Debra Jackson: How DNA Finally Identified “Orange Socks” Doe After More Than 40 Years For more than four decades, she wasn’t known by her name. Instead, she was known simply as “Orange Socks”—a heartbreaking nickname inspired by the only clothing she was wearing when her body was discovered alongside Interstate 35 in Georgetown, Texas. For…

Brandon Lawson: The Mystery of a 911 Call and an 11-Year Search On the night of August 8, 2013, 26-year-old Brandon Lawson left his home in San Angelo, Texas, after an argument with his longtime girlfriend, Ladessa Lofton. He told his family he was heading toward his father’s house, but somewhere along the way, his…

The Suspicious Death of Crystal McCrory Jones: The Forensic Evidence and Unanswered Questions (Part Two) In Part One of this series, we explored the life of Crystal McCrory Jones, the events of February 9, 2023, and the investigation that quickly concluded her death was a suicide. But for Crystal’s family, that ruling marked the beginning—not…

The Suspicious Death of Crystal McCrory Jones: Questions Surrounding the Investigation (Part One) On February 9, 2023, 43-year-old Crystal McCrory Jones was found dead inside her home in West Carroll Parish, Louisiana. She had suffered a single gunshot wound to the head, and within just a few hours, investigators ruled her death a suicide. But…

The Unsolved Murders of the Dardeen Family: A Crime That Still Haunts Southern Illinois On November 18, 1987, the quiet farming community of Ina, Illinois became the scene of one of the most horrific family murders in American history. What investigators discovered inside a modest trailer home—and at a second crime scene just miles away—would…

The Mysterious Disappearance of Brandon Swanson On the morning of May 14, 2008, 19-year-old Brandon Swanson called his parents after his car became stuck in a ditch along a rural Minnesota road. What followed was a 47-minute phone call that has become one of the most haunting mysteries in modern true crime. During that call,…

The Disappearance of Patricia Viola: A Missing Persons Mystery Still Unsolved On February 13, 2001, Patricia “Pat” Viola seemingly vanished without a trace from her home in Bogota, New Jersey. More than two decades later, investigators still don’t know what happened to the devoted wife and mother of two. Despite extensive searches, countless leads, and…

The Fox Hollow Farm Murders: The Double Life of Herb Baumeister To the outside world, Herb Baumeister appeared to be living the American dream. He was a husband, a father of three, and the successful owner of a growing chain of thrift stores in Indiana. He lived with his family on a beautiful 18-acre estate…

The Murder of Oakey “Al” Kite In May 2004, 53-year-old Oakey “Al” Kite Jr. was searching for a new tenant to rent the basement apartment of his Aurora, Colorado townhouse. What seemed like a normal decision quickly turned into one of the most disturbing unsolved murders in Colorado history. After placing an ad in the…

L Angela Hammond: The Missouri Abduction That Remains Unsolved In April 1991, 20-year-old Angela “Angie” Hammond vanished from a grocery store parking lot in Clinton, Missouri, while talking to her fiancé on a payphone. More than three decades later, her disappearance remains one of Missouri’s most haunting unsolved cases. On this episode of Forensic Tales,…