Bless This Mess: A Southern True Crime Podcast

Bless This Mess

Welcome to Bless This Mess: A Southern True Crime Podcast, where the tea is sweet but the history is dark. We are a husband and wife team from Louisiana serving up murder, mystery, and mayhem from across the southern states. Pull up a rocking chair, fill your mason jar with sweet tea (or something a little stronger), and sit for a spell on the porch with us. We dive deep into each case, taking turns sharing the story, but there's always room for some husband-and-wife banter and a few well-placed f-bombs along the way. If you love true crime but prefer we get straight to the point without the porch chit-chat, check out our weekly A Little Less Mess episodes—same cases, trimmed down and focused on the facts. Want even more time on the porch? Join “The Porch Crew” over on our Patreon! Upgrade your sweet tea to something stronger and get early ad-free episodes, our exclusive Friday bonus hangouts (Sittin', Sippin', & Bullshittin'), and even your very own official Porch Crew mason jar.

  1. 2d ago

    [West Virginia] The Greenbrier Ghost

    When 23-year-old Zona Shue died suddenly in 1897, her husband blamed heart trouble, dressed her in a high collar, and buried her the next day. But four weeks later, Zona’s mother claimed her daughter’s ghost appeared at her bedside four nights in a row—demanding justice and revealing her neck had been snapped. Grab your mason jars and join Cara and Stew on the porch for the wild true story of the only murder case in American history cracked by a ghost. Find us on the webs! Follow us on Instagram Like us on Facebook TikTok - @blessthismesspodcast Support us on Patreon - for early access, ad-free, and Porch Crew perks! Buy us a Coffee! - one time support to keep the porch lights on Rate, Review, and Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or where you listen! Music courtesy of Blanche Sources: West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History: The Greenbrier Ghost (Greenbrier Independent & The Monroe Watchman, 1897) The West Virginia Encyclopedia: The Greenbrier Ghost Greenbrier County Circuit Court Records & Historical Archives (Lewisburg, WV) West Virginia Public Broadcasting: Appalachian Lore and Regional News

  2. 4d ago

    A Little Less Mess: The Ghostly Trial of Rebecca Cornell [Rhode Island]

    In February 1673, 73-year-old widow Rebecca Cornell was found dead on her bedroom floor in Portsmouth, Rhode Island. An initial coroner’s jury ruled it an accident, but a report of an apparition and bitter family disputes led to an exhumation, a murder trial, and an execution on the gallows. Find us on the webs! Follow us on Instagram Like us on Facebook TikTok - @blessthismesspodcast Support us on Patreon - for early access, ad-free, and Porch Crew perks! Buy us a Coffee! - one time support to keep the porch lights on Rate, Review, and Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or where you listen! Music courtesy of Blanche Sources Providence Journal, “Did a ghost really solve this 1673 RI murder case?,” October 24, 2026. Elaine Forman Crane, Killed Strangely: The Death of Rebecca Cornell, Cornell University Press, 2002. Rhode Island Historical Society, “Burnt with Fire.” Newport General Court of Trials Record Book A, 1673.

    A Little Less Mess: The Ghostly Trial of Rebecca Cornell [Rhode Island]

  3. Oct 23

    [Florida] The Gainesville Ripper

    In August 1990, the return of students to the University of Florida in Gainesville turned into a nightmare. Over a terrifying four-day span, drifter and serial killer Danny Rolling murdered five college students in their off-campus apartments, leaving the community paralyzed by fear. Find us on the webs! Follow us on Instagram Like us on Facebook TikTok - @blessthismesspodcast Support us on Patreon - for early access, ad-free, and Porch Crew perks! Buy us a Coffee! - one time support to keep the porch lights on Rate, Review, and Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or where you listen! Music courtesy of Blanche

  4. Oct 20

    A Little Less Mess: The Halloween Murder of Rebekah Gay [Michigan]

    When Rebekah Gay didn’t arrive at work on Halloween in 2012, a coworker went to her Michigan home to check on her. Cara follows the search, the investigation, and the confession that resolved the case. Find us on the webs! Follow us on Instagram Like us on Facebook TikTok - @blessthismesspodcast Support us on Patreon - for early access, ad-free, and Porch Crew perks! Buy us a Coffee! - one time support to keep the porch lights on Rate, Review, and Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or where you listen! Music courtesy of Blanche Sources Wilson Miller Funeral Home, obituary for Rebekah Jane Gay. Oxygen, “Minister Murdered Single Mom on Halloween to Live Out His Necrophiliac Fantasy,” October 17, 2022. Associated Press via NBC News, “Police: Mich. pastor killed fiancee’s daughter to fulfill fantasy,” November 3, 2012. Isabella County Prosecuting Attorney, “John Douglas White Pled Guilty to Second Degree Murder,” March 2013. FOX 17, “Man Sentenced for Killing His Neighbor Last Halloween,” April 19, 2013.CBS News, “John White Update: Mich. minister convicted in sex slaying commits suicide in prison, authorities say,” August 29, 2013.

