairy Belief in Victorian Ireland and Types of Fairies
• 24:26 The Illness and Jack Dunne's Diagnosis
• 28:53 Nine Days of Ritualistic Abuse
• 41:09 The Night of March 14th, 1895
• 47:03 The Cover-Up and the Shallow Grave
• 51:00 The Arrests — Nine People in the Dock
• 54:50 The Trial at Clonmel Assizes
• 59:52 The Verdicts and Sentences
• 1:03:38 Bless Your Heart

#BridgetCleary #IrishTrueCrime #TrueCrime #TrueCrimePodcast #Changeling #IrishHistory #FairyMurder #FolkHorror #VictorianIreland #Hitched2Homicide #MichaelCleary #JackDunne #DarkHistory #IrishFolklore #TrueCrimeCommunity

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*This is Part 2 of our series on the murder of Eric Richins. Start with Episode 1 if you haven't already.

March 4th, 2022. Eric Richins, a 39-year-old husband and father, is found dead in his Kamas, Utah home. Toxicology reveals illicit fentanyl at five times the lethal concentration. He had no history of drug use.

As the official investigation stalled, Kouri Richins — Eric's wife — quietly began filing claims on his life insurance policies. His family, unconvinced by the narrative she was spinning, hired a private investigator.

What he uncovered changed everything. A pattern of financial fraud. Evidence of infidelity. A motive that had been building for years inside what looked, from the outside, like an ordinary Utah marriage.

And then the friends started talking. The people Kouri had confided in, leaned on, and counted on to stand beside her, began telling Summit County authorities a very different story.

In Part 2 of Are You With Me? — The Poisoned Marriage and Murder of Eric Richins — we follow the private investigation, the witness accounts, and the moment the case shifted from a stalled inquiry to a homicide prosecution.

Chapters

• 00:00 — Introduction
• 05:26 — P.I. Todd Gabler finds Carmen Lauber connection
• 11:08 — Jeff O’Driscoll is the new detective on the case
• 14:16 — Police talk to Carmen Lauber who sings like a canary
• 23:43 — The Walk the Dog letter is discovered
• 35:20 — Meet Summit Co. Prosecutor Brad Bloodworth
• 36:52 — Kouri Richins trial begins
• 42:10 — The Orange Notebook
• 47:02 — Witnesses for the prosecution take the stand
• 49:16 — Kouri Richins ex-lover Josh Grossman takes the stand
• 52:15 — The defense rests without calling a single witness
• 53:40 — Kouri Richins found guilty
• 56:25 — Bless Your Heart

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All information contained in this audio podcast is provided for entertainment purposes only. The authors leave any and all conclusions to individual members of the audience. The author offers no statements of fact beyond those available through diligent private research or through information freely available in the public record. To the extent that pending or settled criminal matters or crime or possible crimes, are discussed in this audio podcast, all parties or defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law. To the extent that any pending or settled civil matters are discussed in this podcast, all parties or defendants are presumed not liable unless proven liable in a court of law. Copyright for material incorporated and presented under Fair Use is retained by the original author or copyright holder where applicable. Our cases are researched using open source and archive materials, and the subjects are real crimes and people. We strive to produce each episode with respect to the victims, their families and loved ones. At Hitched 2 Homicide we are committed to always discussing how victims lived, and not just how they died. All podcast information is gleaned from sources given. All opinions in the podcast are solely of Hitched 2 Homicide. 

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In March 2022, Eric Richins was found dead in his Kamas, Utah bedroom. He was 39. He had four children. And he had enough fentanyl in his system to kill four people. His wife, Kouri Richins, told investigators she found him unresponsive. But prosecutors told a different story — one involving forged documents, fraudulent mortgages, multiple life insurance policies, and what they alleged was a prior poisoning attempt months earlier. Then came the detail that stopped the country: while awaiting trial for her husband's murder, Kouri Richins published a children's book about coping with loss. It was called "Are You With Me?" This podcast covers the full arc of the Richins case — from the marriage that unraveled into financial ruin, to the trial that transfixed Utah in 2024.

For fans of true crime podcasts covering domestic homicide, poisoning cases, and high-profile Utah criminal trials.

sources used for this podcast: https://www.hitched2homicide.com/post/kouri-richins-eric-richins

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Content Warning: This episode contains detailed discussion of serial murder, sexual sadism, fetishistic violence, the abduction and killing of young women, and disturbing descriptions of post-mortem criminal behavior. Some details may be graphic and are not suitable for all listeners. Please take care of yourself and listen at your own discretion.

He seemed like any other married man in 1960s Oregon — a job, a wife, a house in the suburbs. But behind closed doors, Jerry Brudos was keeping secrets that would make him one of the most disturbing serial killers in American history.

In this episode of Hitched 2 Homicide, we dig into the case of Jerome Henry Brudos — the "Lust Killer" — a man whose obsession with women's shoes and clothing began in childhood and escalated into kidnapping, murder, and the unthinkable. What does it take for a husband and father to lead a double life this dark? And how did investigators finally catch up with him?

We're covering it all: his deeply troubled childhood, his volatile marriage, the murders of at least four young women in the Salem, Oregon area, and the investigation that brought him down. Trigger warning: this episode contains graphic descriptions of violence, sexual sadism, and disturbing criminal behavior.

