Morbid - The Amato Family Murders

Episode Date: May 1, 2023

On the morning of January 25, 2019, Seminole County sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to a home in Chuluota, Florida to conduct a well-being check on thirty-one-year-old Cody Amato, who failed to show up for work that day. Upon entering the home, officers discovered the bodies of Cody, Chad, and Margaret Amato, all dead from apparent gunshot wounds—there were no signs of a break-in and nothing was missing. The crime scene looked as though it had been staged to look like a murder-suicide and suspicion quickly fell on the Amato’s youngest son, Grant, who was missing from the home.Thank you so much to the lovely David White for research assistanceReferencesDukes, Amanda. 2019. Grant Amato, man found guilty of killing family members, sentenced to life in prison. August 13. Accessed March 22, 2023. https://www.wesh.com/article/penalty-phase-for-grant-amato-to-begin-monday/28670352#.Seminole County Sheriff's Office. 2018. CJIS Report. Missing Person; Well-Being, Chuluota, FL: Seminole County Sheriff's Office.State of Florida vs. Grant Tiernan Amato. 2019. 20190000740 (Circuit Court of the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit in and for Seminole County, Florida, January 28).Swenson, Kyle. 2019. "He spent $200,000 on a Bulgarian 'cam girl.'." Washington Post, January 29.Williams, Michael. 2019. "Accused killer seeks millonaire for help with jail bond, emails reveal." Orlando Sentinel, May 15: A1.—. 2019. "Amato's lawyers ask judge to sequester jruy." Orlando Sentinel, June 12: B2.—. 2019. "Grant Amato verdict: Guilty of first-degree murder in killings of family." Orlando Sentinel, July 31.—. 2019. "'I have become somewhat of a celebrity,' accused killer Grant Amato says in letter." Orlando Sentinel, April 27: B2.—. 2019. "'I want to believe you,' surviving sibling says." Orlando Sentinel, March 28: A1.—. 2019. "Judge grants $750k bond for suspect in family murders." Orlando Sentinel, April 26: B1.—. 2019. "Obsession, money, lies tore this family apart." Orlando Sentinel, July 14: A1.—. 2019. "Records give glimpse into Chulota man's relationship with model." Orlando Sentinel, May 30: B1.Williams, Michael, Jeff Weiner, and Gal Lotan. 2019. "'I hate myself for what I did"." Orlando Sentinel, April 16: A1. Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash KelleyListener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra LallyListener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Hey weirdos, I'm Ash and I'm Elena and this is a mini morbid but like we don't do this anymore so it's not mini mini mini mini mini morbid mini mini morbid mini morbid mini so it's just like a morbid it's just a morbid but you know what it's not going to be mini because one my minis are never mini no no two it's not a mini morbid anymore we're just calling it that because nostalgia nostalgia yeah And we don't want to get rid of the theme song. Because boone, boon-a-bon-a-bun-a. Because some people, most people love it. Some people that really fucking hate it.

Somebody messaged me and was like, where can I get that ringtone again? And I was like, oh, we never put out a ringtone. Oh, I think somebody else made a ringtone. That's cool as shit. Which is good for you guys for figuring that out. Thanks. I don't know how to do that shit. I'm into it.

I'm into it. Well, we are in part two of our deep dive into the tragic, tragic, tragic torture. and murder of Matthew Shepard. So part one was kind of, who, gets right in the field. Tough. But I just wanted to say again, like I said in part one, this is the part of the episodes where

there is going to be some hate speech that I'm going to repeat. I'm only repeating it because it's on signs, one and two, because it's part of a confession. And I think censoring it will take away kind of the brutality of what happened in this. this case. But when I say these things, I'm going to tell you at a time so you're not just getting it like slammed into your ear holes all of a sudden. You're like, whoa. And I think everybody knows these are typically words that we would never say. Exactly. And it is important to do. And I think

everybody knows the word. It's one word that is going to be. I think you can tell probably the word that's going to be used. Yeah. I just don't like it. I don't like the word. I don't say it. It's jarring to me when other people say it. Yeah. But I do agree with you that it would take away the yeah everything that happened i don't want to make these people seem any less heinous than they are and i think right you know so we should say what came out of their mouth so that you can be like wow what a bunch of horrible horrible horrible horrible gross humans exactly which you will so when we last left you guys matt was beaten for no reason at all by aaron mcanny and russell hennyson after voluntarily handing over his wallet so he wasn't robbed no and just

Just for existing. Or he was robbed, but this wasn't just a robbery. No, it was certainly not a robbery. He was driven out to a fence near Laramie, and he was tied to that fence, beaten again with the butt of a revolver repeatedly. 18 blows to the head and neck and face. Four skull fractures, and beneath or behind his right ear was crushed in his skull, and it was crushed into his brainstem, which damaged his brainstem. his right ear was also almost torn completely off of his head. I cannot imagine.

Awful. What has to be wrong with you to do that to somebody? It's awful. Like, what is wrong with you? No, it's beyond my comprehension. That's not human. No, it's not. Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson are not human beings.

No. Particularly Aaron McKinney is not a human being. I don't know what he is, but I don't think either of them are. I'm glad he's locked up somewhere because no thank you. but one of the things that really struck me about the first one was that the first officer on scene said the only skin she could see on Matt were two trails where his tears had cleaned his face that's always like just stuck to me because it's like that his face was so badly deformed and beaten and bloody and dirty that there was only skin where tears had just rolled

down his face where he had cried alone that's the thing it's like haunted It's, oh, it like, it makes you, like, ache for him. It's the thing that, like, really, because again, I said in, like, the first part that I was 13 when this case happened, I remember it very vividly. And we talked about it in school. I remember just, like, I remember my mom and dad talking to me about it. I was very interested in it. I wanted to know all the details. And I remember just being horrified by all the details.

