The First Degree

The story of Lorena Bobbitt drew media attention in 1993 for being one of the most and disturbing domestic dispute stories to ever hit the news. Lorena was not the first woman to ever fight back against her husband- and she wasn’t the last. But her story was one of the first to demand change in the way the world perceived domestic abuse and sexual assault. On episode 93, Jac, Alexis and Billy are joined by Lorena, as they reexamine the impact of the single cut that forever changed pop culture and sent shivers down the spine of domestic abusers around the world. And thank you for this episode's sponsors: Caldrea = Find your signature scent. Free shipping on orders of $50 or more at Caldrea.com Madison Reed = 10% off + Free Shipping on first color kit. Go to www.Madison-Reed.com and use promo code: FirstDegreePodcast Noom = Go to Noom.com/firstdegree to start your trial today! Daily Harvest = To get $25 dollars off your first box, go to www.DailyHarvest.com and enter promo code: First Native = 25% off your first purchase. www.nativedeodorant.com and use promo code: Degree 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon:patreon.com/thefirstdegree📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You get a call that your father is dead. You rush home and find he has been murdered. He was tied up, stabbed 31 times and beaten over the head. What could be worse? Police believe your mother—who was found tied up and locked in the bedroom closet—is the lone suspect in his death. In episode 93, Jac, Alexis and Billy tell the story of the murder of Jim Melgar, and how law enforcement disregarded key evidence and employed tunnel vision to zero in on Sandy Melgar as his killer. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon:patreon.com/thefirstdegree📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It was a trial that seduced, consumed, and horrified the nation— Jodi Arias, facing the death penalty for the murder of her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander. Over the course of four months, Arias was up against a mountain of physical and circumstantial evidence. How did she defend herself? She went on the attack, grasping at straws, telling shocking and fabricated lies about Travis. In episode 92, Jac, Alexis and Billy examine the evidence against Jodi and explain how one woman spared the most hated woman in America from death. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon:patreon.com/thefirstdegree📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Travis Alexander was found Murdered in his shower—shot in the face, stabbed in the back, his throat slashed ear to ear. Many of his friends pointed a finger at his ex-girlfriend, Jodi Arias. But police had to piece together her whereabouts on the day of the murder—and her calculating actions made that incredibly difficult. In episode 89, part two of a three part series, Jac, Alexis and Billy delve into the investigation of Jodi Arias, including blood evidence, her bank and credit card statements and the most shocking discovery: a camera found in the washing machine containing images of Travis’s last moments—shot by the killer. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon:patreon.com/thefirstdegree📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jealousy. Suspicion. Rage. And a calculated murder. You may think you know everything about Jodi Arias, the woman who killed Travis Alexander. But in episode 90 of The First Degree, Jac, Alexis and Billy speak with a first degree who had a front row seat to their ill-fated relationship, and learn details about Jodi’s actions that have never come to light before. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon:patreon.com/thefirstdegree📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A Detective is trying to solve a murder at a local truck stop. His only lead is a grainy image of a yellow truck. One day, When a yellow long haul truck passes in front of him, his eyes widen. It’s a long shot, but Sgt. Pat Postiglione stops the driver. Inside his cab, he finds a bag of bloody clothes—evidence of other murders. In episode 89, Jac, Alexis and Billy delve into the murders of trucker serial killer Bruce Mendenhall. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon:patreon.com/thefirstdegree📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A woman is found murdered at a truck stop in Nashville Tennessee. She is nude, displayed grotesquely, and a chunk of her flesh is missing. Was it to hide her identity, or did the killer take a trophy? In episode 86 of The First Degree, Jac, Alexis and Billy not only speak with the sister of the victim, but also with Detective Pat Postiglione, who was tasked with finding the killer-who soon learns that this wasn’t his first kill. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon:patreon.com/thefirstdegree📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jose Ramirez frantically called the police. He told them that his house had been ransacked, his parents were missing—and there was dried blood on the floor. When the police arrived, they didn’t find professor Susan Brill De Ramirez or her husband Antonio Ramirez Barron. But what they would later discover would shock the community of Peoria’s Bradley University to its core. On episode 87, Jac, Alexis and Billy explore the details of the case, the mind frame of those responsible, and search for an answer to the ever-pressing question: why? 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon:patreon.com/thefirstdegree📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sheila Bellush had been discovered brutally murdered in her home, her four quadruplet babies covered in her blood after being left alone with their mother’s body for more than 6 hours. A supposedly random person drove 1700 miles to kill her. But why? In episode 86 of The First Degree, Jan, Alexis and Billy dig deep into the relationship of Sheila and Allan Thornburg and uncover the twisted lengths an ex-husband can go to to get revenge. Plus, on Killing Time, they talk about, what else? Tiger King: Joe Exotic. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon:patreon.com/thefirstdegree📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sheila Bellush is found dead, her throat slashed and shot in the face in the laundry room of her Florida home. The only witnesses to her murder? Her 23 month old quadruplets, covered in their mother’s blood. In the 85th episode of The First Degree, Jac, Alexis and Billy unravel the tale, which takes them from the beaches of Sarasota to the golf courses of San Antonio, uncovering a wicked tale a revenge. 🎟 Catch up to FOUR bonus episodes per month plus full video episodes over on Patreon:patreon.com/thefirstdegree📸 Instagram: instagram.com/thefirstdegree🕺 TikTok: tiktok.com/@thefirstdegreee👤 Facebook: facebook.com/thefirstdegree  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices