Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - EVIL STEPMOM LETICIA STAUCH MURDERS STEPSON, GANNON, SET TO WALK FREE

Episode Date: May 26, 2026

Leticia Stauch's murder conviction has been overturned by the Colorado Court of Appeals. Stauch was found guilty of murder in the death of her 11-year-old stepson, Gannon. Now, a three-judge panel agrees that a biased juror deliberated on the case. In the 54 page ruling, the panel noted the juror said his son-in-law worked as a deputy district attorney in the District Attorney's office which prosecuted the case. The juror should have been dismissed automatically.   This now means a retrial.   Stauch, step mother to Gannon Stauch, reported the 11-year-old boy as missing. In reality,Stauch was stabbed, beat, shot, and killed inside the family’s Fountain home. Letetcia Stauch then tried to cover up her crimes, by blaming numerous imaginary people and driving to Florida to dispose of the boy's body. Gannon Stauch was stuffed inside a suitcase, which was then tossed over a bridge in Pace, Florida.   Prosecutors said that Letecia Stauch was upset that she was left taking care of her stepchildren. Internet searched shows her distain while Gannon’s father was away at work with the US National Guard.   Joining Nancy Grace today:  Franz Borghardt  - criminal defense attorney, Founder of Borghardt Law Firm,former prosecutor, website: www.borghardtlawfirm.com, Instagram and Facebook: BorghardtLawFirm  Dr. Leslie Dobson -  Clinical and Forensic Psychologist, Host of Podcast: "Intentionally Disturbing,"  www.drlesliedobson.com , Author : “The Friend Cleanse - How to set boundaries with energy vampires” @drlesliedobson  Chris McDonough  -  director  of The Cold Case Foundation, former homicide detective,  Host of YouTube channel, "The Interview Room”, website: www.coldcasefoundation.org/chris-mcdonough  Dr. Jan Gorniak - former medical examiner, Clark County Office of the Coroner/Medical Examiner, Board Certified Forensic Pathologist and founder of World Peace Forensic Consulting Anne Emerson - Senior Investigative Reporter, for Criminally Obsessed, which can be found on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, X and Facebook: Criminally Obsessed, and  Host of the Award-Winning Podcast: "Unsolved South Carolina: The Murdaugh Murders, Money and Mystery"   Dave Mack  -  Investigative Reporter, 'Crime Stories'  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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This proves evil stepmothers are not just in fairy tales. Evil stepmother, Letitia Stalk, murders her little stepson Gannon just 11 years

old. And tonight she set to walk free. I'm Nancy Grace. This is Crime Stories. I want to thank you for being with us. Gannon Stouch was an 11-year-old boy who went missing from Colorado. His disappearance sparked a nationwide search before his body was later found in Florida.

The blood so copious under this little boy's bed, it seeped through the carpet to underneath. Blood soaked. the scene. Yet tonight, Letitia Stock, the evil stepmother personified, who shoots a bird at witnesses in court. She is set to walk free? How can this happen? Joining us, an all-star panel, listen. I watched the video at least 20, 30 times, so I took it to an househouse. Let me make sure. First, I watch it on the tablet. I zoom in. I can zoom in. I can look. I saw no feet. And I turned it up. I said, okay, let me.

If I get out, she goes to the door, garage are open. She gets the alarm and the dark garage and nobody got out. Can I look at it on the TV so I can get a better view? And I put my phone to the TV so I can, you know, get him on better view. And I was like, no, he never got out of the truck. That's when I went over to a doctor and showed him. It just breaks my heart when I see that particular photo of Gannon, lying sideways looking at the camera. if I could see that again with that little snagletooth smile he's got going on just 11 years old,

completely defenseless. You were just hearing the neighbor Roderick Drayton, who spotted on his own home surveillance video, Gannon getting into the car with the evil stepmother and never getting out. Straight out to Ann Emerson joining a senior investigative reporter for criminally obsessed that's on YouTube. Also, host of the award-winning podcast, Unsolved South Carolina, the Murdoch Mysteries, Money and the Murdoch's Money and Mystery. And thank you for being with us tonight.

