Chapter 78: Teens That Kill & Rod Ferrell Revisited w/ Aphrodite Jones

It's no surprise to anybody that in this day and age, teenagers are becoming more and more violent. With horrific events such as The Vampire Cult Murders, the countless school shootings that started with Columbine, and more, recently, violent protests...
It's no surprise to anybody that in this day and age, teenagers are becoming more and more violent. With horrific events such as The Vampire Cult Murders, the countless school shootings that started with Columbine, and more, recently, violent protests in the wake of the events happening in the world right now, teenagers have grown up with a lack of fear and respect towards authority and a complex where they think they are above others. While it may not be every teenager and young adult, a shocking number of them have evolved into violent offenders. Today, Courtney is joined by Aphrodite Jones to discuss what is happening in this day and age and dives into her coverage of Rod Ferrell when teens that killed were an anomaly instead of a frightening reality.
Get Aphrodite's Books:
The Embrace: A Teen Vampire Story
Cruel Sacrifice
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Hi guys. I'm Courtney and I'm
Lisa, and welcome to the next chapter
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in the Book of the Dead.
Brought to you by Dark Cast Network Indie
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See you there. Hello, Hello, Welcome to the next chapter in
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the Book of the Dead. With
me today, I have an absolute powerhouse
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in the true crime community. She
knows the true crime world first hand and
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has wrote numerous books on different true
crime subjects. So today with me,
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I have Aphredite Jones to talk about
her book The Embrace, a true vampire
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story, and this is a case
that you guys might be familiar with,
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might not be familiar with. I
have covered it, but it is the
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Rod Farrell case. And Aphrodite is
going to take us through this story in
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the way that only she can do. So, Aphrodite, thank you for
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joining me today. Thank you for
having me. It's an honor. I
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appreciate it very much. So let's
get into it. Let's jump right in.
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What is it about this case that
drew you in? You know,
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why did you decide to write about
it? You know? Take me through
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everything. Sure, So, back
in time when I wrote this story in
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the mid nineties, it really wasn't
the kind of crime that we see teens
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committing today. In fact, it
was an anomaly back then. We didn't
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really see so much of teens killing
adults or each other. It was to
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me a signal to the world that
we really need to watch over our teenagers
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and pay attention to what they're doing
in their back rooms. Because in this
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case, Heather Wendorf was the main
character in the book, was talking with
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Rog Ferrell, who at that time
was lived in Kentucky. But he also
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spent part time with his father in
Florida, where Heather lived, and so
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the two of them got together.
But for the most part they were talking
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on the phone, and they would
talk throughout the night and day and night
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whenever she had the opportunity, and
in essence, rod Ferrell convinced her that
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he was a vampire and he could
tak time travel, and he could make
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people immortal, he could embrace them, give the embrace to turn them into
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his minion, which of course is
crazy. But again this is a separate
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story of teens mixing reality was fantasy, and again we are only seeing a
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lot of that now. We did
not see that in the past. The
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most important thing that I want to
talk about is why the teenagers today,
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Why is there so much violence?
I mean, back in time, the
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Columbine shooting had not yet happened,
and we start to see, you know,
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school shootings and teenagers killing each other
more and more. It's almost become
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pasta It's hard for me to believe
that. What do you think it's definitely
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true. And that's something that I
remember talking about when I originally was going
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through this case. Was that back
in even you know, the nineties,
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when this happened, you didn't read
so much about kids killing kids or kids
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killing adults. It wasn't really a
thing until you know, obviously this is
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the most publicized case or one of
the most publicized cases of kids killing or
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teenagers killing. And then now,
I mean, you can rarely go a
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week without hearing about a teenager that
has committed some horrific crime, and there
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is something to be said about,
like what is influencing them. You know,
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you have the nature of pers nurture, but you know, people want
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to there've been that. You know, it's the age old argument of video
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games cause violence and things like that. But it's it's interesting that there are
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these kids out there that are truly
rotten to the core. And Rod was
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a perfect example of that. It
was just there's something to be said within
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him that was evil and some of
these kids now are just as bad,
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and it's like, I can't wrap
my head around it. Oh. And
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you know, here's the thing.
It's not just that they're evil, because
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you know, we see that and
a lot of these school house shootings sort
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of a mental problem. But also
there has been since this crime, this
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early crime of teen violence, there
have been many people who have gone into
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schools and shot their former classmates or
their classmates in a copytat kind of way
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to what happened in Columbine. And
you know, that's what's so disturbing here,
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Courtney is why and asking the question, trying to answer the question as
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to why these young kids are so
much led astray from reality that they would
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go ahead and murder people, and
more than one person in the case of
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the Embrace, Heather Windorff's parents were
murdered. How did she go along with
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this? What is it about pure
pressure or perhaps not even bitter pressure.
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Perhaps it's bullying, or it's incumbent
upon the team to feel like they need
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to copy someone or show how great
they are and get media attention. I
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mean, it's just really sad that
people can't send their kids to school and
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not have to worry about it.
I just do have to worry about it.
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They do have to give that second
thought to what is going to happen
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in my school today? You know, is my child going to be okay?
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If my teenagers are going to be
okay? And on the flip side
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of this, how is it that
the parents don't know that they have a
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psychologically damaged child. That is my
question to you, And that's I think
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that's something that everyone asks themselves when
they hear about these horrific crimes. It's
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how did the parents not know?
And it's true, I've said it myself.
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How do you? How do you
not know? Is it that you
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are in so much denial that something
is wrong with your child that they could
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potentially have their propensity to do something
so violent? It it's part of me?
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Is it? Is it? You
know? Like I understand, you
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know, a parent loves their child
no matter what, but there has to
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be a line drawn. You know, you love your child, but you
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have to acknowledge if there is violence
within them. And the thing is,
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if you notice, most recently two
parents were actually convicted of criminal acts and
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are being sent to prison for the
acts of their child. And that is
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the first that that's a precedent.
But in that case, you have the
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mom not only give her son a
gun, but also bringing him to school,
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allowing him to be in school,
going to the school knowing that he's
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drawing pictures of guns, pictures her
warped and the mother was told by the
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school, you need to come get
your son he's acting very strangely. He's
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a problem, and you can't leave
him in school right now. We don't
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know what's happening. He's, you
know, having trouble psychologically, and it's
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been noticed by teachers and students,
and that mother refused to take him home
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that day. She left him in
school that day. Now, did she
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know her son was going to pull
a gun? No, But was she
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responsible for giving him the gun,
for allowing him to stay in school?
