0:02

Due to the graphic nature of

0:04

this case, listener discretion is advised.

0:06

This episode includes discussions of assault

0:08

and murder. Consider this

0:10

when deciding how and when you'll listen. The

0:19

newspapers were the first sign that

0:21

something wasn't right. Gertrude

0:23

McCabe always took them inside.

0:26

The 88-year-old California resident would read

0:28

them herself early every morning and

0:30

then pass them over her back

0:33

fence to her neighbor, Juanita Lennon.

0:36

And yet, there they were, two

0:38

days worth sitting outside Gertrude's

0:40

front door untouched.

0:43

It's morning when Juanita first notices the

0:46

break in routine. She rings

0:48

Gertrude's doorbell to check on her friend. When

0:51

no one answers, Juanita speaks to another

0:53

neighbor who notices that the sliding door

0:55

on the side of Gertrude's house is

0:57

open. And through a living

1:00

room window, they can see open drawers

1:02

and assorted items strewn about the room.

1:05

They call 911 and police

1:07

arrive before 10am. The

1:09

officers call out Gertrude's name to see

1:11

if anyone's home, but there's no response.

1:15

So when they find the back

1:17

entrance unlocked, they step inside. They

1:20

find Gertrude in the den. Her

1:22

body is lying on the carpet in a

1:24

pool of blood. Detectives

1:26

begin documenting the crime scene immediately.

1:29

There's a bike chain twisted around

1:31

Gertrude's neck. The wounds

1:33

covering her body suggest someone bludgeoned

1:36

her in the head with a

1:38

thin, round object and stabbed her

1:40

at least 20 times. The

1:43

state of the scene suggests she was killed less

1:45

than 24 hours ago. Police

1:48

later estimate around 3pm the

1:51

day before. Upstairs in

1:53

the house, detectives find one of the

1:55

two bedrooms in shambles. Like

1:57

the living room downstairs, drawers have been left

1:59

open. Then, and their contents

2:01

are scattered everywhere. It looks

2:03

like a robbery gone wrong,

2:05

but that might be intentional.

2:07

There's plenty of valuables lying

2:10

around Dorothy's purses in her

2:12

bedroom with more than two

2:14

hundred dollars cash inside and

2:16

she still wearing. To diamond

2:18

rings. That are now covered in

2:20

blood. Detected Suspect: the killer staged a

2:23

burglary to throw them off. Their

2:25

scent. Why what

2:27

kind of person kills it

2:29

is senseless elderly woman in

2:31

such a violent fascist. That

2:34

question. How did Homicide detectives.

2:36

Four years until a

2:38

few determined. Investigators picked

2:41

up on details that every

2:43

one both for them. Had

2:46

missed. I'm

2:50

Vanessa Richardson and this is Serial Killers.

2:52

A spotify podcast. You can find us

2:54

here every Monday. Be sure to check

2:56

us out on Instagram at Serial Killers

2:59

Podcast and we'd love to hear from

3:01

you. So do you listening? On the

3:03

spot: A Fiat swipe up. And

3:05

give us your thoughts. Today

3:07

we're covering the murder of

3:09

Gertrude Mccabe, a crime that.

3:11

Might never have been solved without

3:13

a few critical pieces of evidence.

3:16

We're very excited to bring you this. Special

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With us. Okay,

4:00

so we'll trend is one of the. Reasons

4:03

were covering today's case during a

4:05

recent. Sickness I binge Watched all

4:07

of season one on Hulu. I'm

4:09

someone who consumes a lot of

4:11

crime related content and it had

4:13

me hooked. But. As I was

4:15

watching the series, I kept thinking about this case.

4:18

The murder of Gertrude Mccabe. And

4:20

I kept wondering myself what might have changed.

4:22

It's someone like Will. Trent was assigned to

4:24

it from the start. As

4:26

you're about to find out over

4:29

the course of an investigation that

4:31

last more than ten years, the

4:34

evidence surrounding Gertrude murdered doesn't change,

4:36

but the detectives do like a

4:38

revolving door. Each one enters and

4:41

evaluates the same clues with new

4:43

perspectives. until finally. A killer is

4:45

brought to justice. I know

4:48

it's not exactly fair to compare six and

4:50

to real life, but I couldn't help myself.

4:52

Would will trend have made fewer missteps

4:54

which he has picked up on the

4:57

most relevant evidence. From the start. With

4:59

as you with a detective. Would

5:01

you? Let's.

5:04

Get into the story. It's

5:07

Sunday, October twenty third. Nineteen

5:10

eighty. Three The morning

5:12

after Gertrude Mccabe murder

5:14

investigators. Are collecting evidence from

5:16

Gertrude House in San Jose, California?

5:19

It. Looks like someone to the old

5:21

woman and tried to stage a burglary.

5:24

The only notable either missing from the

5:26

house is Gertrude. Checkbook register.

5:29

Which for our younger listeners is. What

5:31

many people used to track

5:33

their spending before online banking

5:35

detectives wonder? If maybe Gertrude wrote. A

5:37

check to her killer before she died and

5:39

that's why they took it. Inside.

