Two Murder Trials, Two Legal Questions: Aaron Spencer Killed A Man Out On Bond For Alleged Crimes Against His Daughter — Defense Attorney Analyzes
What does the law say about killing someone who was out on bond for alleged crimes against your child and then allegedly kidnapped her? What does it say about using a silencer to allegedly murder your ex-wife years after divorce? Defense attorney Bob Motta breaks down two cases that will test justification, premeditation, and reasonable doubt.Aaron Spencer is one week from trial. His daughter was 13 when Michael Fosler allegedly victimized her. Fosler faced 43 felony charges. He posted bond. Three months later, Spencer found his daughter in Fosler's truck at 1 AM and killed him with 16 shots. Prosecutors have body cam footage from months earlier where Spencer allegedly talked about handling things himself. The defense has Arkansas law — which puts the burden on prosecutors to disprove justification beyond a reasonable doubt.Dr. Michael McKee faces four counts of aggravated murder after prosecutors say he used a suppressor to kill Monique and Spencer Tepe while their children slept nearby. The indictment suggests premeditation down to the equipment. But there's no forced entry. No disclosed motive. No documented conflict in the years since the divorce. McKee gave an alibi that fell apart and only invoked silence after arrest.Motta analyzes both: the evidence, the legal standards, and what it takes to win when prosecutors have surveillance footage in one case and an alleged suppressor in the other. Two trials. Two juries. Two different questions about when killing is legally justified — and when reasonable doubt exists.#AaronSpencer #MichaelMcKee #MichaelFosler #MoniqueTepe #SpencerTepe #BobMotta #TrueCrimeToday #MurderTrial #DefenseStrategy #JustificationJoin Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspodInstagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/tonybpodListen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.
22 Jan 56min
Kohberger's 13 Complaints at WSU: FBI Expert Explains Why Universities Fail to Stop Predators
Bryan Kohberger wasn't invisible. He wasn't quiet. According to a new lawsuit filed by the families of his four victims, Washington State University received at least 13 formal complaints about his threatening, stalking, and predatory behavior in a single semester—and allegedly failed to act in any meaningful way. Today on True Crime Today, former FBI Special Agent Robin Dreeke breaks down what these warning signs mean from a professional threat assessment perspective. Robin served 21 years with the Bureau, including as Chief of the FBI's Counterintelligence Behavioral Analysis Program, and he specializes in understanding the behavioral patterns that precede violence. The lawsuit describes WSU faculty and staff creating informal warning systems because they felt the institution wouldn't protect them. A professor allegedly predicted Kohberger would sexually abuse students if given a PhD. Women reportedly needed security escorts to their cars. Students fled classrooms. And according to the families' complaint, WSU chose not to remove Kohberger—allegedly because doing so might expose the university to a lawsuit. Robin explains why institutions make that calculation, what 13 complaints in one semester should trigger operationally, and how threat assessment programs are supposed to function when warning signs stack up this high. The families are calling these murders "foreseeable and preventable." Robin weighs in on whether they're right—and what needs to change so this doesn't happen again.#TrueCrimeToday #BryanKohberger #WSULawsuit #KayleeGoncalves #MadisonMogen #XanaKernodle #EthanChapin #RobinDreeke #ThreatAssessment #UniversitySafetyJoin Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspodInstagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/tonybpodListen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.
22 Jan 20min
McKee Defense Strategy: No Forced Entry, No Motive, No Documented Conflict — Can Prosecutors Overcome The Gaps?
If you're defending Michael McKee, you don't need to prove he didn't do it. You need to create reasonable doubt. And this case has gaps.How did McKee allegedly enter the Tepe home with no forced entry? Prosecutors haven't said. The aggravated burglary charge suggests they have a theory, but it hasn't been disclosed publicly. That's an opening for the defense.There's no motive on the record. McKee and Monique divorced years ago. Police confirmed there were no prior reports from the Tepe address about McKee — no restraining orders, no 911 calls, no documented conflict. The state hasn't explained why a 39-year-old surgeon with no criminal record would allegedly do this now.Defense attorney Bob Motta breaks down the defense's options. McKee is intelligent, educated, trained in precision. If he allegedly planned a premeditated murder complete with a suppressor, why would he keep the murder weapon in his own apartment? The prosecution's theory and McKee's professional profile don't easily fit together.McKee "disappeared" in the months before the murders. Process servers couldn't find him. A colleague said he just vanished. Prosecutors will likely call that consciousness of guilt. The defense might call it a man between jobs with no fixed address.Both victims were shot multiple times. Does that help the defense argue this looks more like rage than calculation — even with the suppressor allegation? Motta analyzes the strategies available and gives his prediction: conviction, acquittal, or hung jury.#MichaelMcKee #MoniqueTepe #SpencerTepe #TepeMurders #TrueCrimeToday #BobMotta #DefenseStrategy #NoForcedEntry #ReasonableDoubt #CriminalDefenseJoin Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspodInstagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/tonybpodListen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.
