Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - Teen Stabbed Mom After Watching Menendez Brothers Show: Cops

Starting point is 00:00:00 Wondery Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of this law and crimes series ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. A 15-year-old boy charged with killing his mother, and the DA says he claimed to be inspired by a Menendez brothers show. Eric and I killed our parents together, so I'd say that makes us pretty close. I break down the disturbing case of Reed Galenski out of Wisconsin. Welcome to Crime Fix. I'm Anjanette Levy. When you think of 15-year-old boys, you probably think of a freshman in high school,

Starting point is 00:00:44 maybe a sophomore hanging out with friends, going to school, maybe playing sports. But Reid Galenski, he isn't doing any of those things, at least not anymore. Reid is 15 years old and he's from Caledonia, Wisconsin. He's charged with killing his mother, Suzanne Galenski, and he's charged as an adult currently. Caledonia is a small village in Racine County, south of Milwaukee. The population is a little more than 25,000. A teenage boy accused of murdering his own mother would be shocking anywhere, but this crime, as described by police, was particularly calculated and cold-blooded.

Starting point is 00:01:19 Caledonia police were called to the Galenski home on East White Manor Court on March 4th after getting a call that Reed had stabbed his mother to death. The criminal complaint states, As officers approached Galenski, he dropped a brown and silver kitchen knife at the front stoop of the home. He then made statements for officers to kill him and stated, She is dead, and she is dead from what I did. Galenski was taken into custody, and officers noted his clothing appeared to have blood on it. Galenski later made an excited utterance, stating he struck his mother over the head with a dumbbell in an attempt to knock her out so he could stab her with the knife.

Starting point is 00:01:58 First responders tried to revive Suzanne Galenski, but it was simply too late. Police took Reed Galenski into custody, and they say he gave a full confession. The criminal complaint goes on to say, during the interview, Galenski stated he came home from school on the above date and felt depression and an urge to kill his parents. Galenski stated he searched the home for a hammer because he was going to kill his father when he came home from work, but could not find one large enough. Now, at some point in the interview with the detective, Reed also admits that he's been taking his brother's anxiety medication for the last month. Reed told the detective it didn't curb his anxiety, but the meds got him high, which he openly admits he enjoys to the detective.

Starting point is 00:02:45 The criminal complaint states that Reed took nine pills that night and after dinner. He turned on Netflix and decided to watch the Menendez brothers series entitled Monsters. You don't murder your parents that way. Police say Reed told them the shotgun scene inspired him, and so he devised a plan to kill his parents. Eric and Lyle Menendez shot their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in their home in Beverly Hills in 1989. At first, the brothers claimed burglars killed their parents. Then they had to come clean after Eric confessed to a therapist that he and Lyle killed their parents. Their first trial ended

Starting point is 00:03:23 with a hung jury. Lyle and Eric claimed they were guilty of manslaughter, not murder, because Jose was sexually abusing Eric. They were convicted at a second trial, though, of murder. The case has been in the news a lot over the last couple of years as Eric and Lyle have tried to get out of prison after exhausting all of their appeals and presenting new evidence they say

Starting point is 00:03:43 supports their claim they were sexually abused. It appeared that they may be on the verge of being released, but the new LADA, Nathan Hockman, he's not ready to support the brothers' resentencing efforts. Now back to Reed Galenski. After watching the Netflix show around 9.50 p.m., the plan kicks into action when Reed's mother goes upstairs. Police wrote that Reed got his steak knife and then lured his mother back downstairs. The complaint states, Galenski stated he then went to get SG and told her he couldn't find his medicine. Galenski said he hit a dumbbell bar in the sleeve of his sweatshirt while SG came downstairs to look for the pills. Galenski stated while his mother's back was to him, he hit her twice in the head with the pills. Galenski stated while his mother's back was to him,

Starting point is 00:04:25 he hit her twice in the head with the dumbbell. Galenski said he thought she would fall over, but she did not, so he threw her to the ground and grabbed the knife. Galenski said she tried to kick him off of her approximately seven times, but eventually, he stabbed her three times in the chest and twice in the neck. Now, this is so disturbing and unbelievable. According to the complaint, Reed mentions that during the struggle, his mother asked him why, and he replied, pain. Shortly after the attack, Reed contacted his friend over Snapchat, and that's how police actually found out about this stabbing. The caller told the 911 call taker that she had received a Snapchat photo of a woman lying face up on her back and another image with blood on the floor.