5:42

The bathroom closest to Gertrude

5:44

Body Officials. Find a to bloodied

5:47

pillows and a towel inside the

5:49

bath tub. A rust colored ring

5:51

near the drain suggest a killer

5:53

tried to wash them to obfuscate

5:55

the evidence. There's also a pair

5:57

of gloves hanging on the sink. Too

6:00

large to be Gertrude, so they were

6:02

presumably worn by the killer. The.

6:05

Forensic team doesn't find any unusual

6:07

fingerprints in the house. No hair

6:09

or blood either. Nothing that could

6:11

help them identify the person responsible.

6:14

But based on a recent like mark

6:16

on the bathroom wall too high to

6:18

have been made by Gertrude. They

6:20

might be tall. Taller. Than

6:23

the average person. Now

6:25

is the detectives were anything like

6:27

Will Trent? They be able to

6:29

look at all those details and

6:31

imagine how the killer entered Gertrude

6:33

home, where they attacked her, and

6:35

why they left behind this bizarre

6:37

evidence. Unfortunately and Gertrude

6:40

Case. The few clues that the

6:42

crime scene don't add up to much,

6:44

and the detectives are left with more

6:46

questions than answers. About.

6:51

Two hours away and Marine County, California

6:54

protrudes Nice! Jean Alexander watches football at

6:56

a friend's house. In the middle of

6:58

the game, she gets a surprise phone

7:01

call telling her to get in touch

7:03

with her cousin Irma as soon as

7:05

she can. Something's. Wrong

7:07

or tells Jane. Through sobs when

7:10

she called their Aunt Gertrude not long

7:12

ago, a stranger answered the phone. She

7:14

got scared and hung up. Then

7:17

when she called back Irma says she

7:19

spoke to. A police officer who

7:21

refuse to answer any of her

7:23

questions. Jane's heart

7:25

sinks. Gertrude is much more than

7:27

just an aunt to James. She

7:30

considers her a surrogate mother. She.

7:33

Hangs up and calls Gertrude

7:35

home immediately. And officer passes

7:37

the phone over to the city

7:39

Coroner who delivers the news. Your.

7:42

Aunt has been the victim of a

7:44

homicide. he tells Jane. Was

7:46

she sought chain? asks? Know

7:49

the coroner says. without elaborating

7:51

further. Chain. And her

7:54

boyfriend com. Arrive at Gertrude South

7:56

that evening. Were greeted by

7:58

a police sergeant and to homicide. Detectives

8:00

authorities had already removed gertrude body

8:02

from the house, but chain can

8:04

still see the blood stains on

8:07

the living room carpet. The.

8:09

Detected his brief Jane and Tom

8:11

on the manner of Gertrude staff.

8:13

but to protect the integrity of

8:15

the investigation, they omit certain details

8:17

like that the killer used a

8:19

bike chain as an Essex Haitian

8:21

tool. The. Information is a

8:23

lot to process to detectives. Jean

8:25

appears to be in a state

8:28

of shock. She keeps asking about

8:30

the killers possible motive. According

8:32

to James Della Sandra Bullock Citizen

8:34

Jane she tells police practically every

8:36

house in the neighborhood is bigger

8:38

and more expensive. She didn't have

8:40

an enemy in the world. She

8:43

was kind to everyone. All

8:45

detectors tell Jane is they don't

8:47

believe it was a burglary. It's

8:49

possible she knew her killer, but

8:51

they aren't sure and beyond that

8:53

they're not willing to comment. But.

8:56

What happens next in this case

8:59

is a little strange. Everyone

9:02

knows police don't always get things right.

9:04

I mean before Will Tread shows up

9:07

at his first crime scene and season

9:09

one officers that already misidentified a murder

9:11

victim and assume to the killer was

9:13

dead. In the case

9:16

of Gertrude Mccabe, it's not the

9:18

detectives read the crime scene and

9:20

correctly, but they do make a

9:22

bizarre procedural error. They potentially compromise

9:24

their evidence by allowing Jane and

9:26

Tom to spend the night in.

9:29

Gertrude home alone.

9:31

Even though the house hasn't been fully

9:33

examined or cleaned yet, possibly because the

9:36

self confident that they photographed every inch

9:38

of the crime scene. Before.

9:41

They leave. Detectives tell Jane and

9:43

Tom that they'll be back in

9:45

the morning and ask them for

9:47

through receivers one stay out of

9:49

the bathroom where the gloves, pillows

9:51

and towel were found to be

9:53

on the lookout. For Gertrude missing

9:55

check registry and three. See

9:58

any tissues they made. The

10:00

lying around the house. They

10:03

don't explain that last request.

10:07

Jane. And Tom find clean sheets

10:09

to make the spare bad. But given

10:11

everything, Jane doesn't fall asleep until around

10:13

four am. Shortly after she does, she's

10:16

a woken by the sound of running

10:18

water. Tom says a can of orange

10:20

juice exploded in the kitchen and he

10:23

was just cleaning it up. Luckily it

10:25

was far away from the crime scene.

10:28

As promised, detectives or back at the

10:30

house by ten am the next day.

