D4VD Case Explodes: Grand Jury Pressure, Missing Witness & the Inner Circle Cracks

Two cases this week that expose exactly how broken the American legal system is — in completely opposite directions. In Arkansas, Aaron Spencer is heading to trial for stopping Michael Fosler, a 67-year-old man with 43 felony charges who was out on bond and actively taking Spencer's 13-year-old daughter in the middle of the night. Fosler had already assaulted her once. A no-contact order was in place. The system knew he was dangerous and let him walk anyway. When Spencer's daughter ended up in Fosler's truck heading toward Fosler's house, Spencer did what the system refused to do — he protected his child. Now prosecutors want to use body cam footage from three months earlier to argue premeditation. They want a jury to believe a father in shock, processing his daughter's disclosure, was actually planning something. The defense says this was a kidnapping in progress and Arkansas law justified every action Spencer took. In California, Rob Reiner's son Nick is accused of taking both of his parents' lives after years of addiction and mental illness that the family publicly tried to address. They had money. They had access. They had every resource available. But California law doesn't let you force an adult into treatment — no matter how sick they are, no matter how many times they've been hospitalized, no matter how obvious the trajectory is. You just wait. The Reiners waited. And now they're gone. One father acted because the system let a predator walk. One father couldn't act because the system tied his hands. Both families deserved better. This episode breaks down the legal fights in both cases and what they reveal about a system that fails victims at every turn. #AaronSpencer #RobReiner #SystemFailed #TrueCrime #FathersRights #MentalHealthLaw #ChildProtection #JusticeSystem #DefenseOfOthers #HiddenKillers Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

18 Dec 56min

Mickey Stines just admitted in court filings that he shot and killed Judge Kevin Mullins. Nine bullets. Seven of them fired while the judge was already on the ground. It's all on video. But now Stines is claiming he "had no control" over his actions—and his defense is pointing to a rare neurological disease caused by bug bites as part of the explanation. For over a year, no one could explain why a Kentucky sheriff walked into a judge's chambers and executed a man he'd worked with for decades. They'd eaten lunch together that same day. Stines used to be Mullins' bailiff. And then, after a seven-minute private conversation, Stines locked the door and opened fire. Now court documents reveal what was happening to Stines in the days before the shooting. He'd lost 40 pounds in two weeks. He was making phone calls to dead relatives. He told staff that shadowy forces were coming to kill his wife and daughter. He made someone put a bulletproof vest on his wife. His own employees believed he was in a psychosis. An attorney warned the judge directly that Stines was "losing it." The local police chief said he'd "lost his mind." But here's the problem: the day before the shooting, Stines saw a doctor. And according to medical records, he denied experiencing any psychosis or homicidal thoughts. The doctor diagnosed "acute stress reaction" and sent him home. Twenty-four hours later, Kevin Mullins was dead. Now Stines is building an insanity defense that includes claims of California encephalitis—a tick-borne illness that can cause confusion and aggression. Whether that's a legitimate diagnosis or a legal strategy remains to be seen. What's clear is that this case is about to get a lot more complicated. #MickeyStines #JudgeKevinMullins #Letcher County #KentuckySheriff #CourthouseShooting #TrueCrime #InsanityDefense #CaliforniaEncephalitis #TrueCrime2025 #JusticeForMullins Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

18 Dec 20min

Years before Brian Walshe was charged with murdering and dismembering his wife Ana, he allegedly pulled off another calculated crime—this time against his own father. Dr. Thomas Walshe, a prominent neurologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital, hadn't spoken to his son in over a decade when he died unexpectedly while traveling in India in September 2018. And for good reason: according to court documents, Brian had stolen nearly $800,000 from his father during a Lenox home refinance deal years earlier—took the check, then vanished for over a decade.  Thomas made his feelings clear in his will, leaving his only child "my best wishes but nothing else from my estate." He even appointed his nephew Andrew as executor. But Brian, according to family friends, got into his father's Hull home before anyone else, allegedly destroyed the will, then convinced Plymouth County Probate Court he was the rightful heir. By the time Thomas's friends intervened, Brian had already drained at least $250,000 from bank accounts, sold off a Salvador Dalí painting, a Miró, oriental rugs, jewelry, even the car—and nearly unloaded the waterfront house itself.  The only reason the scheme was stopped? One of Thomas's friends had photographed the will with his cell phone. Court filings also reveal allegations that Brian once tried to smuggle antiquities out of China and allegedly attacked guards when confronted. One longtime friend wrote that Brian was diagnosed as a sociopath at Austen Riggs psychiatric hospital. The pattern here is impossible to ignore: allegedly forge, destroy, manipulate, and take what isn't yours. This is the same man now accused of killing his wife days after learning of her affair—and standing to collect $2.7 million in life insurance. Jury deliberations resume Monday. #BrianWalshe #AnaWalshe #TrueCrime #WalsheTrial #ThomasWalshe #InheritanceFraud #CohassetMurder #CrimePodcast #MurderTrial #TrueCrimeYouTube Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