Starting point is 00:05:10 Reed met investigators outside when he heard the sirens stop. Reed Galinsky, appearances. Brooke Erickson for the state. The victim's family member is also present via Zoom. Reed Galinsky appears via Zoom in custody from the detention center with attorney Alex Hahn. Good afternoon. There was a first appearance yesterday, so I think we have to set it for a preliminary hearing. Yes. That was one of Reed Galinsky's court appearances last week, and a family member of Reed Galinsky's was there, and it was presumably his father. He was in that court appearance as well over Zoom. A preliminary hearing date was set for March 12th.

Starting point is 00:05:50 I think that was it for today. So thank you, everyone. Bye. Mr. Galenski, someone will give you a call. Okay, thank you. You know, the cases that I cover go to show you just how unpredictable and scary the world can be. And having a great lawyer really matters. That's where our partner and sponsor, Morgan & Morgan, comes in.

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Starting point is 00:06:50 ever injured, start a claim at ForThePeople.com slash CrimeFix or click the link in the description and pinned in the comments. Reed Galenski walked into court for that preliminary hearing handcuffed on March 12th. He's being held in juvenile detention. And this hearing would have given his attorneys a chance to cross-examine state's witnesses. But instead... We're prepared to waive the preliminary hearing this morning. I believe co-counsel filed the waiver form. The judge then questioned Reed Galenski

Starting point is 00:07:18 about his decision to waive that hearing. Did you talk to your lawyers about waiving the preliminary hearing? Yes, I did. At a plenary hearing, the state calls witnesses to testify to prove probable cause that a felony has been committed and that you probably committed it. By waiving the hearing, you're agreeing the state can prove probable cause and I can order you to stand trial on the charges. Did you understand what the waiver meant? Yeah, I did. Did anyone make any threats or promises to force you to wait for hearing? No, ma'am. Do you freely, knowingly, and voluntarily wait for hearing? Yes. All right.

Starting point is 00:08:13 Based on the foregoing and the facts of the complaint, I find there is probable cause that this defendant committed the alleged felony in the criminal complaint. I'm going to bind him over to stand trial on the charge. And then with regard to the arraignment, do the parties want to go forward today? No, Your Honor. We did file a request for a reverse waiver. I believe we already have a date checked out and perfectly signed the right. Okay. We'll give you a reverse waiver hearing. Thank you. So I want to bring in Mark Weaver. He has worked as a special prosecutor in the state of Ohio, prosecuting death penalty cases and other criminal cases. Also, he at times sits as a judge in the state of Ohio. So this is a

Starting point is 00:09:01 really disturbing case, Mark. We have a 15 year old boy who basically says he's been taking his brother's anti-anxiety medication. It doesn't help his anxiety, but it gets him high and he kind of likes it. And he turns on Netflix and he watches this Menendez Brothers show, Monsters, which is like a dramatic adaptation of the Menendez Brothers story. And then he kills his mom. I mean, this is all laid out in the criminal complaint.

Starting point is 00:09:34 I find this absolutely just horrifying. Yes, this is an upsetting case. I started my career as a juvenile probation intern dealing with 15-year-olds who were troubled when I was working on my master's degree before I went to law school. And I've seen many cases that have juveniles involved. And so this is one of the more heinous ones I've ever seen. Before I make a statement, I want to make something very clear. It's always the culprit who's at fault. The person who does the killing is the one who's at fault in every case. Having said that, there are two societal problems that are playing into this case that all of us should be troubled about. Number one, our teens are overmedicated. There's too much medication floating around in the lives of our teens.