How critical is the video we just played? Early on in the investigation, you see this video of the set mom, Letitia, leaving with Gannon. And then when the truck comes back, the child's nowhere to be seen. And that's what really, really concerned investigators at the very get-go of this. And, you know, as soon as they saw the surveillance, they knew something was not right. But the questions and the mystery surrounding it just got much worse after this. I'm just ready for getting in and to come home.

Most importantly for him to see his family. But second, I am going to be so ecstatic when I'm able to be. to say to people that I hope they have a really sincere apology for all these theories that have came out online, for all the things they said that I have done. Another of my friends at A&E, that is stepmother, Letitia Stalk, who was convicted by a jury, but in its wisdom, an appellate court, has reversed the conviction. She is set to walk free. Out to Crime Stories investigative reporter Dave Mac.

Dave, what is the state's theory as to what happened to 11-year-old Gannon Stalk? The state believes that after being abused by Letitia Stalk for a long time, she shot him to death, stabbed him, and beat him. He suffered blunt force trauma. Then Letitia Stalk put Gannon's remains in a suitcase and drove to Florida, where she tossed the suitcase with 11-year-old Gannon Stoutt in the suitcase over a bridge, 1,300 miles away from home. Blood found underneath Gannon's bed. Blood found on light sockets, on the wall, on the carpet, more than 50 droplets of blood. Please were able to identify and confirm that it was Gannon's blood. they also were able to confirm that cleaning products, baking soda,

were used to try to clean up the blood, but forensics were still able to pick it up from that trail in Gannon's room and actually goes through all throughout the house leading up to the garage. We are showing you crime scene photos, and that's our friends from KRDA joining us on crime stories. More than 50 areas of blood police could identify. It was all Little Gannon's blood. They also confirmed cleaning products plus baking soda were dumped on the carpet and good gravy,

were dumped on the carpet and beyond to try and clean up the blood. But that was no match for high-tech forensics. They could pick up a blood trail that went from the little boy's room all the way through the house, leading to the garage. Joining us is a renowned medical examiner, former medical examiner in Clark County, the office of the coroner. That's Vegas Board Certified Forensic Pathologist, founder of World Peace Forensic Consulting, Dr. Jan Gorniak. Dr. Gorniak, thank you for being with us tonight. Dr. Gorniak, what type of injury would cause that copious amount of blood?

Oh, well, hearing that he not only had blunt force trauma, he was stabbed, he was shot. So any, all of those could cause all that blood, depending on the injuries to his head, blunt force trauma, was he hit with an object where the skin is split, meaning gets a laceration, and then the blood is spattering all over the place. He could be stabbed, once again, depending where he stabbed, could it have gotten an artery in his neck with his chest, was his, you know, stabbing, you think like stab, stab, right? But could it be an incisive wounds of his neck and gets arteries, the main arteries, the carotids, where it's going to be spurting out blood or a gunshot wound of the head. I'm looking at that crime scene photo where you see the tape that appears marking blood spatter and it's low down. So he could have been on the floor and got shot and that blood is battering that way, but there's a lot of blood, like you said, throughout the

room and then leading out. So one or all those mechanisms of injury could have caused that blood. It'd be interesting to see if there's anything on the ceiling, you know, and then you can see if he was getting hip about his head more than one time. But unfortunately, little Danon, you know, obviously he's deceased, but it wasn't a quick death. He suffered. This little boy, just 11-year-old, Gannon. According to the autopsy report, died of a combination of a gunshot wound, blunt force head trauma, and multiple sharp force injuries. He suffered 18 sharp force injuries, four blunt force injury lacerations, defensive wounds on both hands.

The COD cause of death gunshot to this little boy's chin and lower jaw. The bullet lodged in his neck. There was a blunt force trauma to the little boy's head. The sharp force injuries, stabs or cuts, were on his chest, his hands, his arms, his shoulder, his back. Sharp force stabs or cuts on his hand. and fingers were defensive wounds. The blunt force injuries included a fractured left, six, rib, and skull damage. Also, toxicology reports hydrocodone and acetaminophen in his system.