10:33

At. Some point chain stores going

10:36

to harass papers. She learns that

10:38

as a gift Gertrude had created

10:40

to savings accounts for her niece's

10:43

Jane and Irma, each one had

10:45

twenty thousand dollars sitting in them.

10:47

And after finding Gertrude will Jane

10:50

learns that even. Though Irma's listed

10:52

as the executor See and Irma

10:54

will each split half of their

10:56

ads quarter of a million dollar

10:59

a state. and that's not all.

11:01

Jane also stumbles upon Gertrude missing

11:03

check register. She assumes detectives missed

11:05

it during their original sweet because

11:07

it was wedged in a corner

11:09

flat against. The drawer side. She.

11:12

Hands it over and the register. Provides

11:14

authorities with their first

11:16

leads. Based on Gertrude

11:18

payment history as well as interviews

11:21

with neighbors, detectors learn she hired

11:23

a lot of help around the

11:25

house gardeners, painters, plumbers, even a

11:27

driver who took a. Grocery shopping

11:30

each week. Officials interview

11:32

each one and ultimately land on

11:34

their first person of interest. a

11:36

man named Virgil Jackson virtual it

11:39

turns out, had recently been hired

11:41

to work on Gertrude sliding glass

11:44

door. The same one

11:46

left open after her murder. Detectives

11:50

visit the apartment complex where Virgil lives

11:53

from neighbors. They learn that he and

11:55

his wife and daughter only moved to

11:57

the area within the past year. Some

12:00

claim he was. Running from police.

12:02

Wanted for issuing bad checks back in.

12:04

New York a misdemeanor punishable by

12:06

up to ninety. Days in jail.

12:09

Adding to suspicions neighbors till

12:11

officials they witnessed a violent

12:13

altercation between Virgil and his

12:15

wife Cheryl. In the past

12:18

the abuses confirmed. By police

12:20

patrol reports. And by Cheryl

12:22

herself. Detectives. Interview her

12:24

on two different occasions and ultimately

12:26

learn Cheryl thinks her husband is

12:28

capable of murder and believes he

12:31

might have been the one to

12:33

kill Gertrude. At one point, she

12:35

attempted to sell their belongings and

12:37

skipped town without him. But.

12:39

Virgil isn't a consideration for

12:42

very long as it turns out

12:44

he has an alibi. He

12:46

was working on a construction project

12:48

pouring concrete the afternoon the

12:50

murder occurred and one by one,

12:53

police eliminate every other person.

12:55

Whose name appeared in Gertrude check

12:57

register as well. By the end

12:59

of the year authorities are at

13:01

a loss. Gertrude Nice chain called

13:04

the Department. Almost every other day

13:06

with questions wanting. Updates on

13:08

her as case. But. Investigators

13:10

don't have answers, they have

13:13

no suspects, no witnesses, and

13:15

all their leads have run

13:18

dry. So just three months

13:20

into the investigation Gertrude murder.

13:23

Goes cold. That

13:25

january, a new detective joins

13:28

the homicide department. His

13:30

name is Sean Cracked and in

13:32

many ways he's a lot like

13:34

my new favorite Tv detective, Wil

13:36

Trapp. Scratch may not be dyslexic

13:39

or wrestle with the same demons,

13:41

but he's been on the force

13:43

for almost twenty years, and like

13:45

trend, his reputation precedes him. He's

13:48

known for closing cases, His

13:50

tenacity and attention to detail Or

13:52

exactly what the Gertrude Mccabe case

13:55

means. And it's the first assignment

13:57

on his desk. As. Cracked.

14:00

He pours over the case files. He returns

14:02

to the question of motive. Why

14:05

would someone want an 88-year-old woman dead? He's

14:09

struck by something the other detectives glossed

14:12

over. Gertrude's estate.

14:14

There are only two people in the world

14:17

who stood to benefit from Gertrude's death. Her

14:20

nieces, Jane and Irma. And

14:23

one of them inserted herself into

14:25

the investigation. From

14:27

the start. In

14:35

January 1984, Detective

14:37

John Cracht is assigned to Gertrude

14:39

McCabe's cold homicide case. And

14:42

his attention turns to Gertrude's

14:44

niece, Jane Alexander. Jane

14:47

is 61 years old and a

14:49

mother of six. Friends describe

14:51

her as energetic, opinionated and

14:53

funny. She owns a

14:55

large home in an affluent neighborhood in

14:58

Marin County, California. That's

15:00

where she lives with the man she's been seeing

15:02

for about three years now, Tom O'Donnell.

15:05

Jane's husband passed away unexpectedly

15:07

six years ago from a heart attack. The

15:10

sudden loss sent her into a

15:12

depression and it was Tom, a

15:14

tall, charismatic ballroom dancer who drew

15:16

her out of it. They

15:19

now lead a comfortable, upper-middle-class lifestyle.