    A Little Less Mess: The Halloween Murder of Rebekah Gay [Michigan]

  5. Oct 15

    [Georgia] The Deadly Delivery to Lita McClinton

    On a bitterly cold January morning in 1987, thirty-five-year-old Lita McClinton was inside her Buckhead townhouse in Atlanta, getting dressed for a critical eleven o'clock court hearing to challenge a prenuptial agreement with her estranged husband, multimillionaire beverage heir James Sullivan. When her doorbell rang, an apparent deliveryman handed her a long white floral box tied with a pink ribbon. Beneath the tissue paper and roses was a nine-millimeter pistol. What followed was an agonizing, nineteen-year fight for justice that spanned interstate payphone trails along I-85, a four-year international manhunt ending in a luxury seaside villa in Thailand, and a high-stakes Fulton County murder trial. Grab your mason jars and join Cara and Stew on the porch for the complete investigative breakdown of one of Georgia's most calculated crimes. Find us on the webs! Follow us on Instagram Like us on Facebook TikTok - @blessthismesspodcast Support us on Patreon - for early access, ad-free, and Porch Crew perks! Buy us a Coffee! - one time support to keep the porch lights on Rate, Review, and Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or where you listen! Music courtesy of Blanche Sources: Supreme Court of Georgia En Banc Decision (Sullivan v. State, 284 Ga. 358, 667 S.E.2d 32, 2008) Georgia Court of Appeals Judicial Records (Harwood v. State, 303 Ga. App. 434, 693 S.E.2d 589, 2010) Fulton County Superior Court Indictment, Trial & Penalty Phase Transcripts (State of Georgia v. James Vincent Sullivan, 2006) Bilateral Treaty on Extradition Between the United States and the Kingdom of Thailand (Treaty Doc. 98-16, Article 6, 1991) Contemporary investigative coverage and trial reporting by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and The Associated Press

  6. Oct 14

    A Little Less Mess: The Murder of Ellen Sherman [Connecticut]

    When a friend went to check on Ellen Sherman in 1985, the discovery inside her Connecticut home launched a years-long murder investigation. Cara follows the disputed timeline and unexpected testimony that helped bring the case to trial.  Find us on the webs! Follow us on Instagram Like us on Facebook TikTok - @blessthismesspodcast Support us on Patreon - for early access, ad-free, and Porch Crew perks! Buy us a Coffee! - one time support to keep the porch lights on Rate, Review, and Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or where you listen! Music courtesy of Blanche Sources State v. Sherman, Connecticut Appellate Court, 1995. Hartford Courant, “Man Who Killed Wife Dies of Heart Attack,” 1996. Luanne Rice, “Four Murders and a Missing Woman in the Nutmeg State,” Criminal Element, 2020. Rebecca Reisner, “Ellen and Ed Sherman: Cold End to a Marriage,” Forensic Files Now, 2025.

    A Little Less Mess: The Murder of Ellen Sherman [Connecticut]

  7. Oct 9

    [Georgia] The Fire on Fawn Drive

    In January 2001, firefighters responding to an off-campus house fire on Fawn Drive in Athens, Georgia, discovered the body of twenty-three-year-old UGA law student Tara Louise Baker . When investigators determined the fire had been deliberately set to cover up a violent homicide, it launched a twenty-three-year search for answers. Find us on the webs! Follow us on Instagram Like us on Facebook TikTok - @blessthismesspodcast Support us on Patreon - for early access, ad-free, and Porch Crew perks! Buy us a Coffee! - one time support to keep the porch lights on Rate, Review, and Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or where you listen! Music courtesy of Blanche Sources • Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) Cold Case Investigative Division Case File • Athens-Clarke County Police Department & Fire Rescue Incident Reports (160 Fawn Drive) • State of Georgia Legislative Archives: The Coleman-Baker Act (HB 88) • Western Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office Records: State of Georgia v. Edrick Lamont Faust (Clarke County Superior Court) • Athens Banner-Herald, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and The Red & Black Court Archives

  8. Oct 6

    A Little Less Mess: The Vanishing at Eilean Mòr [Scotland]

    In December 1900, three lighthouse keepers vanished from a remote island off the coast of Scotland. When the relief crew arrived at Eilean Mòr, the lighthouse was empty, the fire was cold, the beds were unmade, and one raincoat still hung by the door. This week on A Little Less Mess, Cara heads across the ocean to explore the eerie disappearance at the Flannan Isles Lighthouse—and the ghost stories that have followed those three missing men for more than a century. Find us on the webs! Follow us on Instagram Like us on Facebook TikTok - @blessthismesspodcast Support us on Patreon - for early access, ad-free, and Porch Crew perks! Buy us a Coffee! - one time support to keep the porch lights on Rate, Review, and Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or where you listen! Music courtesy of Blanche Sources National Lighthouse Board National Records of Scotland BBC

    A Little Less Mess: The Vanishing at Eilean Mòr [Scotland]
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4.6
out of 5
738 Ratings

About

Welcome to Bless This Mess: A Southern True Crime Podcast, where the tea is sweet but the history is dark. We are a husband and wife team from Louisiana serving up murder, mystery, and mayhem from across the southern states. Pull up a rocking chair, fill your mason jar with sweet tea (or something a little stronger), and sit for a spell on the porch with us. We dive deep into each case, taking turns sharing the story, but there's always room for some husband-and-wife banter and a few well-placed f-bombs along the way. If you love true crime but prefer we get straight to the point without the porch chit-chat, check out our weekly A Little Less Mess episodes—same cases, trimmed down and focused on the facts. Want even more time on the porch? Join “The Porch Crew” over on our Patreon! Upgrade your sweet tea to something stronger and get early ad-free episodes, our exclusive Friday bonus hangouts (Sittin', Sippin', & Bullshittin'), and even your very own official Porch Crew mason jar.

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