Very unusual for a child, according to the medical examiner. At the time, his body was found. He was crammed into a suitcase. decomposing. That is straight from the medical examiner's autopsy report. Back to renowned pathologist, Dr. Jan Gorniak. What do you make of the autopsy report on this 11-year-old little boy? One of my heart goes out not only to Gavin and his family, but also to the pathologist who had to perform this autopsy. It's interesting how. they can determine that the gunshot wound came last, right? And so when you're talking about

defensive type wounds on his hands, that happened when obviously someone is coming at you with a shark force implement, like a knife, and people are grabbing at it. Those are the worst. Those type of injuries give me the willies because you know someone's grabbing the knife and it's being pulled out and just the injuries to their hands or to their forearms. They're bringing their arms up to to fend off something. So with defensive type wounds, obviously not only was he alive, he was alert enough. So the gunshot wound didn't happen. It's the gunshot wound to, it says to his chin, that's an unusual spot.

Usually when you see that, you see in a suicide. So it seemed like it had to be a close range wound to get up right up into his, his face, the blunt force injuries. He said four separate to his, his head. And then the hydrocodone and acetaminopin. And I think that is commonly that, so acetaminopin is Tylenol. And you can, that comes in, I think it's called Darvacet. So that's a combination.

So in order for him to have that in his system, I don't believe he took it himself unless he was prescribed it. He had pain for some other reason. But they don't think they usually prescribed Perkinsed or said to children. So he was given that to ingest some sort of way. Either, you know, he had to take it himself forcefully or it was mixed in with some food or drink. But I'm just not understanding the severity and the amount of injuries to Little Gavin. What, I can't comprehend, you know, abuse in the beginning. But what, what.

and he doesn't deserve this, but what was going through this lady's mind, or what could he have possibly done to anger her so much, I'm just, I must have a loss of words. Well, you know, it's interesting. You have the desire to help, to make a real difference? The College, LaCity, you offer the program, Dependence and Scenta Mental. Acquare the competences essential for accompanying

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Nancy Grace. Dr. Jan Gorniak, it seems as if Gannon was murdered many times over. He was stabbed brutally

14 stab wounds. He was beaten horribly, including to the head, blunt force trauma to the head, a broken rib skull fracture, and he was shot. This 11-year-old little, little boy,

little frame, murdered three times over. Explain. He's torture. I mean, that's the only word that it's coming to my mind right now. It wasn't a lack of better term, a straight shooting. That was the end. But what he had to endure before, I would just say the little boy was tortured.

Joining us tonight, an all-star panel as Letitia Stock is set to walk free after an appellate court reverses her conviction. You know, straight out to special guest. joining us, Dr. Leslie Dobson, clinical forensic psychologist, host of a hit podcast, intentionally disturbing. Dr. Dobson, the idea of murdering an 11-year-old child multiple times over, overkill, and the literal sense of the word. It's extremely disturbing. And yet, apparently, Letitia Stalk, carried on as if nothing had happened and actually

attacked people online who were accusing her. Definitely. I mean, they wanted to do disassociative identity disorder, borderline malingering, but this is straight up psychopathy. This woman is a psychopath. Dr. Leslie Dobson, you mentioned malingering and some other sorts of mental ailments. Are you saying the defense brought up these ailments at trial?

Correct. to end the prosecution. They both had forensic psychologists do an abundance of testing that looked at malingering, feigning, straight up lying. And what the prosecution found was that she was lying. She was inconsistent, infrequent. Her symptoms didn't match up with what she described, how she was presented before the murder after. How she presented even in jail was different than what she described. And throughout all of this testing, it showed that she was lying. She wanted to look like she had disassociated. associative identity disorder. Nothing like that was in her history and more so she's likely borderline and a psychopath and was overwhelmed with this kid. They had a history of fighting. She decided to kill him and try to cover her tracks. No remorse. What exactly is the psychological definition of a psychopath? Psychopath is a narcissistic individual who is also antisocial,

antisocial personality disorder. So somebody who has no remorse, doesn't care, they need extra layers of stimulation. They're very charismatic, but also they're reckless, destructive liars. So would that explain how after Gannon is murdered at least three times over? He's stabbed. He's beaten. He's shot. Oh, and he was.

was administered codeone, a type of codeone that children normally don't get. So I guess that's four times over that she carried on as if nothing had happened. In a sense, you could say she was getting her rocks off. She was stimulated. She enjoyed harming this child. And then she planned a way to get rid of this child and live her life. And then she was stimulated by the arguments online and people coming at her. She was stimulated in the courtroom.

