Day By Day: True Crime Stories

• December 11 - The Murders of Rick and Suzanna Wamsley

  On December 11, 2003, Rick and Suzanna Wamsley were found brutally murdered inside their home in Mansfield, Texas. To friends and neighbors, they seemed like the picture of suburban success — loving parents, a quiet neighborhood, and a home filled with holiday cheer. But prosecutors would soon allege that the violence was no random crime. Instead, it was the result of a calculated plot involving the couple’s own 19-year-old son, Andrew, his girlfriend Chelsea Richardson, and two accomplices.In this episode of Day by Day: True Crime Stories, host Kona Gallagher walks through the shocking timeline of a family torn apart by greed. From the chilling planning stages to the violent end, and through the courtroom outcomes that followed, we explore one of Texas’s most disturbing true-crime cases — a murder-for-inheritance scheme that still haunts the community two decades later.#truecrime #WamsleyMurders #texascrime #andrewwamsleyAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

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• December 10 - The Murder of Frances Brown

  On this day in 1945, Chicago police entered a North Side apartment and found a crime scene so brutal — and so chillingly theatrical — that it made headlines across the country and birthed one of the most haunting nicknames in American true crime history: The Lipstick Killer.Frances Brown, a former Navy WAVE and working woman in her early 30s, was found shot and stabbed in her apartment near Wrigley Field. A message, scrawled in red lipstick on the wall, read: “For heaven’s sake catch me before I kill more I cannot control myself.”Her murder stunned postwar Chicago and was eventually linked to a string of crimes that plunged the city into fear — including the later kidnapping and murder of six-year-old Suzanne Degnan.Seventeen-year-old William Heirens was arrested, confessed under controversial circumstances, and spent over 65 years behind bars. But serious doubts about his confession, the evidence, and the police tactics used during the investigation have never gone away.In today’s episode, we revisit the murder of Frances Brown — a woman whose life was overshadowed by a message, a nickname, and a legal case that still sparks debate decades later.#LipstickKiller #FrancesBrown #ChicagoCrime Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

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• December 9 - The Disappearance of Joan Bernal

  On this day in 1988, 34-year-old Joan Yarbrough Bernal was supposed to be hitting the road with her husband and children for a holiday trip from Joliet, Illinois, to Texas. Instead, she vanished without a trace—and was never seen again.Her husband, Gilbert “Gil” Bernal, has long claimed that Joan walked away from her life during the road trip. But Joan’s children and investigators believe the truth is much darker—and that Joan may never have made it out of Joliet.In this episode, we trace Joan’s story: her life as a devoted mother of five, the troubling history of domestic abuse in her home, and the suspicious timeline of events surrounding her disappearance. We explore the initial 1993 murder charge against Gil that was later dropped, and how, decades later, the case has been revived with new forensic efforts and national attention thanks to Cold Justice.Thirty-seven years on, Joan’s body has never been found, and no one has been held accountable. But her children—and cold case detectives—still haven’t stopped searching for the truth.#ColdCase #JoanBernal #MissingPerson #ColdJusticeAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

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• December 8 — The Murder of John Lennon

  On this day in 1980, music legend John Lennon was shot outside his New York City home by a fan who had waited for hours. Just hours before, Lennon had signed an autograph for the man who would end his life. Within minutes, the world lost one of its most influential voices.In this episode, we retrace Lennon’s final day—from his creative resurgence and time in the studio to the chilling moments on West 72nd Street. We also examine the disturbing motives of Mark David Chapman, the investigation and aftermath, and how Lennon’s death sent shockwaves across the globe.More than four decades later, the pain still lingers, but so does the legacy of a man who believed in peace, love, and the power of music.Day by Day: True Crime Stories is a daily podcast that explores one crime or justice milestone from this day in history. Hosted by Kona Gallagher.#TrueCrime #JohnLennon #markdavidchapman #onthisdayAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

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• December 7 - The Martin Family Disappearance

  On December 7, 1958, Kenneth and Barbara Martin and their three daughters—Barbie, Virginia, and Susan—set out from their Portland home for a Sunday drive into the Columbia River Gorge to gather Christmas greenery. They never returned.What followed was one of Oregon’s most perplexing missing-persons cases. Despite a massive search, the family’s station wagon vanished without a trace, and it wasn’t until months later that the bodies of two of the girls were found in the Columbia River. The other three Martins—and their car—remained missing for decades.In this episode, host Kona Gallagher unpacks the haunting mystery of the Martins’ disappearance, explores theories ranging from a tragic accident to foul play, and shares new developments—including a major underwater discovery in 2025 that may finally answer the question of what happened that day.#MartinFamilydisappearance #ColumbiaRiverAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

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