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And she was warned that very same
day that this is the problems. So
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it makes sense that she and her
husband were convicted criminally. I wonder if
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other parents will be convicted since that
president has been set, because it just
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seems like some of them know that
their kids is into guns, know that
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their kids has psychological problems. It's
been reported before. We've heard that so
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many times. Why don't parents try
to get their kids from help? For
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me, I think it's a lot
of you know, they don't. They
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don't want to be acknowledge there's a
problem. I don't know if it's they
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don't want it to reflect negatively on
themselves. But you're absolutely right that you
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know she in that case, she
essentially enables the incident to happen. She
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literally put the gun in her child's
hands. She ignored the warning signs and
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for what for someone to get hurt? And she, rightfully so was convicted
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of criminal charges in relation to that. So is her husband. And they're
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absolutely parents out there that have ignored
the warning signs or dismissed the warning signs
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and allowed things to happen, and
they should have been held just as accountable
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as their children. Yes, So
the flip side of this is that in
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this story you embraced. It wasn't
other teens that got killed, but it
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was one guy, Rod Ferrell,
who had convinced his minions as followers,
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if you will to do blood lettings, to do the embrace, to become
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a halfling first and eventually a vampire
with an immortal life. And the result
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of this was that Heather Wendorf allowed
Rod Ferrell to come and get her,
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said that she would like her parents
dead, which many teenagers ages do and
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don't mean it. And the day
she was quote embraced by Rod Ferrell,
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she went off with him and the
group of teenagers he brought with him who
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also wanted to become vampires and they
headed to New Orleans, where you know,
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Vampire or Central with Anne Wright writing
these books. Her parents did not
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know that Heather was in contact with
this psychotic person, that Heather's friend had
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given this person a map of how
to get to the Windorf house and where
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the parents would be. Now,
that is something so premeditated and so bizarre.
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What is it in her parents that
didn't notice any change in Heather.
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Heather had gone from being, you
know, a good student to suddenly she's
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dye in her hair, she's you
know, acting weird. She's not the
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same kids she was. She's almost
a god. And you know, I
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get it that teenagers want to forge
their own way and come up with new
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plans. But in this case,
she literally believed that Rod Ferrell could help
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her become immortal. One part of
her belief that the other side of her
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was curious and wanting to experience whatever
it was that he could offer in terms
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of immortality. And how weird is
it that she would think this, like
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what planet are these kids on?
That was what was always interesting to me
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about that case, especially because Heather, just based on you know, all
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the research I did, was by
all accounts, like a good girl.
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She was a good student, you
know, her sister was a cheerleader.
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It was a great family. They
went on all these trips together. And
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then you have this guy, you
have Rod, come in and flip everything
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on its head, and her whole
personality changes. She's so enamored by him.
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And I couldn't understand that a girl
as you know, intelligent as she
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was, and I mean, like
just she was BookSmart. There had to
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have been a part of her the
whole time that when I know you're you're
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full of it. There's nothing that
you're saying that is rooted in reality.
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And she went along with it anyway, Like was it just the allure of
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what he was telling her, this
fantasy world that he created, that had
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such this this stronghold on her.
I think that's part of it, Cordiny.
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I think there's also a part of
teenagers who want to believe that they
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can be immortal. You know,
of course, when you're a teenager,
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the world is yours, but on
top of it, to think that g
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immortality can be offered to me,
or in essence, I can run off
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with these people and have a different
life. I can get away from my
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parents. Who are you know somewhat
strict influencing or trying to to fear with
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what it is she wanted to become. So they did in this case,
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paid some attention to the change in
her, but not enough to really.
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I don't know that they could have
known that Heather was dealing with a psychotic
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person, especially since it was on
the phone. I don't know they could
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have known this. They would know
their daughter was changing, but in this
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story, Heather didn't become a total
goth. Heather was dealing with someone that
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lived out of state. They couldn't
know that. And ultimately what happened is
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Rod Ferrell and his buddy went into
her house. His other friends lord Heather
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out of the house. First they
cut the phone lines. This was back
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before there were cell phones. They
went into the house and on the way
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in Rod picked up a tire iron
in the garage and first beat to death
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heather father, who was laying on
the couch watching TV, minding his own
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business. And then they went to
the mother. Rob Ferrell caught the mother
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as she was coming out of the
shower, and it just so happened that
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he got her in the kitchen.
It was at a ranch house and she
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threw a cup of hot coffee at
him. That was the only defense she
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could make, and he killed her, bludgeoned her. The weird part about
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this story the weirdest part. And
he, by the way, carved a
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v into her father bizar into his
chest. Heather Wendorf went off with Rod
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Ferrell and this group of other teens
headed to New Orleans for this quote New
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Life, Different life. She allowed
the blood letting to occur, and while
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she was in the car escaping from
her house, it was the fact that
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Rob Ferrell was driving her parents suv
that she was like, what is happening?
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How do you have my parents' car? Why is this? And Rod
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told her I killed your parents.
He wanted them dead, and I killed
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your parents. Now he has it
in the backseat of the car, and
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he picks up a strand of pearls
that belonged to her mother to prove to
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her. As he's holding them up. He's in the front seat, she's
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in the back. In the rear
view mirror, she can see these are
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my mom's pearls. And now she
knows that Rod is a murderer. She
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sees that there's blood on him.
She's aware completely that this actually happened,
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And yet in her fantasy world,
she wants to believe it didn't happen.
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She wants to believe, no,
this was just him talking. He stole
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my parents' car, he stole jewelry. This couldn't have happened. So it's
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not as though she really wanted her
parents dead, nor did she believe that
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Rob was a psychopath. Yet how
could she not believe that when he's convincing
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her trying, and has convinced others
that he can actually project himself, that
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he could go back in time and
be somebody who's from a thousand years ago?
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Or you know, what is it
in her that not only entertain this,
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but actually lowered him to where she
lived and was happy to have him
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come there, to bring her to
a cemetery where he did this embrace.
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But what in her change? And
the answer I have to this is,
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like you say, she was going
on a wrong path. Her parents didn't
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realize that. They looked at as, oh, this is teen's acting up.
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She wants to spread her wings.
This is just teenage rebellion. This
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is what teens do. And they
both went up legend to death. Now
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Heather goes into the already in the
car and they're headed to nor Orleans,
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but they make a number of stops
along the way. Why doesn't she find
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a way to call somebody? Why
doesn't she find a way to report this?