What do you mean? In the courtroom, she was mouthy, she was inappropriate. She was overall acting up, not like somebody who was disassociating. It was somebody who was pissed off that she got caught. Ms. Stalk, what you need to understand is that I can control the conduct of an awful lot of people in the courtroom, including yours. And don't do that. Don't show that kind of don't be making disrespectful gestures.

gestures to witnesses, to people, to family members, anything like that. You need to understand that if that continues, I can have you removed and the trial will continue without you. Well, Dr. Dobson, you could not have been more correct. That was the judge reprimanding the defendant, Letitia Stout, in court for the inappropriate behavior that you describe as her getting her rocks off in court. And this is what the judge was upset about. That is the defendant, shooting a bird from our friends at law and crime, in court. Straight out to Ann Emerson joining us, senior investigative reporter, criminally obsessed.

Ann, what happened? Well, she was flipping the bird at the witnesses and people that were part of the family, of the stock family, it was so disrespectful and it really feeds into the narrative possibly that she was trying to get across, that, you know, she was, she had an insanity plea going with her defense. This was possibly part of her sort of acting the part even more, but it really just came across as is so horrific and it's so disturbing for these family members. I mean, And this is the ultimate betrayal of a stepmother, a caregiver who could possibly do something like this to a small child under her care while the dad is gone on military service. I mean, it's just the whole thing was so horrific, I think, for the family to see in court that the judge had to try and control her.

If this was part of the defense on any level of her own defense trying to show that she was indeed insane, yes, it was insane behavior, but it doesn't mean that she is insane. It means that she was manipulative. To Franz Borghardt joining us, criminal defense attorney found of the Borghardt law firm, former prosecutor, Borghardt, not a good look for your client, right? when your client shoots birds at the witnesses and at the little boy victim's family? I know there's been conjecture that she's malingering, but that certainly seems like the behavior of someone with a serious mental health issue. And maybe she's not malingering, Nancy, and that's the defense. Her disruptive behavior is consistent with her mental health issues,

and that's what you run with. She shot a bird, Borgharts. She shot a bird. that is not a mental illness. And just think about it. You know what? I would have a field day with that. Because if she will do that in a court of law at witnesses under oath with a judge sitting

right there. If she will do that in open court, what would she do to this child behind closed doors? A child she hated, a child she resented because he belonged to another woman, reminding her, that her husband had sex with another woman once loved a woman, not her. And this was the physical manifestation of that love. She hated him. So look, if you're with a client like that who is not going to control themselves as a defense attorney, I don't want her in the courtroom either.

Yes, the jury is not going to like it, but it's better for my defense that she's not in the in the courtroom behaving by flipping off the bird. So candidly, for a defense attorney, best thing in the world, world, her getting booted out of the courtroom. Straight out to veteran homicide detective, Chris McDonough, director of the Cole Case Foundation, and star of the interview room on YouTube. Chris McDonough, she's not mentally ill. She's just hell on wheels.

Simple. Yeah, absolutely, Nancy. I mean, let's think about this, right? She not only shot the bird, she shot a child. And, you know, if I can help you the audience with her identity. I mean, she's the devil. And whenever you have an angel, a child sleeping in their own bed, the most protected area of this child's world, okay?

And then you have the devil show up to not only stab you, beat you, shoot you. And then we're, you know, we ended up talking about her behavior in the courtroom. Dr. Dobson's right on target here. These people are beyond recovery. Put him up, please. Why are you talking about Letitia Stock's recovery? I don't care about her recovery. I just want her to be under the jail instead of poised to walk free.

