Rotten Mango - #364: Teen Couple Killing Everyone That Won’t Let Them Be Together, Then Host Party In The Murder House

Episode Date: June 5, 2024

The to do list for the party mainly consists of purchasing groceries, cleaning the upstairs rooms, and airing out the pungent smell in the bathrooms.  17 year old Cassandra grabs the bottle of bleach... and pours it out onto the bathroom floors. There. That should do.  Her boyfriend, Johnny, helps her glue the bathroom door shut. Sealing it with a caulk gun. There. Now nobody can get in and nobody can get out.  But more importantly - the smell won’t get downstairs and ruin the vibes.  “It’s a sewage issue.” That’s what they tell the party guests.  19 year old Johnny had used the restroom and because the sewer lines were blocked up he couldn’t flush. Excuse the smell.  They did not tell them that they were getting high right under 2 dead bodies that were decomposing upstairs.  Full Source Notes: rottenmangopodcast.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Ramble. The steps are pretty simple. You aim, pull the trigger, and you shoot. And then you repeat. It's pretty standard. The first few times that Johnny is doing this, he's struggling a little bit. But the practice round, the more he does it, it's helping him get into the groove. It's helping him understand how to be one with the gun.
Starting point is 00:00:21 And now this time, it's going to be so much easier. It's locked, loaded, ready to go. Johnny's girlfriend, Cassandra, is scrunching up her nose in disgust. She's got her arms stretched out as far away from herself as possible, and she's just pouring bleach onto the bathroom floor. Listen, home renovation is typically not the ideal way
Starting point is 00:00:42 that couples wanna spend their time. But they're about to host this massive party, and they need the house to be somewhat presentable they're scrambling to get all these little mini projects around the house done I mean, Cassandra has used so much bleach the bottle is empty by the time that she's done with one bathroom and now this very strong scent of bleach and whatever else she was originally trying to clean up is so overpowering it's piercing through her nostrils at this point if she stays in the restroom any longer she's gonna get high on the fumes but that's where Johnny's gun comes in handy his cock gun Cassandra closes the door
Starting point is 00:01:18 halfway behind her Johnny walks up and he's got this tube shaped dispenser he pulls the metal trigger and this thick white silicone-y liquid comes out. I mean it's basically an industrial form of a white silicone glue and it's gonna seal the entire seams of the door. I mean the directions are pretty easy. Aim, pull the trigger, and shoot. The silicone parts, they start flowing out of the caulking gun. He repeats the process across the perimeters of the interior doors. Effectively, he glues the doors of the entire house shut. Every interior door
Starting point is 00:01:56 into the bedroom, into the restroom, he's super glued it so that you cannot open it. He glued every single door to every single room in the house? Shut. Except for maybe like one restroom. He's glued everything else closed. So you can't open it? No. Even if you want to get inside, you can't get inside. If you're inside, you can't get out.
Starting point is 00:02:15 Huh. Okay. And the two, Cassandra and Johnny, 17-year-old Cassandra and 19-year-old Johnny, they're crossing their fingers. I mean, hopefully none of the guests at the party would be able to smell the two dead bodies upstairs. Not after the bleach, not after they glued the doors shut. Right? We would like to thank today's sponsors who have made it possible for Rotten Mango to
Starting point is 00:02:57 support the Palestine Children's Relief Fund. They are volunteer based and provide free medical care and humanitarian aid to thousands of injured and ill children in the Middle East. This episode's partnerships have also made it possible to support Rotten Mango's growing team of dedicated researchers and translators, and we would also like to thank our listeners for your continued support as we work on our mission to be worthy advocates. As always, full show notes are available at rottenmangopodcast.com. Now, some brief disclaimers before we start today's video. Some names have been changed for privacy for different individuals and witnesses involved,
Starting point is 00:03:28 and some statements have been condensed for time. There are mentions of CSA as well as relational violence, and perhaps the biggest theme throughout this entire episode is self-exit attempts. If anyone you know or if a loved one you know is struggling or if maybe you are, resources will be linked in the show notes. And with that being said, let's get into today's video. There was something really odd happening in a suburban town outside of Atlanta. In the span of a week, there had been a series of attacks.
