Episode 51: Elyse Pahler

Between 1996 and 2001, a series of violent attacks terrorized the seemingly idyllic community of Simi Valley, California. Women were being terrorized in their homes. Families were jolted from sleep by the sounds of screams—and silence. There was no pattern. No suspect. No name. In episode 346, Jac and Lex  trace the early crimes of the man the press would eventually dub the Simi Valley Rapist.  And just when the community began to breathe again, a bright, beloved 20-year-old college student vanished without a trace. The search for her would reignite the hunt for a man no one had ever seen—but who was always watching. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon: patreon.com/thefirstdegree 📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree 🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee 👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

9 Huhti 202543min

We’re back again breaking down this week’s wildest headlines.  From new Diddy claims implicating Gloria Estefan, Beyonce, and LeBron James, to Virginia Giuffre’s bizarre IG post claiming she was hit by a school bus, to even more Justin Bieber updates, to an Elizabeth Holmes x Nathan Fielder collab??  It’s been a weird week, that’s for sure. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon: patreon.com/thefirstdegree 📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree 🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee 👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

3 Huhti 202552min

On February 9, 2023, police conduct a welfare check at a home in a neighborhood of Oak Grove, Louisiana. Inside the residence, they find a 43-year-old business owner, wife, and mother dead from a gunshot wound. The woman’s husband is devastated, as is the rest of the victim’s family. After a speedy investigation, the shooting is soon ruled a suicide. But when the woman’s family uncovers glaring holes in the investigation and learns that corners have been cut, things start to look extremely questionable, and it emerges that not everyone close to the victim has been adequately eliminated in the rush to declare the death a suicide. In episode 345, Jac and Alexis detail the heartbreaking suspicious death of Crystal Deniece McCrory Jones, the many lingering questions focusing on the local sheriff’s department’s involvement, and why Crystal’s loved ones continue to fight for a full and thorough investigation into her death. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon: patreon.com/thefirstdegree 📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree 🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee 👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

2 Huhti 20251h 15min

This week we’re diving into the dark side of AI, technology, and the existential dream of trying to live forever.  We’re talking about implanting memories into murderers, doing head transplants on billionaires, and that weird dude who thinks he’s never gonna die.  And then of course, we have Blake vs Justin updates, and Justin Bieber’s cryptic IG post.  It’s a lot! 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon: patreon.com/thefirstdegree 📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree 🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee 👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

27 Maalis 202552min

On the morning of November 12th of 1991, 41-year-old Janice Aschraft Lillie left her volunteer work at Belle Chasse High School to go to her office in Gretna, Louisiana. Janice’s husband, 41-year-old Norman Lillie, needs her help collecting back rent from their tenants. The couple co-manage and co-own several apartments in the Greater New Orleans metropolitan area. Around 10:15 a.m., Janice arrives at the office. Two hours later, Janice’s body is discovered lying behind her desk. Someone stabbed her more than ten times and left her to die. For years, Gretna police struggled to investigate Janice’s homicide. Despite interviewing more than 180 people, they had little to go on. Then, in 1995, the murder weapon was discovered and several arrests were made in relation to Janice’s case. However, members of Janice’s family think the individuals arrested, indicted, and sentenced for Janice’s murder weren’t even involved. In episode 344, Jac and Alexis detail the strange events and evidence surrounding Janice’s killing, including her then-husband’s suspicious affair with a 25-year-old tenant. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon: patreon.com/thefirstdegree 📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree 🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee 👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

26 Maalis 202555min

This week we’re talking about the Ghost Adventurers murder for hire plot that just got 10x wilder, Ryan Reynolds throwing Blake Lively under the bus, and we’re just getting to the tip of the ice berg of Hailey Bieber’s obsession with Justin & Selena and how it might even be darker than anyone thinks.  🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon: patreon.com/thefirstdegree 📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree 🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee 👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

20 Maalis 202547min

On May 8th, 2016, a successful 46-year-old business manager and CPA is sitting an FBI polygraph test in Los Angeles, California. The well-respected executive partner with numerous high-profile, world-famous clients from the entertainment industry has it all. A happy marriage, three kids, and a career trajectory where the sky is the limit. But it’s all about to come crashing down in a very public and life-changing way due to addiction, insecurity, and denial. In episode 343, Jac and Alexis detail the life and crimes of Jonathan Schwartz, and how his descent into addiction and hubris not only destroyed the life and career he’d worked so hard for, but how his immediate remorse propelled him to a place of personal growth, healing, and self-forgiveness, with the ultimate aim of finding redemption through helping others who are now where he once was. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon: patreon.com/thefirstdegree 📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree 🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee 👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

19 Maalis 202545min

This week we’re diving the murder for hire plan to kill the star of Ghost Adventurers, the sad truth of Gene Hackman’s death, Blake Lively being cringe as hell at SXSW, and the story about a mom who is convinced her son was murdered and his body was sold to the Bodies Exhibit in Vegas. It was a dark week, people. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon: patreon.com/thefirstdegree 📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree 🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee 👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

13 Maalis 202550min