And I remember that detail coming out. And I remember just being like, oh, my God, like, how are people like that? I never understood it. And so after they left Matt, Henderson and McKinney went back into town where they promptly picked a fight with two Mexican-American teenagers, 18-year-olds. McKinney ended up getting a hairline skull fracture

in the fight and ended up going to the hospital where he ended up going to the same hospital that Matt was brought to once first responders picked him up. they were sat four rooms away from each other. And they had no idea. So doctors are working on this comatose beaten boy. And they have no idea that four doors down is his eventual murderer. Right.

But assault her at the moment. So that's horrifying. So when Henderson arrived home, Henderson went back to where their girlfriends were, Chastity Paisley and Kristen Price. These two are both ignorant fucks as well And deserve whatever they got Because he goes home He's clearly upset And like his girlfriend says like he's upset

He's saying he did something terrible They ended up releasing McKinney He goes home The two of them are discussing getting their story straight Because they know now that they're probably going to get caught Right And so they're discussing it The two girlfriends

decided it was probably best that they helped them invent an alibi. Yeah. Totally. Lying about the things that happened that eventually kill someone. Well, in meanwhile, the girlfriends are told by these two fuckheads. They were basically like, oh, he's dead. Like, we left him. He's dead.

Right. They told them that. And these two girls weren't like, yeah. Get the fuck away from me. They were like, let me help you cover this up. Can you imagine if John came home? No. Like put your, like, you could never.

No. Just be like, oh, okay, I'll help you. Let me help you get an alibi together. And I'm sure there's going to be people that are going to tell me, like, you don't know, like, they might have been scared. They didn't seem scared when I talk later. I don't care if you were scared. And I'll tell you in a second why I don't feel bad for them. I can understand, you know, these guys might have been abusive. They might have been, they are clearly violent. Seems like they probably were. Particularly Aaron is clearly a violent individual. That is without a doubt. I doubt that stuff. stopped at Matt. I'm sure there was other instances where he was probably scary partner to have. Right. They had a young son, like an infant son. I'm sure she was maybe, I can maybe in some like, thinking of her being like, I just need to like figure this out before I, because I'm scared that he's going to do something to me or my son. Right. I can almost get behind, like, not get behind. I can almost like understand in a weird universe. Right. But that's not the case here. Right. That's not the case here. And I'm going to tell you why in a second because when she talks to 2020 later,

she's a garbage asshole too. Oh, great. This was not, I'm scared and I feared for my life and my sons and I did what I had to do as a mother. That's not what this was. This was her being like, oh, well, I agree with what he did. So I'm going to hide it. This is exactly what that was. So they get their stories straight. They agree. They both helped them get rid of the bloody clothes. They helped them say, they got the story straight and said that they were going to lie and say that their boyfriends were home watching movies with them all night to give them alibis. Wow. Price later said, so one of the girlfriends said that they were so upset. The boys seemed so upset about what had happened.

And she told 2020 later that their boyfriends beat Matthew up to, quote, to teach him a lesson not to come on to straight people. She's legitimate fucking garbage. Yeah. And I don't feel bad for her at all. No. And Matt didn't come on to them. He, like, okay. And also, fuck you. Right. Like, they had to teach him a lesson. Right. Who are you? To teach lesson. Who is your dirtbag boyfriend to be teaching another grown-ass man a lesson? Right. Like, fuck off. Exactly. She's the kind of garbage that's been sitting out on a summer day during a garbage strike. That's the kind of garbage she is.

So Matt's parents were currently back in Saudi Arabia at this time. Oh, I totally forgot about that. Right. So did I when I was reading. Fuck. Oh, my God. So they couldn't just jump on a plane and get home. Right. They had to go through the like stages of getting home.

The process. It was 5 a.m. there and their phone rings. Oh, no. Now his dad was like, Matt called all the time and he called early. Right. So he was like, I assumed it was just Matt calling and waking me up. Right. So it was actually hospital staff at the hospital.

in Laramie telling them that their son had been gravely injured and they weren't sure he was going to make it through the night. Oh, no. At this point, they didn't know what had happened to him. Right. So they just said he was found gravely injured. So his parents were like, oh, it must be like a car accident or something. Like, that's the first thing you think of.

You don't think somebody beat him to death with a pistol. Right. So they were like, we don't know if he's going to make it through the night. You have to get home. So they were like, all right, so they went through the whole process to get home. It took them 50 hours to get home. Oh. And they know that something is wrong. And they don't even know what exactly is. They're just like, he might not make it. I have to get home. So when they got to the U.S., his aunt, so I think it was Dennis's sister. I'm not sure, Judy or Dennis's sister, told them, you know, this is what happened. And it's all over the national news. Right. And they were like, what? Like, they were like, I thought it was a car accident. Like, what are you talking about? Someone beat him. And not only that, but they're like, oh, yeah, it's national. It's on every news station. And they're like, they're like, oh, yeah, it's on every news station. And they're like, and they're,

Like, what the fuck? What happened? I had no idea. Right. So arriving at the hospital, they're told the extensive injuries that he received as a result of a beating. I can't imagine as a parent sitting there and listening to that. And just... And that's your child.