Starting point is 00:03:57 Three couples had been attacked in three separate homes. Which you know, okay, maybe the investigators believe that some serial killer is on the loose targeting random couples in homes, but interestingly enough, there are no signs of a break-in in any of the homes. April 2nd, 2017. Couple A is found attacked in their beds that night, no signs of a break-in, the entire house is ransacked, and they are left with their throats slit. Six days later, April 8th 2017, couple B are attacked right when they walk into their house. They're
Starting point is 00:04:30 sprayed with bear mace. It's like pepper spray but stronger, it's for bears. They're sprayed with bear mace and beaten over the heads with a metal bat. And then just a day later, couple C is found slumped on top of each other in a bathroom covered, just smeared in blood, unconscious. The investigators working the case, they would find some very interesting things. These were clearly not random attacks. Couple C was found to have been driving couple B's car. So couple C and couple B are connected.
Starting point is 00:05:04 Couple C's intimate videos were found on couple A's phone So couple C and couple A are connected But how are all three couples connected and what set off the sequence of events that would kill two of them and almost leave the Other four dead the investigators believe couple C are the ones linking all three couples together. They are the connection They have couple B's car their videos are found on couple A's phone And they had just been discovered by the authorities in the restroom unconscious covered in blood I mean, they're bleeding out they need to be rushed to the emergency room ASAP And if they don't make it out if they don't live there's gonna be so many unanswered questions
Starting point is 00:05:44 so now all the police can do is wait for 19 year old Johnny Ryder and 17 year old Cassandra Borch to wake up. Listen, love is about loving every little part of your partner. I mean, even the stuff that other people might think is just not as exciting. And Johnny finds every little thing about Cassandra so absolutely perfect like it's kind of cute that all of her phone passwords are just 1, 2, 3, 4 she likes it so uncomplicated but at the same time she herself is so complicated she's like this short little 5 foot 3 inch ball of energy
Starting point is 00:06:20 and you would expect with her short little height she's not gonna be a fighter but then you find out that she takes dan su do it's a Korean martial arts she's been doing it for like six years of her life and she knows how to do a knife hand strike where you strike and break the concrete blocks with the edge of your hand or like a roundhouse kick where you can spin your full body jump up with your foot in the air and strike something or someone. She even took Shaolin Kung Fu, Chinese Kung Fu. I mean she's so good at it that she went on these international trips in China to compete in tournaments. Yes, really actually very good and she's so just so cool but then she
Starting point is 00:06:58 had to quit. She had to give it all up because you know she said her emotions and feelings were all over the place. She wasn't able to sit there and really focus on the movements and be in that headspace that you need for martial arts and Johnny felt like there's something that he could help with he could save her from that to Johnny I mean Cassandra's kind of the perfect girl the definition of a soulmate and even though they had only been dating a few weeks he felt like they had been together for a freaking lifetime he's sitting on the ledge of a parking lot in downtown Atlanta and Cassandra's right next to him and they see the whole city I mean it's so beautiful, it's peaceful, it's a parking lot so it's not a tourist attraction, they're basically alone
Starting point is 00:07:37 and for a while they're talking, they're listening to music but then there's this moment of silence where they're just taking in the view and Johnny turns to look at Cassandra she looks at him and he just sees this burst of purple around her and he's like I don't think I'm on drugs right now but maybe I am but I don't think so it's like an aura a glowing light orb radiating out of her body a light bursting out of her like she light bursting out of her like she's the center of the universe the core of this parking lot and the world just revolves around Cassandra and he's just staring in awe of course Cassandra
Starting point is 00:08:15 starts to feel a little bit self-conscious like wait what is it why are you looking at me like that why are you just staring at me it's very intense look I see purple all around you What? Purple is a sign of love and I think this is love at first sight Johnny is hooked. He knows from that moment deep down that moment forward Cuz Sandra is the girl that he cannot live without Which is crazy considering Johnny and his ex-wife just divorced two weeks ago, but that's fine.
Starting point is 00:08:45 Did he just met her or? Yeah. Oh they just met? Basically. He cannot live without 17 year old Cassandra. He's 19? Yeah. He just divorced? Just divorced.