21 Jan 18min
EXPOSED: California's Conservatorship System Is DESIGNED to Fail | The Nick Reiner Case Proves It
California's mental health conservatorship system has a 57% failure rate. More than half of the people released from conservatorships deteriorate afterward. The state's response? Follow-up care is voluntary.Nick Reiner was under a court-ordered LPS conservatorship in 2020. A judge found him gravely disabled. A licensed fiduciary named Steven Baer was appointed to oversee his treatment. He could be forced to take psychiatric medication. He could be placed in a locked facility against his will. The system intervened.Then the conservatorship expired in 2021. It wasn't renewed. And for four years, no one with legal authority was watching.On True Crime Today, we expose the seven structural failures built into California's conservatorship law. The "grave disability" threshold that disqualifies people whose families provide support. The appellate court ruling that "probabilistic pessimism"—concern about future danger—isn't grounds for intervention. The automatic one-year termination with no transition plan. The 2020 state audit showing only 9% of discharged patients get connected to ongoing care. The fact that families cannot petition for conservatorships or force renewals.Sources say Nick's medication was changed approximately one month before December 14th. Sources say he became agitated, erratic, suffered a "complete break from reality." Without a conservatorship in place, there was nothing anyone could legally do.The Reiners had money, connections, and access to the best treatment available. They got the conservatorship. They got the professional oversight. And if prosecutors are right about what happened, the system still failed to protect them.Nick Reiner is presumed innocent until proven guilty.#TrueCrimeToday #NickReiner #RobReiner #MicheleReiner #ConservatorshipExposed #MentalHealthLaw #CaliforniaFailed #TrueCrimeNews #LPSAct #BrokenSystemJoin Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspodInstagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/tonybpodListen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.
21 Jan 34min
LeeAnn Singley Testifies in Brendan Banfield Trial — The "Au Pair Affair Murder Trial"
LeeAnn Singley, Forensic Scientist, took the stand in the murder trial of Brendan Banfield, the former IRS agent charged with four counts of aggravated murder in the deaths of his wife Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan. Prosecutors allege Banfield and the family's au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhães, lured Ryan to their Herndon home through a fetish website and staged the killings as a home invasion.The defense argues digital forensics contradict the catfishing theory and that investigators who disagreed were reassigned. Banfield faces life without parole if convicted. The four-week trial continues in Fairfax County.#TrueCrimeToday #BrendanBanfield #AuPairAffair #MurderTrial #ChristineBanfield #JosephRyan #FairfaxCounty #JulianaMagalhaes #Justice #BreakingJoin Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspodInstagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/tonybpodListen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.
21 Jan 42min
Jonathan Baumler Testifies in Brendan Banfield Trial — The "Au Pair Affair Murder Trial"
Jonathan Baumler, Officer with the Fairfax Co. Police Department, took the stand in the murder trial of Brendan Banfield, the former IRS agent charged with four counts of aggravated murder in the deaths of his wife Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan. Prosecutors allege Banfield and the family's au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhães, lured Ryan to their Herndon home through a fetish website and staged the killings as a home invasion.The defense argues digital forensics contradict the catfishing theory and that investigators who disagreed were reassigned. Banfield faces life without parole if convicted. The four-week trial continues in Fairfax County.#TrueCrimeToday #BrendanBanfield #AuPairAffair #MurderTrial #ChristineBanfield #JosephRyan #FairfaxCounty #JulianaMagalhaes #Justice #BreakingJoin Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspodInstagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/tonybpodListen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.
21 Jan 18min
Zachary Beckner Testifies in Brendan Banfield Trial — The "Au Pair Affair Murder Trial"
Zachary Beckner, Fairfax Co. Police Officer, took the stand in the murder trial of Brendan Banfield, the former IRS agent charged with four counts of aggravated murder in the deaths of his wife Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan. Prosecutors allege Banfield and the family's au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhães, lured Ryan to their Herndon home through a fetish website and staged the killings as a home invasion.The defense argues digital forensics contradict the catfishing theory and that investigators who disagreed were reassigned. Banfield faces life without parole if convicted. The four-week trial continues in Fairfax County.#TrueCrimeToday #BrendanBanfield #AuPairAffair #MurderTrial #ChristineBanfield #JosephRyan #FairfaxCounty #JulianaMagalhaes #Justice #BreakingJoin Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspodInstagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/tonybpodListen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.
21 Jan 1h 6min
McKee Indictment Alleges Suppressor In Monique & Spencer Tepe Murders — What Prosecutors Have And What They Still Need
The suppressor allegation changes everything in the McKee case. Prosecutors allege Dr. Michael McKee used a firearm equipped with a silencer to kill Monique and Spencer Tepe while their young children slept in another room. That's not impulsive violence. That's allegedly planning the murders down to making sure no one would hear the shots.The Franklin County grand jury handed down five counts: four counts of aggravated murder and one count of aggravated burglary. Under Ohio law, proving "prior calculation and design" is required for aggravated murder. The suppressor allegation gives prosecutors a powerful tool to establish premeditation.Defense attorney Bob Motta breaks down the indictment. Why four counts for two victims? What does the aggravated burglary charge tell us about entry when there's no forced entry documented? And how definitive is the NIBIN ballistics match that's still being called "preliminary"?McKee gave police an alibi before his arrest. It didn't hold up. He only invoked his right to remain silent after the cuffs went on. Those pre-arrest statements could be devastating at trial — but Motta explains what the defense would need to argue for suppression.McKee is 39 years old. A vascular surgeon. No criminal record. No malpractice. His neighbors called him friendly and normal. He's facing a minimum of life with parole after 32 years. Prosecutors have not filed capital specifications — they're not seeking the death penalty. Is that strategy, or does it signal weakness? Motta analyzes.#MichaelMcKee #MoniqueTepe #SpencerTepe #TepeMurders #TrueCrimeToday #BobMotta #Suppressor #AggravatedMurder #OhioIndictment #NIBINMatchJoin Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspodInstagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/tonybpodListen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.
21 Jan 15min