That is just a blow. And just knowing that you weren't there when they were suffering immensely. Exactly. Everything is going through your head now. And they see that on repeat. Oh, it's odd. So they said his only... It was basically only basic functions that were keeping.

him alive. They were like his brain stem is barely functioning. Like he won't be living a full life if we save him. Well, and they said when they walked into the hospital room, you couldn't even tell it was him. And the only way his mother said she could recognize him was by his braces, which he still wore. Stop! So his face was stitched up in multiple places. There were tubes everywhere. His head was bandaged. There is a photo. In Matt Shepard is a friend of mine. They show like a small, like, pan up of his face a little bit of him laying there and it's horrifying gut-wrenching it's horrifying um and and again she said i couldn't tell she said the only way i could tell it was him by was like he has certain like scars or like little things that i just know are my son and she said and then the braces right the thing

that made me be like that's matt right so he was um he was comatose at this point and hospital staff said he would really only survive in a vegetative state mm-hmm So they said that was even a long shot. But they said if he does survive, it's really just going to be his body that survives. And that's not fair. So his parents are like, now we have to sit here. And they also were, even though legally, if they took him off of life support, that doesn't affect like a murder charge or anything like that.

Right. They were worried about that because, like, you don't know. Right. Of course you don't. You don't want to be. That could play into it. Yeah. And you don't want to be the thing that stops these people from going, rotting.

Right. I mean. So they had to deal with that. And then they're dealing with the obvious of taking your own child off of life support. So they're trying to figure out, so they're just holding vigil at this point, just seeing what is happening. Not only are you just like replaying the horrible thing in your mind over and over again, you know this happened. Then you have that on top of you. Oh yeah. And it's like at this point, they're just getting bits and pieces of what happened to. And his brother Logan, his younger brother Logan, at first I guess couldn't even go in the hospital room. He literally couldn't see him. He was like a wreck. That's his big brother. Yeah, he said,

they said it like really affected him. Right. Luckily, he did end up going in the hospital room and he was there and he was actually holding his hand in the end. Oh. Yeah. I know. Like, I can feel it. It's like, it's starting to come up. I feel like this is going to be the one where we all cry. So, Aaron and Russell were picked up by police the next day because they're fucking idiots. And of course, they got caught. Right. So when Aaron, when they interviewed Aaron, he showed what a bigoted asshole he is. He was very nonchalanta, but what he was like, yeah, like, that's what we did. And he at first didn't confess, but I think they let him sleep for a couple of hours. Then he was like, all right, I'll tell you everything.

Wow. He just wasn't. So when asked if Matthew said anything or asked him to stop while he was beating him, he replied, quote, well, yeah, he was getting the shit kicked out of him. Oh, my God. Like just whatever. And he also said, quote, most of all, he was screaming. And you just kept going while somebody's screaming for their life.

Yep. What kind of monster are you? And the police officer asked, the interviewer asked him several times, like, why did you keep going? Like, why were you still doing it? Why were you not done? And Aaron keeps saying, I just lost it. I blacked out.

You can see exactly what his lawyer has told him to say, say you blacked out. You went crazy. Gay people just make you nuts. You know how it goes. And so he did the whole, like, I just went nuts. I saw red. I don't even remember what I was doing. I just, I couldn't stop. I don't buy it. Don't buy it for a second. No, of course not. You knew exactly what you're doing. And so he also said, like I said earlier, that Russell was giggling throughout the assault. That's according to Aaron. That's disgusting. I mean, I believe it. I do too. You're there. You're obviously not. You're getting some kind of enjoyment or else you wouldn't be able to watch that. He stated many times that Russell did not hit Matt, that he remembers. He said at one point he says he very well could have, but I didn't see him hit him. It's like, well, weren't you blackout?

Yeah, you were blackout, so you don't know. Yeah. So he says Russ was giggling. He was smiling. He was laughing throughout the whole thing. They were not. It's so weird that you remember those details, but you don't remember anything else. And Aaron says at one point, he could notice that the way that his truck was positioned when they were tying Matt to the fence was that Matt could see the license plate.

So he said, suddenly I got scared that he would be able to identify me. And so he said to Matt, read my license plate. And so Matt read it out loud, and he said that's when I just hit him again to make sure that I knocked him out. To make sure I killed him. He knew my license plate. So he tricked him. He told him, read my license plate, and he did. And then he made, at one point, he made Matt say his address out loud so that they could find his address and go rob his place.

Are you kidding me? Yeah. What the fuck is wrong with you? They're fucking evil. Like, what is wrong? I don't even. evil pieces of shit. Seriously. Like, so his friends and family, immediately at this point, now that they've brought in Aaron and,

and what the fuck is his name, Russell, Russ. Now that they're in, his friends and family know this is a hate crime. It's very clear to them that this is a hate crime. He's spelling it out for them. But they knew that police were going to cover it up like it was a robbery. They were like, they're going to try to make it go away so that, you know, we're not going to let them. Good. And so they were like, his.

friends and family fucking did the damn thing because he loved them so much and obviously he was like such an incredible person well and they knew i mean they knew it's like this is a small town they knew that this was going to be one of those things where erin and russ were going to say it was a robbery gun bad erin's already using that whole i blacked out i don't know i just wanted money meanwhile by the way what they got out of his wallet 20 bucks right 20 bucks so this is over 20 bucks you're telling me why don't you just go to kFC instead Like, I don't believe you. No.

I just don't believe you. No. So his friends and family are like, we're not letting this go. We're going to make sure the world knows this is a hate crime. And that's what this is. This will not be reported as a robbery. No. We're not letting it happen.

That would have been awful if it had gone down to a complete opposite way. So his former guidance counselor, who turned out to be one of his best friends. Matt. Was named, yeah, was named Walt Bolden. And he was the one. I mean, he came out to Walt, I think, first out of anybody. He was the one. that he told him, I don't know if my parents are going to disown me if I tell them.

Walt helped him because he said he himself was gay and he had a lot of trouble coming out because he had kids and stuff and he was like, I was worried my kids were going to disown me. Like, I get it. So he was very close to him, like very close. And so he was the one who called all the surrounding towns to make sure it said in the newspapers that this was a hate crime and not a robbery gone wrong. And he said he called all the different news. newspapers and he was like, this is what happened. Do not report it as a robbery. That's not what it was.

And it went everywhere after that. He said he woke up the next morning and like the Washington Post was calling him. Like he had, he did. That's incredible. So at this point, Matt is in a coma and is not expected to pull through. Aaron McKinney had told his. So Aaron McKinney, when he had when he had gone back to his house, this is what's really going to like kind of put a wrench in their whole, like it was a robbery gone wrong thing because he starts saying to like investigators during the interview he's saying that when he went home to his apartment that night he told his girlfriend who his girlfriend confirmed this that he said he was pretty sure and by the way I'm going to say the word he was quote pretty sure he killed a fag oh no he said that to his girlfriend and his

girlfriend admitted this right so him saying this is a robbery gone wrong you're using that word that's not a robbery right you're already showing that you have a bias and a hatred and you're just being like I'm pretty sure I killed like it's just nothing like I'm pretty sure I killed them that's like saying like I'm pretty sure I ran over a skunk like yeah what it's just whatever just casual so holes are now being poked because they've brought the girls in the girls are now giving a little bit of what's going on and they're just admitting it themselves I mean Aaron McKinney sang like a fuck because he's like I don't give a fuck because he didn't care and so one night while they were in the hospital, Matt's father was like just going crazy because they're just sitting there waiting for

something to happen. And his father was like, so I drove four hours back to our home in Casper. And he said he drove to a storage unit that they have. And he's like, I just decided to pull out anything I could think of to make Matt pull through. And in his words, quote, be Matt again. Oh, man. Who. Right. So he wanted particularly to find his favorite stuffed bunny. Stop. named Oscar, who he said he was never without as a child. And he said he couldn't find Oscar. I'm like literally going to cry. Right? Yeah. And honestly, this part like really got to me because one of my daughters has a bunny named Fuzzy Bunny and she never goes anywhere without. And that thing

is, is her thing. And it's like when he said I just, I just wanted to find Oscar so he could have him. And he said he couldn't find him in the storage unit. He ended up finding him later. And he said he's glad he has it now and that he can like hold it for like to think of Matt in good times. Yeah. But I just keep thinking of like that would be what I would find to like it makes it relatable. It does. It like, oh. I'm like trying to stop crying. Sorry. Like Oscar the the bunny that he would. But he said he did find some other things he brought and he just tried to like. I so wish that he had pulled through. Oh, I know. And so he, I mean, nothing was moving. He was. He was. obviously not going to progress any further. And his family were ready for him to say goodbye,

but they didn't want to pull the plug on him. But they wanted him to know that it was okay for him to let go. Because they were worried he was hanging on for them. For them, yeah. And so his mother actually pulled Walt, the guidance counselor, who was like his really good friend, aside and said, would you go into the ICU and would you tell Matt that it's okay to let go? Oh my God. I know. This is, like, so awful. This is, like, yeah, this is hard. And Matt said, because they said we can't do it. Like, I can't tell my son to let go.

Yeah, no, because I want that on you. But I want him to. Right. So she was like, I can't do this, but like, I need you to do this for me because I need him to know. Right. And so Matt was, or so Walt said, you know, as hard as hard as this was, he said for her to trust me with that and for her to like put that with me was like, it meant a lot. So Walt said he went He like sat with Matt

And he said I just explained to him That you know You need to let go And he said and he said I even told him You can't put it on your mom and dad to pull you off of here Like you need to do it Like don't put that on them like please And they're okay

Like they want you to go Yeah And they want you to stop fighting And they know you're tired And so they and he said And you know he was still alive when I left But that night at 12.53 a.m. on October 12th, he passed away. He heard him. And his family was there with him.

His mother and his brother were holding his hands. And his dad was also there. Yeah. So he heard. Like, no one can tell me he had been surviving for days. Right. He would have held on it. He would have held on. He would have held on. Until somebody told him it was okay. There's no one that can tell me that while not sitting down and telling him it's okay to let go and your parents want you to let go was not the thing that made him go. Okay. I can let go. Right. So October 12th, that 12.53 a.m. He passed away. Good morning, everybody. A terrible turn in a terrible story. It's really tragic and so disturbing. And Matthew Shepard was beaten last weekend tied to a wooden fence by two men who met Shepard in a bar in Laramie, Wyoming. 18 hours later, a passing bicyclist summoned help after almost mistaking Shepard's bloody body for a scarecrow. Early this morning, Matthew Shepard passed away. The story has captured national attention and sparked a debate over the

necessity for hate crime legislation. October 18th, 1998 was his funeral at St. Mark's Episcopal Church. Hundreds of people came. They had to open another church across the streets for people to sit and watch it because it was that big. That's good. And it was including people who didn't know him personally. Just wanted to show support.

Yeah. It was just like people who felt compelled to be there for him. It was fall, obviously in October, but there was a gnarly snowstorm that day. Oh, really? And people were still sitting. standing outside, like, didn't bother anybody. Well, not just, like, shows, like, obviously, like, what kind of person he was and what people knew him to be.

Exactly. Now, again, I'm going to, there's going to be a little bit of hate speech right now because, but don't worry, because I'm going to, I was going to say, I know what's about to happen, and this is going to make me, like, so angry. I'm going to go completely the opposite direction from where we were. This is one of the first appearances, big appearances, not the first appearances, but one of the ones that really put them in the public. public eye of the Westboro Baptist Church.

A group of... I don't even know how you call that a church. Don't worry. So they came with about a dozen of their fucking putrid horde of hemorrhoys with legs that they call a fucking congregation. That's not a church. They were corralled by the city into like a little area because they wanted to keep them away. But they were allowed to protest because obviously... It's your amendment right.

It's your fucking right. They held signs that said, quote, their famous signs, God hates fags. They had one that said Matt in hell with a picture of Matt on it. A child can be seen in a photo holding a sign that says, I hate saying the word. I know, I don't believe me. F-A-G equals anal sex equals skull and crossbones. A child.

And that's just the dumbest fucking sign ever. Like, what's the point? That doesn't even make sense. It's like, anal sex equals death? Like, anal sex does not equal death. No, like not at all. No. To hate somebody so much because a lot of times, too, what you hate in other people is

what you see in yourself that you don't like about yourself. That you hate about yourself. That's incredibly tragic if that is the case. I feel bad for you. Like loathe themselves that much. Yeah. There were also signs with stick figures having anal sex. That's just so.

That's just stupid. At a funeral. At a funeral of a 21-year-old who was brutally murdered. That's just like, like, immature is not the word for it, but it's immature and it's just like, what are you getting out of that? I have no way. And then they're also screaming terrible things. They make sure to be heard as well.

They were screaming that Matt got what he deserved. Again, his parents are grieving the loss of their child. Nobody deserves that. These people are the living, breathing example of the worst kind of blight on our species. They are fucking cancer. They're a plague of decaying dog shit. These people have zero redeeming qualities. They pick it soldiers' funerals with signs that say God loves dead soldiers.

I'm not religious at all. But it pisses me off that these half-wit scrotums are allowed to bastardize the idea of God as some hateful beast. Like, fuck Fred Phelps. Fuck the Westbath, whatever the fuck you are. Fuck your church, that Westboro Baptist Church. You're bullshit. it. I'm so glad Fred Phelps is dead. We are better off without him. Fuck them. Just queen. Like, fuck them. Alina just recrit. Like, that was like slam poetry, but it's a new kind.

It's a new branch of slam poetry. These people have zero redeeming qualities. We need to get you something other than a bongo. It needs to be more efficient. I, yeah, fuck them. Reading this and like researching this, I was so fucking hyped up. Like, I think though, I think they want to hype you up. No, they do. So it's like, you know what? I just feel bad for you. Yeah.

Like, I want to pick at them and be like, you know what? Let's talk. What was the one? The picture you showed? Yes. Yeah. And she, oh my God, okay. So Kim Petrus is, I hope I'm saying her last name right.

She's a transgender female and she's like a performer. And she was having a concert and the Westboro Baptist Church was picketing it. Because they don't like transgender people because they just have nothing. They hate everybody. Like, what it. Don't you have something better to do? No, they don't. Like, you're paying an awful lot of attention to us if you don't like us.

I honestly think they wanted to be at the concert because she fucking kills it. Oh, no, they have literally zero better. But anyway, she literally went outside and, like, posed, like, did a fucking photo shoot in front of them. Like, full vogangue. In, like, a beautiful, like, one-piece jumpsuit and is like, yeah, like, what's up? Like, I don't give a fuck. It is the greatest series of photos because you just, she is just. She's like, yeah, I don't care.

slaying these photos. And in the back, you just see these idiots. And it's like, and I just love that, like, she is fucking drop dead, like, killing it in these photos. And they're, like, surfaced. And she's like, yeah, like, look at my photo shoot. And then these people, because you know, it's probably their worst fucking nightmare to be in a photo. A photo with her. Well, and that's, the best way to combat these people is with, like, love. Yeah. And, like, peace. And just. Because it's so confusing to their tiny little mouse brains that they're just like, which is what she did. She came out and was like, I'm not going to scream at you. I'm not going to do anything. I'm just going to be me. She's like, this would actually make for a great photo shoot. So thanks for coming.

Well, and what kills me is so the hospital that, you know, worked with Matt and tried to save him. And all the doctors, they gave like a press conference obviously because they were involved in all this. And one of the, I think it was like the CEO of the hospital broke down in tears when he, when he said that Matt passed away on camera. And he really cared. He cared. That hospital cared. And the hospital and the doctors that worked on him received death threats and hate

male telling that they would burn in hellfire for crying over an F.A.G. Yeah. It sounds like you are currently burning in your own hellfire of hating yourself. And you know what? I hope that you find love soon. Yeah. I think they're just hateful. fucks, to be quite honest.