Starting point is 00:08:56 Okay. The cops are standing there staring at the front door of this random residential house and the front door has been caulked shut. It's been glued glued shut the police forced their way into the house and it's not looking good The entire first floor is trashed There's cigarette butts scattered throughout the living room the garage on the couch partially burnt which honestly probably a fire hazard But that's the least of their worries right now. There's prescription bottles filled with cigarette butts just laying around right now there's prescription bottles filled with cigarette butts just laying around Multiple tubes of caulk just on the ground likely the ones that glued every single door in this house shut There's mason jars on the ground in the kitchen. There's just a mound of fried rice on
Starting point is 00:09:36 The floor next to the sink not on a plate or in a container on the floor Just a mound of fried rice on the floor directly. There's rotting food everywhere. There's dishes with remnants of moldy food piling up in the sink. I mean, the place looks completely ransacked. The police head upstairs, and some of the interior doors in the house also glued shut, just like the front door. Strange.
Starting point is 00:09:59 They break into each of the rooms, and now they understand why. There are two dead bodies in two separate rooms of this home. In one of the bedrooms, they find a man's body laying on the bed. His right leg is hanging off the bed. I mean, it appears that he had been attacked in his sleep. Attacked badly. There's evidence that he's beaten, stabbed, his throat is slit, there's bloody shoe prints
Starting point is 00:10:21 embedded onto the bedsheets indicating that whoever did this to this man hated this guy so much that they physically stomped on him to inflict more injuries. On him where? On his face, on his torso area, primarily where most of the injuries were inflicted. Above the headboard where the man is laying, there's a pair of just bloody handprints stamped onto the wall. The attack was so vicious, there's blood splatter all up on the walls, on the lampshades, on the ceiling, the ceiling fan has blood. It's a
Starting point is 00:10:52 very gruesome crime scene. The officers then head to the restroom where they find another body, the body of a woman on the bathroom floor. She too has been beaten and her throat has been slit. on the bathroom floor. She too has been beaten and her throat has been slit. The door to the restroom had also been glued shut. The entire upstairs of this random, calm, peaceful residential house in the middle of a normal neighborhood is covered in blood. Bloody drag marks left on the floor, blood on the walls. The house the police had broken into was where Cassandra lived. The bodies belonged to couple A, Wendy and Randall Björg, Cassandra's grandparents. And left next to Grandma Wendy's body is a little bottle of empty bleach. The day after Cassandra's grandparents' bodies are found, Johnny Ryder, Cassandra's boyfriend,
Starting point is 00:11:43 leaves his mother a voicemail in it his voice sounds very weak He's barely audible. Hey ma. It's Johnny. I'm crazy I'm evil and then he whispers solo that you can barely hear him. I'm sorry forgive me. I'm sorry I'm not well. I'm mentally crazy. I'm dying as we speak. I love you. I'll see you later. Okay? I love you. Bye." What is he asking forgiveness for? The voicemail will be sent right before Johnny Ryder and his girlfriend Cassandra are found unconscious on the floor of a restroom. A few days after they're taken to the emergency room, Cassandra wakes up in the hospital bed.
Starting point is 00:12:24 She almost died. And the first few people that she's talking to since coming back to, since becoming conscious again, are detectives. They're asking her, what the hell happened in that restroom? I tried to, I tried to self exit. The detectives try to ask, why would you do that, sweetie?
Starting point is 00:12:41 Tell me why. I couldn't take it anymore. I didn't know what else to do, where else to go. I just got really angry and depressed and I don't know. I just kind of felt like the whole world was collapsing on me. I know you know why. I'm here. I just need to understand why, Cassandra. Talk to me, please.
