18 episodes
True Believer: The Unsolved Murder of Elizabeth Mackintosh TJ Ingrassia & Ruth Serven Smith
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- True Crime
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4.5 • 151 Ratings
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Early on the morning of March 26, 1990, Elizabeth Mackintosh was murdered on the campus of Covenant Theological Seminary in Creve Coeur, Missouri. To date it's the only unsolved murder in the city’s history. True Believer examines the circumstances surrounding Elizabeth's murder and speaks to the people affected by it as they, and the men suspected in her death, search for answers.
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Series Trailer
Coming December 19th...
Early on the morning of March 26, 1990, Elizabeth Mackintosh was murdered on the campus of Covenant Theological Seminary in Creve Coeur, Missouri. To date it's the only unsolved murder in the city’s history. True Believer examines the circumstances surrounding Elizabeth's murder and speaks to the people affected by it as they, and the men suspected in her death, search for answers.
Visit truebelieverpodcast.com to learn more.
Send us an an email to contact@truebelieverpodcast.com -
Ep 01: God Only Knows the Answer
Elizabeth Mackintosh was killed in the chapel basement at Covenant Theological Seminary. The right tour guide will point out the spot, but Covenant hosts no memorial for her. And it’s not like Elizabeth was a stranger passing through… she was a well-respected student at the time she was killed.
It’s been 33 years since her death, so why are some people still finding out about it for the first time? Because for all practical purposes any traces of her, and the fact that a murder even took place, have been wiped from Covenant’s institutional memory.
In this first episode of our series we take a high-level look at Elizabeth’s murder, the characters in the story, and what a small but growing number of PCA pastors and members think should be done about it. Think of this as the 30,000 foot overview. Then in the episodes to come we’ll zoom in on several key aspects of the case.
What really happened in the murder of Elizabeth Mackintosh? God only knows the answer.
Show Notes
- Covenant Seminary’s December 5th statement
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Ep 02: The Chapel
About a dozen people were around Elizabeth on the morning of her death, but no one saw anything incriminating. Ruth and TJ walk through the morning of March 26, 1990, minute by minute, examining who was where and when. We hear from former Covenant students and staff who were on the campus that morning, and also from two retired Creve Coeur Police detectives, George Hodak and Dennis Spoerry, as they describe the first day of the murder investigation.
Visit www.truebelieverpodcast.com to see additional materials related to each episode or to get in touch with us. -
Ep 03: The Prime Suspect
Police quickly understand that they have responded to a homicide at Covenant Theological Seminary, not a suicide (as the original 911 call said). As the investigation begins, police become interested in one man, a fellow student of Elizabeth Mackintosh. A choice made that day continues to haunt investigators.
Click here to review the transcript of this episode.
Visit www.truebelieverpodcast.com to see additional materials related to each episode or to get in touch with us. -
Ep 04: 33 Years and Counting
The Covenant community reacts to Elizabeth’s death. Police travel around the country to investigate leads. Then they find out important information might have been saved by seminary lawyers and stored in a barn… or might be lost forever.
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Ep 05: A Strong-Minded Woman
We’ve spent this series so far examining what happened to Elizabeth Mackintosh, but in this episode we focus on Elizabeth herself. Who was she? What was she like? What was she doing at Covenant? And what were her plans for the future?
Visit www.truebelieverpodcast.com to see additional materials related to each episode or to get in touch with us.
Customer Reviews
An Important Story
I lived in the St. Louis area and was in the PCA when Elizabeth’s murder happened. It has always puzzled me that it was never solved. This has been interesting and I would like to see it solved and the seminary honor her death with a memorial. My only reason for not giving this podcast a 5-star rating was the use of profanity, especially the taking of the Lord’s name in vain, a violation of the 10 Commandments.
“More to come on that…”
Overall, the story and investigation is decently done, however, in nearly every episode there are multiple comments alluding to an interesting fact with an aside, “but more on that later.” It would have been better if they just brushed past the foreshadowing comment and provided a quick refresher when they were actually ready to discuss it.
Important Journalistic Work Done Well
They have done an excellent job telling Elizabeth’s story, exposing weaknesses in the investigation and in the enduring narrative, and highlighting important issues in the church and in the PCA!