Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - Crime Alert 11.27.23

Episode Date: November 27, 2023

Army veteran stops carjacker. Multi-million dollar psychedelic mushroom operation busted! For more crime and justice news go to crimeonline.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. Crime Alert, I'm Nancy Grace. Breaking crime news now. Michael Prouty breaks into a woman's home in Florida, robs her, and steals her car. While running from cops, he crashes, gets out, and hoofs it on foot to a Starbucks parking lot. He then tries door handles on cars in the drive-thru. Finding one of them unlocked, he pulls the woman out of the driver's seat. Shane Spicer, an Army vet in line with his wife and daughter, gets out of his car and tackles Prouty to the ground, holding him till police arrive. Nancy, the woman Prouty attacked in the drive-thru was six months pregnant,

but thankfully did not sustain any major injuries. She was extremely grateful Spicer was able to stop Prouty before he the drive-thru was six months pregnant, but thankfully did not sustain any major injuries. She was extremely grateful Spicer was able to stop Prouty before he took off with her car. Spicer told media outlets, quote, I feel like if you've got the ability to watch out for someone, you should. I would just hope that someone would do the same for my family. Spicer, no doubt a hero. Michael Prouty facing a long list of charges, including attempted carjack and fleeing the scene of a crime. Now that's a hero.

Shane Spicer, Army vet. Connecticut cops tipped off to people selling drugs out of a home, but they have no idea they're walking into a multimillion dollar psychedelic mushroom growing operation. They speak with Weston Sewell, who shows them a detached garage on rural property housing the growth operation. Sewell denies the mushrooms are illegal, declines to let cops search the home. They come back with a warrant and find dozens of dog food-sized bags full of psilocybin mushrooms. A Schedule 1 drug. Street value? About $8.5 million. Sewell, 21, now charged with operating a drug factory.

Man, that was a bad trip. More crime and justice news after this. Now with the latest crime and justice breaking news, Crime Online's John Limley. Four high school students have been formally charged as adults with murder by Las Vegas prosecutors in connection with the fatal beating of a classmate. Here's Sydney Sumner with Crime Online. The two 16-year-olds and the two 17-year-olds are accused of plotting to commit assault and second-degree murder. The fight was caught on cell phone video and has been extensively circulated on social media. Following the hearing, District Attorney Steve Wolfson stated that the evidence indicated the teens' beating

was not a premeditated act, which is why his office had decided not to prosecute the teenagers with first-degree murder. The four teenagers will remain behind bars without being allowed to post bond. However, a court did grant prosecutors and defense attorneys joint plea to move the teens from county jail to the juvenile detention center, citing their safety. As of this moment, at least eight teenagers ranging in age from 13 to 17 have been taken into custody in connection to the brawl on November 1st that resulted in the death of 17 year old Jonathan Lewis Jr. Since the remaining students are under the age of 16, they are all awaiting separate hearings. Wolfson announced to the media outside the courthouse that there had been an additional student arrested. Police in Las Vegas have stated that they are trying to

identify and track down all 10 students they believe were involved in the beating. Due to the fact that all the suspects are minors, Crime Online is not releasing their names. Attorneys for the first prisoners slated to die by nitrogen gas are claiming in court documents that Alabama wants to use their client as a test case for an experimental type of execution. They've requested a federal judge to stay the execution scheduled for January. Attorneys for 58-year-old Kenneth Eugene Smith filed an additional lawsuit arguing that the new execution technique

would violate the Constitution's ban on cruel and unusual punishment. In order to prevent the execution from taking place early next year, they have requested a federal judge grant a preliminary injunction. Earlier this month, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey scheduled Smith's execution for January 25th using nitrogen hypoxia, a technique that has never been used to execute a prisoner but is permitted in Alabama, Mississippi, and Oklahoma. In a complaint filed in recent days, a 1980s stand-in actress for the TV program The Cosby Show is claiming that Bill Cosby drugged and sexually assaulted her after agreeing to help guide her in her entertainment career. Once again, Crime Online's Sydney Sumner.

The case is the most recent in a series brought against Cosby under the expired Adult Survivors Act of New York, which allowed victims of sexual abuse to file claims for up to a year after they would have otherwise been barred by time constraints. Thanksgiving marked the end of that window. The unnamed woman said that shortly after they first met while working on Cosby's show, he began giving her acting and style advice in his dressing room. According to the lawsuit, she added that she accepted his invitation to his house, in part because of, quote, Cosby's wholesome image as America's dad. Once she arrived at Cosby's residence, she claims that after consuming wine that appeared to be tainted with an intoxicant, she blacked out during an acting exercise. The claim filed in state Supreme Court in New York states that the

woman woke up, quote, partially undressed and vomiting into a toilet. A representative for the 86-year-old Cosby declined to comment on the details of the case, but recommended that so-called look-back windows be closed in New York and other cities since they are being exploited to target wealthy celebrities. The complaint accuses NBCUniversal, Kauffman Astoria Studios, and the Carsey Warner Company of negligence related to Cosby's purported actions. Thanks, John. Candace Caffas, 34, has Prader-Willi syndrome. It's a genetic disorder affecting her appetite, growth, and cognitive function. She has the mind of a 10 to

12 year old child. Candace occasionally is allowed more freedom by her parents, but when they find her missing from their Pennsylvania home in the middle of the night, they know something is wrong. Candace climbed out of a bathroom window between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m. She had $13 with her when she disappeared, her ID left behind. Multiple people report seeing her walking on railroad tracks that morning heading toward Cunaut Lake, but extensive searches of the area turn up nothing. There's a nearly $13,000 reward for information leading to Candace Caffas, now missing over a year. If you have info, call Pennsylvania Police 814-332-6911. For the latest crime and justice news, go to CrimeOnline.com. With this crime alert, I'm Nancy Grace. This is an iHeart Podcast.