Shows / The First Degree
The First Degree
Do you ever wonder what it’s like to be friends with a murderer? Or escape a kidnapping? Or have a father who was a serial killer? Join Jac Vanek and Alexis Linkletter on a chilling ride into the darkest corners of your worst nightmares. Murders, cults, kidnappings, and conspiracies—all told through the eyes of a guest who is one degree of separation from the story itself. From infamous serial killers to the unbelievable unknown murder in your own backyard, The First Degree delivers a new…
Episodes
- The First Degree
Episode 281: Joey Comunale
On Sunday, November 13, 2016, Pat Comunale worries about his son, 26-year-old Joey Comunale. Joey was supposed to arrive at his father’s house to watch…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: ASK A GIRL ASK A GINGER
This week the girls and the ginger ring in the new year with a good ol’ fashioned Q&A! We polled our firsties and then proceeded to offer some slightly…
- The First Degree
Episode 280: Pamela Kay Wills and Patricia Ann Mizell
On Friday, September 17, 1971, 10-year-old Pamela Kay Wills returns from Boyd Elementary School to her home in northern Jackson, Mississippi. That afternoon…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: TRADITIONS
This week the girls and the ginger are hanging on by a holiday thread! It’s trash week! The best week of the year for those of us who just want to sit around…
- The First Degree
Episode 279: Marie Buck
On Christmas Eve, 2016, an 81-year-old woman is shot dead at her family-owned business in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The sudden and senseless slaying had an…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: NOT QUITE FESTIVUS
The girls and the ginger are back and we’re getting festive yet again! It’s a Christmas episode! Do people even listen to podcasts around the holidays? Who…
- The First Degree
Episode 278: Wilbur & Wilma Williams Part 2
Alexis and Jac conclude with the second installment of the coverage on the case of Wilbur and Wilma Williams. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: PUKA SHELLS
This week the girls and the ginger return for some sort of necklace personality quiz designed by none other than our emo queen Jacquelene. Come find out which…
- The First Degree
Episode 277: Wilbur & Wilma Williams Part 1
On Tuesday, August 3, 1999, 14-year-old identical twin brothers Donell and Ronell Williams break into a house in Wyandotte County, Kansas City, Kansas. They…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: THE MICHELIN MAN
This week the girls and the ginger are back with a big time full-fact! Did you know the origin of the Michelin star rating system? We didn’t, but today we’re…
- The First Degree
Episode 276: The Murdaugh Family, Part 2
The second installment of Alexis and Jac’s two part episode covering the Murdaugh Murders, featuring interviews with Mandy Matney and Carolyn Murnick, authors…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: KATIE THE GREATY
Hello Firsties! We’re back again for another week of Killing Time! We’re talking about Catherine the Great! A woman of great power and an even greater body…
- The First Degree
Episode 275: The Murdaugh Family, Part 1
On February 24, 2019, a 19-year-old woman and her friends are on a private boat ride in the very early hours of the morning near Beaufort, South Carolina. The…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: TURKEY TALK
The girls and the ginger return for a Thanksgiving episode STUFFED with all kinds of convo to distract you from the horrors of family gatherings! On the stand…
- The First Degree
Episode 274: Christina Brittany Colón
On November 4, 2021, a 32-year-old woman and her 7 year old daughter are riding along as passengers with the woman’s 32-year-old boyfriend in his Honda Civic…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: TWIHARDS
The girls and the ginger are back yet again for another week of Killing Time! Today, Jac has brought a Twilight presentation. We didn’t ask for this, but here…
- The First Degree
Episode 273: Joseph Heidesch
On October 6th of 2021, Catholic high school music teacher 45-year-old Joseph Martin “Joe” Heidesch is arrested for multiple counts of sexual exploitation of a…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: ACCIDENTAL ON THE STAND
This week the girls and the ginger return and things go immediately off the rails. What starts as a casual conversation turns into an entire episode of on the…
- The First Degree
Episode 272: Roy Dean Ratliff
