True Crime Twins Podcast

The Dutchburn House Sometime after 11:30 p.m. on March 19th, 2004 in Montgomery, Vermont, the awful sound of a car crash resounded into the silent night. An old weathered farmhouse stood on a curve on Vermont Route 118, abandoned since the 1990’s. The small home faced the roadway and stood before a large cornfield bordering the Trout River. The white paint which once covered the wooden exterior was blistered and faded. Plywood covered its windows and doors. On display on one of the boarded windows was a ‘No Trespassing’ sign. A light green 1985 Oldsmobile Royale was traveling on Route 118 along the curve. For reasons one can only speculate, the driver went off the roadway in reverse and at an odd angle. After driving over some tall grass, the vehicle’s back bumper slammed into the side of the abandoned farmhouse. The car became lodged into the home’s foundation and was brought to a halt. A piece of plywood covering a boarded window was dislodged by the impact and landed on t...

Brianna as a Friend Katie Manning remembers her first day at a new high school. She remembers what it felt like to be the new kid in town. She stepped onto the yellow school bus and uncomfortably walked down the aisle. She felt unfriendly stares from her new classmates as she passed. Toward the back of the bus, she saw a ray of sunshine.  "You can sit with me," Brianna Maitland, her new friend, said with a smile. She eagerly tapped the vinyl fabric of the seat, signaling Katie to join her. Katie sat down, immediately feeling at ease. "You have such pretty hair," Brianna said, gently touching a strand for herself.  Kira Trombley remembers fondly a bubbly, beaming stranger approach her on the first day of school. "I love your leather jacket," Brianna, her new friend, said earnestly. Kira remembers the girl who never forgot her birthday. After months of not keeping in touch, Brianna unexpectedly appeared at her home on her birthday to wish h...

   Hi all! I am very excited to post Brianna Maitland Private Investigator Greg Overacker’s first guest post on Chloe from Crawlspace. I have learned a lot about logical, critical thinking from him and am thrilled he chose my forum to share some of his thoughts. Enjoy! -Chloe   Lance, Tim, Chloe and I have discussed critical thinking and topics that are closely related to the subject on a few occasions and of course my conversations with Lou Barry are always laden with common sense, critical thinking and brutal honesty. After reading Chloe’s blog and her discussion about confirmation bias I thought I’d like to throw in my two cents at the risk of sounding like a blathering opinionated madman. I also would like to commingle some discussion of common sense with the topic of critical thinking . First I’d like to say that after contacting Tim and Lance while trying to get into contact...

Community Q&A With Bri's Dad Last week, I asked the online community if they had any questions for Bruce Maitland, Brianna's Dad. Bruce was kind enough to offer his input to the followers of his daughter's case. The following is a compilation of your questions with his answers in bold. Thank you, Bruce, for your time and thought in your responses. I think they will prove to be productive in clarifying common questions for people following this case. Did the Black Lantern Inn have surveillance footage?   No. Can you confirm Brianna did not have a cellphone?  She did not have a cell phone. Did the police look into the phone records at the Black Lantern Inn?  Yes and so did I. Nothing was found in them to point to anyone. Did the Black Lantern Inn have live music when Brianna worked there?   No. Did Brianna tell anyone what time she would be leaving work, or make plans with anyone that night?   She left the ...

The Parking Lot Story In my undergraduate and graduate coursework on criminal justice, a recurring theme is the dangers of confirmation bias. It is human nature to attempt to make connections to make sense of something that is senseless or mysterious. I know that is a reason I am interested in cold cases. What’s dangerous about this aspect of human nature is that it can lead to confirmation bias, in which we develop a theory and work backwards to confirm it, placing significance on leads (and worse, speculation) that support our theory, and disregard the rest. As this is in our nature, it is crucial for investigators, professional and amateur alike, to be aware of it every step of the way in efforts to avoid such thinking. After all, it is a gross logical fallacy that stagnates an investigation. Speculation and confirmation bias are the antithesis of objective, fact-focused, critical thinking. It gives us tunnel vision when seeing clearly is what we, and whomever we are trying ...