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It was the summer of 2004, and Charlie and Teri Brandt needed to get someplace safe. With Hurricane Ivan headed for their home in Big Pine Key, the couple went to Orlando to stay with their niece, Michelle Jones. Michelle was thrilled to have them, but toward what should have been the end of their visit, she stopped returning phone calls. So did Teri and Charlie. Finally, one of Michelle\\u2019s friends went to the house to check on everyone. She was horrified by what she discovered.

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Then Kristin tells us about the evening of February 17, 2007. Melissa Lucio was in a panic. Her two-year-old daughter Mariah had fallen asleep, but wasn\\u2019t waking up. Paramedics arrived at Lucio\\u2019s apartment, and attempted to revive the little girl. But she remained unresponsive. As moments ticked by, the paramedics grew more and more concerned. The girl\\u2019s body was covered in bruises. It looked like she\\u2019d been badly beaten. Melissa\\u2019s other children told the EMT\\u2019s that Mariah had recently fallen down the stairs, but medical personnel feared something much more sinister had occurred.\\xa0

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And now for a note about our process. For each episode, Kristin reads a bunch of articles, then spits them back out in her very limited vocabulary. Brandi copies and pastes from the best sources on the web. And sometimes Wikipedia. (No shade, Wikipedia. We love you.) We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the real experts who covered these cases.

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The documentary, \\u201cState of Texas vs. Melissa\\u201d

Wrongful Conviction podcast episode, \\u201cMelissa Lucio\\u201d

\\u201cDivided Federal Appeals Court Reinstates Death Sentence for Texas Mother of Child Who May Have Died in Accidental Fall,\\u201d Death Penalty Information Center
\\n\\u201cDid Melissa Lucio, the First Hispanic Woman on Death Row in Texas, Kill Her Daughter? An Uneven New Documentary Raises More Questions Than Answers.\\u201d by Roxanna Asgarian for Texas Monthly

\\u201cDoctor testifies abuse was \\u2018worst\\u2019 he\\u2019s seen,\\u201d by Allen Essex for the Valley Morning Star
\\n\\u201cMother found guilty of murder,\\u201d by Allen Essex for the Valley Morning Star
\\n\\u201cDetective testifies in Lucio trial,\\u201d by Allen Essex for the Valley Morning Star

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\\u201cDeadly Obsession\\u201d episode 48 Hours

\\u201cCharlie Brandt Killed His Mom At 13 \\u2014 Then Walked Free To Butcher His Wife As An Adult\\u201d by William DeLong, allthatsinteresting.com\\n

\\u201cDeadly rage brewed in \\u2018quiet kid\\u2019\\u201d by Robert Perez and Melissa Harris, The Orlando Sentinel

\\u201cKiller tied to \\u201989 death\\u2014wife suspected him all along\\u201d by Gary Taylor, The Orlando Sentinel

YOU\\u2019RE STILL READING? My, my, my, you skeezy scunch! You must be hungry for more! We\\u2019d offer you some sausage brunch, but that gets messy. So how about you head over to our Patreon instead? (patreon.com/lgtcpodcast). At the $5 level, you\\u2019ll get 25+ full length bonus episodes, plus access to our 90\\u2019s style chat room! \\xa0