Starting point is 00:12:58 What I can't do, I can't talk to you unless you are being honest with me. Cassandra sounds like she's in a lot of pain while she's forcing herself to remember all the little details of how she witnessed her grandparents murder because she was there when it happened. Johnny, my boyfriend, picked out which knife he wanted. Which one did he choose? It was the sharpest one. It was like the biggest one and then he started using it on my grandpa and then and then and then we just slid his throat Pause there. You said we oh He I didn't touch my grandpa. I didn't
Starting point is 00:13:35 Back to the night of the murder. It's the middle of the night. Maybe just past midnight Cassandra is in the room with her grandma Wendy and grandpa Randall is asleep in a separate room They sleep separately Cassandra is in grandma's with her grandma Wendy and grandpa Randall is asleep in a separate room. They sleep separately Cassandra is in grandma's Wendy's room when she freezes Wait, what was that noise? She strains to listen, but it's no use because the the noise is getting louder. She can hear it It's like grunting the sound of a fist hitting flesh like imagine if you were to punch a bag of meat It sounds like someone's getting beat up in the next room. That's what it sounds like. Someone is in a lot of pain They're yelling and the screaming starts and she knows exactly what she's listening to. Johnny, her 19 year old boyfriend, is beating her grandfather to death
Starting point is 00:14:14 Cassandra freezes. I mean, what is she supposed to do? Oh my god. Oh my god Her grandpa is gonna die. Johnny is going to kill her grandpa. What can she even do right now? Suddenly she starts feeling this overwhelming rush overtake her entire body. It's like a tingling sensation. And she turns to her grandma, Grandma Wendy, grabs the tire iron in her hands and whacks her grandma on the back of the head.
Starting point is 00:14:39 A week after the murders, Cassandra and the two other people, they've got bags of McDonald's with them. A few orders of fries, milkshakes, and burgers. They're setting up the little table to get ready to eat family style. They're gonna lay all the fries out. They're putting the milkshakes down, putting in the straws, and Cassandra's telling the two people about how sick of hospital food she's been. Yeah, I bet, I bet. I mean there was one point where I couldn't even eat anymore. Briefly, the two others that are with Cassandra decide to step out for a moment before they start eating. Cassandra glances around, she checks out the room. It's a pretty small room, bare, just a door leading into the hallway. There's no windows, there's no artwork, no paintings, just empty space.
Starting point is 00:15:20 She's completely alone now. She looks to her left, then to her right, and then she looks up, and then she looks straight in front of her, where there is a camera pointed eye level at her face, and she just stares into the camera. No emotions on her face. Her face is completely blank, but her eyes are wide, so alert, it almost looks like she's gonna go cross-eyed. Like she's trying to peer into the soul of whoever is watching on the other end of the camera. It's like Cassandra has broken the fourth wall. For how long?
Starting point is 00:15:54 A few seconds. I mean, it feels like eternity as I was watching it. She's wearing this dark forest green jumpsuit, her hair is tied up in a messy bun, and she looks like a teenager that just woke up, and she's got these giant casts around her arms that come almost up to her elbows, like she's wearing oven mitts and they're tied together, she's got a giant bandaid on her neck and she just stares into the camera, and she's alone in the interrogation room with, I guess, us, room with, I guess, us, the camera. And she stares before leaning down and slowly using her mouth to vacuum up a french fry
Starting point is 00:16:31 because she can't use her arms. And she just starts crunching, crunch, crunch, crunch. And stares into the camera, glances around, then leans back down, vacuums up another french fry, crunch, crunch, crunch, then another, then she leans down and takes a sip of her milkshake, and then she decides, you know what? I'm just gonna go for it. She uses her cast like a giant scooper, scoops up the burger, and just starts eating in silence while periodically staring into the depths of the camera. Welcome to Cassandra's interrogation tapes. Cassandra will matter of factly share her side of the story of why she chose to kill the only people that ever cared for her.
Starting point is 00:17:08 This is her version of events. There are very few reasons why someone might torture another person. Most of the reasons don't make sense. They could just be sadistic. They get off on the power that they hold over the other party, and the pain that they're eliciting from this person is thrilling. It's exciting. They're getting off on it. perhaps it's vengeance? maybe the person that they're torturing has done something so unspeakable, so heinous that even death wouldn't be good revenge.
Starting point is 00:17:35 or i mean that sounds like it's just in the movies. the most common reason i imagine to torture someone is to extract information. if you have information that the CIA wants, they might subject you to what they call, quote, enhanced interrogations, aka torture in most people's opinion. Stress positions so painful that your body is shaking in agony, they'll put you in these boxes, in these contorted positions where every second feels like there's needles sticking into every part of your muscles. There's just non-stop pain. They'll play loud music to the point where you cannot get a single second of sleep.
Starting point is 00:18:12 It is so all-consuming, you can't even think straight. Sometimes they use frequencies to do that. You feel like you're losing your mind. You want it to stop. Honestly, you would do anything at this point for it to just stop. Please, just stop it. Sometimes if they're really desperate, they will allegedly waterboard you so you feel like you're drowning
Starting point is 00:18:30 but they say that there is no greater torture than when you're forced to watch your loved one die that's why in all the movies they tie up the hero's loved ones and they say give up that information or else we're gonna kill this person it's a torture so vile that I doubt that the CIA would even take part in it, which is saying a lot. Cassandra drags her grandma's bloodied body into the room next door. she's leaving these bloody marks behind and she joins Johnny and her grandpa. look
Starting point is 00:18:58 they did not bring a backpack with duct tape, attire iron, and throw dirty old t-shirts across their mouths to cover their faces to walk out of this house with nothing. we need the safe code. Johnny looks at Cassandra. can you grab some knives? Cassandra runs downstairs to the kitchen, grabs the three biggest knives that she can find, butcher knives, runs back up, hands them to Johnny. what's the safe code grandma? they're questioning grandma Wendy and they know that she has a safe in her closet But they need the code to get it to show her grandma Wendy that they're so very serious about this They're not messing around right now
Starting point is 00:19:34 Johnny grabs the knife and in front of grandma Wendy starts stabbing grandpa Randall in the stomach once twice three four five more than five times. And Grandma Wendy starts pleading with them, her own granddaughter, I'll give you the money, I'll give you my keys, I'll give you anything you want. Cassandra says Grandma Wendy was mumbling through the duct tape, but they could still somewhat understand her.
Starting point is 00:19:57 She says, and I quote, I mean, she was mumbling through the duct tape. You could still understand her, but at the same time, you couldn't, you know? Regardless, none of that mattered. All that mattered is Grandma Wendy is about to give her the safe code and once she gets those magical numbers, she runs into Grandma Wendy's closet to unlock the safe. She clicks in the safe code, enter, the safe unlocks, the door swings open, and there are just envelopes stuffed with cash. Holy shit. Grandma Wendy was not lying. She was telling Cassandra the truth.
Starting point is 00:20:26 Cassandra smirks because now Cassandra and Johnny, they're about to be very, very, very rich. In the interrogation room, Cassandra will tell the two investigators that she was actually quite shocked at how much money was in Grandma's safe. I go in there, checking out the stuff, I grab the book bag, and I just start stuffing the book bag with everything. You know, like there were envelopes just filled with money. There was probably like a thousand dollars that we found in that safe that they were just saving. A thousand dollars? A thousand dollars.
Starting point is 00:20:58 In envelopes? Yes. Did you know about that money or you just found... Cassandra starts smirking a little. and you know, it was kind of weird Like she was kind of giving me an idea about it before my grandma was saying what if I just gave you a thousand dollars Would that just make the world a better place and I'm like no, I don't want a thousand dollars So she kept saying that and then I was like when I saw it. It was just like wow She actually had a thousand000 in her safe.
Starting point is 00:21:25 Like, that's crazy. There are a lot of moments like this in the interrogation where it is such a weird mixture of such an evil crime mixed with such immature, almost childish qualities. She's talking about killing her grandparents, but then she's amazed that somebody has $1,000 in a safe, which don't get me wrong, it's a lot of money, but you cannot flee with that kind of money
Starting point is 00:21:44 after a double homicide. It's going to get them very far which by the way they're going to spend it in a full week but at this point Cassandra thinks that she is set for life practically she's standing in front of this safe with a giant smirk on her face she's emptying out all of the envelopes into the black backpack that they brought along she runs back into the room where Johnny is watching over her nearly dead grandma and grandpa. They're still alive. She's holding the little book bag filled with cash.