17 Dec 20min

Nick Reiner is in custody right now, accused of taking the lives of both of his parents inside their Brentwood home. The night before, witnesses say he got into a screaming confrontation with his father Rob Reiner at a holiday party. By Sunday afternoon, Rob and Michele Reiner were gone — reportedly discovered by their own daughter Romy. Nick Reiner is 32 years old. He has been in and out of treatment programs since he was fifteen. He's experienced homelessness. He's struggled publicly with addiction and severe mental health issues for most of his adult life. His parents talked about it openly. They made a documentary about their attempts to help him. Michele Reiner reportedly told friends recently that they had tried everything. And here's the part that should infuriate every family watching this — in California, "everything" doesn't include the one thing that might have actually made a difference. You cannot force an adult into treatment. Not even when they're clearly in crisis. Not even when they're deteriorating in front of you. Not even when you have unlimited resources and access to the best care in the country. You have to wait until something terrible happens. California has 5150 psychiatric holds. It has a new program called CARE Court. None of it works the way families need it to. The holds are too short. The programs have no enforcement. Meanwhile, people in crisis cycle through emergency rooms and back onto the street while their families watch helplessly. This episode breaks down what options families actually have under current law, why those options consistently fail, and what's likely coming next in this case. #RobReiner #NickReiner #MentalHealthCrisis #CaliforniaLaw #FamilyTragedy #5150Hold #CARECourt #MentalHealthReform #TrueCrime #HiddenKillers Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

17 Dec 16min

Anna Kepner was 18 years old when she was found dead under a bed on the Carnival Horizon cruise ship, wrapped in a blanket and covered with life vests. Her death has been ruled a homicide by mechanical asphyxiation. Both of her stepbrother's parents have identified him in court documents as the FBI's sole suspect. And yet, five weeks later, no arrest has been made. In this breakdown, we cover everything that's emerged from the Brevard County custody hearings, the disturbing testimony about chokehold use in the family home, and the ex-boyfriend who says he tried to warn Anna's parents months before she died.  We also examine why the FBI is still weighing whether to charge a 16-year-old federally or hand the case to Florida state prosecutors, and what that decision means for the Kepner family still waiting for justice. This is a case where the warning signs were allegedly there, the suspect has been identified, and the system is still grinding slowly while a killer remains free. #AnnaKepner #CarnivalCruise #CruiseShipDeath #TrueCrime #FBI #HomicideInvestigation #CarnivalHorizon #Justice #TrueCrimeNews #BreakingNews Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

17 Dec 19min

For nine months, Charity Beallis told anyone who would listen that she was in danger. She reported strangulation. Filed for divorce. Got a protective order. Went to a state senator. Documented her fears online. She even posted research showing that victims who are strangled are 750% more likely to be murdered by their abuser. But instead of protection, she got a court ruling awarding joint custody to the man she said she feared. Three days later, Charity and her six-year-old twins were found dead from gunshot wounds. No one has been charged. Federal agencies — including Homeland Security and the Secret Service — have joined the investigation. And now, the 2012 shooting death of the same man's first wife — ruled a suicide at the time, with evidence later destroyed — has been reopened. Former FBI Special Agent Robin Dreeke joins me to break down the behavioral indicators in this case, the system failures that may have placed Charity and her children at greater risk, and the patterns investigators look for when multiple deaths surround the same individual over time. We discuss: – Why strangulation is one of the strongest lethality predictors in domestic violence – How victims often signal escalating danger long before systems recognize it – Why courts prioritize parental rights even in high-risk domestic-violence cases – How federal agencies approach complex or multi-jurisdictional investigations – What reopening a prior death means behaviorally — not legally – What investigators evaluate when someone’s partner has died in similar circumstances – How abusers often use legal filings to assert control, even during investigations – What professionals look for when interviewing someone connected to multiple deaths This isn’t about speculation. This is about patterns — behavioral, systemic, institutional — and why victims like Charity fall through the cracks even when they are shouting for help. #CharityBeallis #DomesticViolenceAwareness #SystemFailure #HiddenKillers #TonyBrueski #RobinDreeke #StrangulationRisk #FamilyCourtReform #TrueCrimePodcast #JusticeForCharity Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