On August 1, 2002, two 16-year-old and 17-year-old young women, total strangers, are each parked with male companions up near a popular lovers' lane in Quartz…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: HALLOWEEN HANGOVER
This week the girls and the ginger return with a chilled out episode of Killing Time. That’s right, we’re going off the rails this week. 2 Days post-Halloween…
- The First Degree
Episode 271: Huong Nguyen
On March 13, 2020, 42-year-old Huong Helene Nguyen is reported missing to the New Orleans Police Department. By 8:10 p.m. that day, the authorities discover…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: MEMEOWEEN
The girls and the ginger return for a VERY spooky edition of Killing Time! We’re diving into the ominous origins of everyone’s favorite holiday! But first! On…
- The First Degree
Episode 270: Rita and Colleen, Part 2
On November 3rd of 1993, 31-year-old Rita Marie Tangredi’s body is discovered on Long Island’s East Patchogue. Her cause of death is determined to be blunt…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: WEDDING BELLS, THE FINALE
Welcome back to Killing Time hosted by two girls one ginger! This week, we’re getting the rest of our wedding shenanigans out of our systems! That’s right, the…
- The First Degree
Episode 269: Rita And Colleen, Part 1
On November 3rd of 1993, 31-year-old Rita Marie Tangredi’s body is discovered on Long Island’s East Patchogue. Her cause of death is determined to be blunt…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: WEDDING BELLS PART 2
This week the girls and the ginger return to round out their French festivity flashback with part two! We’re taking a break from our usual format and just…
- The First Degree
Episode 268: Kenneth White
At about 8:30 p.m. on October 18th of 2017, 32-year-old Kenneth Andrew White is going home after working at a construction site in Au Gres, Michigan. Sitting…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: WEDDING BELLS PART 1
This week the girls and the ginger are back from France and ready to jump back into Killing Time! We’re breaking down our French festivities in part one of our…
- The First Degree
Episode 267: Robert Lovvorn Herren, Jr.
On April 17th of 1989, 31-year-old Cathy Marie Symanowski shoots and kills 38-year-old Robert “Lovvorn” Herren, Jr., with a semi-automatic rifle in Woodland…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: JACS FACTS
The girls and the ginger have returned once again! If you follow our Killing Time episodes, you know that we like to call ourselves the “half facts podcast”…
- The First Degree
Episode 266: Michael Thomas Garry
On September 14, 2007, a 52-year-old security guard is savagely beaten at his workplace in Cypress, California in the early hours of the morning and left for…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY
This week, the girls and the ginger return with a public brainstorm session. Each of us have to pitch a meeting for a television sitcom where we’re the main…
- The First Degree
Episode 265: Norah Rayne Smitherman
On November 4, 2021, a 17-year-old high school senior is shot in the head at a residence in Yadkinville, North Carolina. It’s a gut-wrenching loss not just for…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: QUICKSAND
This week, the girls and the ginger are back, and we’re revisiting our childhoods. Specifically all the things we thought were going to be a much bigger…
- The First Degree
Episode 264: John Cornelius Mcghee
On July 11, 2002, a 45-year-old man is gunned down in the doorway of his home in Bridgeport, Ohio. As far as local law enforcement is concerned, it’s a tragic…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: NOT TIM FERRISS
This week the girls and the ginger are back! One thing we will not be talking about is how we wake up and tackle each and every day! Spoiler alert! It doesn’t…
- The First Degree
Episode 263: Teresa and Rosanna
Late at night on Saturday, July 12th of 2008, 31-year-old Jacob Daniel Ethridge travelsto a section of Adams Avenue in Ogden, Utah, for the purpose of hiring a…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: FROG PRETTY
This week the girls and the ginger return with a true crime tangent! For some reason Jac wants to talk about beauty in relation to animals. I know. You’ll have…
- The First Degree
Episode 262: Tyler Spann
On April 16, 2010, a 20-year-old man and his friend are on their way home when they pull a prank on a neighbor in Venice, Florida. Things quickly turn ugly -…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: UNSOLICITED ADVICE