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And that's a big question the story
because, as it turns out,
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when they were stopped and it was
in that rouge, one of the teams
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had called the mothers and was scared. Now, why didn't Heather call?
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Well, Heather didn't call anyone,
and that led police to believe that she
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was involved in this murder, that
she really did want her parents dead,
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that it was her fault. And
the weird part was when they were rotten
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to the police station and were questioned, Heather Wendorf acted nonchalantly. She was
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blase about the whole affair, which
made law enforcement think all the more she
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was part of it, that she
was a part of this group of teens
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who, in particularly with Rod Ferrell, actually killed her parents. Later,
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when she was questioned by a grand
jury, it wasn't until then when the
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grand jury asked her questions back and
forth. The DA was listening, you
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know, questioning her in every possible
way that the grand jury said, you
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know, what she's innotant. She
didn't know this was going to happen.
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She didn't know that her parents would
actually be killed. And again, this
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is where the cross between reality and
fantasy comes to roost. And I wonder
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how many other teens that are out
there who, as you say, video
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games and the fantasy of that utilize
that for committing violent acts murder because there's
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somehow caught up in a fantasy world, you know what I'm saying, Yeah,
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I think I think that's that is
what what happened with Heather's that she
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was so caught up in this fantasy
world, you know, kind of I
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guess maybe questioning like how far could
this idea go, This you know,
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idea of running away, this idea
of vampires all that, how could how
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far could it go? And her
her parents ended up being a casualty of
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this idea. And I wonder if
she kind of convinced herself that, you
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know, her parents were fine and
this, this fantasy world was outside of
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that about side of what had happened
to her parents, kind of living in
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another world in her mind while this
is happening. And with you know,
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kids today, I think that for
some of them, that is something that
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probably happens. They get so caught
up in this idea of being greater than
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what they are and being on this
different level than you know, quote unquote
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regular people. There was a case
in Russia of two teenagers that went on
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a rampage because they believed that they
were higher beings and they killed they killed
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I think twelve people, and it
was all because of this idea that was
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in their brains that they were better
than that they were higher beings, that
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they were the equivalent to gods.
And I think that it was an their
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case where fantasy and reality that line
was completely blurred. Another issue that I
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want to talk about with teens who
go astray and become violent is what's happening
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right now on the college campuses throughout
the country. This idea that supporting what's
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going and what went on with a
terrorist organization cutting off people's heads, babies
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heads, showing it on video for
all the world to see on the internet,
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being proud of killing three thousand people, three thousand Israelites, And how
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it is that currently so many students
have ignored the fact that the terrorism came
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from you know, the murders came
from a terrorist organization, And how can
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it be that many of these students
say, I am mos, I sympathize
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as a hams Hamas is not a
terrorist organization, and go after the Israelites,
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go after Jewish students violently all throughout
the country. I feel that this
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is another sense of a fantasy and
a mix up between reality. When a
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country has been invaded, has been
terrorized, like we were in nine to
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eleven when thousands of people were killed
because of it, how is it that
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the people who are in colleges don't
see it. Why is it that there's
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this strange element of you know,
some students raised the flag of another country
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and took down the American flag,
burned American flags, you know, feel
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that America is responsible for this.
We have nothing to do with the war
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there between Israel and Gaza. We
are doing that, We're not killing anyone.
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What is happening with these students,
How do they think that they're actually
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going to influence what net Nyanju does, what Israel is doing to fight back.
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Of course, they are innocent people
who are casualties. Of course,
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they're hard horrors in Yasah. You
know, it amazes me that these many
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young people want to be in denial, want to be in denial of nine
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to eleven. Some of them want
to be in denial about what America has
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to do with these murders. And
again, I think it is a convergence
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of reality and fantasy. I do
think that many of them don't even understand
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or know whether or not the original
attack was real. Some of them deny
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it. How does this happen in
our country? How have we gotten to
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this point from you know, almost
thirty years ago, where being violence,
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violence on campuses, violence in high
school's unheard of? And how far does
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this go when we look at what's
going on today? Absolutely, and I
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think with the age of the Internet
and the age of technology, it's gotten
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worse and it has it's created a
lot of problems. It's not to say
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we struggle back to the stone ages, but I think that there is misinformation
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and there's a lack of education around
teaching our children's, our children how to
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be safe and to recognize that there
is false information, and there is information
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that could be very alluring and very
captivating, and it may not be the
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right kind of information, It may
not be totally true. It may be
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a warped truth. And I think
there are a lot of kids that are
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into that, and they are taking
what they're reading online and what they're seeing
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online and what they're consuming in the
media, and it's being warped as it's
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being fed to them. And that
is I fully believe is contributing to some
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of the violence because these kids,
you know, being impressionable, are hearing
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these things and they're agreeing with it
because they have a lack of understanding and
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they're taking that idea and they're allowing
it to kind of mold them and their
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personalities. And here you have the
situation where not one are they protesting,
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but they're literally going after Jewish students, harming Jewish students, you know,
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scaring Jewish students who now are afraid
to go to their campuses and finish out
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their college education. Graduations are being
canceled, as you may know, and
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you know there have been there recently
in Columbia University, these students who have
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literally broken into one of the buildings, a historical landmark that they just are
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destroying. It's gone beyond just violence. How does this This is where coming
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back to the embrace and what Heather
Wendorf was involved with, perhaps with misinformation
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or you know, wanting to join
a crowd. You wonder of peers,
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how many of these students who are
or people who are protesting on all these
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college campuses and creating violence, how
many of them are going along with something
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as Heather Wendorf did, not even
knowing what the facts are not bothering,
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you know, being pamphlet missionaries who
again would rather see Israelize guills rathericy Israelize
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be the ones who they look at
as the enemy, they look at as
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a country that should not be retaliating
against this active terror. It's just so
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wild that we have gone from no
real teen violence thirty years ago, to
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Columbine to you know, Virginia Tech, to you know, the mass shooting
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in a movie theater, to you
know, then now, as you say,
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another shooting on campus or even schools, high schools, elementary schools that
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the parents aren't aware of, that
they just allow, or that somehow or
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another they don't check on their kids. They don't know what's going on,
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and they're in their world. And
I think it's because, as you say,
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it's now the Internet, it's easy
for them to find people who agree
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with them, and group formations are
now founded by people who are of the
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same mindset on the internet. It's
a real problem. It's a real problem.
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It goes beyond just one story or
numerous stories that continue to evolve with
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copycat teenagers. We now have,
I want to say, a twisted world,
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and it has to do with young
people who again are collapsing reality with
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some kind of I don't know,
sense of being warriors, which is a
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fantasy. They are not warriors,
you know what I'm saying. No,
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absolutely I do. And I think
part of it is that, you know,
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they do. They think they're warriors, they think they're above everyone else,
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and a lot of them do not
fear authority in any way at all.
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I worked in a store for a
while and I saw countless teenagers,
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you know, anywhere from thirteen to
sixteen, absolutely run rampant and be like
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violence. I will never forget a
bunch of kids were fooling around. They
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broke a woman's foot because they got
so crazy, and the police were called,
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and they're talking back to the police, and they're talking back to security
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and they're talking. They have zero
fear of authority. And even when I
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was younger, that wasn't a thing. You know, you respected authority,
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You feared authority. You know,
if I was doing something wrong, you
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know, I never in my life
had been in trouble with the police.
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But if I thought I was doing
something wrong, you know, I stopped.
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You know, these kids don't,
They don't fear authority. They have
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this superiority complex, and that's what's
getting a lot of these kids into the
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trouble that they're getting in because there's
no limit to what they think they can
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do, and they push those boundaries
constantly to the point where people do get
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hurt and people lose their lives.
Is it every kid that is a you
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know, a little annoying or a
little aggressive or wants to cause trouble in
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public. No, but there are
those that are like that. And you
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know how many kids are going to
grow up to be killers because they don't
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have that respect for authority, of
respect for another human's life, because they
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think they're better than everyone else.
So they've lost their moral compass. And
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this is this is you know exactly
the story that I wrote about in The
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Embrace. Heather lost her moral you
know compus. She ignored whatever warning signs
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there were about Rod wanting to come
to her house and acting out. What
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with a teenage wish that, Oh, I wish my parents were dead.
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I don't know how many teenagers have
thought this. I think at some point
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kids think this, But she verbalized
it and rot Darrel acted on it,
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and then after it happened, she
didn't want to believe it. So she's
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again in a fantasy world. When
she finds out that she is going to
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be possibly held responsible for this,
she knows she can walk her way out
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of it, and she did.
However, at that time she was basically
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run out of town on a rail. Nobody in her family, in the
357
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Wendor family felt that she wasn't responsible. People in the town have used this
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where she was from, didn't believe
her, felt that she was responsible.
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She did not do any media interviews. She was hiding, and you know,
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when people started seeing the footage of
her after the arrest acting cavalier,
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you got to wonder, since she
was aware now that her parents were actually
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dead, what goes through her mind
and why is it that back in time
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this happened and again now we have
many more students teenagers who have absolutely no
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problem with being violent with crashing windows, with feeling with you know, parming
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police, as you say, the
authority that we had back in time,
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that we feared and needed. You
need authority, You need police because they
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can save you from a dangerous situation, whether it's domestic violence, whether it's
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street violence. And yet now police
are being shot, police are being banged
369
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over the head, you know,
they're being whatever, bricks are torn of
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them. Where do we go from
here? How do we land in this
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pass bouteille? It's it's mind boggling
to me because it really that's it's true.
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It's where where can we go from
here? What is the solution to
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rectify what has been done? And
I think part of it is that many
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of these students are under a spell
that they really have been turned around,
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going in the wrong direction like Heather
Wendorf did, and now it's so prevalent,
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and they feel there's no consequences because
in essence, they have not been
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consequences. In fact, some of
them Brad, what will happen if you
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get arrested in New York in any
event? At n YU. One of
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my alma maters at Columbia is somebody
who's asked one of these you know,
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protesters, was asked, well,
what happens if you're arrested, and the
381
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protester's answer was go to jail for
overnight and then let me out. And
382
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that is happening. So there are
no consequences there. I mean, other
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Wendors experienced consequences. Her parents were
killed, she was run out of town,
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she could not have the life she
had had anymore. But people today,
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young people who are are rebelling and
creating these acts of violence, there
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isn't the kind of consequence that we
saw even fifteen years ago with Columbine,
387
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even twenty five years ago that was
or in many of these other cases.
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The consequences today don't match the crime, absolutely not. They not even close.
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And that's something that's always driven me
crazy is you look at people that
390
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have been convicted of horrific crimes,
and you know, some of them get
391
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some of them get life maybe,
and then others, you have, they
392
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got a couple of years. Or
there was there was someone who who murdered
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two teenagers, the mother of one
of the teenagers and mutilated the other mother.
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She survived and he got ten years. So yeah, I mean,
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what kind of sentence is that and
with a good time. They only have
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to serve half the time. We
are at a point of anarchy, and
397
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the anarchy comes from these young people. We don't see thirty year olds forty
398
00:37:32.599 --> 00:37:42.159
year olds doing these things. We
see people of the newer, older generations
399
00:37:42.880 --> 00:37:47.280
saying we need the police. We
can't you know, function as a society
400
00:37:47.320 --> 00:37:53.880
without the police. And yet police
are regarded by the young people as enemies.
401
00:37:54.360 --> 00:38:00.199
It's just snowballs, Courtney. It
has snowball to a place where I
402
00:38:00.199 --> 00:38:05.079
don't know that we can control this
anymore. How would we turn it around?
403
00:38:06.119 --> 00:38:12.599
Honestly that it's a question that I
genuinely could not tell you the answer
404
00:38:12.679 --> 00:38:16.559
because it is out of control.
It is, it's out of control.
405
00:38:16.599 --> 00:38:23.199
You're right, it's absolute anarchy.
And in the case of you know,
406
00:38:23.639 --> 00:38:29.920
Rod Ferrell, you know he got
the consequences that match the crime. You
407
00:38:29.960 --> 00:38:31.920
know, there was a fear of
police. There is a feel of fear
408
00:38:32.000 --> 00:38:37.840
of authority, and nowadays there isn't
that it doesn't exist. And you know,
409
00:38:38.000 --> 00:38:44.320
you you know, any kid or
teenager can look up a crime online
410
00:38:44.360 --> 00:38:47.280
and see that this person only got
ten years, or this person only got
411
00:38:47.280 --> 00:38:52.960
five years, or they got they
got pleated down to lesser charges, and
412
00:38:52.239 --> 00:38:58.679
so it makes it seem as if
horrific crimes are quote unquote not a big
413
00:38:58.719 --> 00:39:04.039
deal. So in the case of
Brod Ferrold, he was after a trial,
414
00:39:04.400 --> 00:39:10.039
he was sentenced by a jury to
death, and later that was commuted
415
00:39:10.159 --> 00:39:15.840
by a governor of Florida to life
without parole. And now we're in a
416
00:39:15.880 --> 00:39:22.280
place where Brod ferrel is actually filing
appealed to get out. So even though
417
00:39:22.320 --> 00:39:29.519
he murdered Heather's parents in the most
violent way, he thinks it's okay now.