15:21

Tom made a small fortune through

15:23

his job over the years and

15:25

thanks to her late husband's pension

15:27

and social security benefits, Jane doesn't

15:29

have to work. This

15:31

is perhaps why detectives didn't initially

15:33

suspect Jane or Tom. They

15:36

didn't seem to need any money. But

15:38

after months working Gertrude McCabe's case,

15:41

Detective Cracht learns that not

15:43

everything about their lifestyle is

15:45

as it seems. Jane's

15:49

home in Marin County is nearly paid off, but

15:51

she has a $200,000 home equity loan With

15:55

large monthly payments, almost $3,000 each

15:58

month. The

16:01

payments hadn't been a problem, but at

16:03

some point Tom put most of that

16:05

two hundred thousand dollars in the stock

16:07

market and lost it. Now

16:09

the couple's checking accounts are almost

16:11

empty and they barely have anything

16:13

saved. To top it all off. They

16:16

had a loan payment due right after. Gertrude

16:18

was murdered. In

16:21

the Spring of Nineteen Eighty Four,

16:23

Detective Cracked shows up at Gene

16:25

and Tom's home with questions. He

16:28

learns that Jane let's Tom handle

16:30

all of their finances. According to

16:32

Tom, he's a retired businessman used

16:34

to travel all over Europe and

16:37

Africa trading diamonds. That's how he

16:39

amassed a one point two million

16:41

dollar trust which is sitting in

16:44

a bank in Switzerland just waiting

16:46

to mature. By. The

16:48

time he leaves Detective Cracked senses

16:50

that jane and com or hiding

16:52

something. he just needs to get

16:54

one of them to talk. That.

16:58

May cracked summons chained to a

17:00

lab in San Jose and shows

17:02

her a seemingly innocuous item: a

17:05

kleenex with a bright pink lipstick

17:07

stain. She asks again if the

17:09

lipstick could have belonged to her

17:11

and Gertrude. Jane shakes her

17:14

head know there's no way her aunt

17:16

would wear that shade, but according to

17:18

change the color looks exactly like her

17:20

own favorite lipstick. She grabs the to

17:23

been shows it to the detective. The

17:25

color looks identical. Crack.

17:28

To leave knowing. Something Jane

17:30

doesn't. A detail investigators

17:32

withheld from. The public. A

17:35

coroner pride that clean from

17:38

Gertrude of wrote. It

17:40

had been used to try to silence

17:42

or suffocate her. Possibly. Both.

17:45

Jane might it just implicated

17:47

herself and her ass. Murder.

17:52

Walking. Away from the conversation,

17:54

Detective Cracked focuses on building

17:56

his case. First, he lies.

17:59

and tells j Jane and Tom that

18:01

authorities found fingerprints at the crime scene.

18:04

He says to eliminate them as

18:06

suspects, analysts will need to examine

18:08

their prints. More than

18:10

anything, Cracked wants to see how

18:12

Jane and Tom respond. There's

18:14

a lot that can be gleaned from people's

18:16

reactions. Will and his partner use

18:19

a similar tactic to solve one of their cases.

18:21

While a suspect is listening, they

18:23

let some misinformation slip into conversation

18:25

just to see how the person

18:28

reacts. It ultimately leads them

18:30

to answers. But

18:32

in this case, Detective Cracked doesn't get

18:34

all the information he needs. Sure

18:37

Jane seems happy to provide her prints

18:39

and Tom appears hesitant, but it's possible

18:41

Jane is just the better actor.

18:45

Cracked needs more information. Luckily,

18:47

he's been working with the FBI all

18:50

along to create a psychological profile of

18:52

the killer. The completed report

18:54

arrives on his desk that June and

18:56

it adds more fuel to his theories.

18:59

The FBI also believes the motive

19:02

was likely financial and that the

19:04

murder was pre-planned. Given

19:06

the erratic nature of the attack,

19:09

the killer was probably inexperienced, possibly

19:11

a female and according to the

19:13

report, whoever did it may

19:16

have inserted themselves into

19:18

the investigation. Detective

19:21

Cracked tells Jane and Tom that

19:23

they're pretty certain Gertrude knew her

19:25

killer, again to gauge

19:27

their reactions. He adds that he

19:29

expects to arrest the culprit within

19:32

three months. Jane

19:34

is pleased, but Tom is

19:36

impossible to read. Cracked

19:38

feels certain he's onto something big.

19:43

Then in mid-August, the detective gets

19:45

a call that turns his investigation

19:47

upside down. It's

19:50

Jane. She's crying so hard she

19:52

can barely talk. In fits and

19:54

starts, she tells the detective a story. A

19:57

Few days ago, on August 6th, Jane

19:59

and Tom we're planning a vacation. It

20:02

was Tom's idea. He said she needed

20:04

a break from all the stress and

20:06

heartache of Gertrude Murder Chain withdrew ten

20:09

thousand dollars on credit and gave it

20:11

to Tom two books a trip. But.

20:14

When Jane came home from visiting

20:16

a friend that night, Tom was

20:18

gone. two days later. She got

20:20

a letter from him in the

20:22

mail. He said his past had

20:24

caught up to him. His diamond

20:27

trading business was actually a diamond

20:29

smuggling operations. Some of his associates

20:31

had been arrested and now they

20:33

were hunting Tom down looking for

20:35

revenge. He had no choice but

20:37

to go on the run. Com

20:40

Explicitly told Jane not to get

20:42

authorities involved. He said it would

20:44

only make matters worse, but Jane

20:46

wrestled with what to do for

20:49

days. She finally decided to call

20:51

Detective Cracked because she was so

20:53

worried Tom might be in serious

20:55

danger. From. The story

20:57

is evident that Jane believes

21:00

Tom's wild claims, but cracked

21:02

it doesn't. Tom. Just

21:04

so happened to go on the run

21:07

shortly after the detective mentioned he was

21:09

closing in on Gertrude. Killer. The.

21:11

Timing seems to convenience. But.

21:13

The confidence Jane has in Tom's suggests

21:16

that maybe the detective. Was wrong

21:18

about her? Maybe. He and Jane

21:20

have always been on the same

21:22

team. Maybe she's also a victim

21:24

after all, Tom ran away with

21:26

ten thousand dollars of her money.

21:29

Cracked. Asks Jane if she's willing

21:31

to file fraud charges, but she

21:33

refuses. She doesn't want Tom arrested,

21:36

she just wants him safe. Authorities

21:39

run a background check on Tom

21:41

Joad and find a clear pattern.

21:44

A number of women from his

21:46

past claim that day financially supported

21:48

Tom for extended periods of time.

21:51

One of his exes even says

21:53

he swindled her out of eighty

21:55

thousand. Dollars. Their. Stories

21:58

all end the same way. With

22:00

com taking their money and

22:02

running. When. Detective Cracked

22:04

explains all of this to James. She

22:07

still doesn't believe it. She can't fathom

22:09

that the man she loved and plan

22:11

to spend the rest of her life

22:13

with would do such a thing. To.

22:16

Detect is sees change denial but he

22:18

doesn't give up. And it's

22:20

a good thing he doesn't because

22:22

one day as he and Jane

22:24

are talking, he realizes he's never

22:26

asked Jane a basic question. Where.

22:29

Were you on October? Twenty First?

22:32

Nineteen Eighty Three. She. Says the

22:34

day. Before Gertrude Mccabe was murdered.

22:37

Chain. Doesn't answer right away. She

22:39

asks the detective to wait a second.

22:42

When. She returns. She's carrying a treasure

22:44

trove of information. As it turns

22:46

out, Jane keeps an extremely detailed

22:49

diary. Phone calls, errands, events, even

22:51

the perceived emotional state of her

22:53

dog Duke all get meticulously recorded

22:55

And pages? Nope. I love the

22:57

idea of recording your pets emotional

22:59

state. I might have to start

23:01

doing that with my pets, but

23:04

I would really love to see

23:06

what Will Trent might write about

23:08

his to wow partner in crime

23:10

Betty Food for thought! For the show's

23:12

writers. Anyway, when Detective Cracked

23:14

guess chains diary he slipped to

23:17

the weekend of October. twenty first.

23:19

it says that tom to the

23:21

trip to the Los Angeles area

23:24

that weekend. he was gone from

23:26

Friday morning to Saturday night, supposedly

23:28

visiting a friend who lives in

23:30

our way. That friend's name is

23:33

Harry Carmichael. Two days later, Detective

23:35

Cracked a standing. On Harrys

23:37

Porch. Harry Carmichael. Is

23:39

a big, gruff looking guy who doesn't

23:41

seem happy to be speaking to law

23:44

enforcement. He doesn't invite the detective inside.

23:47

according to harry tom and did visit

23:49

him that weekend tom spend friday night

23:51

at his house than rented a car

23:53

in burbank and drove to las vegas

23:55

on saturday morning com ask harry not

23:58

to tell jane about the Vegas trip

24:00

because he didn't want her to know

24:02

he was gambling. But Harry says

24:04

Tom didn't stay in Vegas long. He

24:07

was back that same night. Next,

24:10

Crac tracks down the rental car company

24:12

in Burbank and pays them a visit. According

24:15

to their records, Tom drove 669 miles in

24:19

the 24-hour period he had their rental

24:21

car. So the detective

24:23

decides to put Tom's alibi to

24:25

the test. He drives from

24:28

the car rental agency in Burbank

24:30

to Vegas and back, and he

24:32

comes up over 100 miles short. But

24:36

when he drives to Gertrude McCabe's house

24:38

and back, the detective is only 2

24:40

miles short, a

24:43

distance that could easily be explained if

24:45

someone was, say, circling a

24:47

neighborhood to make sure the coast

24:50

was clear. It's

24:58

December 1984,

25:00

14 months after Gertrude McCabe's murder. Detective John

25:03

Crac needs to somehow convince Gertrude's

25:05

niece, Jane Alexander,

25:07

that the man she loved may

25:09

have been responsible for her aunt's death. So

25:12

he pays her another visit. He

25:15

shows Jane a piece of evidence

25:17

she's seen before, the lipstick-stained Kleenex.

25:21

But this time, he tells her that she's been Jane

25:24

is quiet, and in the silence, everything clicks for

25:26

her. Jane

25:29

always kissed Tom on

25:31

the cheek before he left home. Tom always

25:34

carried a Kleenex in his pocket. She

25:36

can see the chain of events. She kisses Tom. He

25:40

wipes his cheek with a tissue, then stuffs the wad into

25:43

his pocket. He

25:46

goes to the hospital. He's in the

25:48

hospital. One

26:00

her world. Comes crashing down

26:02

and a new reality sets in.

