It's Murder, Y'all It's Murder, Y'all

A popular bar owner is found dead in his burned-down bar. Months later, a young couple moved from California to pursue their dreams in Nashville but met foul play on their first night. Could a man the couple met at a bar be the connection between both of these cases?



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And check out our website (it's a work in progress): itsmurderyall.com



Sources


Artnfield, M. (2018). Monster city: Murder, music, and mayhem in Nashville's dark age. Little A.
Deadly Recall - S1 Ep 4 - Closing Time
Dead of Night - S1 Ep 7 - I Die to Pieces
FindaGrave.com - Ronald Edward "Ducas" Bingham
Tran, T. (1993, October 18). Body found after suspicious fire. The Tennessean.
Cornell, T. (1993, October 23). Arson, murder believed to be debt cover-up. The Tennessean.
FindaGrave.com - Robert William "Robbie" Phillips
FindaGrave.com - Kelli Jean Gifford Phillips
Hicks, D. (1994, March 11). Police close in on suspect in homicides. North Country Times.
Schmitt, B., & Thomas, S. (1994, May 29). Steeples' past reveals evidence of troubled life. The Tennessean.
Thomas, S. (1994, June 5). Seeking truth to insanity: Mother left with questions. The Tennessean.
Loggins, K. (1994, August 12). TV tipped woman to flee Steeples' room. The Tennessean.
Leanna Shoulders - The Cinemaholic - The Cinemaholic - https://thecinemaholic.com/leanna-shoulders-murder-where-are-emmanuel-edwards-and-jason-clark-now/


Cornell, T. (1993, April 4). Motel's plan originally included bulletproof glass. The Tennessean.
Thien, M. (1993, April 6). 4 youths held in slaying. The Tennessean.
State v. Fernandez - January 14, 1998 - https://casetext.com/case/state-v-fernandez-65

In 1999, George Strait and Alan Jackson released their song, "Murder on Music Row." While the song reflected a critique of mainstream country music, the opening lyrics (Nobody saw him running from Sixteenth Avenue. They never found the fingerprint or the weapon that was used...) were an eerie reminder of the real murder on Music Row--the 1989 unsolved murder of Kevin Hughes. Join us as we discuss who it was running away from Sixteenth Avenue.



Come follow us on Instagram: @itsmurderyall

And check out our website (it's a work-in-progress): itsmurderyall.com



Sources


Cold Case Files - The Hitmaker
CourtTV – A Hit With a Bullet
Unsolved Mysteries - https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Kevin_Hughes
Artnfield, M. (2018). Monster city: Murder, music, and mayhem in Nashville's dark age. Little A.
Richard Frank D'Antonio v. State of Tennessee (2012)
Wissner, S., Goldsmith, T., & Oermann, R.K. (1989, April 9). Chart fraud hinted in Music Row slaying. The
Tennessean.
Patterson, J. (2003, November 24). Witnesses cite despite over ‘Cash Box’ chart. The Tennessean.


Simbeck, R. (2002, August 8). With a bullet. Nashville Scene. https://www.nashvillescene.com/news/with-a-bullet/article_13e59932-25b7-5c66-bcf0- 0502031c8e9d.html
ABC News. (2006, January 6). The dark side of Nashville's music business.
Wikipedia - Cashbox (magazine)

In this episode, we discuss the case that robbed country music of its innocence.

Come follow us on Instagram: @itsmurderyall

And check out our website (still working on getting it updated): itsmurderyall.com



Sources


Hagood, T. (2023). Stringbean: The life and murder of a country music legend. University of Illinois Press.
Hall, D. (1974, October 30). Opry star recounts discovery of bodies. The Tennessean.
Hall, D. (1974, October 31). Others involved in Akeman case? The Tennessean.
Hall, D. (1974, November 2). Told she begged, Brown kin says. The Tennessean.
Hall, D. (1974, November 3). Browns guilty, get 99-year terms. The Tennessean.
Lewis, D. (1974, November 5). John Brown discusses slayings. The Tennessean.
Paulson, D. (2019, August 26). How the Grand Ole Opry put country music (and Nashville) on the map. The Tennessean.
Benitez-Eves, T. (2022, December 1). 5 country artists who were banned from the Grand Ole Opry. American Songwriter. https://americansongwriter.com/5-country-artists-who-were-banned-from-the-grand-ole-opry/
Brown, L. (2022, December 29). Looking back at the rushed 1997 closure of Opryland USA. Nashville
Scene. https://www.nashvillescene.com/news/coverstory/looking-back-at-the-rushed-1997-closure-of-opryland-usa/article_5cad5fc4-8215-11ed-a845-1f29bb40b636.html
Taylor, T. (2023, August 12). David ‘Stringbean’ Akeman: The curious assassination of a country banjo player. Far Out. https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/david-stringbean-akeman-the-curious-assassination-of-a-country-banjo-player/
Cooper, P. (2023, November 10). How the 1973 Tennessee murder of David ‘Stringbean’ Akeman brought fear to Nashville. The Tennessean.
Paul, S. (2023, November 10). 50 years ago: Opry legend Stringbean Akeman is murdered. Savingcountrymusic.com.

