Sometimes, news stories echo in our minds for years after they’ve occurred. With each season of Shattered, we select one of those complex, true stories and take an in-depth look. Season 4 charts the life and death of Jimmy Hoffa. Season 3 tells the story of a string of murders that took place in the mid-1970s in Oakland County, Michigan. Many people know the case as the Oakland County Child Killer. Season 2 tells the story of Rick Wershe Jr., also known as White Boy Rick. At 14, Rick became the youngest FBI informant ever and helped bring down some of Detroit’s biggest drug dealers. Then the FBI abandoned him, and he became the dealer. Season 1 investigates the disappearance of Andrew, Alexander and Tanner Skelton. The boys’ father, John Skelton, is the main suspect. Almost a decade later, the mystery of what happened to the boys remains open, with their small Michigan hometown wondering - could a father have committed an unimaginable crime?
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Sometimes, news stories echo in our minds for years after they’ve occurred. With each season of Shattered, we select one of those complex, true stories and take an in-depth look. Season 4 charts the life and death of Jimmy Hoffa. Season 3 tells the story of a string of murders that took place in the mid-1970s in Oakland County, Michigan. Many people know the case as the Oakland County Child Killer. Season 2 tells the story of Rick Wershe Jr., also known as White Boy Rick. At 14, Rick became the youngest FBI informant ever and helped bring down some of Detroit’s biggest drug dealers. Then the FBI abandoned him, and he became the dealer. Season 1 investigates the disappearance of Andrew, Alexander and Tanner Skelton. The boys’ father, John Skelton, is the main suspect. Almost a decade later, the mystery of what happened to the boys remains open, with their small Michigan hometown wondering - could a father have committed an unimaginable crime?
Debra has been searching for her son, Donald Izzett Jr. for 25 years. The last time she spoke with him was Mother’s Day. He had called from a road trip, but sounded upset, saying he needed money. Then the phone went dead. Donnie’s friend told police that he dropped him off in New Orleans. But Debra thinks he was murdered. And decides to investigate the case herself.
SOMEONE KNOWS SOMETHING from CBC Podcasts
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On Shattered we look back on some of the biggest stories from Michigan’s past and re-examine them. But today, we're going to tell you about something that happened very recently. Sunday, May 31st in, Downtown Detroit.
This episode contains explicit language and violence.
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As we continue to work on Shattered: Season 5, we want to tell you about a new, tiny, daily podcast that might be an aural balm fo this challenging moment.
It’s easy to feel helpless as each new day breeds more uncertainty. The Best Advice Show, hosted by Zak Rosen, exists as a daily reminder that there are weird, delightful and effective ways to survive and thrive in this world. In every episode of the show, a different contributor offers their own personal take on what they do to make their life better, healthier, saner and more liveable.
Subscribe to "The Best Advice Show" wherever you listen to podcasts.
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As we work away on Shattered: Season 5, host/producer Jeremy Allen is back with a brand new invention. It's a podcast called Everything is Fine.
As we navigate one of the strangest time periods in history, we are sure to question everything and wonder if what we’re doing is right. The only solid answer available is, “who the hell knows?!”
Jeremy is a father of three and husband to Kelly. Like most of us, he's working from home currently, while trying this whole homeschooling thing out. It’s territory he's not familiar with - at all!
Each day for the next few weeks, Jeremy will document what life is like with an audio journal. His family will guest star along the way. Here's a preview.
You can subscribe to Everything is Fine wherever you listen to Shattered.
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This is part 2 of a 2-part story. This story
For Joyce Dixson-Haskett, life had hit a fork in the road. She’d just been released from the hospital after receiving a brutal beating. She knew it was only a matter of time before a “date” would lead to something worse than a 13-day hospital stay. If a “John” didn’t end her life, her trafficker might.
If you or someone you know needs help call the trafficking hotline @ 1 (888) 373-7888
Watch more of Joyce’s story here and see our entire series on trafficking here.
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This is part 1 of a 2 part story.
As a young girl from Saginaw, Michigan, Joyce Dixson-Haskett was molested and abused. As she grew up the abuse got worse, and she would eventually be forced into the world of human trafficking. She would be pushed to a breaking point, where she would have to kill or be killed. But that’s only part of her story. If you or someone you know needs help call the trafficking hotline @ 1 (888) 373-7888
Watch more of Joyce’s story here and see our entire series on trafficking here.
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In the summer of 1975, Hoffa was running out of options. His long time organized crime associates told him he should take his pension and retire, but he had no interest in that. He wanted the power back in his hands, presidency of the Teamsters Union. He knew that the only way back to glory was if he could convince east coast crime and labor boss Tony Provenzano to back him. What Hoffa didn’t know, was that a decision had already been made. Mob bosses believed Hoffa was going to share their secrets with the FBI, and so, he had to go.