Right. I think they're just hateful garbage people. I don't understand how you can hate somebody so much for no fucking reason. I think, I honestly, it's, they are just hateful. Some people are just hateful, evil. Yeah, no, it's true. I mean, look at all the fucking serial killers and stuff we talk about. Honestly, so I think these people are just hateful and they can't be helps.

Anyways. So Matt's friends and family and the mourners at the funeral decided that they would hold hands to block these people. Hell yeah. And a line and they sang amazing grace. Hell. Yeah. Yes.

Which isn't it funny that the people that claim to be a church and claim to be spreading the word of God and all that are the ones saying the most hateful, evil shit known to man at a funeral. And teaching that to children. And then the people that they're calling sinners and saying that they're going to burn in hellfire and that God hates them are the ones holding hands and singing amazing grace. Yeah. Interesting how that works. Isn't that funny? Yeah.

The Westboro Baptist Church, I'm sure most people, I hope all. people listening agree is not a fucking church no it's it's just not that's not even like a topic that needs to be debated they're not a church they're not a religion they're a hate group that's what they are because that's not what religion is that's not where religion should be so i'm with you on that everybody listening and like shouldn't god like not hate anyone that's supposed to be right goes but i don't know so meanwhile Aaron McKinney is going into court and he's smirking he's walking into court he's winked at someone at one point while he was walking in, that dude's face is the most punchable face you'll ever see.

Obviously. His trial lasted from October 25th to November 4th, 1999. He faced charges of kidnapping, aggravated robbery, and first-degree murder. Good. They were discussing the death penalty, which is frankly too good for that weiner. So I'm glad they didn't. Aaron's attorneys tried to use, like I said, the gay panic defense. I had never heard of that before. We were talking about it before we started recording.

That is the dumbest shit I've ever heard in my entire fucking life. This is a truly, truly outrageous defense that exists. Still, right now. And according to LGBTbar.org, the LGBTQ plus panic defense is a defense strategy that asks the jury to find that a victim's sexual orientation or gender identity slash expression is to blame for a defendant's violent reaction, including murder. It also says that a victim's sexual orientation or gender identity not only explains, but excuses a loss of control and the subsequent assault. Disagree.

Yes. So that's ridiculous. Who came up with that? What? And it can be used as a way to note, it can note self-defense or provocation. No. It can be used for. the insanity defense or diminished capacity. And this defense is used, it's still used. And it was used

as recently as April 2018 to mitigate a murder card charge. The other thing that doesn't make sense is like the whole thing doesn't fucking make sense, but it's like, how do you know that they were flirting with you? No, you don't. People take flirting very differently. Of course it was. And that's the dumbest shit ever. They're not flirting with you. I think everybody, every straight person needs to come to terms with the fact that not all gay people think you are attractive or want you. Please everyone just take a big bite of that humble pie. Right. And just know that that gay man does not always find you attractive. Do you find every woman attractive? Exactly. No. It's like, I don't understand that. Whenever somebody's like, oh, he's gay, he's going to try to hit on me. He might not think you're cute. I don't.

Right. He might think you're gross. Right. Like, in honestly. There's even like girls, like when you come, like if you come out as a girl and like as a lesbian or by or whatever and girls are like, won't be friends with you anymore because they're like, do you like, do you like me? Like, do you think I'm pretty? I don't want you to like, like, lear at me or anything. And it's like, no, nope. Don't flatter yourself. Thank you though. It's like, nope. Thank you though. It's just such an odd way that we like, what a narcissistic way. I was literally just going to, how highly do you fucking think of yourself that everyone just wants you? That everyone just will, as if they are into your gender, then they must be. You're their type. You're their type. It's like, nope. Are you everybody's

type? There's plenty of dudes that I do not find attractive at all. Come on. Retweet. So the LGBTQ plus panic defense has been banned in California, Illinois, Rhode Island, Nevada, Connecticut, Maine, Hawaii, New York, New Jersey, and Washington. Not Massachusetts? Well, there is. You're like happy you asked. I was like, well, now.

There is legislation against the panic defense that has been introduced but not yet passed in the district of Columbia, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Texas, Massachusetts. Massachusetts, New Mexico, Wisconsin, Maryland, and Iowa. Question. It was introduced in 2019 in Massachusetts. What are we, like, what's everybody waiting for? Not sure what we're waiting for, but, you know, hopefully it happens soon. It'd be a great month to get rid of it completely in all of America. It truly would.

We've got a lot of things on the list, I realize, but like, I hope that's somewhere on it. Let's just toss that on top of the file. Yeah, please. So, yeah, so they tried to do the gay panic defense. The judge was not having it. He was like, no, thank you. Aaron McKinney said, quote, being a very drunk homophobic, I flipped out and began to pistol whip the F.A.G. With my gun. And yes, I'm spelling it because I'm good. No, I don't. I'm happy you're not saying it. It's starting to me. It's

starting to me. You feel gross now saying it. Yeah, no, I don't blame you. Um, so he was found guilty of first degree murder. Thank God. He was sentenced to two life terms without the possibility of parole. And may he slowly rot. Oh, I want him to live like as long as fucking possible. Yeah. And Russell also pled guilty. And he also received two life sentences. Good. I'm so glad that he didn't get anything less than because I don't care. No. If you hit him or not, you're fully fucking involved. Oh, fuck yeah.

