History of Coroners: The Truth You Never Knew

A Texas mother of 4 is found hanging from a dock with a rope around her neck in an apparent suicide. On this episode of Body Bags, Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack will go behind the shocking story of an apparent suicide and Joe Scott will explain how a witness describing the woman’s body hanging from the dock tells him she didn’t kill herself; this is a murder!         01:38.72 Introduction: Suicide or Murder  05:20.55 Discussion of rigidity  09:06:44 Talk about boat life, living at marina  13:02.11 Discussion of arms hanging down  16:41.60 Talk about 30-year old mom, 4 children  19:31.74 Discussion of suicide  24:33.02 Discussion of woman’s arm points to different conclusion  28:06.63 Discussion of staging a suicide  32:14.44 Talk about girlfriend leaves, doesn’t come back  36:11.46 Discussion of post-mortem lividity in aquatic environment  39:18.91Discussion of flaccid See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Recorded LIVE at CrimeCon Nashville, 2024: In this episode of Body Bags, Joseph Scott Morgan explains how he challenges his class at Jacksonville State University to try and solve a cold case. Two years in a row, two different classes and students chose the unsolved murder of Blake Chappell. Blake Chappell tells his mother he is having the best night of his life with his girlfriend at the East Coweta High School Homecoming Dance. Within a matter of hours, Blake will find himself chased out of his girlfriend’s house in the middle of the night, walking down the road at 5 a.m. texting his girlfriend, and telling her police just stopped and talked to him. One last text to his girlfriend that he is getting cold, and his phone goes quiet. Blake Chappell is 17 and he never makes it back to his friend’s house. He just vanishes into thin air. It is October 16, 2011. Two months later on December 17, 2011, his nearly naked body is found floating in a creek, he has been shot in the back of the head. The case is still unsolved. But new search warrants were served in March 2024, will there be justice for Blake Chappell?      Transcript Highlights  00:00:13 Introduction Blake Chappel Case  00:04:40 Discuss of family financial issues  00:08:28 Blake finds ex-girlfriend who ran away  00:10:32 Blake beaten up by ex’s stepfather  00:12:26 Blake put in jail for finding his ex  00:17:35 Mother takes Blake and date to homecoming dance  00:20:48 Discussion of Blake activities walking in the night  00:24:24 Talk about Blake walking miles to see girlfriend  00:28:08 Talk about Blake texting girlfriend  00:31:49 Talk about Blake doesn’t make it back to Austin’s house  00:37:36 Discussion Blake shot in back of head  00:43:22 Discussion rumors about Blake’s death  00:48:12 Discussion Blake found wearing underwear, no shoes  00:52:34 Conclusion Joseph Scott Morgan lets his JSU class pick unsolved crime to solve  Two years in a row the case of Blake Chappel is chosen for the project See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Herb Baumeister lived more than just a “double life." On this episode of "Body Bags," Joseph Scott Morgan explains how it is possible that Baumeister had over 10,000 remains on his million-dollar estate, and Dave Mack dives into the background of the married, father and businessman who owned two Save-a-lot stores in Indianapolis. Baumeister, who took his own life in 1996, is suspected of enticing gay men to his home, where he killed them and disposed of their bodies at the rear of his property. Investigators suspected that Baumeister, a married father of three at the time who frequented gay bars, enticed unsuspecting men to his property to murder them. By 1999, investigators connected him to the disappearance of at least 16 men since 1980. Some of the victims’ bodies were discovered discarded in shallow streams in rural central Indiana and western Ohio For 30 years, investigators have been working to identify thousands of human remains, will they ever know the truth about how many people Herb Baumeister murdered? Transcript Highlights  00:00:13 Introduction of serial killer graveyard  00:04:40 Discuss killer double life, wife claims she didn’t know anything  00:08:28 Talk about trying to identify bone from other items  00:12:26 Discussion of Forensic anthropologists  00:17:35 Discussion of hiding secrets from family  00:20:48 Talk about serial killer obsession with dead animals  00:24:24 Discussion of the depth of depravity   00:28:08 Discussion of skeletonized body on the property  00:31:49 Talk about trying to render body down to ash  00:36:36 Discussion of method of destruction after burning  00:40:22 Discussion of other