418
00:39:30.480 --> 00:39:31.559
I mean, with all this going
on the art in the world,
419
00:39:32.119 --> 00:39:37.239
maybe he'll get an appeal, maybe
he'll get out. And again, I
420
00:39:37.679 --> 00:39:44.880
just I can't imagine that somebody would
go in a house, premeditate this and
421
00:39:45.000 --> 00:39:52.320
wind up murdering, slaughtering Heather's parents
and think that it's all okay now I
422
00:39:52.320 --> 00:40:00.719
could get out. At the same
time, I interviewed Rod while he was
423
00:40:00.760 --> 00:40:05.920
in jail in a holding cell during
the time of his trials, and Rod
424
00:40:05.960 --> 00:40:12.679
told me that he was not only
immortal, but he identified with Isis and
425
00:40:12.760 --> 00:40:19.360
other gods and figures from mythology and
was talking to me about this as if
426
00:40:20.880 --> 00:40:25.119
it was real like he's sitting behind
bars, he's being tried and the death
427
00:40:25.199 --> 00:40:30.800
penalties on the table, and he's
still in this fantasy world. It was
428
00:40:31.559 --> 00:40:37.400
absolutely bizarre at that time. Now
we see this on a regular basis,
429
00:40:37.760 --> 00:40:43.440
and these young people feel there are
no consequences. They can get away with
430
00:40:43.480 --> 00:40:45.800
whatever they want to get away with. They can smash and brab, they
431
00:40:45.840 --> 00:40:54.880
can steal without being punished if they
steal under ten thousand dollars worth of goods.
432
00:40:55.480 --> 00:41:01.280
I don't know. I just wonder
how this is going to get turned
433
00:41:01.320 --> 00:41:05.639
around. How do we turn the
clock back in time? How do we
434
00:41:05.719 --> 00:41:10.239
get back to before columnline? Is
it possible? I think it starts with
435
00:41:12.599 --> 00:41:17.719
parents being mindful of what's going on
with their children. And I don't necessarily
436
00:41:17.800 --> 00:41:22.320
mean being like a helicopter parent,
because you know, you can't suffocate your
437
00:41:22.400 --> 00:41:27.320
kids, but being mindful. You
know, what are they doing on the
438
00:41:27.360 --> 00:41:30.880
internet? Are they spending all hours
of the night on the computer? Okay?
439
00:41:30.039 --> 00:41:36.039
But why? What? What is
so captivating on the computer that they're
440
00:41:36.079 --> 00:41:39.000
finding? You know, just have
that honest conversation. What are you doing
441
00:41:39.000 --> 00:41:42.639
in the computer? What kind of
websites do you on? You know,
442
00:41:43.119 --> 00:41:47.280
do some research find out what's going
on. If your kid has gone from
443
00:41:47.360 --> 00:41:53.639
bubbly and outspoken with this big personality
to more sullen and withdraw it, you
444
00:41:53.679 --> 00:41:58.719
know what is going on. There
is no shame in therapy talk to have
445
00:41:58.880 --> 00:42:02.079
them talk to a therapist, you
know, get that education, find out
446
00:42:02.119 --> 00:42:08.639
what is going on, because nothing
is going to get close to beginning to
447
00:42:08.719 --> 00:42:14.679
start getting better if parents don't know
what's going on with their kids, and
448
00:42:14.719 --> 00:42:21.039
if kids don't start developing that healthy
fear and respect of authority, right,
449
00:42:21.079 --> 00:42:24.440
and I think it does start at
home, or it certainly did back you
450
00:42:24.480 --> 00:42:30.559
know in years past. When I
say start at home, they're not being
451
00:42:30.639 --> 00:42:35.159
monitored. You're right not to be
helicopter parents. But what about going on
452
00:42:35.199 --> 00:42:39.360
Facebook and seeing who they're involved with
what they're posting. Many of them posts
453
00:42:39.440 --> 00:42:45.360
manifest those they're proud of it,
they want to kill. What's wrong with
454
00:42:46.280 --> 00:42:52.960
looking at what your kid is actually
saying. And if the kid is planning
455
00:42:52.000 --> 00:42:58.639
to murder, or is obsessed with
homicide, or is obsessed with getting even
456
00:42:58.719 --> 00:43:05.400
with people, bring them to a
counselor bring them to somebody who can keep
457
00:43:05.519 --> 00:43:12.880
them it's in reality and get them
out of the idea that being a murderer
458
00:43:13.239 --> 00:43:16.440
is cool. You know this idea
that oh, if I, you know,
459
00:43:16.760 --> 00:43:21.880
like Rod Ferrell, wants to be
immortal if I do this. Finbald
460
00:43:21.920 --> 00:43:27.119
and Harris became immortal in what they
did. So it's in the media,
461
00:43:27.280 --> 00:43:30.039
it's talked about, they're talked about. One of the things the media has
462
00:43:30.079 --> 00:43:35.880
done, which is positive, is
that we don't hear about the killer as
463
00:43:35.960 --> 00:43:40.280
much as that used to be.
They're not getting the attentions that they think
464
00:43:40.320 --> 00:43:45.880
they're going to get by a schoolhouse
shooting. The media has wived up to
465
00:43:45.960 --> 00:43:52.400
this and has no longer given them
the status, if you will, of
466
00:43:52.639 --> 00:43:57.599
being fifteen minutes the same or more
than fifteen minutes the same, of being
467
00:43:58.400 --> 00:44:04.400
you know, analyzed and almost cajoled
by the media back in time. I
468
00:44:04.440 --> 00:44:08.599
think that's one good thing. But
I mean, in a case of Pether
469
00:44:08.760 --> 00:44:14.599
lendarf I will tell you this,
even though she was not convicted of murder,
470
00:44:14.719 --> 00:44:17.559
she was not tried for the murder
of her parents. Her sister got
471
00:44:17.599 --> 00:44:22.719
upon to stand and said, Heather
did make that statement that she wanted her
472
00:44:22.760 --> 00:44:29.239
parents killed. That was something that
was mind blowing. And beyond that,
473
00:44:29.960 --> 00:44:32.679
after this was all over, after
I had my book out, which Heather,
474
00:44:34.440 --> 00:44:37.119
you know, worked with me quite
a bit after all of that.