Starting point is 00:10:16 And in this case, it was used by the brother to get high from his brother's anti-anxiety medication. That's troubling. That's a societal ill. Number two, I watched this Netflix thing. I wish I hadn't. I was on the treadmill. I clicked into it. It was violence porn, and it was homoerotic porn, and it was nonsense. I know the facts of the Menendez case. I watched it when it was playing out originally. And that Netflix thing was such a fantasy that these young men were, you know, that they were innocent perhaps, or they should have been able to kill their parents because their parents were molesting them. That show is not the reason why

Starting point is 00:10:59 this woman was killed. It was the culprit. Having said that, this young man got up in court and said, when he got the idea to do it, when he was high from his anti-anxiety medication from his brother and watching the shotgun scene, by the way, there were several shotgun scenes in that miniseries, and that's when he got the idea. So he's at fault. He's going to need to be held accountable. But as a society, we need to talk about these larger issues. I didn't watch. I watched a little bit of it. I did not watch the entire thing. I mean, the real story is enough. I don't need to see, you know, this dramatization and, you know, the allegations of sexual abuse that are made in there. And then those scenes, I don't need to see that. Okay. I don't need to see

Starting point is 00:11:45 any of it. And I, I just, I find it gross. But what is concerning to me as well, I, you know, the whole violence porn thing, I get it. Like, I, I think there is too much violent content out there. You know, you've got the whole issue of 15 year olds, boys in particular, you know, their, their brains develop a little slower, they're more impulsive. And then you've got this kid who's able to get his hands on his brother's medication. So there was something more going on with him too. Obviously, he was self-medicating, which is an issue too. So something was going on with this kid, no doubt. Yeah, he himself was on a different medication because the way he lured his mother into his murder trap was to claim that he'd lost

Starting point is 00:12:33 his own medication. And so she comes downstairs and is looking for them. And with her back turned him, he starts beating on her and she yells out, why? And before he kills her, he says, pain. So this is a troubled kid. I'm almost certain they're going to bring some sort of insanity defense or incapacity defense. We'll see where that goes. Certainly, in this state, you're supposed to treat anyone who commits a murder as an adult. This is a 15-year-old. They've already filed a motion, a reverse waiver waiver to try to get the case back into juvenile court where he couldn't be punished for any longer than age 25.

Starting point is 00:13:10 I imagine this will stay in adult court, but we will have a competency hearing coming soon. You know, I found that interesting, too, because I worked in Wisconsin for a number of years and covered a number of homicide cases. And I wonder if they'll be able to get him sent back to juvenile court. Because if you are 15, I mean, you can be charged as an adult, but he could be sent back to juvenile court. I mean, depending on what the courts find. I don't know. I think they may keep him in adult court given the severity of what happened, just like you think they will. But what I found interesting, and I'm assuming the defense waived the preliminary hearing because, I mean, there are a number of issues here that the defense could raise. You've got the mental health issues, possible

Starting point is 00:13:56 insanity defense, but you also got the kid being taken down to the police station and questioned post Miranda by police. Did his dad sign off on that? He was 15. You know, he, his dad probably doesn't have to legally, but you know, whatever happened happened and he ends up in the interrogation room with the cops. And so he gives a full statement according to what they say. So, you know, they're going to challenge that, but they waive the prelim. So that was their chance to get the cops on the stand and question the cops on some of the things they did, some of their actions. And they didn't take that opportunity, which I found interesting. But why do you think they waived? They just don't want this out in the public? Yeah. defense counsel have to weigh the value of getting new information by questioning the police officers and the other investigators at a

Starting point is 00:14:51 preliminary hearing versus what gets out into the public and how that might affect potential jurors. Also, defense counsel are coming together quickly on a case that just recently happened and may not have a solid strategy. Before we go too much further, though, I hope your recent viewers know that you skipped over something very interesting that many of your new viewers might not know. Anjanette Levy knows a lot about Netflix specials and crimes in Wisconsin with young men accused of murder, because of course, you're the lead reporter who was featured in the Making a Murderer series, where some of these issues are at play. Young juveniles, whether they're competent, a horrible murder, and the effect of Netflix on

Starting point is 00:15:30 how we all think about crime. And so this is just the latest version, but I think the first time I ever knew about you was from watching you in that series. Yeah, and that, yes, and it was a 16-year-old boy who was involved in a really heinous case. And, you know, it was very controversial. But, I mean, they will challenge, Mark, that statement. Even though he was Mirandized as a 15-year-old boy, you know the defense is going to challenge whether or not he was questioned properly and whether or not he should have been questioned as a 15-year-old without a parent present. Yeah, this is going to be up to the judge. Remember, Miranda doesn't stop a case from coming forward. Miranda allows a confession to be suppressed before it could be used in court.