serial killers  00:44:12 Talk about the size of the property  00:44:34 Conclusion   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why did police serve another search warrant at the home of Rex Heuermann? Remember, his wife and children still live in the house. After his original arrest and the search warrants were served, pictures appeared in the press showing the damage done as the home was stripped. What did they miss? Why did they bring out the ME? On this episode of Body Bags Joseph Scott Morgan will take you into the house and what the ME might be looking for as well as the crime scenes and what has been found. Dave Mack will explain the “To-Do” list and go over the electronics Heuermann has been keeping for decades.             Transcript Highlights 00:00:00 Introduction: Bernice Worden last victim of Ed Gein  00:02:20 Discussion of Gilgo document release  00:06:54 Talk about being on a jury  00:09:44 Discussion – warning about content of episode  00:13:55 Discussion of why go back with another search warrant?  00:19:05 Talk about Rex Heuermann and the list he created  00:23:11 Discussion of Heuermann electronics  00:27:02 Discussion of Rex Heuermann planning note began in 2000  00:30:59 Talk about violent, sexual torture  00:34:17 Discussion of going to a scene, police don’t know what they have  00:38:35 Talk about mutilated body a few miles from home  00:42:15 Talk about access to material was different in the 1990s  00:42:50 Conclusion, why they called the ME out to the scene   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 1985 a skull and partial remains are found in a plastic bag near Channel Islands Harbor in Oxnard, California. Thinking the remains are from a recent victim, investigators work to solve what they think is a murder. Failing to identify the victim, the case goes cold. On this episode of Body Bags, Joseph Scott Morgan will explain how the scientists at Othram Labs developed a DNA extract from the evidence and were able to identify “Ventura County Jane Doe "as the victim of a grave robbing that happened after her death in 1915. Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack will share the story of Gertrude Elliot-Littlehale, a woman born in 1864 and the amazing life she lived well before she became the unidentified “cold case” of “Ventura County Jane Doe”. Othram Labs is helping solve cases that seem unsolvable with the help of everyday people willing to make a small donation at DNASOLVES.COM Please take a moment of your time and visit DNASOLVES.COM and see how you can help solve a case.         Transcript Highlights  00:00:08 Introduction of Ventura County Jane Doe  00:03:44 Discussion of Skull found in a bag in 1985  00:07:19 Talk about history and DNA  00:11:58 Discussion identifying bodies  00:15:13 Talk about going from 1985 back to 1864  00:20:49 Discussion of dogs and old bones  00:24:14 Discussion of forensic anthropologist  00:29:04 Discussion of “suture lines”  00:33:03 Talk about solving crimes with DNA  00:38:20 Discussion of building a family tree  00:42:12 Discussion of “Gertie” and her life  00:46:50 Talk about Othram Labs   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Imagine waking up inside a body bag, declared dead and transported to a funeral home, where you find yourself short of breath, BUT STILL BREATHING! In this episode of Body Bags with Joseph Scott Morgan we will explore something that is happening far more often than you think, people being declared dead, who wake up on a table in a funeral home!  And how to make sure you are not Buried Alive!           Transcript Highlights  00:00:08 Introduction: worst nightmare come true  00:03:02 Discussion being buried alive   00:07:28 Talk about funeral homes  00:11:49 Discussion of hospice care nursing  00:16:29 Discussion of soldier Battle of the Bulge  00:20:24 Talk about forensic pathology  00:24:46 Discussion of dead body, signs of death  00:28:30 Discussion of death investigation  00:31:34 Talk about people declared dead, waking up in funeral home  00:34:16 Discussion of death and declaring someone dead  00:38:04 Conclusion: cautionary tale, death investigation is important See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The victims of the Long Island Serial Killer have been known in the media as the “Gilgo 4”, but now that Rex Heuermann has been charged with two more murders the media will have to change the name to the “Gilgo 6”.  