You didn't stop it. Good. Die. Well, in Matt's parents, so when it came down to sentencing, the death penalty was on the table. Right. Matt's parents and his, like, friends and family decided amongst themselves that they were going to fight to get life without the possibility of parole. And they said they wanted death to be taken off the table.

Mm-hmm. Now I'm going to read what his father. what Matt's father Dennis said. Am I going to cry again? Yes. Great. This hit me. Like, this hit me. And if it hit you, it's going to fucking knock me out. If it hit me, it's going to hit all of you because things don't hit me. This case really hits me. And I think it's, you're like, I don't know how this case couldn't hit you. No, of course not. And it's like, I think this case hits everybody with a heart. But I think it's also like it was one of the first cases that like really sucked me in and made me like really research it. And like my mom and dad talked to me about it. Because

I remember them like sitting me down and be like, this happens. It makes you want to be an ally. And like it made, and I remember that was like the first time that I really knew that that happened to like people who were like, you know, not straight cis white people like me. So I think it was like, whoa. Like that was the first introduction to like the world kind of sucks. So your first wake up call. So I think it like this really hits me. Yeah. So his father said, okay, ready. On October 12th, my firstborn son and my hero, died 50 days before his 22nd birthday with his mother and brother holding his hand

he actually died on the outskirts of Laramie when you beat him and left him out there by himself but he wasn't alone there were his lifelong friends with him first he had the beautiful night sky oh god okay shit the same stars and moon that we used to look at through the telescope

then he had the daylight and the sun to shine on him one more time one more cool wonderful autumn day in Wyoming. He heard the wind, the ever-present Wyoming wind for the last time. He had one more friend with him. He had God. I feel better knowing he wasn't alone. Mr. McKinney, I'm going to grant you life. As hard as that is for me to do because of Matthew. Every time you celebrate Christmas, a birthday or the 4th of July, remember that Matt isn't. Mr. McKinney, I grant you life in the memory of someone who no longer lives. May you have a long life and may you thank Matthew every day for it.

Hell yeah. Oh, shit. That just like, because you killed the person, that ultimately would have forgiven you. And it's just like, oh, it's like that's his,

when he says my first born son and my hair, I'm like, oh, like, I just can't. And he didn't die alone. He had like the night and the sun and the, the moon that we used to look through the telescope. And you picture him as like a little kid.

Because it's like I, his dad. We show the girls the moon all the time. Like they're obsessed with the moon. I mean, like we're always talking about the night sky and it's just like it puts you in their position put you in the position of like a whole like your child has grown up and something horrible has happened to them and then you have to look back at them as like a baby and it's like yeah who that one just

really and just like the selflessness that that his parents have but they did it they did it for their son they did it because they knew matthew would want that right who so during their trials um the westborough Baptist Church showed up a lot to keep trying to destroy Matt's family souls with their disgusting hate speech. But Matt's good friend, Romaine Patterson, formed a group called Angel Action. Yes. This group has shown up at a lot of places now, and she was the one behind it. They dressed as angels with huge wings that had 10 foot wingspans and were seven feet high, and they block the church from their targets.

That just gave me like chills. Now, they come out for things still. They're still a group that people do it. And they shield mourners from like ignorant fucks. Good. They did this at the Pulse Orlando nightclub shooting memorials and funerals. They showed up and they hold hands and they just block from protesters. And they like sing Amazing Grace.

They just will sit there with smiles on their faces. They just do it. They try to peacefully. And Remain said she was like, I just wanted to like combat their hate with love. with love. Just show that, like, you're not going to take us down to your level. We're going to stand here as angels, even though you're telling us we're sinners and we're going to hell. Right.

So Judy and Dennis also decided it to make their life work to fight for LGBTQ plus rights. She said she could have, she was like, I could have hid. I could have just gone into myself, but she's like, I couldn't. And she said, I had to make a change for Matt. Yeah. Now, this is exactly what Matt would have done because, as you know, like we talked about it, Matt wanted to be a diplomat. He started an LGBTQ club at school.

He was trying to help people. That was what he would have done. So they created the Matthew Shepard Foundation, which according to their website, the Matthew Shepard Foundation's mission is to amplify the story of Matthew Shepard to inspire individuals, organizations, and communities to embrace the dignity and inequality of all people. Our work is an extension of Matt's passion to foster a more caring and just worlds. We share his story and embody his vigor for civil.

rights to change the hearts and minds of others to accept everyone as they are. So the Laramie project, I think you mentioned, it was created from this case. The creator was Moises Kaufman, and it's a play that shows the events. Right. And it shows the real, you know, the real residence of Laramie trying to deal with what happened there as characters. Everyone involved in the case is a character in the show. It was also shown on HBO in 2002. Yeah. And it basically deals with the homophobia, the homophobia aspect and like the hate crime aspect. October 28, 2009, Barack Obama signed into law the Matthew Shepard and James Bird Jr. hate crimes prevention act. The act makes it a federal crime to assault someone based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

In Obama's words, it is, quote, to help protect our citizens from violence based on what they look like, who they love, or how they pray. He also said it was the work of Massachusetts Senator Edward Kennedy that made it possible. So shout out to our host. There you go. Love that. This was thanks to Matthew, but also because in the same year, 1998, on July 7th, 49-year-old James Bird Jr., a black man, accepted a ride home from three white men who turned out to be white supremacists. These murders were Sean Allen Berry, 23 years old, Lawrence Russell Brewer, 31, and John William King, 23.

