Southern Fried True Crime Erica Kelley

Parents have to trust caregivers. It’s just a fact of life. Often we feel more comfortable with a family friend than a daycare. That’s what Tiffany and David Shell did for their daughter Annie. They trusted Brandi Giannunzio. She babysat their two youngest daughters. She was good with their girls. They had no reason to believe Brandi would leave their girls with her boyfriend. They had never met Benjamin Brown. But on August 9, 2018, he was left alone with their daughters. And then they had to face the unthinkable. 

Hosted and produced by Erica Kelley 
Researched and written by Erica Kelley & Gemma Harris
Original Graphic Art by Coley Horner 
Original Music by Rob Harrison of Gamma Radio
Edited & Mixed by Brandon Schexnayder and Erica Kelley 

RESOURCES FOR CHILD ABUSE
Visit this website for preventing Shaken Baby Syndrome
US National Child Abuse Hotline: 1-800-422-4453
For resources specific to each state, visit this website
Canada: visit this website to find the hotline in your area
UK Child Abuse Hotline: 0808 800 5000
Visit this website for help recognizing child abuse

Sources: https://southernfriedtruecrime.com/annie-burkett-shell

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Nancy Brophy fills her novels with romantic betrayals and murder. It’s a far cry from her quiet life in the suburbs, where she and her chef husband, Dan, are living out their golden years. But when Dan is shot dead, Nancy finds herself at the center of a murder case that could be ripped from the pages of her novels.

From Wondery, this is a story about what happens when the line blurs between fiction and reality. Listen to Happily Never After: Dan & Nancy early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple Podcasts. https://wondery.app.link/HNADN_SFTC

After Laura Ackerson lost full custody of her sons, she was heartbroken, but she sprang into action. Within 2 weeks, she got another hearing but she still only got weekends. She had to completely overhaul her life. Within a year, Laura found a great apartment and opened her own ad agency—not just a stable job, but a career she was proud of. Meanwhile, Grant Hayes had blown through most of his new wife’s money. His life was swirling down the drain. And with the court ordered pysch evaluation, he knew he was about to lose custody of his kids. Laura had won. He couldn’t let that happen. So when she went missing a month before their next custody hearing, her friends immediately feared the worst. But I’m not sure in their worst nightmares, they could have been prepared to what happened to Laura Ackerson. 

RESOURCES FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
US National Domestic Violence Hotline: 800-799-7233National Domestic Violence Hotline: thehotline.orgCanada: visit this website to find the hotline in your areaUK Domestic Abuse Hotline: 0808 2000 247For resources in other countries, visit this website
Hosted, produced and written by Erica Kelley 
Researched by Erica and Andrea Marshbank
Original Graphic Art by Coley Horner 
Original Music by Rob Harrison of Gamma Radio 
Edited & Mixed by Brandon Schexnayder & Erica Kelley 
Case suggested by Marcia

Sources: https://www.southernfriedtruecrime.com/laura-ackerson-part-2

This episode is brought to you by:  
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27-year-old Laura Jean Ackerson had a really tough start in life. The single mother of two worked hard to build her own small support system in Kinston, North Carolina. Her brother and best friend were the only people she really had. After Laura survived a whirlwind relationship with a charismatic but narcissistic musician, she faced a vicious custody battle with him. Grant Hayes was a glorified bar star and lazy husband and father. But by July 2011, Laura was finally slipping out of his controlling and abusive grasp. She was winning. Her abuser had lost control. The most dangerous time for a woman. 

Hosted and produced by Erica Kelley 
Researched and written by Erica Kelley Andrea Marshbank
Original Graphic Art by Coley Horner 
Original Music by Rob Harrison of Gamma Radio 
Edited & Mixed by Brandon Schexnayder & Erica Kelley 
Case suggested by Marcia

Sources: https://www.southernfriedtruecrime.com/laura-ackerson

RESOURCES FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCEUS National Domestic Violence Hotline: 800-799-7233National Domestic Violence Hotline: thehotline.orgCanada: visit this website to find the hotline in your areaUK Domestic Abuse Hotline: 0808 2000 247For resources in other countries, visit this website

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In December of 2003, 23-year-old Bart Whitaker had just finished his finals and was about to graduate from college. That night, he went to dinner to celebrate with his parents, Tricia and Kent, and his younger brother Kevin. As they returned home and walked through their door, they were ambushed by a masked gunman. Initially, authorities suspected that this was a burglary gone wrong. But before the funerals had even taken place, detectives discovered that Bart had lied about graduating. And that was just the beginning. 

Hosted and produced by Erica Kelley 
Researched and written by Andrea Marshbank and Erica Kelley
Original Graphic Art by Coley Horner 
Original Music by Rob Harrison of Gamma Radio
Edited & Mixed by Brandon Schexnayder and Erica Kelley 
Suggested by Jessica, Donna, Michelle, and Kyle

Sources: https://southernfriedtruecrime.com/whitaker-family-massacre

This episode is brought to you by:  
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On May 22 1992, Betty Wilson frantically called 911 from her Huntsville, Alabama home. She found her husband, the esteemed Dr. Jack Wilson, in a pool of blood. Someone had bludgeoned and stabbed him to death. Initially, police had no suspects. Until an anonymous tip led them to a man named James White. James confessed to killing Dr. Wilson to prove his love for Betty’s twin sister, Peggy. According to James, Peggy had insisted that he murder her sister’s husband. But, according to Peggy and Betty, James was nothing but a deranged liar.

Hosted and produced by Erica Kelley 
Researched and written by Andrea Marshbank and Erica Kelley
Original Graphic Art by Coley Horner 
Original Music by Rob Harrison of Gamma Radio 
Edited & Mixed by Brandon Schexnayder & Erica Kelley 

Sources: https://southernfriedtruecrime.com/jack-wilson

This episode is brought to you by:  
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