26:06

Tom. Never really loved

26:08

her. He wasn't the man

26:10

he claimed to be. The

26:12

diamond business, the Swiss trust.

26:14

It was all a lie.

26:16

Their relationship was one long

26:18

con and she fell for

26:20

it. The. Emotions wash

26:23

over Jane until. Eventually,

26:26

rage sets in.

26:28

James Angry at the police for

26:30

not zeroing. In on Tom sooner.

26:32

She's angry at herself for sticking

26:34

up for him. But more than

26:36

anything, she's angry at Tom and

26:38

ready to file those fraud charges

26:40

against him. Like. With

26:42

Will Trend and so many of

26:45

his investigations, she has a personal

26:47

connection to the victim. But in

26:49

James case, she has a connection

26:51

to the murder suspect as well.

26:53

I can't imagine what that's like.

26:56

But. Once Jane decides he's willing to

26:58

file those charges and the paperwork is

27:00

complete, All investigators have to

27:02

do is find Tom, which is

27:05

easier said than done. They've had

27:07

no luck before, so sometime after

27:09

Christmas, Jane calls up Harry Carmichael,

27:11

the man who Tom visited the

27:14

weekend Gertrude was murdered. She's lonely

27:16

and just looking to chat. Jane.

27:19

Asks Harry how he spent Christmas and

27:21

Harry tells her that he went to

27:23

Vegas to see a buddy of his

27:25

John Mackey. They shared a nice dinner

27:27

with some friends. When. Jane asks

27:29

Harrys who was at the

27:31

dinner. His tone shifts. He

27:34

climbs up and stopped answering

27:36

questions. To Jane, it

27:38

seems like Harry might be hiding

27:40

something. Or maybe. Some.

27:42

One. Jane shares

27:44

her suspicions with a detective cracked

27:46

and in January Nineteen eighty Five,

27:49

he arrives on John Mackey his

27:51

doorstep, the man who hosted that

27:53

Christmas dinner. When Mackey opens the.

27:56

doors the detective look straight past him

27:58

into the living room Sitting

28:00

right there on the couch is

28:02

Tom O'Donnell. His gray hair

28:04

has been dyed a strange shade of brown,

28:07

but there's no doubt about it. It's

28:09

him. Cracked arrests

28:11

Tom on the spot. Within

28:14

days, he's transported to California

28:16

to await trial. Meanwhile,

28:19

Jane and Detective Cracked work on

28:21

building their fraud case against him.

28:24

Despite their initial differences, they become

28:26

an unlikely duo, kind of like

28:28

Will Trent and his partner Faith Mitchell.

28:31

In season one, Will and Faith start

28:33

their relationship on shaky ground because of

28:35

some shared history. Will spearheaded

28:37

an investigation that ended Faith's mom's

28:39

decorated career as a police captain,

28:41

but we eventually see them move

28:43

past their differences so they can

28:45

have each other's back. Jane

28:48

and Cracked review Jane's finances,

28:50

and the devastation is clear.

28:53

Between the home equity loan, various

28:55

credit cards, and borrowing from friends

28:57

and family, Tom has accumulated over

28:59

$300,000 of debt in her name, meaning

29:05

Jane is responsible for all of

29:07

it. If she can't figure out a way

29:09

to dig herself out of this hole, she'll

29:12

have to declare bankruptcy. She could even lose

29:14

her home. Understandably, Jane's

29:16

children are concerned for her. Two of

29:18

her sons invite her to move in

29:20

with them, but Jane declines. None

29:23

of her kids live in Southern California, and

29:25

she doesn't want to leave. To

29:27

her, this isn't about money or a

29:29

house. The fraud charge is just a

29:31

stepping stone. A way to

29:34

buy time until she and Detective

29:36

Cracked can find irrefutable evidence that

29:38

Tom murdered Jane's beloved aunt. Until

29:42

that happens, Jane isn't going

29:44

anywhere. She finds

29:46

work as a receptionist to keep herself

29:48

afloat, and when she's off the clock,

29:51

she obsesses about Tom and the depths

29:53

of his betrayal. In

29:57

January 1986. A year later, The

30:00

year after Tom's arrest, the fraud

30:02

trial begins. Com faces

30:04

charges of embezzlement, grand theft,

30:06

and obtaining money under false

30:08

pretenses. When he takes the

30:10

stand to testify, he repeats

30:12

the same story. He gave James.

30:15

he has a large offshore trust

30:17

that's. Tied up at the moment and

30:19

he only ran away to avoid the international

30:21

diamond smugglers who are trying to hunt him

30:23

down. Tom Story

30:26

sounds so far fetched that some people

30:28

in the courtroom. Last, as the

30:30

prosecution eventually proves, there's no

30:32

evidence to support any of

30:34

his. Claims he made. It

30:36

all up. In. The End:

30:38

Tom's found guilty on all

30:40

counts and given the maximum

30:43

sentence three years and eight

30:45

months behind. Bars. Chains,

30:48

Happy about the outcome but not

30:50

satisfied. Tom still hasn't been charged

30:52

with her and murder and his

30:55

sentencing doesn't do anything to erase

30:57

her dead The Dead Sea. Cause.

