The Escape Pod

Bad (PTA) Moms - EscapeBite ep.2

Bad (PTA) Moms 
 
Summary of Episode 
The movie “Bad Moms” portrayed PTA parents as crazy, controlling, and conniving – but all in good fun. (It is a movie, after all.) It wasn’t nearly as funny when three PTA moms in southern California scammed millions of dollars from real people, including fellow PTA members. They got away with it for a time but couldn’t escape the consequences of their scheme. Learn more about the case in this week’s Escape Bite mini-sode.  
 
Resources & Links 
 
https://archive.findlaw.com/blog/calif-pta-moms-arrested-for-ponzi-scheme/ 
https://laist.com/news/this-aint-no-bake-sale-pta-moms-cha 
https://www.dailybulletin.com/2012/04/30/two-diamond-bar-women-get-three-years-for-pta-ponzi-scheme/ 
 
 
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Blind Faith, Pt. 2 (Mica Miller’s Story) – Ep. 68

The second installment of our four-part series, “Blind Faith,” delves deeper into the second marriage of a Carolina pastor to a young woman he may have wooed – or groomed – when she was just a teen and he was married with children. What initially appeared to be true love became truly terrifying. In this edition of The Escape Pod, the co-hosts examine the disturbing behaviors that characterized the marriage and may have led to Mica Miller’s untimely and tragic death. 
BE ADVISED: This episode includes discussion of violence against women and suicide. 
 
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers: 
Topic #1         :01 Recap of Part 1 and intro to Part 2 
Topic #2       9:25 2011: Meet 15-year-old Mica 
Topic #3     18:18 January 2023: Couple separates 
Topic #4     35:45 Mica calls 911 – on the day of her death 
Topic #5     42:58 Escapism, co-host-style  
 
Resources & Links 
   
Alison Miller (Solid Rock Church) 
 
Mica Miller: Mica Miller Obituary 
'Raped by Demons:' Myrtle Beach Pastors Accused of Sexual, Psychological Abuse 
John-Paul Miller ‘Felt Like He Owned’ Mica, Father Says  
John Paul Miller Says He is Not to Blame in Wife’s Death 
Everything We Know About the Mica Miller Case 
Fisherman Who Found Mica Miller’s Belongings Reportedly Killed in Car Wreck 
VIDEO: New Lawsuit Alleges Pastor John Paul Miller Attacked Underage Girls 
Major Update in Mica Miller Case Three Months After Her Death 
Mica Miller 911 Call Shortly Before Her Death 
Mica Miller’s Pastor Husband Arrested on Assault Charge Days After FBI Searched His Home 
Alison Miller Court Filing 
Alison Miller Affidavit 
Mica Miller Case: Strangulation Allegations Surface 
Officials Release New Details Surrounding Mica Miller’s Death 
Mica Miller’s Family Pleads for More Investigation 
Court Documents Filed with Horry County 
JPM Posts Private Pic of Wife in Retaliation  
Mica’s Husband Groomed Her for Years 
Domestic Abuse Incident Report 
Family Of Mica Miller Seeks Domestic Violence Reform 
Mica Miller Timeline of Events: Sirens Podcast 
Mica Miller’s death ‘doesn’t add up’: Family 
Mica’s Obituary 
Crazy Video of John Paul Demonstrating Possible Mental Illness 
Friends Grieve Mica Miller's Death 
Teen's Rape Claim Against John Paul Miller 
“No Man is Without Sin” 
 
 
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General mail: justbecause@escapepod.live  
Submit listener stories: escapeartist@escapepod.live 
 
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Competency, Culpability, and an ‘Insane’ Criminal Case - EscapeBite ep.1

When a common person uses the term “insane” or “incompetent” to describe someone, they’re rarely using the same standard as that of a lawyer or judge in a court of law. The Escape Pod’s own former news reporter-turned-podcast co-host can testify to this, using the example of a South Dakota kidnapping/murder case she first covered 20+ years ago. 
 
Resources & Links 
 
State vs. Tiegen (2008 appeal) 
https://rapidcityjournal.com/article_aa584242-94b1-5ffb-aa4c-7460348af576.html 
https://rapidcityjournal.com/news/local/more-kidnapping-charges-filed-in-troy-klug-case/article_781f7e59-4ead-5cc1-bf91-2e3c72dfb690.html 
https://rapidcityjournal.com/news/local/top-stories/kindall-faces-victim-s-mother-at-sentencing/article_7277899f-383f-5072-844a-2a1d0d827c19.html 
 
Sign up to be a Patron today! Get access to the Patron-Only Facebook Group, Bonus Episodes, and more.  
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Do you have a story that you want to share with EscapePod? Or do you just want to reach out to us with your comments and thoughts?  
General mail: justbecause@escapepod.live  
Submit listener stories: escapeartist@escapepod.live 
 
On Social Media 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EscapePod.traumedy 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/escape_pod_podcast/ 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Escape_Pod_podcast/videos 

Blind Faith, Pt. 1 (Mica Miller’s Story) – Ep. 67

Call it love. Call it blind faith. Call it the result of a predator getting the best of his prey. 
A young woman who appeared happily married claims to be trapped in a controlling, manipulative relationship. She begs for help, but no one listens. Instead, she's publicly shamed – painted as crazy and unhinged. Her pastor husband couldn’t be the bad guy, right? This isn’t a classic case of a respected position covering up a true crime, is it? Step into The Escape Pod for the first in a four-part series about a woman who escaped a predatory and manipulative husband but did so in the worst possible way. 
 