Starting point is 00:16:20 And you only have to issue Miranda warnings when the suspect is in custody. So if, as the police are rolling up to the crime, whatever this young man has said to the 911 operator or to Snapchat, I think it was to Snapchat, there was a 911 call from a friend. And then what he says as the police arrive, those things are not custodial interrogations. Not to mention there's going to be all sorts of DNA evidence and physical evidence that's going to make out that he's the person. So even if the confession, if you will, that happens post-custody gets suppressed, I don't think it will. But if it does, there's plenty of evidence to show that this young person did this.

Starting point is 00:17:02 Sure. And they said he had blood on him. He said she's dead. He's got the knife in his hand, dumbbell, barbell, whatever you want to call it is there. Another thing too, I mean, Mark, you know, he confessed, they said to killing his mom, but he apparently also planned to kill his father. So, I mean, this wasn't going to stop, according to what he told police. Yeah, it's hard to imagine that this could have been worse. But he said if he'd had a bigger hammer, I think he would have killed his father, a bigger something to bludgeon the father with, because father was coming home later. And remember, but for him, another teenage angle here in society, using Snapchat to send a picture of his dead mother to a friend, and good for the friend for calling the police.

Starting point is 00:17:50 There's the intersection of a lot of issues that we're dealing with as a society with young people. Availability to anti-anxiety medicine, how much influence violence porn has on our students, and then the use of social media and people feeling withdrawn because of social media and the fear of missing out or the notion that my peers are having a better life than I am. All of these things appear to be popping up in this tragic case. So, you know, he's not going to be back in court until June. So what do you think is going on with his lawyers? What are they going to be doing in the interim? Well, their top goal is to get him back in the juvenile court. So you're going to see them putting all their energy into moving him to juvenile court, where they probably won't care whether he gets convicted or not, because he'll be out at age 25. The judge is

Starting point is 00:18:43 unlikely to do that under Wisconsin law. The burden is on the defense to get it back into juvenile court. The burden is not on the prosecution to put it into adult court. Now they're going to move on some form of insanity or incompetency claim. And if that fails, then they're just going to hope that somewhere the prosecutor slips up and does some form of error that would stop a conviction from moving forward because there's going to be plenty of evidence to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt. And I want to go back to the father of Reed Galinsky just briefly. You know, it's been reported that he's having supervised visitation with his father in the juvenile detention center. I mean, I just can't even imagine. I mean, what the father is going through right now, probably thinking in his mind,

Starting point is 00:19:29 oh my God, like he's probably has survivor's guilt, but then he's got this son to deal with, who I'm sure he loves his son, but at the same time, it's just trying to come to terms and come to grips with what's happened. Yeah. I've met with the spouses of people who were murdered, and their grief is so palpable. When you add another layer of grief, that the perpetrator was obviously your son. The father isn't buying into somebody else did this, or the confession should be suppressed. The father knows that his son did this. And so it's grief upon grief. And so we should pray for that father. This is somebody who deserves our prayers and our thoughts because it's a tragic situation. He also has another son.

Starting point is 00:20:12 I don't know about other siblings, but at least one other son he has to raise. And now the burden that falls upon this family is a serious one. Yeah, it's horrible. I mean, Suzanne Galenski should still be here. She worked at the Racine School District. And wow, just horrible. Thank you so much, Mark Weaver. We'll keep an eye on it. Thank you. Reid Galinsky will be back in court in June. And that's it for this episode of Crime Fix. I'm Ann Jeanette Levy. Thanks so much for being with me. I'll see you back here next time.

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Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - Teen Stabbed Mom After Watching Menendez Brothers Show: Cops

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Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - Teen Stabbed Mom After Watching Menendez Brothers Show: Cops

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