An appellate court just reversed her conviction. One more boo-boo, and she's walking free. No, I totally agree. And this is the worst case scenario for not only this child's family, but the investigators, the attorneys, everybody that worked so hard to get her off the streets. Speaking of the devil and his imp appears. Watch. He was always so helpful with the dogs around the house and we have two little cute dogs. And he was always like a person I could say, again, can you go do this? And he would do it right away. You know, sometimes with kids, we have to remind him and things like that. And that's okay, but he was so sweet.

He was. He was. That is evil stepmom, Letitia Stock. While the search for Gannon was ongoing, that's from our friends at A&E. Wait a minute. Franz Borghardt, veteran defense attorney. Why is she already talking about him in the past tense? Was, was, was.

Why is she saying that? What do you do with that when that's played in front of the jury? You have to say that she believed that he was dead at that point and that she wasn't the murderer, but that that was her heart of hearts based on the evidence that was found at the crime scene. You mean based on the blood found under her bed? That statement that she just made to the reporter was before the blood was found under the bed. So how do you get around that? She's already talking about her stepson in the past tense.

No, seriously. what do you do with that in court in front of a jury who's eyeballing you? So on that kind of a situation, I think you have to just double down on the fact that she didn't kill him, but that she believes he's dead and that she is just trying to get justice. Okay, put him up, please. Did I just hear you say that Letitia Stalk is, quote, just trying to get justice? You could say that to a jury. You could get that out of your mouth.

for the true murderer who committed the crime. I mean, Nancy, you're asking me to paint the Sistine Chapel with crayons. I'm doing the best I can. Anne Emerson joining us in investigative reporter, senior investigative reporter with criminally obsessed. And I'd like to go through a few of Letitia Stock's Google searches. Control Room, could you please put them up on the screen? Now, bear in mind, her conviction has just been reversed. Find me a new husband book.

I feel like I'm just a nanny, not a stepmom. Husband uses me to babysit his kids. Are there any free money to move away from bad situation? My husband never post about me, but does everything else. My husband only cleans up for the army, not me. I'm a glorified babysitter. Find a new husband. Sent my husband's sex messages.

He ignores them. Gee, I wonder why, because you're evil. Make my husband want me more. I can't. I'm sure he wanted you as far away from him as possible. I feel like my husband uses me to babysit his kid. Find a guy without kids. Find a guy without kids.

She couldn't wait to get rid of Gannon. And what about these searches? Did the jury hear these searches? Did the appellate court not read the trial transcript? There is no doubt that this evidence was just exactly what needed to happen in order for her to be, you know, put in prison, throw away the key. I mean, there's nothing you can say about these Google searches that does not point to clear evidence that she was actually planning this. This was she was trying to figure out ways to get rid of, you know, Gannon. All of this points to it.

How did 11-year-old Gannon Stock go missing? Gannon South, the 11-year-old, disappeared from his father's home. He lived there with his father and his stepmother, just in a little suburb outside of Colorado Springs. The stepmom says that he was not, we don't have a clear answer. Why? She said, we've heard a couple of things, one that he was. and the one that he had a doctor's appointment. So he had stayed home that day.

He was reported missing after he had left the house. He was wearing a blue jacket and sneakers and jeans. He said he was going to go see a friend. It was on the afternoon, around 3.30, they think, that he told his stepmom he's going to go out and see a friend. And that was the last time we saw Gannon Souch. Joining us, Crime Stories, investigative reporter Dave Mac, Dave. muddy, murky, unclear, to say the least,

we've got the stepmother, Letitia Stock, saying that he was ill, that he had a doctor's appointment, he disappeared from his father's home, but that he went to go see friends with a blue jacket, sneakers, and jeans on. So what was her final story she told about the last time Ganna was seen alive? The last story that Letitia Stout told was that he was going to a friend's house, that he was walking through the neighborhood on his way to play. Dave Mack, that is in direct conflict with the video that the neighbor saw and immediately knew something was horribly wrong. He sees the evil stepmother, Letitia Stalk, getting into the vehicle with 11-year-old Gannon.