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers: 
Topic #1       1:03 Meet (and SEE) the co-hosts  (video version of podcast is now on YouTube, Episode 67+
Topic #2       6:20 Meet the main characters in this tale of true crime 
Topic #3     14:25 Divorce and remarriage 
Topic #4     27:08 Escapism, co-host-style 
 
Resources & Links 
   
Alison Miller (Solid Rock Church) 
Mica Miller: Mica Miller Obituary 
'Raped by Demons:' Myrtle Beach Pastors Accused of Sexual, Psychological Abuse 
John-Paul Miller ‘Felt Like He Owned’ Mica, Father Says  
John Paul Miller Says He is Not to Blame in Wife’s Death 
Everything We Know About the Mica Miller Case 
Fisherman Who Found Mica Miller’s Belongings Reportedly Killed in Car Wreck 
VIDEO: New Lawsuit Alleges Pastor John Paul Miller Attacked Underage Girls 
Major Update in Mica Miller Case Three Months After Her Death 
Mica Miller 911 Call Shortly Before Her Death 
Mica Miller’s Pastor Husband Arrested on Assault Charge Days After FBI Searched His Home 
Alison Miller Court Filing 
Alison Miller Affidavit 
Mica Miller Case: Strangulation Allegations Surface 
Officials Release New Details Surrounding Mica Miller’s Death 
Mica Miller’s Family Pleads for More Investigation 
Court Documents Filed with Horry County 
JPM Posts Private Pic of Wife in Retaliation  
Mica’s Husband Groomed Her for Years 
Domestic Abuse Incident Report 
Family Of Mica Miller Seeks Domestic Violence Reform 
Mica Miller Timeline of Events: Sirens Podcast 
Mica Miller’s death ‘doesn’t add up’: Family 
Mica’s Obituary 
Crazy Video of John Paul Demonstrating Possible Mental Illness 
Friends Grieve Mica Miller's Death 
Teen's Rape Claim Against John Paul Miller 
“No Man is Without Sin” 
 
 
Sign up to be a Patron today! Get access to the Patron-Only Facebook Group, Bonus Episodes, and more.  
https://www.escapepod.live 
 
Do you have a story that you want to share with EscapePod? Or do you just want to reach out to us with your comments and thoughts?  
General mail: justbecause@escapepod.live  
Submit listener stories: escapeartist@escapepod.live 
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YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Escape_Pod_podcast/videos
 

Murders in the Middle of Nowhere – Ep. 66

A nature reserve and popular party place in the middle-of-nowhere becomes the scene of mass murder in the fall of 1973: four teens are killed; a fifth escapes death but is victimized in other ways – by her friends’ killers and, later, by small-town conspiracy theorists who suspect she was in on the crime. In time, though, this survivor gets to tell her own story of escape and finds healing in doing so. The co-hosts travel back more than 50 years – to the place where the “Gitchie Girl” got her name – for this edition of The Escape Pod. 
 
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers: 
Topic #1        8:27 An escape artist with South Dakota ties 
Topic #2     15:20 Setting the scene 
Topic #3     23:03 Bodies found 
Topic #4     32:55 Sandra tells her story 
Topic #5     44:10 Escapism, co-host-style! 
 
Resources & Links 
The Fryer Brothers 
The Gitchie Manitou Murders | 4 Teens Murdered in Iowa 50 Years Ago 
What We Know About the 1973 Gitchie Manitou Mass Murder 
Sole Survivor of Brutal 1973 Slayings Finds Strength to Tell Her Story 
3 Brothers Armed With Shotguns Killed 4 South Dakota Teens In A ‘Mind-Blowing’ Mass Murder 
The Fryer Brothers 
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Do you have a story that you want to share with EscapePod? Or do you just want to reach out to us with your comments and thoughts?  
General mail: justbecause@escapepod.live  
Submit listener stories: escapeartist@escapepod.live 

A Very Matter-of-Fact Murder – Ep. 65

A familiar face on the streets of Grand Junction, Colorado, goes missing in February 2021. Known as “The Reading Man,” Warren Barnes is described as kind and helpful by those who saw him daily at his favorite place to read. Just days after the man's disappearance, a mom makes a gruesome discovery while cleaning her 19-year-old son’s bedroom. But it makes no sense: her son, diagnosed with autism as a child, had never been violent towards anyone and had no connection to The Reading Man. Is there a plausible explanation for what she finds? Or is this a clear case of murder committed by a very matter-of-fact murderer? The co-hosts explore the possibilities in this edition of The Escape Pod. 
  