17 Dec 20min

Michael Fosler was out on a $50,000 bond. He had 43 felony charges hanging over him — assault of a minor, grooming, exploitation material. A no-contact order was in place. The system knew exactly who he was and what he was capable of. And just after 1 a.m. on October 8th, 2024, Aaron Spencer's 13-year-old daughter was in Fosler's truck, being taken toward Fosler's house in the middle of the night. This wasn't a hypothetical threat. This wasn't a father acting on old anger. This was a kidnapping in progress — by the same man who had already violated his child once and was facing decades in prison if she testified against him. Spencer's daughter was the primary witness. Fosler had every reason to want her gone. Spencer pursued Fosler for 20 minutes. Prosecutors say he should have called 911. But Spencer says he was driving at high speed on dark roads trying not to lose sight of the truck carrying his daughter. When he finally forced Fosler off the road, his daughter tried to escape. Fosler allegedly grabbed her. Then Fosler allegedly came at Spencer. That's when Spencer used force. Arkansas law is clear — you are allowed to use deadly force to protect another person from imminent serious harm. Spencer wasn't hunting anyone. He was responding to an active crisis involving his own child and a known predator who had already demonstrated what he was willing to do. Legal experts say this isn't about jury nullification. The defense doesn't need a sympathetic jury to ignore the law. Arkansas law itself provides a path to acquittal. The question is whether Spencer's actions fit the legal definition of justified defense of another — and everything about this case says they do. #AaronSpencer #DefenseOfOthers #ArkansasLaw #ProtectYourFamily #JustifiedForce #MichaelFosler #FatherProtectsChild #LegalDefense #TrueCrime #HiddenKillers Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

17 Dec 26min

Rob Reiner was 78 years old. His wife Michele was 68. And on the last night of their lives, they brought their 32-year-old son Nick to a Christmas party at Conan O'Brien's house because they needed to "keep an eye on him." That's not parenting. That's surveillance. That's what the mental health system in America leaves families with when their adult children are in crisis — no legal authority, no institutional support, no options. Just proximity. Just hoping your presence is enough to keep things from going sideways. It wasn't. Less than 24 hours later, Rob and Michele were dead. Throats slit. Found by their daughter in a home decorated for Christmas. Nick Reiner had been struggling since he was a teenager. First rehab at 15. Seventeen treatment programs by age 19. Homeless in three different states. His parents threw everything they had at the problem — money, connections, access to the best programs in the country. Michele told friends in recent months: "We've tried everything." They had. For 17 years. And the system gave them nothing in return. In America, if your adult child is mentally ill, addicted, or dangerous, your options are essentially zero. You can beg them to get help. You can pay for treatment. But unless they meet a narrow legal threshold — "imminent danger to self or others" — you cannot force them to accept care. Their autonomy is protected. Your safety is not. The Reiners lived this nightmare for nearly two decades. They followed the protocols. They trusted the experts. They did everything right by the system's standards. And the system still failed them — because it's designed to manage liability, not treat illness. This video is a deep dive into how America's mental health laws turn families into hostages. How the deinstitutionalization movement of the 1960s emptied psychiatric hospitals without replacing them with anything better. How jails became our largest mental health facilities. And how families like the Reiners are left to manage impossible situations with no training, no authority, and no way out. The Reiners had every advantage. It didn't save them. Until we reform a system that prioritizes philosophy over outcomes, it won't save anyone else either. #RobReiner #MentalHealthCrisis #MentalHealthReform #TrueCrime #MicheleSingerReiner #NickReiner #Addiction #MentalIllness #FamiliesInCrisis #Deinstitutionalization #5150 #HostageFamilies #SystemFailure #MentalHealthAwareness Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

17 Dec 34min