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The Escape Pod
A traumedy about the trials and tribulations of people in their journeys of “escape”. Escape what, you ask? ALL the things! From trauma, crime, and unhealthy family cycles, to traffic and good deeds not going unpunished. Like we said—all the things! (Just tune in…you’ll understand.) Co-hosted by Julie Oberlander and Charity Doyle--the journalist and the rehabbed trainwreck--The Escape Pod aims to connect, educate, entertain, and humanize through the lens of lived experience.
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Episodes
Friday Oct 04, 2024
Friday Oct 04, 2024
The county’s top prosecutor returns to the Escape Pod this week with true tales from the courtroom that rival anything you’d see on a TV drama! Plus, the co-hosts ask for insight on a case out of Wisconsin, where a woman is behind bars for killing the man she said trafficked her for years.
WARNING: This episode includes content involving physical and sexual violence.
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers:
Topic #1 4:48 Woman fighting traffic violation gets feisty with the judge.
Topic #2 10:22 Courtroom couture? Not exactly.
Topic #3 22:18 WI: Trafficking survivor kills her alleged abuser.
Topic #4 41:44 Co-host is left truly speechless.
Resources & Links
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y87kpg8rpo
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/chrystul-kizer-sentenced-11-years-prison-killing-man-said-sexually-tra-rcna167226
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/milwaukee/2024/08/19/woman-charged-with-killing-her-suspected-sex-trafficker-receives-11-years-in-prison/74861586007/
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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
Friday Sep 27, 2024
Friday Sep 27, 2024
A California couple begins a whirlwind romance in 2014. When it ends, the woman sends a bizarre and threatening email to her ex. After he moves on and marries another woman a short time later, his new wife starts receiving threatening messages in her inbox as well. But the bad behavior doesn’t stop with threats. At one point, the wife reports being attacked in her own home, and law enforcement believes she’s the victim of a “rape fantasy” ad posted online.
We take the Escape Pod off-road this week for a tale of true crime that has truly “crazy exes” and more sharp turns than the co-hosts can count!
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers:
Topic #1 0:41 Escaping high stress, bad intentions, and teen lingo
Topic #2 10:03 California, 2014: Michelle and Ian begin a whirlwind romance
Topic #3 19:15 Suspect's lawyer and family begin their own investigation
Topic #4 25:52 Fast-forward 6 years for update on Ian
Topic #5 36:20 Escapism, co-host-style!
Resources & Links
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4257684/Michelle-Hadley-speaks-framed-jailed.html 2/24/2017
https://www.nbcnews.com/dateline/diabolical-scheme-woman-jailed-craigslist-rape-fantasy-plot-against-ex-n724881 2/24/2017
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/pocharaponneammanee/ian-angela-diaz-guilty-frame-sexual-assault 3/26/2023
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/michelle-hadley-da-says-rape-fantasy-attack-was-hoax-woman-arrested-was-framed/ 01/10/2017
https://ktla.com/news/local-news/ontario-woman-jailed-for-posing-as-exs-wife-to-post-rape-fantasy-ads-online-was-framed-orange-county-da/ 01/10/2017
https://news.yahoo.com/woman-framed-rape-fantasy-plot-120041983.html 03/27/2023
https://www.courthousenews.com/anaheim-settles-lawsuit-by-woman-framed-in-rape-fantasy-case/ 03/30/2021
https://ktla.com/news/local-news/woman-sentenced-to-5-years-after-framing-husbands-ex-fiancee-for-stalking-attempted-rape-in-o-c/ 10/17/2017
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ian-diaz-michelle-hadley-former-us-marshal-convicted-in-twisted-rape-fantasy-plot/ 03/24/2023
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-deputy-us-marshal-sentenced-cyberstalking-perjury-and-obstruction 06/30/2023
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
Friday Sep 20, 2024
Friday Sep 20, 2024
A 13-year-old is abducted in Texas and driven hundreds of miles from home; a 17-year-old is kidnapped in Florida and abused for 26 hours; a 15-year-old is taken in South Carolina by a man later identified as a serial killer. Rarely do such horrific crimes result in even a smidge of a happy ending, but these actually do! In fact, all three cases and others included in this episode put the spotlight directly on amazing young escape artists who kept their cool, outsmarted their captors, and survived to see justice served.
TRIGGER WARNING: This episode includes content involving crimes against children and teens.
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers:
Topic #1 3:04 Escaping school threats and house guests in unexpected places
Topic #2 19:12 Texas, 2023: 13yo abducted, driven to California
Topic #3 23:53 Florida, 1984: 17yo snatched while bicycling home from work
Topic #4 35:59 S.C., 2006: 14yo departed school bus, vanished
Topic #5 40:45 S.C., 2002: 15yo kidnapped from front yard of friend’s house
Topic #6 46:30 Teenage co-host hangs with motorcycle gang
Resources & Links
https://www.investigationdiscovery.com/crimefeed/news/kidnapping-victim-helps-orchestrate-her-own-rescue-by-holding-up-sign-saying-help-me Robin Raven. US Dept of Justice.
December 1,2022. Melinda Beck. https://www.aetv.com/real-crime/lisa-mcvey-interview
September 9, 2023. Miss Spooks. “Surviving Abduction: Lisa McVey” https://medium.com/@lisariggio1994/surviving-abduction-lisa-mcvey-4800242c08ba
March 26, 2020. C.M. Frankie. https://www.aetv.com/real-crime/elizabeth-shoaf-kidnapping-assault-in-bunker
February 2023. Christine Pelisek. https://people.com/crime/kara-robinson-lifetime-movie-girl-who-escaped/
https://www.oxygen.com/escaping-captivity-the-kara-robinson-story/crime-news/kara-robinsons-story-who-were-richard
July 13, 2011. ABD News. https://abcnews.go.com/2020/jeannette-tamayo-escape-kidnapper/story?id=14062737
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.
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
Friday Sep 13, 2024
Friday Sep 13, 2024
Toddlers have tantrums. Children talk back. Teens push boundaries. It’s all part of “growing up,” but more serious acts of aggression committed by kids can be signs of much bigger problems.
Your Escape Pod co-hosts explore the topic this week and share true tales of times they encountered not-so-sweet children and – spoiler alert! - weren’t so sweet themselves. (Eight-year-old co-host drawing blood on the playground? Yep. That happened.) Thankfully, some people escape these especially bad behaviors and grow into awesome adults, so there IS hope – we promise!
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers:
Topic #1 3:33 Opening the “$%^t my mom did” file
Topic #2 14:42 Co-host explains her aversion to kids “rough housing”
Topic #3 23:53 Escapism, co-host-style!
Resources & Links
https://teenlife.ngo/kids-fighting-at-school-connection/#:~:text=Why%20do%20kids%20fight%3F,significant%20roles%20in%20instigating%20conflicts
https://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/health_and_academics/pdf/DASHfactsheetViolence.pdf
https://www.aacap.org/AACAP/Families_and_Youth/Facts_for_Families/FFF-Guide/Understanding-Violent-Behavior-In-Children-and-Adolescents-055.aspx
https://chadd.org/attention-article/children-and-violent-behavior-where-it-comes-from-and-what-to-do/
https://www.westlionsroar.com/opinions/2023/12/22/causes-of-fights-in-high-schools/#:~:text=Some%20common%20reasons%20for%20fights,to%20learn%20from%20one%20another
Sign up to be a Patron today! Get access to the Patron-Only Facebook Group, Bonus Episodes, and more.
https://www.escapepod.live
General mail: justbecause@escapepod.live
Submit listener stories: escapeartist@escapepod.live
Friday Sep 06, 2024
Friday Sep 06, 2024
A 17-year-old boy in Louisiana calls dispatch saying he shot his father. As investigators begin to work the case, they note the teen, Anthony Templet, seems confused about his arrest and oddly calm during questioning. He says he’s endured abuse at the hands of his father, but there’s no record of any abuse in the home, and law enforcement officials doubt his story. But several people come to Anthony’s defense, and as details of his unusual upbringing emerge, so too does the question: Was he justified in his actions, or is he just another teen killer?
TRIGGER WARNING: This episode contains content involving domestic abuse against women and children.
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers:
Topic #1 0:48 Escaping from narcissists and scary school zones
Topic #2 8:05 June 2019: 17yo calls dispatch saying he shot his father
Topic #3 19:24 Work supervisor starts searching for teen’s mom
Topic #4 29:05 Clinical/forensic psychologist gets involved in criminal case
Topic #5 38:21 Update on Anthony
Resources & Links
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wSyl1oNDfQ
https://www.wafb.com/2019/06/03/man-seriously-injured-early-morning-domestic-shooting/
https://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/courts/in-2019-killing-of-father-young-man-pleads-no-contest-and-is-sentenced-to-probation/article_a89331e4-7866-11eb-b274-e3d4c7f08b5d.html
https://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/crime_police/baton-rouge-teen-accused-of-killing-father-now-faces-second-degree-murder-charge/article_dbec5bca-b958-11e9-8e0f-3368e699227d.html
Netflix docuseries: “I Just Killed My Dad”
Sign up to be a Patron today! Get access to the Patron-Only Facebook Group, Bonus Episodes, and more.
https://www.escapepod.live
General mail: justbecause@escapepod.live
Submit listener stories: escapeartist@escapepod.live
Friday Aug 30, 2024
Friday Aug 30, 2024
Hop into The Escape Pod this week for an episode with just a little bit of trauma and a whole lot of laughs! An Escape Pod listener scolds one of our co-hosts for her recent handling of an odd-looking arachnid, which leads to more tales of escape from creepy crawlers and “bad juju” in general.