Rex Heuermann is an architect by trade, someone who can create and use blueprints. Investigators found a Serial Killer Blueprint on Heuermann’s computer. On this episode of Body Bags, Joseph Scott Morgan will explain how DNA evidence and hair might be enough to put away Rex Heuermann for good, and Dave Mack will explore some of the items found on Heuermann’s computer. From disturbing images of abuse and porn, to lists of supplies for torture, investigators found a goldmine during a recent search of Heuermann’s home.           Transcript Highlights  00:00:08 Introduction of Gilgo details  00:02:09 Discuss Rex Heuermann two new murder charges  00:07:19 Discussion of Data from a forensic standpoint  00:12:01 Talk about seeing the dumping ground and home of Heuermann  00:16:58 Discussion of more bodies found along Gilgo  00:21:18 Discussion of area, easy to be seen  00:25:25 Discussion of the court documents, new information  00:29:37 Talk about changes in DNA science since early 90s  00:33:36 Discussion of skin and injury  00:37:05 Conclusion – more bodies See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

They called themselves the "Gilbert Goons", a group of teens that were suspected of assaults at parties and parking lots, as well as armed robberies. Defended by their parents, the teens' reign of violence culminated with the fatal beating of 16-year-old Preston Lord. Preston was at a Halloween Party with friends when one of the "Gilbert Goons" stole a cheap necklace from a friend of Preston Lord.  On this episode of Body Bags, Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack will tell the story of how a town in Arizona was terrorized by a group of entitled teens who were defended by their entitled parents for years until they almost got away with murder.          Transcript Highlights  00:00:08 Introduction: Group Think  00:03:56 Discussion of group of teens in Gilbert, Arizona  00:07:22 Discussion of Gilbert Goons videotaping the beating   00:11:15 Talk about the assaults attributed to the teens in Gilbert  00:16:09 Discussion of how the beating of Preston Lord continued   00:21:07 Discussion of a bully  00:25:45 Talk about parents joking about the beating  00:30:19 Discussion of severe blunt force trauma  00:33:52 Discussion of shoe imprint on the body of victim  00:38:02 Conclusion: judgement is coming.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chrystul Kizer is 17 when she is arrested for the first-degree murder of Randy Volar. The question that will be answered through investigation and the court system is whether or not Chrystul Kizer killed an innocent man, or did she kill a man who was sexually abusing her and other underage girls. On this episode of Body Bags, Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack will breakdown the case and take an in-depth look at what story the forensics tell and what information a judge will have to consider in sentencing a teen who saw murder as her only way to live.            Transcript Highlights 00:00:17 Introduction: growing up  00:02:18 Discussion of Chrystul Kizer, 17, abuse victim  00:06:52 Talk about fire debris and dead body  00:09:57 Discussion of heat causing teeth to shatter  00:13:15 Discussion of destruction of a person  00:17:05 Discussion of multiple victims  00:21:47 Talk about laws regarding sexual abuse  00:25:54 Discussion of electronic forensics  00:29:01 Talk about Chrystul Kizer trying to survive  00:33:04 Discussion of damage 2 shots to the head can cause  00:38:11 Discussion of stippling  00:41:43 Talk about victim escaping in BMW  00:44:27 Discussion of plea deal offered  00:45:18 Conclusion – sentence coming in August See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Georgia authorities find three victims tortured and murdered in Clayton County and taken to Fulton County. They were found in an abandoned car along I-85 at an exit ramp in Union City, Georgia on January 13, 2013. On this episode of Body Bags, Joseph Scott Morgan will take you into the investigation that determined the victims were tortured and murdered and Dave Mack will go into the back story on how the case remained cold for 11-years until forensics led investigators to a Middle School Assistant Principal in Alabama and 3 other suspects.        Transcript Highlights  00:00:08 Introduction – Position of authority  00:02:36 Talk about Assistant Principal arrested in cold-case triple murder   00:08:06 Discussion -11 years after 3 dead bodies found in a car, a break in the case  00:11:54 Discussion - victims found in Atlanta from Montgomery, Alabama  00:17:02 Talk about suspect was assistant principal at a middle school  00:20:51Discussion of multiple jurisdictions working on a case  00:24:23 Talk about medical examiners  00:27:40 Discussion of multiple suspects  00:30:03 Discussion of asphyxiation  00:31:14 Conclusion, what did the bodies say? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.