475
00:44:37.559 --> 00:44:44.079
When the book was out, I
called her. She was now in college
476
00:44:44.400 --> 00:44:49.199
in a different state, and she
was talking about her new life and everything
477
00:44:49.320 --> 00:44:52.800
was fine. She seemed to not
care at all that her parents were gone.
478
00:44:52.519 --> 00:44:57.400
In fact, this is the thing
she told me, Oh, it's
479
00:44:57.440 --> 00:45:00.360
all good. I have a new
boyfriend, I have new tat, a
480
00:45:00.480 --> 00:45:05.280
new cat. I'm happy. It's
good. I said, what's the name
481
00:45:05.320 --> 00:45:07.920
of the cat? She said,
Lucy, Oh, that's great. You
482
00:45:07.960 --> 00:45:10.159
know, I'm glad that you're there. I don't know what else to say
483
00:45:10.159 --> 00:45:14.199
to her. You know, she's
lost her parents, for God's sake,
484
00:45:14.239 --> 00:45:17.159
from the time she was a teen. And you know what she tells me.
485
00:45:17.880 --> 00:45:24.559
She says, yeah, Lucy,
it stands for Lucifer. Now think
486
00:45:24.599 --> 00:45:30.440
about that for a minute, if
you can see right now. Oh my
487
00:45:30.519 --> 00:45:36.079
god, this is where you know, you have to really think. At
488
00:45:36.079 --> 00:45:40.320
the end of the day, the
grand jury believed that she had nothing to
489
00:45:40.360 --> 00:45:45.280
do with this, that she was
innocent, that she was unaware that anything
490
00:45:45.280 --> 00:45:49.960
would happen to her parents, and
yet she's cavalier after she discovers that her
491
00:45:50.000 --> 00:45:53.000
parents are murdered she doesn't do anything
about it. After she sees Rod Ferrell's
492
00:45:53.119 --> 00:46:00.199
holding up her mother's pearls, she
goes along with the program in there,
493
00:46:00.079 --> 00:46:07.320
and after Saul said and done,
she's naming her cat after Lucifer. She's
494
00:46:07.360 --> 00:46:13.519
still into the devil. She's still
into state and worship. What the heck
495
00:46:15.000 --> 00:46:19.840
was going on back then? That's
something that I was grappling with that I
496
00:46:19.880 --> 00:46:23.880
couldn't even tell anyone about because the
book was done and we didn't have podcasts
497
00:46:23.920 --> 00:46:29.440
back then. You know, I
had already done interviews about the book prior
498
00:46:29.480 --> 00:46:34.280
to this, and I couldn't go
back and tell anyone this. But it
499
00:46:34.719 --> 00:46:39.480
occurred to me that, man,
this girl is evil. She was not
500
00:46:39.519 --> 00:46:44.880
innocent in all of this, not
at all. Looking back, I remember,
501
00:46:45.239 --> 00:46:47.119
you know, doing the research covering
the story, and I kept going
502
00:46:47.159 --> 00:46:52.639
back and forth on whether or not
hoether I had any sort of culpability in
503
00:46:52.679 --> 00:46:54.960
this, you know, whether or
not she was complicit in this in any
504
00:46:54.960 --> 00:47:00.840
way. And I really I hadn't
an eye hawed, and I really couldn't
505
00:47:01.360 --> 00:47:06.719
definitively say whether I believe she had
absolutely nothing to do with it or was
506
00:47:07.159 --> 00:47:14.119
completely oblivious to what was going to
happen and hearing that, Wow, that
507
00:47:14.760 --> 00:47:21.079
changes, that absolutely changes everything.
Right, it does, and it brings
508
00:47:21.119 --> 00:47:24.760
me back to the fact that she
got away with it. She had no
509
00:47:24.880 --> 00:47:32.199
consequences. And you know, as
this has evolved over the years, who
510
00:47:32.199 --> 00:47:37.440
else had no consequences? Who else
has done things? And as we are
511
00:47:37.440 --> 00:47:45.039
today creating senseless acts of violence thinking
they can get away with it, and
512
00:47:45.480 --> 00:47:51.079
many of them do today. You
or not for schoolhouse shootings, But when
513
00:47:51.119 --> 00:47:57.119
we look at what's going on right
this minute, do you think these students,
514
00:47:57.360 --> 00:48:00.800
these people who are protesting, feel
they're going to hey the price for
515
00:48:00.880 --> 00:48:06.719
this? Absolutely not, absolutely not. And that's why they get wilder and
516
00:48:06.880 --> 00:48:12.079
wilder. And you gotta wonder what
is it in It's not just a lone
517
00:48:12.159 --> 00:48:15.599
shooter. It's no longer, Josh, somebody who's a psychopath, somebody who
518
00:48:17.000 --> 00:48:22.280
you know, has a need for
fame, has a need to be notorious.
519
00:48:22.639 --> 00:48:24.800
No, no, no, no, Now we have people that are
520
00:48:24.880 --> 00:48:34.079
joined together and literally just committing chaof
anarchy. It's something that really has affected
521
00:48:34.119 --> 00:48:37.320
me, that really, you know. And I wrote another book called Cruel
522
00:48:37.360 --> 00:48:42.079
Sacrifice about four teenage girls who murdered
a twelve year old at the time that
523
00:48:42.159 --> 00:48:45.719
I wrote that again in the nineties. Prior to writing The Embrace, it
524
00:48:45.800 --> 00:48:52.000
was unheard of that teenage girls would
kill a twelve year old. It was
525
00:48:52.079 --> 00:48:58.599
unheard of. There was nothing like
that, and they were an anomaly.
526
00:48:58.920 --> 00:49:04.960
They were considered, you know,
something, people that were psychotic, that
527
00:49:05.320 --> 00:49:09.760
were a part of peer pressure.
That I mean, those those girls were
528
00:49:09.760 --> 00:49:16.599
given The main two girls were given
fifty years and sixty years. I thought
529
00:49:17.119 --> 00:49:22.719
that in writing these books about teen
violence, I thought that it would be
530
00:49:22.840 --> 00:49:27.599
a cautionary tale for parents, for
anyone who's reading my work. I have
531
00:49:27.719 --> 00:49:30.960
a huge following, you know,
my readers are very into what I write.