He knew Sean Berry for a lot of his life, so he wasn't concerned about taking a ride for them. Right. They beat James. They chained him to the back of their truck, and they dragged him three miles to a brutal death. He was conscious for almost all of this because he kept his head up to try to survive. Oh, my God. They also found out in his autopsy that he was moving side to side while being dragged to try to alleviate the pain. Right.

He survived most of it and was conscious for most of it, which is horrific. until his head and arm were severed from his body by a culvert, which is like a drainage pipe. Yeah. They then dumped the remaining pieces of his body in front of a church. Now, King received the death penalty. Brewer also got death and was executed by lethal injection on September 21st, 2011. Barry got life in prison. So I just wanted to point out a very quick overview of his case because he was very much a part of that being signed into law.

So Matt's parents were fearful that Matt's final resting place was going to be vandalized or desecrated in some way. So they held on to his ashes. Good. But on October 26th, 2018, more than like 20 years after his murder. Yeah. Matthew Shepard's ashes were interred at Washington National Cathedral. One of the reverends to lead the service was the right Reverend Gene Robinson, who was the first openly gay man elected as a bishop in the Episcopal Church. Yeah.

In his speech, he said to the LGBTQ members, quote, many of you have been hurt by your own religious communities, and I want to welcome you back. And to Matt, he closed by saying, quote, gently rest in this place. You are safe now, Matthew, welcome home. Wow. And then later, this is the last thing I'll say. Later, he said, quote, for Matthew to come back to church, it is a remarkable step forward. It's the cathedral saying some churches are different.

Some churches have been on this journey with you, and we will not only welcome you, we will celebrate you. Yeah, that's important. And that is, fuck, guys. Damn. I did out that last little weird noise I made. So that's the story of Matthew Shepard. That was a doozy. Yeah, this one, there's only been a couple that have really, I mean, every case touches me in some way.

Yeah. But this is what, there's only been a couple that had. stay able to bring me to like physical emotion and like, who the Matthew Shepherd one always does. Yeah. I don't know. It's just, I don't know what it is. I don't, it's, it's a lot of things. Just the horrifying brutality of it all. Yeah. And it's just that he was, I mean, I always think of people as someone's child. Someone is always someone's child. Because I think it, I think it's so important to think of people that way because it makes you a better person. Yeah. And it's honestly, it's, It's weird because I was talking about this with John.

We were taking a walk with, like, Bailey the other night. And I was discussing it with him. And I was like, yeah, it's like really getting to me. Like I had to take a break from researching the details because I was like, it's starting to like really bump me out. I think especially when he became a parent too. And he said, because he said, you know, he was a criminal justice major at one point. He was like, he always loves this stuff. He loves true crime.

And he said he's had a lot of trouble since having the kids. He said, I've had a lot of trouble listening to any. He said, especially kids. He's like, I just won't listen to kids. crimes, I won't do it. But he goes, now it all of a sudden brings me to, oh, this person has parents. And he's like, and I know that sounds crazy, but like it really doesn't hate you as hard until you have your own kids. And then you're like, oh, shit. Like that's someone's baby. Yeah. Like someone fed them bottles and someone held them in their arms when they were little. That was somebody's

like pride and joy for like ever. Like in someone like that they needed to protect. And it's like all of a sudden it just starts hitting someone. Yeah. Or like to hurt somebody else's like everything. And I think because his parents were so involved and because we have the whole story of him coming out to them. Yeah. And how it was such as like hard but like really beautiful moment. And then we have like the story of them at his bedside. It's like it brings it more like close, I think to you. Right. You feel like you're there. And you get them. You feel like you are part of them. So and then they've done such amazing things since with this tragedy. And his friends. and everybody. Oh, yeah. Everyone in his life has done so much after his death that it's just one of the, I felt like it was an important one to tell and it needed two parts for sure. I need to go like snuggle Franklin, like for the rest of the day.

I think it's like, in fact, I think when these, like one of the hospital CEOs when he was, when he was when he, it was when he broke down in tears when he said that Matt had passed away. Yeah. He said to the press that Judy had told him to tell everybody, go home and hug. your babies. Yeah. And it's like, so everybody, go home and hug your babies, whether they prefer babies, real, like, human babies. All the babies. Your friends, your family, anybody you love, just give them a hug. Give them a hug. Me and Elena might even hug. We all need hugers. We might even hug. But, you know, just appreciate who you love. Yeah. And don't spread hatred. No.

Stop spreading any kind of hatred. Stop raising kids to hate people. Stop being racist. Stop being homophobic. Stop being... Just stop. You have the power to stop. Yeah. And it's a lot of fucking energy to exert. Is anybody really bothering you that much? No, they're not.

It's just your own hate. You're way more concerned with them than they are with you. It's true. It's like it's like a spider. Chill out. Like leave it alone. It's more, you're more concerned with it than it is with you. Except fuck a spider because they can fight you in a way to die.

That's a different story. You're like that doesn't work. I'm kidding. But yeah. So hopefully you guys appreciated this tale and we'll think on it. A little bit. Yes. And as always, you can follow us on Instagram at Morbid Podcasts.

Send us a Twitter. A Morbid Podcast. Hit us up on Gmail. That is where all listener tales should go. Morbid Podcast at gmail.com. Nowhere else. Thank you for listening, and we hope you keep it weird. Did we like forget how that way?

I think we did. We totally do. I'm damaged right now. We're emotionally spent. All right, bye, guys. Bye. Love each other. Yeah.