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"When it was time for me to go they shackled and chained me like a wild animal: ten pounds of leg irons, belly band, handcuffs, and a chain running up from the leg irons to the handcuffs. There was a caravan to Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary that looked like a scene from Bonnie and Clyde. I don’t know where the hell they thought I was going to run to." - Jimmy Hoffa
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In episode 3, we spent a few minutes looking at Jimmy Hoffa’s possible connection to the JFK assassination. But there are so many details we couldn’t fit into that episode, so we’ve decided to bring you this bonus chapter about what we learned.
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In some ways, the relationship between Jimmy Hoffa and Bobby Kennedy was simple. Hoffa saw a spoiled rich kid. Kennedy saw a corrupt racketeer. An aide to JFK described it best. He called their rivalry a “blood feud” driven by hatred on both sides.
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La Cosa Nostra is Italian for ‘our thing’ or ‘this thing of ours.’ It’s how members of the Italian Mafia sometimes refer to themselves. The roots of La Cosa Nostra stretch back to 19th century Sicily. Its members began immigrating to the United States and Canada over 100 hundred years ago, and they still exist today. So how did LCN form a partnership with Jimmy Hoffa, and how did their relationship evolve?
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Jimmy Hoffa was a complicated guy, driven by a sincere desire to bring a better life to the members of his union, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Hoffa was also driven by relentless ambition, greed, and an obsession with power. To understand his life and death, we travel back to his humble beginnings, where a tyrannical foreman sets a young Hoffa in motion. From there, an early meeting with some notorious Detroit mobsters redirects Hoffa's path.
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Shattered Plus members get ad-free episodes PLUS a bonus episode of Shattered every week. Find out more at https://wdiv.supportingcast.fm/
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An update from Shattered: Black Friday, Season 1.
The three missing boys from Morenci, Michigan have been gone for nearly a decade. Andrew, Alexander and Tanner Skelton disappeared on Black Friday of 2010. The boy's father, John Skelton claims he gave them to an underground group to keep them safe from their mother, but police have found no evidence to support that claim. They also haven't found the boys. Recently John's family started questioning some of John's stories. John's own father says he has given him an ultimatum, saying he won't see him again until John tells the whole story. John is more alone than ever before.
Also, not long ago police received a tip that led them to property in rural Ohio. A person claimed to have seen John Skelton and his blue van near a pond Thanksgiving day in 2010. A dive team, police dogs and officers from both Ohio and Michigan worked together to find the boys.
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Almost half a century has passed and the families of Timothy King, Kristine Mihelich, Jill Robinson and Mark Stebbins are left without answers. The families demand more from the authorities. The police and prosecutors say there’s nothing more to give. Is the person responsible still out there? Did the killer die? Is there a massive coverup? The families share their theories. Shattered Podcast
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The police and task force are in full gear, searching through mounds of information. Dr. Bruce Danto enters the picture offering theories and helping to profile the killer(s). On April 4th, 1977 a man calling himself Allen sends Dr. Danto a letter, claiming he is the roommate of the Oakland County Child Killer. Eventually Allen would setup a meeting with Dr. Danto. Shattered Podcast.
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I know we’re in the middle of season 3 of Shattered right now, but Kevin Dietz, host of season 2, White Boy Rick, is back to let you know what’s been going on with Rick and to tell you about a development in his story.
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Frank Shelden and Gerald Richards have just returned to the mainland after taking four boys from St. Joe’s Catholic school to North Fox Island for a three day trip. Michael Dunsmore, Bill Johnson and two other boys were put through horrible, unforgettable, life-altering experiences. One of the two unnamed boys tells his mother a harrowing story about being sexually assaulted by Shelden in a cabin on the island. The boys' mother calls the police to relay the story. Shattered Podcast
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Francis Shelden was a Millionaire from Ann Arbor, Michigan. He came from a well-to-do family with ties to presidents, governors and even princes. He earned his B.A from Yale and served in the Michigan Air Guard. He had his own company, his own plane, and his own island. He also operated his own pedophile ring. Shattered Podcast.
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The discovery of Timothy King’s body cements suspicions of a serial killer. The lives of the victims’ families are shattered. Police from across the region mobilize in a way never seen before. They have a few leads and suspects, and begin searching for familiar criminals and new faces suspected of involvement in the slaying of these young children. Shattered Podcast.
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Sometimes, news stories echo in our minds for years after they’ve occurred. With each season of Shattered, we select one of those complex, true stories and take an in-depth look. Season 4 charts the life and death of Jimmy Hoffa. Season 3 tells the story of a string of murders that took place in the mid-1970s in Oakland County, Michigan. Many people know the case as the Oakland County Child Killer. Season 2 tells the story of Rick Wershe Jr., also known as White Boy Rick. At 14, Rick became the youngest FBI informant ever and helped bring down some of Detroit’s biggest drug dealers. Then the FBI abandoned him, and he became the dealer. Season 1 investigates the disappearance of Andrew, Alexander and Tanner Skelton. The boys’ father, John Skelton, is the main suspect. Almost a decade later, the mystery of what happened to the boys remains open, with their small Michigan hometown wondering - could a father have committed an unimaginable crime?