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers:
Topic #1 0:43 Listener scolds Charity for killing a weird-looking spider
Topic #2 7:31 Trauma on a hiking trail
Topic #3 16:45 Trying to reason with an 8-legged home invader
Topic #4 31:26 Escapism, co-host-style!
Sign up to be a Patron today! Get access to the Patron-Only Facebook Group, Bonus Episodes, and more at http://www.escapepod.live
General mail: justbecause@escapepod.live
Submit listener stories: escapeartist@escapepod.live
Friday Aug 23, 2024
Friday Aug 23, 2024
Fight. Flight. Freeze. Fawn. In the 21st century, most of us know these as very real responses to trauma and fear, but sometimes the laws of the land don’t recognize them as such. In cases of sexual assault, for example, victims often freeze because their brain doesn’t allow them to fight back, even if they want to.
For years in the state of South Dakota, prosecuting such cases was a futile effort. But not anymore. On this episode of The Escape Pod, co-hosts Julie and Charity welcome in a special guest: Pennington County’s top prosecutor, who advocated for changing state law and – ultimately – changing how survivors who “freeze” are perceived.
TRIGGER WARNING: This episode contains discussion of rape and other forms of sexual violence.
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers:
Topic #1 2:35 Escaping irresponsible drivers ... and crazy calendars
Topic #2 15:55 Topic o’ the Day: “Freezing” as a recognized trauma response
Topic #3 28:30 Other cases keeping Lara up at night
Topic #4 37:51 Escapism, family-style!
Sign up to be a Patron today! Get access to the Patron-Only Facebook Group, Bonus Episodes, and more at http://www.escapepod.live
General mail: justbecause@escapepod.live
Submit listener stories: escapeartist@escapepod.live
Friday Aug 16, 2024
Friday Aug 16, 2024
Ever respond to someone or something in a way that you recognized later as being completely irrational and over-the-top? Maybe your amygdala was hijacked! Yep – that pesky and primal part of the brain that makes us back away from a hot flame so we don’t get burned can also play a role in impulsive decisions and bad behaviors. Want to escape the effects of amygdala hijack, often referred to on the Escape Pod as “crisis brain”? Jump into this week’s episode to learn about the signs of a hijacking and helpful hints to come out of crisis mode!
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers:
Topic #1 3:45 Escaping proper punctuation? No, thank you.
Topic #2 18:50 "Crisis brain” explained
Topic #3 39:28 10 signs someone in your life is in crisis brain mode
Topic #4 38:16 Short-term strategies to escape the effects of crisis brain
Topic #5 1:01:12 Long-term strategies
Resources & Links
https://psychcentral.com/health/amygdala-hijack#the-amygdala
https://www.simplypsychology.org/amygdala-hijack.html
https://www.verywellmind.com/toxic-stress-signs-symptoms-effects-stress-relief-tips-6504391
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/29/crosswords/texting-punctuation-period.html
Sign up to be a Patron today! Get access to the Patron-Only Facebook Group, Bonus Episodes, and more at http://www.escapepod.live
General mail: justbecause@escapepod.live
Submit listener stories: escapeartist@escapepod.live
EscapePod
Join co-hosts Charity Doyle and Julie Oberlander, along with occasional guests, as they laugh (and cry) their way through past traumas and give tips to getting through tough times.
Life is full of ups and downs and it takes you to crazy places and we need each other to make it through.
Are you an escape artist? Consider becoming a patron and supporting the show!
Your support will help our small 3-person podcast team offset the costs associated with writing, producing, and promoting the show. Any amount is sincerely appreciated. What's more, your support will help us do what we do best: help others escape and break unhealthy cycles on their way to better lives.
Choose from the options below:
Escape Pod Fan
$2per month
This patron level is in honor of people struggling in the crisis of poverty and who feel moved to support the show and our mission to help people just like them.
~Get a special shout-out on the show.
~Receive a thank-you email from the hosts.
GIVE $2
I LOVE Escape Pod!
$5per month
This patron level is for supporters who are willing to give the monetary equivalent of a cup of coffee each month to support the costs associated with producing the show.
~Get a special shout-out on the show.
~Receive a hand-written thank you from the hosts with a special Escape Pod sticker.
~Gain access to gated patron-only bonus content and ad-free episodes.
~Participate in our patrons-only Facebook page.
GIVE $5
Escape Pod BFF!
$10per month
This patron level is for supporters who are all-in!
~Get a special shout-out on the show.
~Receive a hand-written thank you from the hosts with a special Escape Pod sticker.
~Gain access to gated patron-only bonus content and ad-free episodes.
~Participate in our patrons-only Facebook page.
~Vote on future show topics.
GIVE $10
Disclaimer
The EscapePod podcast and content posted is presented solely for general information, educational, and entertainment purposes.