532
00:49:31.440 --> 00:49:36.320
It's not just young people. And
there are young people in college who
533
00:49:36.400 --> 00:49:39.840
read these books and said, you
know, basically wow, like how does
534
00:49:39.880 --> 00:49:46.079
this happen? Or we can't believe
it? And now they have to worry
535
00:49:46.119 --> 00:49:51.880
about being in school and thinking that
a shooter could come in at any time,
536
00:49:51.920 --> 00:49:53.920
and what about all the students.
There was one student I talked to
537
00:49:55.039 --> 00:50:01.519
about campus shootings who in the interview
just said, yeah, we've had them.
538
00:50:01.599 --> 00:50:06.360
We had one of them on campus. We you know, but we
539
00:50:06.519 --> 00:50:10.880
just watched ourselves and were much more
cautious, like they're accepting it. It's
540
00:50:10.960 --> 00:50:16.239
crazy to me. It's genuinely crazy
to me, like how much has changed
541
00:50:17.000 --> 00:50:23.519
and how much teenagers and young adults
and kids have changed from what they used
542
00:50:23.599 --> 00:50:30.199
to be. It's really obviously a
serious issue. Has become furious when so
543
00:50:30.320 --> 00:50:37.119
many colleges have this going on,
when students are joining other agitators and just
544
00:50:37.639 --> 00:50:40.920
behaving a world where nobody feels safe
anymore, you know, as juveniles,
545
00:50:40.960 --> 00:50:45.559
and they feel they'll be tried as
juveniles even if they have committed murder.
546
00:50:45.920 --> 00:50:50.239
They feel it won't be it'll be
a short sentence. I just don't know
547
00:50:50.280 --> 00:50:55.360
where to go from here. However, I will say that I think people
548
00:50:55.400 --> 00:51:00.360
who read my book The Embraced or
my other book Crow Sacer, we'll start
549
00:51:00.400 --> 00:51:06.400
to look at what their teens are
doing much more so. We'll start to
550
00:51:07.840 --> 00:51:13.679
monitor, but also cheap scenes in
the house. You know, had Heather
551
00:51:13.760 --> 00:51:16.800
been monitored more so, she would
have been able to get out of the
552
00:51:16.880 --> 00:51:22.679
house as a teenager and just take
off. I know that that's something I
553
00:51:22.679 --> 00:51:29.960
couldn't do back in time, could
you. Oh absolutely not, absolutely not.
554
00:51:30.760 --> 00:51:38.400
And I grew up with someone that
could, and I remember she just
555
00:51:38.480 --> 00:51:42.519
run away. It was. You
know, she was never getting into like
556
00:51:42.559 --> 00:51:45.199
real trouble or anything, but she
would run away when she would get into
557
00:51:45.320 --> 00:51:50.280
it with her mom. And I
will never forget my mother. After having
558
00:51:50.400 --> 00:51:54.440
listened to my friend's mom cry and
be worried sick over her daughter, went
559
00:51:54.519 --> 00:51:58.199
up to my friend after she came
home and was like, you know what,
560
00:51:58.519 --> 00:52:02.199
I have to thank you because you
will never do what you've done.
561
00:52:02.960 --> 00:52:06.679
She will never act the way that
you do. And she was right.
562
00:52:07.320 --> 00:52:10.960
I never would. I never went
gallivanting off all over town. You know,
563
00:52:12.079 --> 00:52:14.719
my mother knew where I was.
If I was going to be out
564
00:52:14.760 --> 00:52:15.800
late, I called her and said, hey, I'm staying out late.
565
00:52:15.920 --> 00:52:19.719
You know, this is who I'm
with. And kids don't do that now.
566
00:52:20.079 --> 00:52:22.559
They go where they want, when
they want, and half the time
567
00:52:22.599 --> 00:52:25.440
the parents drop them off wherever and
it's okay, I'll see you whenever you
568
00:52:25.480 --> 00:52:30.159
decide to come home. It's like, no, your sixteen year old should
569
00:52:30.199 --> 00:52:34.800
be home by like nine o'clock and
safe, not out till two, three,
570
00:52:34.920 --> 00:52:38.760
four o'clock in the morning. And
again, this is what I say,
571
00:52:38.840 --> 00:52:45.559
it does start at home. There
is there's a responsibility that should be
572
00:52:45.760 --> 00:52:58.679
uncumbent on parents to watch to enforce
rules to even if there's not a law
573
00:52:59.039 --> 00:53:04.519
that is going after or these young
people, there should be parents that,
574
00:53:04.880 --> 00:53:10.519
like your mother have warned you,
have shown you what it is that can
575
00:53:10.599 --> 00:53:16.440
happen if you go down the wrong
path. And yet what's happening today has
576
00:53:16.440 --> 00:53:20.320
a lot to do with peer pressure. It's like, oh, okay,
577
00:53:20.519 --> 00:53:23.199
other people are doing it, I'll
join in. It's cool. I'm a
578
00:53:23.239 --> 00:53:30.159
cool person now. And I think
in the Embrace that is exactly what happened
579
00:53:30.000 --> 00:53:36.199
along, you know, with somebody
who felt who promised them, you know,
580
00:53:36.280 --> 00:53:39.440
immortality, and even though they really
didn't believe it, even though you
581
00:53:39.480 --> 00:53:45.119
know they question it seriously because this
could not happen, they went along with
582
00:53:45.159 --> 00:53:50.320
it anyway because they loved being in
the fantasy, because they loved the idea
583
00:53:50.440 --> 00:53:53.079
that they could get away with this. So I hope that people read it.
584
00:53:53.840 --> 00:53:59.880
I hope that people read Cross Sacrifice
as well and be this cautionary,
585
00:54:00.119 --> 00:54:06.119
cautionary tales as something that fourth of
them to monitor their kids even if they
586
00:54:06.119 --> 00:54:10.920
feel they shouldn't. Or Pamp and
I will have the links. They are
587
00:54:10.960 --> 00:54:16.679
available on Amazon to Crow Sacrifice and
the Embrace. The Embrace I just finished
588
00:54:16.679 --> 00:54:21.280
It is not only a phenomenal read, but it is a cautionary tale,
589
00:54:21.320 --> 00:54:25.880
and I really encourage parents and teenagers
to read it, you know, learn
590
00:54:25.960 --> 00:54:30.239
what can happen. You know,
obviously that is an extreme worst case scenario,
591
00:54:30.400 --> 00:54:36.559
but it's a very real scenario.