It’s time yet again to ask a girl, ask a ginger! This week we’re taking phone call submissions and doing our dangdest to dole out advice most of you never…
- The First Degree
Episode 261: Steve Fason
Late at night on Saturday, February 8th of 2020, 57-year-old Steve Ray Fason meets 22-year-old Sandra Marie Rappold for a discussion at his home in Bigelow…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: THE FOURTH DIMENSION
This week the girls and the ginger are once again asking you to reach for those tinfoil hats and join us on our quest to find extra-terrestrials! We’re…
- The First Degree
Episode 260: Phillip Brewer and Jody Fortuna
In September of 2016, 33-year-old Phillip Brewer, 38-year-old Jody Fortuna, and 37-year-old Michael Montano gather at a bar in Gillette, Wyoming. Years ago…
- The First Degree
PATREON EXCLUSIVE: MISSING: LAUREN SPIERER
After a night of partying with friends, a 20-year-old college student goes missing just before sunrise. There are thousands of tips and theories, but scant…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: KEVIN GOES TO MARS
This week the girls and the ginger return for a little of this, a little of that. We’ve spent the last month or so on the road and dealing with the craziness…
- The First Degree
Episode 259: Jhorden Clay
On May 3, 2023, 911 is called to respond to a 4 year old boy in Portland, Oregon, who’s unconscious after suffering a seizure. But it’s clear to first…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: THEME PARKS
Strap in!! This week the girls and the ginger are seeking thrills! We’re talking about bizarre theme parks, and the many off-putting ideas people have come up…
- The First Degree
Episode 258: Blaine Whitworth
On September 1, 2012, a 25-year-old man is gunned down in the driveway of his home in Warrensburg, Missouri. The college town is in a state of disbelief. The…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: APHANTASIA
This week the girls and the ginger are back and we’re seeing things. Or are we? We’re talking about Aphantasia!! Is it real? Do we have it? Do you?! Let’s find…
- The First Degree
Episode 257: Rex Heuermann: A Deep Dive
Since Rex Heuermann’s arrest on July 13th 2023, many people have come forward documenting bizarre encounters they have had with the alleged Gilgo Beach Killer…
- The First Degree
LISK: Peaches and Baby Doe
On June 28th of 1997, the dismembered torso of a young Black woman on Long Island, New York. The torso had several distinct marks, including a horizontal 6”…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: ASPIRE TO CONSPIRE
This week the girls and the ginger are breaking out those tinfoil hats yet again to dive into some quirky conspiracies. We’re talking CIA, John Lennon, and…
- The First Degree
LISK: State of NY v. Rex Heuermann
Jac & Alexis are back to give you a real time update of the developments of Rex Heuermann’s arrest and details of his bail application request. They chat about…
- The First Degree
LISK: Breaking News, The Arrest
Rex Heuermann was charged on Friday July 13th in the Gilgo Beach murders of Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Lynn Costello, all thought to be…
- The First Degree
LISK: The Unidentified
After the Gilgo Four victims were discovered in December of 2010, detectives are looking for more victims of the Long Island Serial Killer. So, in the spring…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: VIVA LAS VANEK
This week the girls and the ginger return with an epic recap of Jac and Jer’s bachelor/ette trip! What happens in Vegas apparently ends up on this podcast! On…
- The First Degree
Episode 256: Pseudocide
On June 14, 2021, 911 is called to respond to the scene of an accident in Green Bay, Wisconsin. In a local river, a vehicle is submerged, the driver having…
- The First Degree
LISK: Getting to know Maureen Brainard Barnes
Ever since she was a little girl, Maureen L. Brainard-Barnes had a generous heart. From stray kittens to down-on-their-luck friends, Maureen was happy to share…
- The First Degree
BONUS: KILLING TIME: POKEMON GO TO JAIL
This week, the girls and the ginger have crawled their way back to the studio after July 4th shenanigans to bring you another episode of Killing Time! Today…
- The First Degree
Episode 255: Richard "Doug" Douglas White
On March 1st of 2007, 46-year-old Richard “Doug” Douglas White prepares to close his small business for the day when two men enter his shop. The next day…