Jacob Wideman says 'vindictive' Arizona officials violated his rights

After Sean’s conversation with Amory, he and his younger brother, Shane, talk to each other for the first time in two decades. Shane is open to hearing his brother out, until Sean denies a painful memory from their childhood. Their father, who has always defended Sean, starts sending aggressive voice messages to Sophia and Shane. Meanwhile, Amory has even more questions for Sophia just as Shane is coming to his own conclusion that she did not commit the murder. But shortly thereafter, Amory receives a report of an interview Sophia did with detectives in 2010 that tells yet another story of the day of Marlyne’s murder. Amory is left shaken and wondering if she actually has been talking to a murderer all this time. *** Consider becoming a "BEYOND" member today: This show is made at WBUR, a public radio station, which means we cannot make shows like this without public support. Join our "BEYOND" membership program and receive early access to some of the final episodes in the series, extra episodes, and a private feed of the show for ad-free listening: wbur.org/beyond

After disappearing before he was supposed to testify in Sophia's second trial, Sean reappears in Guyana under the name Anthony Snow. He has since launched various ventures, including a short-lived campaign for president of Guyana in 2011, a land development business that’s been the source of allegations of fraud, and a robust social media presence. Sophia and Sean hadn’t seen each other or spoken in 17 years when he video-called her in early 2023 upon hearing that she’s been talking to a reporter. Months after this call, Amory talks to Sean herself. He offers up a new detail about the day of Marlyne Johnson’s murder. If you have questions about the case, the people at the center of this story, or anything else about this series, we want to hear them. Email [email protected] with a voice message or written message. *** Consider becoming a "BEYOND" member today: This show is made at WBUR, a public radio station, which means we cannot make shows like this without public support. Join our "BEYOND" membership program and receive early access to some of the final episodes in the series, extra episodes, and a private feed of the show for ad-free listening: wbur.org/beyond

Amory meets Lyn Page and Linda Dillard, friends of Marlyne Johnson and her husband Richard, who share more about the Johnson family. Richard struggled with alcohol abuse and gambled, and Marlyne had started saving money in case she needed to leave him. Richard eventually agrees to talk to Amory and shares memories of his wife and the day she was killed. If you have questions about the case, the real people at the center of this story, or anything else about this series, we want to hear them. Email [email protected] with a voice message or written message. Listener note: This episode has descriptions of violence and strong language. *** Consider becoming a "BEYOND" member today: This show is made at WBUR, a public radio station, which means we cannot make shows like this without public support. Join our "BEYOND" membership program and receive access to extra episodes, a private feed of the show for ad-free listening and early access to some of the final episodes in the series: wbur.org/beyond

Sean Correia's credibility is called into question as Sophia Johnson and Shane Correia tell Amory about his role in their upbringing. Amory learns how these three siblings ended up in Washington state after being raised in New York, and how Sophia became estranged from Shane and their mother, with whom she’d been incredibly close. Sophia finds a new family in the Johnsons — Brad, her husband, and Marlyne and Richard Johnson, Brad’s parents. At the time of the murder, Sophia is newly wedded to Brad and six months pregnant. Marlyne is supposed to go over to Sophia’s house for lunch that day. She doesn’t show, leading Sophia and Brad to check on her, and, ultimately, to her lifeless, nearly unrecognizable body. Sophia denies murdering Marlyne, but suspects Sean’s involvement. If you have questions about the case, the real people at the center of this story, or anything else about this series, we want to hear them. Email [email protected] with a voice message or written message. Listener note: This episode has descriptions of violence, strong language, and allegations of sexual assault.  *** Consider becoming a "BEYOND" member today: This show is made at WBUR, a public radio station, which means we cannot make shows like this without public support. Join our membership program, "BEYOND" here: wbur.org/beyond

Amory learns more about Marlyne Johnson, Sophia Johnson’s late mother-in-law, and her murder is explored through footage of Sophia’s 2003 trial. Clark County Detective Rick Buckner and his team narrowed the field of suspects to siblings Sophia and Sean Correia (Shane Correia's older brother and sister). Sean testified during Sophia’s 2003 murder trial that he saw his sister standing over Marlyne’s body, holding fireplace tongs. If you have questions about the case, the real people at the center of this story, or anything else about this series, we want to hear them. Email [email protected] with a voice message or written message. Listener note: This show has descriptions of violence and strong language. *** Consider becoming a "BEYOND" member today: This show is made at WBUR, a public radio station, which means we cannot make shows like this without public support. Join our membership program, "BEYOND" here: wbur.org/beyond

Reporter Amory Sivertson has reopened a box that some members of the Correia family were hoping would stay shut forever. Amory first met the youngest Correia, Shane, in 2017 while interviewing him about his experience with homelessness. But there is another dark chapter of Shane's life: his older sister being accused of murdering her mother-in-law in 2002, when he was 13 years old. Now Shane wants to know, did his sister commit this brutal the crime? If you have questions about the case, the real people at the center of this story, or anything else about this series, we want to hear them. Email [email protected] with a voice message or written message. Listener note: This show has descriptions of violence and strong language. *** Consider becoming a "BEYOND" member today: This show is made at WBUR, a public radio station, which means we cannot make shows like this without public support. Join our membership program, "BEYOND" here: wbur.org/beyond

An update on what's next for Violation...and a new investigation from WBUR.

In August, lawyers representing Jacob Wideman argued before a judge in Arizona that state officials treated him in a “constitutionally impermissible” way when they revoked his parole more than six years ago. Lawyers for the parole board and the state corrections department said Wideman was trying to avoid following directions and therefore could not be trusted to be free. In this update, we fill you in on the hearing and how it could set the stage for further legal action in Wideman’s case.

Two months after Jacob Wideman was arrested at work and brought back to prison — for failing to make an appointment with a psychologist on a particular day, as directed by his parole officer — he faced the Arizona parole board again. The board had to make a formal finding: Did Jake violate the conditions of his parole by not making that appointment? And, if so, should he stay in prison or be returned to the community? Parole revocation hearings tend to be routine affairs. But, as this episode shows, Jake’s hearing was far from routine. Ultimately, the parole board voted to keep Jake in prison, where he remains, possibly for life. In the final episode of Violation, we discuss what happens now and what Jake’s legal options are. And we return to thorny dilemmas about the criminal justice system: When someone commits a terrible crime, as Jake did, is there anything they can do to prove they deserve to be free again? How does the parole system help us determine what justice should be in any given case — and does it make us more safe? We also return to the question of why Jake killed Eric Kane in 1986. There’s one last piece of the puzzle that might bring a little more clarity, and Jake tries to explain it in his own words.

Six months after Jacob Wideman was released from prison on home arrest, he appeared before the parole board for a routine check-in hearing. His parole officer told the board that Jake was doing well: Jake’s employers and therapists gave him positive reviews, as did the director at his halfway house and the landlord at his apartment complex. But other people were coming to a different conclusion. About a week before the hearing, Jake’s parole officer had told him that he had received complaints that Jake had committed numerous violations of the terms of his parole — violations that, if he had committed them, could cost him his freedom. The officer also told him something that startled him: A private investigator could be watching him. “It brought home to me the people who didn't want me to be out were keeping an exceptionally close eye on me, and that, you know, they were willing to go to some pretty drastic lengths to try to find ways to get me put back in prison,” Jake said later in an interview from prison. Soon after that routine check-in hearing before the parole board, Jake was re-arrested. In Part 6 of "Violation," we hear interviews and testimony from Jake, his attorneys, parole officials and others as we piece together the events leading up to the parole violation that sent Jake behind bars again — possibly for life.