Yeah, and it's becoming more and
592
00:54:36.599 --> 00:54:43.039
more real these days with this violence
of people going in and shooting up everybody
593
00:54:43.039 --> 00:54:46.280
in Parkland, you know, and
the parents now not being able to do
594
00:54:46.320 --> 00:54:51.320
anything about it after the fact.
The punishment does not fit the crime,
595
00:54:52.039 --> 00:54:57.119
which also needs to change exactly.
And so these are the things. When
596
00:54:57.159 --> 00:55:01.079
I wrote these books back almost thirty
years ago, I truly thought parents would
597
00:55:01.679 --> 00:55:08.760
realize and look at these cautionary tales. But instead, parents who have a
598
00:55:08.880 --> 00:55:14.519
child that's off, they don't look
at it, they don't want to see
599
00:55:14.519 --> 00:55:19.519
it, and it's too late when
they've committed these acts of violence. So
600
00:55:21.079 --> 00:55:23.400
I think that's really what I wanted
to stay with you today, Courtney.
601
00:55:23.880 --> 00:55:30.320
That's really the message, and I
hope people listen to that message, and
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00:55:30.559 --> 00:55:35.480
parents, you know, listen to
the fact that you can't be afraid to
603
00:55:35.519 --> 00:55:37.679
monitor your children and be aware of
what they're doing. You can't be afraid
604
00:55:37.719 --> 00:55:43.239
to be the parents. You know, it's not if there's something going on
605
00:55:43.280 --> 00:55:45.800
with your child, it's not necessarily
a reflection of you, And you can't
606
00:55:45.920 --> 00:55:50.079
be afraid to think that it's a
reflection of you and your parenting style.
607
00:55:50.199 --> 00:55:53.599
It just means that there's something going
on, and it very well could be
608
00:55:53.719 --> 00:55:58.800
an outside force that has nothing to
do with you. So you need to
609
00:55:58.840 --> 00:56:04.960
be aware of what is going on
with your children exactly. And I hope
610
00:56:05.000 --> 00:56:08.239
as they say that this message,
which I thought would get to people back
611
00:56:08.280 --> 00:56:13.960
in time and these things would stop
and people could see what happened with teenagers
612
00:56:14.000 --> 00:56:20.239
have done. I thought that that
would be something that would change the minds
613
00:56:20.280 --> 00:56:24.960
of parents, would get parents to
be more involved with their kids, understand
614
00:56:24.960 --> 00:56:29.199
that they have to be if they
can't just let their kids run wild.
615
00:56:29.480 --> 00:56:31.519
And instead we have this chaos now, and I think parents need to turn
616
00:56:31.559 --> 00:56:35.920
it around. I think that's the
only way this is going to turn around.
617
00:56:36.360 --> 00:56:39.320
That's it. I agree, I
absolutely agree there needs to be a
618
00:56:39.400 --> 00:56:45.679
change. As I said, I
will have the links to both books down
619
00:56:45.719 --> 00:56:50.360
below. You can get them on
Amazon. And thank you Afred Id for
620
00:56:50.440 --> 00:56:54.840
joining me today having this really powerful
conversation that I do think a lot of
621
00:56:54.840 --> 00:57:00.400
people need to hear. It's a
tough conversation and people need to be open
622
00:57:00.440 --> 00:57:06.880
to it. Parents need to really
listen to it because there are terrible things
623
00:57:06.880 --> 00:57:12.000
going on in the world and it
does start at home, so Afred idea.
624
00:57:12.039 --> 00:57:15.840
I thank you for bringing attention to
this well, thank you Courtney for
625
00:57:15.880 --> 00:57:22.920
having me on. And I really
appreciate the opportunity to try to influence parents,
626
00:57:22.320 --> 00:57:27.400
adults, to get them not to
be afraid of their kids and what
627
00:57:27.400 --> 00:57:30.400
they're doing. As you say,
that's the way this has to happen.
628
00:57:30.599 --> 00:57:34.599
That's the issue, and I appreciate
you having me on today, court Me.
629
00:57:34.639 --> 00:57:37.679
I really do. It's an honor
as always. As always, guys,
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00:57:37.719 --> 00:57:42.000
thank you so much for listening and
I will see you in the next
631
00:57:42.079 --> 00:57:45.360
chapter of the Book of the Dead. Bye, guys much for listening to
632
00:57:45.440 --> 00:57:50.840
this chapter of the Book of the
Dead, and don't forget that you can
633
00:57:50.880 --> 00:57:54.519
always connect with us on Instagram,
you can connect with us on Twitter,
634
00:57:54.559 --> 00:58:00.519
and you can absolutely connect with us
on Patreon. We all so have a
635
00:58:00.639 --> 00:58:05.360
merch store as well that we have
frequent discount codes coming out for so that
636
00:58:05.400 --> 00:58:09.679
you guys can get March hand drawn
by myself at a better cost. We
637
00:58:09.760 --> 00:58:15.239
hope you have a lovely rest of
your week and just remember, please be
638
00:58:15.360 --> 00:58:22.039
kind and don't forget to always stay
safe, stay curious, and stay vigilant.
639
00:58:22.159 --> 00:58:36.559
Bye guys, Bye,

Author/True Crime Journalist/Television Host
Aphrodite Jones knows the crime world first hand. She’s a TV persona and true crime author who doesn’t sugar-coat her opinions on controversial crimes. Jones who has used her reporter’s hunch for over 25 years to investigate homicides, and created the hit TV series for ID, “True Crime with Aphrodite Jones,” now available on Amazon Prime.
Throughout her career, Jones has written a string of New York Times best-selling true crime books which have inspired real-life films, most notably, her book All She Wanted was the inspiration for Academy Award-wining the film, Boys Don’t Cry. Her book A Perfect Husband was made into the Lifetime film, The Staircase Murders, and was a precursor to the acclaimed Netflix reality series, “The Staircase.”
A regular presence on broadcast and cable news shows for two decades, Jones has covered the trials of O.J. Simpson, the BTK, Michael Jackson, Casey Anthony, Phil Spector, and drug kingpin El Chapo Guzman, among others. To that end, Jones has appeared as a crime expert on CBS, NBC, ABC, ID, CNN, HLN, FOX News, MSNBC, Oxygen, REELZ, and E! News. Most recently, she has made appearances on Dr. Oz and ABC’s 20/20, shedding light on the psyche of killers and exposing the ripple effects that every murder generates.