And Gannon is never seen getting out. of the vehicle. That is not him walking around the neighborhood to go play. That is him getting into the vehicle with her. He also stated that Gannon could hardly walk at the time, that he seemed to be dizzy and unsteady on his feet. What can you tell me about that, Dave Mac? Well, yeah, Nancy, it actually goes back to earlier when we're talking about what was found in Gannon's bloodstream, the hydrocodone with acetaminophen or loracet, something like that would have made Gannon, Lupi, it would have made him very groggy. Actually, it would have made it so that he could be, I hate to say this out loud, Nancy, but it makes it so that he'd be a much easier child to kill

if he was that groggy. Now, we're talking about the last time anyone other than Letitia Stout actually saw Gannon. And the description of an 11-year-old boy walking like that, is shocking in and of itself, Nancy. But what we know now is that Letitia Stout told stories that were able to be proved lies with video. The neighbor actually really did save the day. If you remember, it didn't happen right away. It took a couple of days. He watched it on his own and saw this and called FBI.

I called everybody said, hey, come and take a look. So we really have right here in the palm of our hands. hand, the murderer and the victim, and the victim is already out of it as he gets in the vehicle the last time he has seen alive. And the location of where his remains are found is mind-blocking. Search crews scouring all over Colorado for weeks and weeks on end, and then we hear Florida. You know, we did the math. We were calculating how far away it was from here, from Myrtle Beach where she was arrested.

It's just mind-blowing. A road construction crew was working in the area right near a bridge, a Scambia River bridge, on Highway 90, and that's where they found Gannon's body. To Ann Emerson joining us, Anne, explain how his body was found stuffed in a suitcase far, far away from home. The whole thing, the more that I read about it, the more disturbing it is, Nancy. I mean, not only that, like she had to get the suitcase out of her home. She, from the reports that we've read, her brother was with her when she was, and she had said she no longer could be with the father after Gannon had disappeared.

She no longer wanted to be with her husband, Al Stock. So she decides she's going to take off in the car. She even gets her brother to come with her to help get her out of the house. They get this suitcase out of the house. He has no idea what's in this suitcase. He has no idea what could possibly be in this suitcase. And then we get a report that this suitcase is found underneath a bridge in Florida where she has gone to dump the body of Gannon, which is so disturbing.

And it's a, I think it was a Florida department. of transportation construction worker, this suitcase must have been dumped over a bridge, and they open it up, and it's the remains of this dear child. And the idea that she actually traveled in a car for thousands of miles to get to this place and then takes off to Myrtle Beach is, it's really one of the most disturbing things I've ever heard. You know, and also really speaks to her her determination to keep on running with this story, her true determination to take this body this far. It's one of the most incredible cases I've ever heard, seriously, Nancy.

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Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. A large green suitcase that came from her home, like the big ones, you have to check. At the airport, a construction crew locates this little boy's decomposing remains in a suitcase under a bridge in Pace, Florida. The bridge runs over Escambia River there in Pace. The little boy's body was disposed of in that area shortly, very shortly after he's reporting, reported missing.

Now, we know that the evil stepmother, Letitia Stock, drove from Colorado to Florida, over 1,300 miles to hide the body. And in fact, shortly after his body is disposed of under that bridge, she is arrested not too far away in Myrtle Beach. That's a long way to travel with a dead body in your car all the way. down to the Florida panhandle, straight back out to renowned medical examiner, Dr. Jan Gorniak. Dr. Gorniak, the body was already decomposed in that suitcase. How do you believe it was identified as being Gannon? Well, there's different stages of decomposition. So, yes, he's in a suitcase. He has all these injuries. So it takes about 36 hours-ish for you to really start to see some real decomposition. And not to sound silly, but one of the things that probably preserved his body, so he could be

identified easily was because he was in that suitcase. Had he been thrown over that bridge, exposed to water, exposed to animals, scavenging, then that would have been a lot worse. But then also remember, if he was decomposed enough where he couldn't be identified, they knew enough to arrest her, try to put it together with his missing child, and they had blood samples from back in the house, which they knew was his. So it possibly could have been DNA. It could have been dental records once they had a tentative ID on who he was. Then he could have been positively ID through DNA or dental. Dave Mack, joining us Crime Stories,

investigative reporter. She entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity, which essentially means I did it, but I was insane at the time. Isn't it true, Dave Mack, that a recording of her admitting to murdering Gannon

was played in front of the jury? It was. Nancy, it was played in the final days of the trial. This recording that the jury was able to hear Letitia confessing to fatally shooting Gannon while the forensic psychologist was examining her as part of that insanity defense. So the jury heard the whole thing. And they saw, you know, they could tell what was going on in the room, how questions were answered. And then when they went in to deliberate, Nancy, they made a firm decision that. She's not insane. This is not insane. You're not getting away with this. And they convicted her right after that.