31:00

Jane. Continues hounding the police about

31:02

Gertrude case, but as much as

31:04

Detective Cracked wants to pursue charges,

31:07

he hasn't been able to find

31:09

a district attorney willing to prosecute.

31:12

Now. You might be wondering why

31:14

that is, but the decision to prosecute

31:17

a murder can be more complicated than

31:19

you might think. A lot of Da's

31:21

are reluctant to bring charges against someone

31:23

unless the case is air tight, even

31:26

if there's an overwhelming amount of circumstantial

31:28

evidence. Most want more than that, And

31:30

that's because if they don't get a

31:32

conviction, The first time around the

31:34

fifth. Amendment protects the accused from

31:37

being tried again more often than

31:39

not. Da's one a direct link

31:41

between a suspect and a crime

31:44

like physical evidence or a concession

31:46

and well, we'll trent can usually

31:48

find that physical evidence or. Elicit

31:51

a confession from his suspects

31:53

in Gertrude case. they

31:55

have neither in the months

31:57

after tom sensing chains financial

32:00

situation gets worse. Much

32:02

of the money she stood to inherit

32:04

from her aunt's estate goes into fixing

32:06

Gertrude's house, which fell into disrepair after

32:08

her murder. When Jane's cousin

32:11

Irma finally does sell the property,

32:13

it's at a huge loss. There's

32:15

not much left over for anyone. Out

32:18

of options, Jane files for bankruptcy.

32:21

Her house is foreclosed on

32:23

that April, and a

32:25

month later, she's evicted. Jane

32:28

tries to get back on her feet while

32:30

bouncing between cheap studio apartments, but in June

32:32

1987, she gets a call from Detective Cracked,

32:37

saying Tom has been released

32:39

early for good behavior.

32:42

After only 18 months spent in

32:45

prison, he's a free man

32:47

again. Another

32:49

year passes with no movement in

32:52

Gertrude's case. Then in October

32:54

1988, five

32:56

years after Gertrude's murder, Detective

32:59

Cracked calls again. His

33:01

voice is somber as he tells Jane

33:03

he's stepping down from her aunt's case.

33:07

He's burnt out. It's time for a

33:09

new detective to carry the torch. Maybe

33:12

they'll find something he missed. The

33:15

new detective's name is Jeff We

33:17

Met. He takes Jane out to

33:19

lunch and tells her he's in

33:21

the middle of re-interviewing witnesses and

33:23

reviewing all available evidence. The

33:26

meeting leaves Jane feeling hopeful. This

33:28

new detective seems a lot like

33:30

her, fiery, driven, ready

33:32

to see a killer behind bars.

33:35

And just like the man whose

33:38

shoes the detective stepped into, he's

33:40

diligent and detail-oriented. After only about

33:42

a month on the case, Detective

33:45

We Met calls Jane about a piece of evidence

33:47

that stuck out to him in the files, Gertrude's

33:50

checkbook register. Jane

33:52

repeats the same story she told police back in

33:54

1983. She found it

33:57

in one of Gertrude's dresser drawers. Those

34:00

back to the crime scene photos. He

34:02

finds pictures taken of the inside of

34:04

the drawer were Jane sound, the registry.

34:07

In. The photos. It's empty.

34:10

Police. Didn't miss the checkbook.

34:13

It wasn't there when they

34:15

looked. Someone must have planted

34:17

it after authorities. Searched for

34:19

troops house and if it wasn't

34:21

Jane, there's only one person. it

34:23

could. Be. Tom Joad

34:25

done. We. Met census

34:28

discovery up the chain, hoping it'll

34:30

be enough to get a D

34:32

A to prosecute. It takes another

34:35

two years but finally in November

34:37

of nineteen ninety one detective we

34:39

met calls Chain with news she's

34:41

been waiting eight years. To hear.

34:44

There's a warrant out for

34:47

Tom's arrest. He's been charged

34:49

with first degree murder. It

34:54

takes for months but authorities eventually

34:56

track Tom down. They find him

34:58

living in L Lay at the

35:01

home of yet another wealthy widow.

35:03

This time, authorities put an end

35:05

to his com before it gets

35:07

too far. Before. Long

35:09

Tom is behind bars again.

35:11

His lawyers delay the trial

35:13

by filing extensions, which is

35:16

frustrating for James preferred choice

35:18

allegro, the prosecutor assigned to

35:20

his case. It's an opportunity.

35:22

To. Delays by her time to comb

35:25

through the information. Detectives cracked and

35:27

we met handed over and believe

35:29

it or not, nestled in the

35:31

stack of evidence Allegro finds not

35:33

one. But two

35:36

bombshells: Now.