Starting point is 00:22:10 Hey, I got the stuff. Johnny nods, turns to Grandpa Randall, and slits his throat right next to Grandma Wendy. They then drag Grandma Wendy into the restroom, and by this point, Grandma Wendy has been beaten within an inch of her life with the tire iron by her granddaughter, but she's still alive. Which is crazy, as Cassandra puts it, because she was quote, beating her head with the tire iron. In the interrogation room, she shows the investigators how she's doing it, and it's just this weird,
Starting point is 00:22:43 casual, she's just using both of her arms to swing over she says beating her head Cassandra says when she first attacked her grandma back in grandma's room right when they start the killings she wasn't feeling any sort of mercy or hesitation she says I start hating my grandma and you know Johnny's doing his thing and you know I stopped hearing Johnny doing whatever and so he comes into the room and me and my grandma are in and he helps me tie up my grandma with the duct tape. Cassandra and Johnny they tie up grandma completely by her arms ankles they wrap the duct tape around her head just in circles and after Johnny helps Cassandra tie up Wendy
Starting point is 00:23:19 Cassandra drags her into grandpa's room they torture essentially torture her for the safe code they kill grandpa with knife, slit his throat in front of grandma, then drag grandma into the restroom, and Cassandra would periodically check up on grandma. And she noticed that grandma Wendy, according to her beliefs, was pretending to be dead. Because she could still feel a pulse on her. But grandma Wendy is not talking, she's not pleading, she's not breathing that loudly. She's just laying there motionless cassandra thinks she's freaking faking it
Starting point is 00:23:49 she runs over to johnny, what the heck johnny? she's still alive johnny walks into the bathroom and according to cassandra, he grabs the tire iron and aims for the top of grandma wendy's spine he slams it into the base of her neck at the top. this is a very fatal injury. a lot of the times, this can cause full body paralysis. it's very hard to survive an injury like this, especially if you don't get immediate medical attention. cassandra said it was the last fatal blow. this show is sponsored by BetterHelp. Please tell me I'm not the only person who feels like 2024 is going by way too fast.
Starting point is 00:24:29 I mean, this is a genuine problem because it happens every summer where I start getting anxiety about how fast time is passing and I wonder if I'm even doing enough, if I'm accomplishing my goals. But this year I decided to do something about it and I was like, okay, listen, therapist, I need your advice. I've been going to therapy for years but I feel like this year I made even more breakthroughs my therapist is helping me learn how to make time to celebrate my wins set realistic goals so that I can stop
Starting point is 00:24:53 feeling like life is always flying by me and there's a stigma that therapy isn't for everyone but it really is for everyone even something like not setting aside enough time for yourself can be addressed in therapy whenever I I'm done with the therapy session, I feel like I have a fresh perspective on my problem and often I realize it's never as bad as it seems. I'm working on managing my time and expectations so I can finally stop feeling like life is out of control. If you're thinking of trying therapy, I highly recommend using BetterHelp because it's so convenient. You can do everything online from filling out a brief questionnaire to setting up a session with a licensed therapist.
Starting point is 00:25:27 You can also switch therapists at any point for no additional cost. If you feel like your current therapist isn't the right fit for you, it can take some time to truly find the right professional, but it is worth it in the long run. Take a moment, visit BetterHelp.com slash Rotten today to get 10% off your first month. That's BetterHelp, H-E-L-P dot com slash rotten The whole situation was starting to freak Cassandra out not because her boyfriend just murdered her grandparents but she said it was kind of creepy because she was like starting to die and I think she was scared to die. She shit herself and peed herself. it's kind of gross
Starting point is 00:26:08 wow these kids are sadistic johnny would grab the knife and slit wendy's throat as well when they were certain that both of them were dead they cleaned themselves up washed all the blood off their faces changed into a fresh pair of clothes and drove grandpa's car to the local supermarket. Kroger. It's like Ralph's. They grabbed something to eat and they brought it back home to Cassandra's grandparents' house to eat and quote, just kind of like chill there.
Starting point is 00:26:36 During interrogations, it's best for police to get answers on any questions that they might have. There's a few unanswered questions that are bothering them about this case. One being, why the hell did they find a gallon of milk in the trunk of the car when they arrested Cassandra and Johnny? Why do you just have a gallon of milk in the trunk of the car? What the hell are you doing with a gallon of milk? What are your plans? There was a voluntary study done of people volunteering to get sprayed with pepper spray. They rated their discomfort on a pain level, 0 through 10, a 9.6 to a 9.7 out of 10. But at least they were pepper sprayed
Starting point is 00:27:09 there's actually something that hurts so much more than pepper spray statistically twice as more painful. Bear spray. Which makes sense. One netizen said pepper spray is meant to stop maybe cause decent irritation to a human being while the other one is meant to stop a freaking bear. To give you context, an average human weighs 150 pounds and can sprint what? An average of 12 miles per hour? The average bear weighs anywhere from 600 to 1,000 pounds and can charge on average 30 miles per hour.
Starting point is 00:27:39 If bear mace is supposed to knock a half-ton grizzly bear onto its butt, I mean the effect that it's gonna have on a human Tenfold, tenfold Redditors who have accidentally sprayed themselves with both pepper spray and bear spray said Trust me, bear spray is so much worse It's designed to nuke everything in a 30 foot radius without prejudice Doesn't matter if you're a bear or not It's so strong, so debilitating that it can be used as a self-defense tool, i guess,
Starting point is 00:28:07 but if you accidentally get it in your face, first it's the shock. you're disoriented. that lasts not even a full second before the excruciating intense impossible to deal with pains you want to rip your face off. the stinging of the eyes, the watering, the pressure in the throat, one that isn't said anything associated with mucus membranes, it feels like you're being singed with fire, eyes, nostrils, sinuses, lips, tongue, soft palate, tonsils, all the way down your throat, even your heart, all of a sudden it feels like it's ablaze, like somebody threw ground up glass shards into your eyes. But the worst part is when you instinctively take a big gulp of air from the shock of the pain and it feels like the bear spray gets into your
Starting point is 00:28:47 throat and the hacking and coughing is gonna start to the point where you feel like you're about to throw up your insides one person said the pain and torture was so bad I was so desperate for any sort of instant relief I didn't have time to fill up the bathtub or even to hop in the shower. I dunked my head into the first body of water I could find. My toilet. It's that painful. Another netizen stated that a gunshot to their thigh was less painful than getting a face full of bear mace.
Starting point is 00:29:17 A friend who witnessed someone getting sprayed said, "...his face looked like a giant red emoji, like a giant red emoji like a giant red beach ball His eyes were just these tiny black weeping slits because you can only see the eyelashes They said even if you think you're over the pain after a few hours if you think the symptoms have subsided you're very wrong hours after a singular tiny droplet of sweat drips into your eye or near your lip and the pain starts all over again and this can last for days. after impact you might be dealing with redness, burning of the skin, temporary blindness, you will be in no state to do anything let alone even just lay there being in pain is unbearable. melissa and her boyfriend are both college students so they have to find any opportunity that they can to spend time together after a long day of classes.
Starting point is 00:30:08 And that particular night, April 8th, they decide to grab some takeout. They're gonna head home to Melissa's and eat together. And maybe they'd watch their favorite show or they'd just catch up with each other they don't really know yet. They pull into the driveway of a very quiet neighborhood, unlock the front door of Melissa's parents' house, walk in, and they head straight from Melissa's room. so far nothing is amiss, nothing is out of the ordinary. they open the door to Melissa's room, flip on the bedroom light, the entire room is ransacked. Melissa's drawers are opened,
Starting point is 00:30:38 clothes are hanging out of them, it looks like a disaster zone, everything is thrown out, the closet looks like a tornado has gone through it, all of her purses have been rummaged through as if somebody took them turned them upside down and just shook everything out of them onto the bed her jackets are thrown around i mean what the hell is going on malissa's already on the phone dialing 911 when she turns around and sees an orange mist inside the house what the hell is going on? And then it hits. The stinging in her eyes, the overwhelming sensation overtakes her entire body. Her face feels like it's on fire, like somebody is pressing her face down onto a hibachi