Straight out to Dr. Leslie Dobson joining us, clinical forensic psychologist. What rises to legal insanity? She knew that she was wrong. We have proof that she planned this action, that she knew it was going on, and that she tried to cover the action after she murdered this. child. So we have we have certainty now that she is not insane at the time of the crime. Legal insanity is judged by what we call the old McNaughton test. It is a litmus test brought over from English common law to our country. There you see her at the El Paso Sheriff's Office. Do you think she looks like she's insane? Yes, I know we are all lay people and not psychologists or

psychiatrist, but look at her actions. Look how she is behaving. Legal insanity is that you did not know right from wrong at the time of the incident. That is what legal insanity is. The fact that she covered up the crime, put the body in a suitcase, drove over a thousand miles to dispose of it under a bridge, let it decompose near a riverbank. That indicates knowledge of guilt, which means she did know what she did was wrong at the time of the incident. That was the argument to the jury. To Dave Mack, the jury also heard one of her last conversations with her husband where

she was adamantly denying anything to do with Gannon's disappearance. So we know she has the ability to lie, the cunning, the wherewithal. But didn't she also come up with some crazy rape story? Oh, my gosh. Yes, Nancy. She actually claimed that she was raped by a Hispanic man. And after she was raped, the Hispanic male took off with Gannon, kidnapped him. That was her story, well, one of them. To Franz Borghardt joining us, criminal defense attorney joining us out of Baton Rouge, Franz, it is a bitter pill to swallow that this case, this conviction is reversed.

Explain why. During the jury selection process, one of the potential jurors disclosed a relationship to the DA's office. The defense attorney did what we call a motion for a challenge. for cause, Nancy, which was denied by the judge. That basically he was arguing that there was a legal defect in letting that juror on or that individual on. Ultimately the judge said you can use what we call one of your perimitary exceptions or challenges.

And the higher court said, you know what? You have a right to a constitutionally unbiased jury and the judge violated that right by requiring the defense team to utilize a challenge. where he's where is he should have just granted the cause challenge. And so it's reversed for a new trial. You know what, Franz Borchardt? I blame them all. I blame the judge.

I blame the prosecutor. And that is, as I said, a bitter pill for me as a former prosecutor. You absolutely cannot see a juror that is related to a prosecutor in the office that is prosecuting this case. It doesn't matter if it's by blood or by marriage. It doesn't matter. That is a peremptory strike. What is a peremptory strike?

That's a strike for cause. Okay? A strike for cause means that, for instance, you are related to the defendant. The defense doesn't have to use one of their strikes to strike you if you're related to the defendant. under the law, you are not fit to sit on the jury. If you are related to a prosecutor, you are not fit under the law to sit on the jury. There's reams of precedent on that.

The prosecutor should not have allowed it. The judge should not have allowed it. And here we are tonight wondering, will Letitia stock walk free? Was it worth it? It's never worth it. to get a trial advantage that's going to result in a reversal. Horrible decision. The devil is set to walk free because of one trial error. And when I say error, that's really putting perfume on the pig. This was a intentional decision by the prosecutor to disallow a strike for cause. They should have joined the defendant.

offense in that motion to save, hold the conviction. The last thing I want to do is go through all the effort, the blood, the sweat and the tears to try a murder case knowing there is reversible error. I can't believe this has happened. But here we are and we wait as justice unfolds. And now we remember an American hero, Detective Valerie Jacobs, NYCPD. died in the line of duty leaving behind her grieving son, Anthony, American hero detective Valerie Jacobs.

Nancy Grace signing off. This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human.