BE ADVISED: You can’t escape the grizzly details of this truly heinous true crime. This episode contains content that listeners may find extremely disturbing. 
 
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers: 
Topic #1        4:30 Secret Service contacts The Escape Pod? (True story!) 
Topic #2     10:18 A mom’s disturbing discovery 
Topic #3     19:52 Confession 
Topic #4     30:37 The Reading Man 
Topic #5     40:42 Escapism, co-host-style! 
 
Resources & Links 
Warren Barnes 
US Teen Hid Head of Homeless Man He Murdered in Closet To Satisfy "Fascination With Morbid" 
Brian Cohee’s Mom Takes Stand 
Killer of Warren Barnes, Grand Junction’s “reading man,” sentenced to life in prison 
Mom Finds Severed Head in Her Son's Room 
Chilling Moment Killer Confessed to Storing Victim’s Severed Head in His Closet 
Grand Junction resident Warren Barnes, aka “the reading man” sits alone reading a book in an alley off Main Street in downtown Grand Junction on June 24, 2018. (William Woody, Special to The Colorado Sun) 
The teen accused of murdering Warren Barnes, known as the reading man of Grand Junction, told investigators he targeted a homeless person because he thought no one would miss. But people did, indeed, miss him. Friends commissioned a tribute to Barnes that was installed Nov. 20, 2021, by artist and ironworker Tim Navin. (Nancy Lofholm, Special to The Colorado Sun) 
Brian Cohee, Jr., Mesa County Jail Photo 
 
 
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Protecting Our Kids, Pt. 2 – Ep. 64

“You can trust your kid all you want, but do you trust the world with your kid?” 
Back by popular demand, Hollie Strand of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force returns to The Escape Pod to help us help our kids escape – or at least better navigate – the very real dangers of the digital world. Hollie offers tips to start these tough conversations with kids of all ages (FYI – if you’re waiting until they’re teens to talk about it, you’re waiting WAY too long), as well as insight into the depth and breadth of our digital footprints. For example, did you know digital “exhaust” is a thing? Neither did the co-hosts, until now! 
This is a must-listen follow-up to our first meeting with Hollie. If you missed Episode 57, check it out at the link below. 
 
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers: 
Topic #1        1:40 A podcast that has one co-host all fired up! 
Topic #2     11:00 (Re)introducing podcast guest Hollie Strand 
Topic #3     20:20 Digital “exhaust” explained 
Topic #4     30:56 “Technology is a tool, not a lifestyle” 
Topic #5    45:18 Co-host gets a high-five from Hollie 
Topic #6     52:08 Hollie’s Rule of Fives 
 
Resources & Links 
Escape Pod Episode 57 with Hollie Strand: https://escapepodtraumedy.podbean.com/e/protecting-our-kids-the-real-dangers-of-their-digital-world-%e2%80%93-ep-57/ 
Children’s Home Society “What If” Cards: https://chssd.org/prevention/what-if-cards 
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Do you have a story that you want to share with EscapePod? Or do you just want to reach out to us with your comments and thoughts?  
General mail: justbecause@escapepod.live  
Submit listener stories: escapeartist@escapepod.live 

The Wrong Kind of TLC – Ep. 63

In the spring of 2023, police in the U.K. found the most unlikely of overdose victims: a well-liked, well-respected couple in their 60s. Initially, investigators considered that the deaths might be the result of suicide or an accident, but then – as one co-host likes to say – their “Spidey senses” kicked in, turning their attention toward a caregiver who may have been providing the wrong kind of TLC. This week, The Escape Pod goes back more than a decade before the Baxters’ untimely deaths for a cautionary tale about who we choose to trust. 
 
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers: 
Topic #1         :30 MIL saga continues – with a funny twist 
Topic #2     12:28 Meet the Baxters 
Topic #3     19:08 Investigation turns up treasure trove of interesting tidbits 
Topic #4     29:53 Escaping children who mock their mothers 
 
Resources & Links 
Man posed as doctor to befriend couple before 'poisoning them' 
Luke D'Wit: Sinister double murderer jailed 
Luke D’Wit: How a double killer plotted the deaths of his trusting ... 
Fears 'fentanyl murderer' who poisoned married couple may also ... - LBC 
Luke D’Wit-Baxter Murders 
Fentanyl Killer Luke D’Wit 
Carol and Stephen Baxter Murders: Where is Luke D’Wit Now? 
 
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https://www.escapepod.live 
 
Do you have a story that you want to share with EscapePod? Or do you just want to reach out to us with your comments and thoughts?  
General mail: justbecause@escapepod.live  
Submit listener stories: escapeartist@escapepod.live