35:38

The timeline here is important, so

35:41

as a reminder, Gertrude Mccabe died

35:43

on Saturday the Twenty second. Her

35:45

body was found on Sunday The

35:47

Twenty third. In the detectives case

35:49

files choice, Allegro finds records of

35:52

a phone call. Tom. made that

35:54

saturday it was place to his

35:56

nephew and niece in law who

35:58

vetoed fifteen thousand dollar During

36:01

that phone call, Tom apparently told his nephew

36:03

that he'd be able to pay them back

36:05

soon. He said Gertrude

36:07

McCabe had just passed away

36:09

and he and Jane were about to

36:12

inherit a windfall. Again,

36:14

he told them this on

36:17

Saturday, meaning Tom knew Gertrude

36:19

was dead before police had

36:21

discovered her body. As

36:24

if that wasn't enough, there's a second

36:26

incriminating call. This one happened

36:28

on Monday, October 24th. Tom

36:31

contacted Jane's son and daughter-in-law

36:33

to deliver the news of Gertrude's

36:35

death and he gave

36:37

them a detail they couldn't forget.

36:40

He said Gertrude had been stabbed

36:43

and garrotted. It's

36:45

an odd choice of words, but garrotted

36:47

means strangled with some kind of wire

36:49

or rope. And as I

36:51

mentioned at the beginning of this episode,

36:53

authorities withheld that Gertrude was strangled with

36:55

a bike chain. Nobody

36:58

except detectives and the killer

37:00

could have known that detail. When

37:05

Tom's murder trial begins in April 1996,

37:07

Joyce Allegro has an

37:10

arsenal of circumstantial evidence against

37:13

him, his prior fraud convictions,

37:15

a clear motive, the lipstick

37:17

stained Kleenex, the register, and

37:20

the fact that Tom knew information

37:22

only the killer could. It's

37:25

overwhelming. The defense doesn't

37:27

even try to refute the

37:29

facts presented. Instead, they attack

37:31

Jane's personality, accusing her of

37:34

having a victim complex and

37:36

making everything up. To

37:38

make matters worse, over the course of

37:40

the proceedings, Jane learned something new and

37:43

terrifying about her ex.

37:47

Soon after Gertrude died, Tom took

37:49

out a life insurance policy on

37:51

her. In the

37:53

event of her death, he'd receive almost $250,000.

37:56

Jane's can

38:00

connect the dots. She leaves the stand

38:02

deeply shaken. In

38:05

mid-July, each side rests

38:07

their case. The jury spends the

38:09

next week deliberating, and in the end,

38:12

they find Tom guilty

38:14

of first-degree murder. A

38:17

judge sentenced him to 25 years to

38:20

life. After 13 years,

38:23

the case is finally

38:26

closed. While

38:29

waiting for her aunt's murder

38:31

trial to start, Jane co-founded

38:33

a nonprofit organization called Citizens

38:36

Against Homicide. She spends the

38:38

rest of her life advocating

38:40

for cold cases and lobbying

38:42

against parole for convicted killers.

38:45

She wins multiple awards for her

38:47

extraordinary service. When she

38:49

passes away from cancer at the age of 86, she

38:52

leaves behind an unforgettable

38:55

legacy. As her

38:57

biographer James D'Alessandro wrote,

38:59

she was a human

39:01

dynamo. She had an

39:03

energy, enthusiasm, obsession, and

39:05

commitment to justice. That

39:07

was extraordinary. But

39:10

it wasn't one person who solved

39:12

this case. It took a revolving

39:14

door of dedicated detectives and legal

39:16

minds to read the evidence, solve

39:19

the mystery of Gertrude McCabe's

39:21

murder, and put a

39:23

killer behind bars. Thanks

39:31

for listening to Serial Killers, a

39:33

Spotify podcast. We're here with a

39:35

new episode every Monday. Be sure

39:37

to check us out on Instagram

39:39

at Serial Killers podcast, and we'd

39:42

love to hear from you. So if you're listening on

39:44

the Spotify app, swipe up and give us

39:46

your thoughts. If you enjoyed

39:48

today's case, be sure to check

39:50

out Will Trent season 2, airing

39:52

at its new time, Tuesdays 8-7

39:54

Central on ABC, and stream

39:56

on Hulu. I Also highly recommend

39:58

catching up on. The One if you

40:01

haven't already. It culminates in Will going

40:03

after a serial killer who may have

40:05

ties to his. Mysterious past. Clearly

40:07

it was right up my alley.

40:09

For more information on the murder

40:12

of Gertrude Mccabe. Amongst the many

40:14

sources we used, we sound Citizen

40:16

Jane The true story of one

40:19

woman's heroic struggle to catch a

40:21

killer by James della Sandro. Extremely

40:23

helpful to our research. Stay

40:26

safe out there. Serial.

40:30

Killers is a spotify podcast.

40:32

This episode was written by

40:34

Carousel and edited by Sarah

40:36

Bachelor, Kate Murdoch and Connor

40:38

Sampson. Research by Mickey Taylor

40:40

such checked by Haley Militants

40:42

and sound designed by Alex

40:44

Button or head of programming

40:46

is. Julian Borrow or head.

40:48

Of production is Nick Johnson and

40:50

Spencer Howard is our post production

40:53

supervisor and your host Vanessa Richardson.