This week's case takes us back over 70 years to discuss a case that involves a love triangle (or maybe a love hexagon?), some questionable life choices, and a heaping spoonful of backwoods "justice."



Episode Correction: I misspoke about when Judge Andrews retired--it was October 30, not April 30!!



Come follow us on Instagram: @itsmurderyall

And check out our website (currently trying to get it updated): itsmurderyall.com



Sources


Shout out to Crime Junkie, Bubba Shot the Podcast, and Bobby Russell (RIP).
Haralson County Historical Society - https://www.haralsoncountyhistory.com/
Wikipedia - M. Neil Andrews - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M._Neil_Andrews
Wikipedia - William Boyd Sloan - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Boyd_Sloan

In this edition of our Black & Missing series, we discuss the disappearances of Ebonee Spears (Wilmington), Priti "Ashley" Porter (Gastonia), and Samatha Baremore (Winston-Salem), and also give a brief history lesson on the Wilmington Massacre of 1898.

Come follow us on Instram: @itsmurderyall

We now have a website: itsmurderyall.com

Sources

The Wilmington Massacre


Wikipedia – Wilmington, NC
Wikipedia – Wilmington Massacre
The Equal Justice Initiative - ⁠https://eji.org/news/wilmington-massacre-of-1898/⁠
NPR - ⁠https://www.npr.org/2021/11/10/1053562371/1898-wilmington-coup-massacre⁠

Ebonee Spears


The Vanished Podcast. (2019, June 24). Ep. 181 Ebonee Spears.
The Charley Project – Ebonee Shanetta Spears
Reid, K. (2024, February 24). Mother
determined to find missing North Carolina woman Ebonee Spears, eight years after her mysterious disappearance. NBCNews. ⁠https://www.nbcnews.com/dateline/cold-case-spotlight/mother-determined-find-missing-north-carolina-woman-ebonee-spears-eigh-rcna140327⁠
NIH: ⁠https://www.niams.nih.gov/health-topics/lupus#:~:text=Lupus%20occurs%20when%20the%20immune,circulating%20blood%20cells%2C%20and%20brain⁠

Priti "Ashley" Porter


The Charley Project - Priti Ashley Porter
Lawson, A. (2017, April 27). 8 years, no answers for missing woman. Gaston Gazette.

Samatha Baremore


The Charley Project - Samatha Elizabeth Baremore
Wilson, P. (2006, June 8). A mother’s instincts: ‘She’s no longer here.’ Winston-Salem Journal.

1993 was a bad year to work in a grocery store in North Carolina. In this episode, we talk about the Be-Lo Massacre, as well as two other shootings that happened in 1993 in the Tar Heel State.

Come follow us on Instagram: @itsmurderyall

And check out our new website: itsmurderyall.com

Sources


Bohn, J. (2021). Closing Time: The 1993 Be-Lo Murders.
Audrey Leggett Cold Case: Kristen Hunter Reports (YouTube) https://youtu.be/rOh9zKtIpnI?si=kjIsg_s5r9GYP-cj
FindaGrave.com – Audrey Lee Hopkins Leggett
North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation - https://ncsbi.gov/Divisions/Cold-Case-Investigation-Team/Unsolved-Homicides/Be-Lo-Murders-(1)
State v. McNeill (1998)
McNeill v. Braker (2009)
State v. McNeill (2000)


Allegood, J. (1993, August 29). Town still hurts from triple murder. The News and Observer.


Eisley, M. (1993, September 21). Victims called hard workers, good friends. The News and Observer.
Hopkins, F. (1993, September 21). Two killed in robbery at grocery. The News and Observer.
Babcock, P. (1993, September 25). Friends grieve for grocery manager. The News and Observer.
Hopkins, F. (1993, September 25). Food Lion worker, brother held. The News and Observer.
Allegood, J. (1993, November 17). ‘Model prisoner’ sought in Windsor killings. The News and Observer.
Allegood, J. (1994, May 12). Be-Lo robbery similar to last year’s. The News and Observer.
Saker, A. (1996, March 4). Trial to reflect loss of Food Lion families. The News and Observer.
Saker, A. (1996, March 28). Defendant’s brother leaves much unanswered. The News and Observer.


Saker, A. (1996, April 4). Jury finds Elmer Ray McNeill guilty in Food Lion murder case. The News and Observer.
Saker, A. (1996, April 10). Death for McNeill. The News and Observer.


Saker, A. (1996, August 10). Witness credibility queried in Food Lion murder trial. The News and Observer.
Saker, A. (1996, October 2). Effort afoot to tie killings, theft at Food Lion. The News and Observer.
Saker, A. (1996, October 3). Defense team in grocery store killings hints at tactics. The News and Observer.


Saker, A. (1996, October 9). Prosecution rests in Robert McNeill’s double-murder trial. The News and Observer.


Boyd, J.O. (2015, October 13). Man arrested for driving through front of business for beer. ABC News 12.
Staff Writer. (2015, January 24). Bertie Sheriff has new lead in killings at Be-Lo grocery. Greensboro News & Record.


Varnier, J. (2022, February 11). Surfside Beach man sentenced for deadly Intracoastal Waterway boating incident. ABC 15 News.