Episodios

  • Starved, Abused, and Failed by the System: The Murder of 5 year-old Kinsleigh Welty

    Starved, Abused, and Failed by the System: The Murder of 5 year-old Kinsleigh Welty
    Nov 21 2025

    Five-year-old Kinsleigh Welty spent the last months of her life locked in a feces-covered closet, starved to 21 pounds by the mother who called her a demon. Despite repeated removals for abuse and neglect, Indiana DCS kept handing her back due to policies that prioritize family reunification. Text messages between her mother and grandmother reveal chilling cruelty and apathy. We unpack the massive failures that led to this preventable death. Listener discretion strongly advised.

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    Secret Passage Podcast is hosted by Dana Vespoli and Shannon Rogers

    Producer: Tim Rogers

    Editor: Mitch Silver
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    1 h y 13 m
  • Alcohol Addiction, Porn Distraction, and a 109° Death: The Preventable Loss of Parker Scholtes

    Alcohol Addiction, Porn Distraction, and a 109° Death: The Preventable Loss of Parker Scholtes
    Nov 14 2025

    In this episode we examine the tragic hot-car death of 2-year-old Parker Scholtes in Marana, Arizona, on July 9, 2024. Her father, Christopher, a stay-at-home dad struggling with alcohol addiction, left Parker in a parked SUV for three hours while he drank beer, watched porn, and played video games—leading to her fatal heatstroke at an internal temperature of 108.9 °F. We explore the role of addiction, the distraction of explicit content, the family's response, and Christopher's suicide days before sentencing. Ultimately, this is a cautionary story about the lethal dangers of alcohol, inattention, and the false sense of security that "it can't happen to us".

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    Secret Passage Podcast is hosted by Dana Vespoli and Shannon Rogers

    Producer: Tim Rogers

    Editor: Mitch Silver
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    1 h y 15 m
  • Youthful Offender or Future Killer? The Jesse Mack Butler Case

    Youthful Offender or Future Killer? The Jesse Mack Butler Case
    Nov 7 2025

    In this week's episode, we dive into the disturbing case of Jesse Mack Butler, an 18-year-old Oklahoma high school baseball player convicted of raping and strangling two teenage girls he had been in relationships with, nearly killing one. Butler received a light sentence with no jail time after he was given youthful offender status. The victims, victims' families, and the commmunity are outraged. We explore why the lenient outcome sparked outrage and what it reveals about prosecuting rape. Listener discretion advised.

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    Secret Passage Podcast is hosted by Dana Vespoli and Shannon Rogers

    Producer: Tim Rogers

    Editor: Mitch Silver
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    1 h y 8 m
  • Haunted: Gothic Elements & Intergenerational Trauma in The Shining

    Haunted: Gothic Elements & Intergenerational Trauma in The Shining
    Oct 31 2025

    In this week's Halloween episode we discuss Stanley Kubrick's The Shining. We love this movie! We look at this masterpiece through the lenses of the Gothic, addiction, narcissism, and intergenerational trauma.

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    Secret Passage Podcast is hosted by Dana Vespoli and Shannon Rogers

    Producer: Tim Rogers

    Editor: Mitch Silver
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    1 h y 20 m
  • Female Pedophilia: Psychological Insights from the Christina Formella and Mary Kay Letourneau Cases

    Female Pedophilia: Psychological Insights from the Christina Formella and Mary Kay Letourneau Cases
    Oct 24 2025
    This week we discuss female pedophiles examining the cases of teachers Christina Formella, 30, accused of abusing her 14-year-old student and Mary Kay Letourneau, who groomed 12-year-old Vili Fualaau, bore his children, and married him post-prison. We look at cultural biases that result in lighter sentences for female perpetrators and the underreporting of abuse of male victims. We question arrested development, impulsivity, and the emotional motivations behind these crimes. Like, subscribe, and follow us. Here's how:
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    Secret Passage Podcast is hosted by Dana Vespoli and Shannon Rogers

    Producer: Tim Rogers

    Editor: Mitch Silver
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    1 h y 25 m
  • From Aspiration to Accusation: The Influencer's Faustian Bargain

    From Aspiration to Accusation: The Influencer's Faustian Bargain
    Oct 17 2025

    In this episode we look at social media influencer culture, focusing on the tragic case of Emilie Kiser whose young son drowned in the family pool. We explore the intense public backlash Kiser faced upon returning to social media, highlighting the toxic dynamics of parasocial relationships and the attention economy. We unpack the costs of influencer fame and the toll of living under public scrutiny. Join us for a thought-provoking look at empathy, blame, and the blurred lines between authenticity and artifice in the digital age.

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    Secret Passage Podcast is hosted by Dana Vespoli and Shannon Rogers

    Producer: Tim Rogers

    Editor: Mitch Silver
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    1 h y 22 m
  • Behind Closed Doors: Laken Snelling and the Tragedy of Neonaticide

    Behind Closed Doors: Laken Snelling and the Tragedy of Neonaticide
    Oct 3 2025
    Join us for a chilling start to the fall 2025 season of the Secret Passage Podcast as we dive into the heartbreaking case of Laken Snelling, a 21-year-old University of Kentucky cheerleader accused of secretly giving birth to and then killing her newborn in a shocking act of neonaticide. We explore the complex issues behind neonaticide, drawing parallels to cases like Amy Grossberg and Brian Peterson, Brooke Skylar Richardson, and Gail Eastwood-Ritchie. Like, subscribe, and follow us. Here's how:
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    Secret Passage Podcast is hosted by Dana Vespoli and Shannon Rogers

    Producer: Tim Rogers

    Editor: Mitch Silver
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    1 h y 10 m
  • Family Annihilators and the Tragic Case of Emily Long

    Family Annihilators and the Tragic Case of Emily Long
    Sep 5 2025

    In our season finale episode we explore the shocking case of Emily Long, a New Hampshire mother who killed her husband, two of her children, and herself in August 2025.

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    Secret Passage Podcast is hosted by Dana Vespoli and Shannon Rogers

    Producer: Tim Rogers

    Editor: Mitch Silver
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    1 h y 31 m