Hitched 2 Homicide explores the intersection of marriage, domesticity, and deadly crime. New episodes every week.

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Subscribe, leave a review, and tell a true crime friend.

sources used for this podcast: https://www.hitched2homicide.com/post/jerry-brudos-shoe-fetish-killer

Jerry Brudos, Lust Killer, Oregon serial killer, true crime podcast, female victims, serial killer wives, domestic killer, shoe fetish killer, 1960s murders, Salem Oregon murders, cold case, criminal psychology, hitched to homicide, hitched 2 homicide, married to a killer, serial killer marriages, dark history podcast

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She wasn’t a real doctor—but she convinced patients fasting would heal them, then starved them to death. From Minneapolis (1901) to Washington’s “Starvation Heights” and her 1911 arrest, we break down the victims, the fraud, and the shocking medical abuse behind Linda Hazzard.

sources used for this podcast: https://www.hitched2homicide.com/post/dr-linda-hazzard-the-starvation-doctor

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*This episode deals with the subject of domestic violence. Listener discretion is advised. If you or someone you know need help, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-SAFE  (800-799-7233).

A Texas mother of four, Suzanne Simpson, disappears after an alleged domestic dispute—and prosecutors later charge her husband, Brad Simpson, with murder in a case that has drawn intense scrutiny because it’s being pursued as a no-body homicide.

In this episode, we break down what’s publicly known so far: the reported timeline around Oct. 6, 2024, the early arrests and allegations, the murder charge filed on Nov. 7, 2024, and the pretrial fight over evidence and discovery. We also explain why prosecutors can move forward without recovered remains, what kinds of circumstantial proof typically become pivotal, and what to watch as the court calendar shifts following reports of a new wave of evidence.

We also cover the connected case involving Brad Simpson’s longtime business partner, James Cotter, who has faced charges reported as tampering with evidence and prohibited-weapon allegations tied to the investigation.

Episode topics:

·       Suzanne Simpson missing: what we know

·       Brad Simpson murder charge + indictment

·       Bexar County hearings, discovery deadlines, and delays

·       The James "Val" Cotter case and alleged evidence issues

·       How no-body murder cases are prosecuted

Listener note: This episode discusses alleged domestic violence, disappearance, and homicide. Brad Simpson is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. 

If someone has information about Suzanne Simpson’s whereabouts, call:

• Call the Olmos Park Police Department (tip line / dispatch): (210) 822-2000.
• Call the Texas Department of Public Safety Missing Persons Clearinghouse:
  • Phone: (512) 424-5074
  • Helpline: (800) 346-3243

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In of July 2007, 33-year-old Joey Lynn Offutt disappeared from Sykesville, Pennsylvania. Days later, her home caught fire—investigators believe the blaze was intentionally set. In the aftermath, Joey’s infant son was found deceased in a bathtub inside the burned home. Joey was not there, and she has never been found.

In this episode, we lay out the known timeline, what investigators have said publicly, and the key unanswered questions that continue to fuel this disturbing Pennsylvania cold case.

If you have information about Joey Lynn Offutt:
Pennsylvania State Police (PSP Punxsutawney): 814-371-4652
Anonymous tip line: 1-800-4PA-TIPS (1-800-472-8477)

*This episode contains discussion of an infant death, arson, and a missing person case. Some details may be disturbing. Listener discretion is advised.

Sources used for this podcast can be found here

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In April 2006, Kari Baker—a 31-year-old teacher and mother of two—was found dead inside her home in Hewitt, Texas, just outside Waco. The scene was initially treated as a suicide. But almost immediately, questions surfaced: the timeline, the circumstances, and whether what looked like self-harm was actually a staged scene meant to conceal a homicide.

In this episode, we unpack the full true crime story of Kari Baker’s death and the investigation that ultimately led to the conviction of her husband, Matt Baker, a Baptist minister whose public image didn’t match what prosecutors later argued was happening behind closed doors. We walk through the murder-or-suicide debate, the turning points that shifted the case from suspicion to charges, and the courtroom narrative that ended with a murder conviction and a 65-year sentence.

In This Episode

• Who Kari Baker and Matt Baker were in the Hewitt/Waco community
• What happened the night Kari was found—and what raised red flags
• How the case evolved from suicide to a homicide investigation
• The prosecution’s theory, key evidence themes, and trial outcome
• Why this case remains a defining example of staged death investigations, coercive control, and intimate partner violence

This episode includes discussion of domestic violence, coercive control, and homicide. Listener discretion is advised.

If you or someone you know needs help: National Domestic Violence Hotline (U.S.) 1-800-799-7233 or text START to 88788.

Kari Baker, Matt Baker, Hewitt Texas murder, Waco Texas true crime, Kari Baker case, murder or suicide, staged suicide, minister convicted of murder, Texas true crime podcast, domestic violence true crime, coercive control, McLennan County, 2006 Texas murder, ABC 20/20 Kari Baker, 48 Hours Matt Baker.

Subscribe for more victim-focused, timeline-driven true crime with clear case context and respectful reporting.

Sources used for this podcast: https://www.hitched2homicide.com/post/kari-baker-murdering-minister

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