Episodes
In this bonus episode, host Ashley Miznazi and executive producer Katey Psencik Outka interview Paul Watler, a First Amendment lawyer and former journalist. In April 2018, nearly a month after the bombings, Paul wrote an opinion column published in several Texas newspapers urging law enforcement agencies to release the bomber’s confession tape. Go to NordVPN.com/darkness73 to get 73 percent off your NordVPN plan, plus a bonus gift. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest...
Published 12/07/21
It has been nearly three weeks since the first bomb killed Stephan House, beginning an unprecedented time of terror in Austin. Law enforcement officials are closing in on the top suspect, and no one knows what will happen as the net closes around him. Go to NordVPN.com/darkness73 to get 73 percent off your NordVPN plan, plus a bonus gift. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Published 11/16/21
At a FedEx distribution center near San Antonio, a package explodes. Law enforcement officials quickly realize that another package that likely has a bomb in it has also been shipped via FedEx, and they race to find it. An FBI agent works to match receipts for equipment bought in the Austin area that could be used to make a bomb with a database of vehicles. She finds a match and officials believe they have identified the bomber. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way...
Published 11/11/21
In a residential neighborhood on the other side of the city from where the three bombings had struck, a young man parks his truck and strings a wire across the sidewalk. The wire is connected to an explosive device, and the trap is set for random victims. As Austinites descend into panic, law enforcement officials get their first big break in the case. Go to NordVPN.com/darkness73 to get 73 percent off your NordVPN plan, plus a bonus gift. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The...
Published 11/09/21
On the day investigators work the scene of the bomb that struck Draylen Mason’s home, 75-year-old Hope Herrera spends the morning caring for her 93-year-old mother. Hope picks up a package from her porch, and it explodes. Six hundred federal agents descend on Austin to work the case and to try to figure out the bomber’s identity, and no one knows where the serial bomber will strike next. Go to NordVPN.com/darkness73 to get 73 percent off your NordVPN plan, plus a bonus gift. --- This...
Published 11/04/21
On a quiet suburban street in northeast Austin, 39-year-old father and husband Stephan House prepares to go to work. He spots a package on his porch. The box explodes in his hands. His neighbor runs to his porch and tries to help the bleeding man as he talks to a 911 operator, but there’s nothing he can do. In the aftermath, the Austin police tell the public that the bombing seems to be an isolated incident and that there is no cause for alarm. Go to NordVPN.com/darkness73 to get 73 percent...
Published 11/02/21
Teenager Draylen Mason dreams of being a neurosurgeon, and he also excels in music, which draws an offer to study the double bass under world-renowned professors at the University of Texas. Ten days after the first bomb exploded in an Austin suburb, Draylen notices a package on the porch and brings it into his family’s home. The package explodes, and it becomes clear that the death of Stephan House, a 39-year-old Black man, was not an isolated incident. Since Draylen is also Black, the...
Published 11/02/21
While just seniors in college, Haley Butler and Tinu Thomas started work on The Orange Tree, a seven-episode podcast about the life and tragic death of a young woman who was killed near the University of Texas. So many of you listened to and appreciated the work of The Drag Audio Production House that we decided to make a new season based on a completely different case. In season two, Ashley Miznazi examines a series of crimes that put the city of Austin on edge in the spring of 2018. And we...
Published 10/26/21
From the people who brought you “The Orange Tree,” “35” tells the stories about Texas beyond the stereotypes. Instead, you’ll hear stories about Texas you don’t already know — through a road trip along Texas’ main artery, Interstate 35. Subscribe to "35" here: https://thedragaudio.com/show/35/ --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/the-orange-tree/support
Published 05/18/21
The post Full trailer: ‘The Orange Tree’ appeared first on The Drag. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/darkness-podcast/support
Published 08/07/20
Sharon Cave knows something is wrong the second she gets a call from her daughter Jennifer’s boss saying Jennifer didn’t show up for her first day at work. When no one can give her an answer as to where Jennifer was the night before, Sharon and her family set out on their own investigation. They find themselves in front of the door of Jennifer’s friend Colton Pitonyak just a few blocks from the University of Texas at Austin. They can’t get in, but what’s behind that orange door changes their...
Published 08/04/20
In 2005, Jennifer Cave was navigating through the best and worst parts of her early 20s. She moves to Austin after high school in hopes of figuring out what she wants to do with her life and gets caught up in a party lifestyle. One night, right before the start of a promising new job, she goes out with her friend Colton Pitonyak to Austin’s famous Sixth Street … and is never heard from again. In 2005, Jennifer Cave was navigating through the best and worst parts of her early 20s. She moves to...
Published 07/28/20
Austin Police detectives search for a UT student wanted in connection with the death of Jennifer Cave. Colton Pitonyak, a promising business student and Jennifer’s friend, fled the scene of the crime right before her body was discovered at his condo. Since his Toyota Avalon is still parked at the Orange Tree Condos, police have to find out where he’s fled to but also how he’s getting there. They have reason to believe that he’s not alone. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The...
Published 07/23/20
It's January 2007, and Colton Pitonyak has been sitting in a Travis County jail awaiting his trial. His family didn’t post bail, so he has been behind bars since August 2005 when he was arrested after fleeing to Mexico for six days with Laura Hall. The Travis County Courthouse is packed for what everyone expects will be a sensational trial, and Court TV prepares to stream the details across the nation. A legendary Texas lawyer stands by Colton’s side.
Published 07/21/20
A few days after Colton Pitonyak and Laura Hall were found in Mexico, Laura is called in to pick up her impounded car's keys at the Austin Police headquarters. When she shows up, she's led to a small room to be questioned by the police. Detectives are trying to figure out what her involvement is in the crime. She waives her rights to having an attorney present during an eight-hour interrogation. Her version of what happened the morning Jennifer Cave was killed sets in motion another major...
Published 07/16/20
Fellow inmates say Laura Hall has been talking in jail about her role in the Jennifer Cave case. She continues to talk when out on bond, others say. As Colton Pitonyak’s appeals lawyers look for an angle to try to get him a new trial, the lawyers convince several people to swear that Laura had a much larger role than anyone knew. Will it be enough to get Colton a new trial? --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this...
Published 07/14/20
Laura Hall seeks to move on after her release from prison ... and she has a lot to say. Colton Pitonyak remains in a West Texas prison as his parents hold onto hope that he’ll someday return to Arkansas. Sharon and Jim continue to fight on Jennifer Cave’s behalf, and they also fight for strangers who find themselves in tragic and traumatic situations. Fifteen years later, the wounds have not healed. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. ...
Published 07/14/20
It’s been 15 years since 21-year-old Jennifer Cave was murdered and left in her friend’s apartment. The Orange Tree hosts Tinu Thomas and Haley Butler have reported on this true crime story for over a year and will soon share their exclusive interviews and content with the public, starting July 14.
Published 06/26/20
It’s been 15 years since 21-year-old Jennifer Cave was murdered and left in her friend’s apartment. The Orange Tree hosts Tinu Thomas and Haley Butler have reported on this true crime story for over a year and will soon share their exclusive interviews and content with the public, starting July 14.
Published 06/26/20