Starting point is 00:31:15 grill. Her eyes feel like someone is squirting a combination of lemon juice and jalapeno juice straight into them. Melissa and her boyfriend are squinting through the pain, coughing, almost gaggingging and Melissa sees through the orange haze a girl a girl that looks familiar but she can't really in this moment she can't really connect the dots in that split second and this girl is coming at her with a baseball bat in her hands ready to swing straight at Melissa. The bat smashes into Melissa's back, she tumbles over onto the ground not even a second later, she feels the bat crashing down onto her head. she can practically feel her skull pulsing as blood starts to flow out and the girl is just standing there in the orange mist
Starting point is 00:31:58 and then she kicks Melissa straight in the stomach. if Melissa didn't want to throw up before, she definitely wants to throw up now. she looks over and her boyfriend is being attacked too. There are two people coming at them, one at Melissa, one at her boyfriend, going at their heads, beating them, spraying bear repellent straight into their eyes. Melissa and the girl are struggling to gain control over the bat. Melissa tries to grab it from her but she kicks Melissa in the head. Then she tries to start stomping on Melissa's stomach. Melissa slides away from the attacker and honestly she's probably pissed now. She's bleeding, she's burning, she's so fucking done with whatever is happening so she reaches up and yanks the girl with the bat by a fistful of her hair and yanked
Starting point is 00:32:36 her around by her hair. She grabs the bat mid-swing, wrestles it out of the girl's arms and then turns her attention to the attacker hitting her boyfriend The attacker releases Melissa's boyfriend and Melissa hands her boyfriend the bat But the attacker lunges for it and now all four of them are tangled up in this mess Yanking each other around in different directions trying to get control of this bat Melissa's boyfriend almost has it but suddenly he lets go, lets the attackers have the bat Instead he grabs a glass beer bottle and threatens the attacker, stop, let us go. The attacker responds, I will never let you go.
Starting point is 00:33:13 With nothing to lose, considering the severity of the situation, Melissa's boyfriend brings the beer bottle up and slams it down onto the attacker's head, shattering it. For a second, it feels like there's a power shift. But the attacker is eerily calm. He just had a beer bottle shatter on his head. He's staring at Melissa and her boyfriend, but he's talking to the girl that he came with, the girl that attacked Melissa. Go get the hammer.
Starting point is 00:33:41 The fight continues and only stops when the door opens and Melissa's mom walks in and Melissa starts screaming they're trying to kill me they're trying to kill me help mom please they're gonna kill me! the two attackers run off leaving Melissa covered in blood she would need seven stitches seven staples to close the wound on her head she had welts all over her body from the bat and her boyfriend has injuries all over as well with a badly chipped tooth I mean the unsettling part of all of this was it was only Melissa's second time meeting her
Starting point is 00:34:10 brother's girlfriend and she attacked her with a bat and it was kind of freaky because whenever her brother's girlfriend Cassandra hit her there was something in her face that just appeared so calm. Now as for the other attacker, Melissa didn't even recognize him anymore. Her brother Johnny. She just remembered them fleeing, running out of the house. And that girlfriend Cassandra was wearing a shirt that read, Good Vibes Only.
Starting point is 00:34:37 Do you think you can pinpoint when a plan starts falling apart? Because for Cassandra and Johnny, it's now. They're both wanting to pour milk straight into their eyeballs. They're coughing up a storm driving off from Johnny's family house. I mean the original plan was to get Johnny's family one by one. They would quote, wait for each of them to get home and knock them out one by one aka kill them one by one but obviously that didn't happen so they
Starting point is 00:35:00 steal Melissa's car and they're fleeing the scene and it's Cassandra's second time meeting Johnny's sister which is kind of a bummer to her because it doesn't seem like they're gonna be getting along anytime soon. So truly, nothing is going according to plan. Wait, so they are getting hit by the bear mit- I imagine they thought it was like pepper spray. So pepper spray, as long as you're not in a windy area, it comes out in a consistent stream. Because you're trying to get an attacker.
Starting point is 00:35:23 You don't want to get any witnesses or people on the side. You don't want to get passerbys. But with bear spray, it's very hard to estimate where a bear is going to attack. So it's a mist, it's a fog. Johnny is covered in bear mace and it's stinging his entire body. He's going to get Cassandra to go buy a gallon of milk
Starting point is 00:35:39 so that he can go take a quote milk shower to ease the stinging. But the biggest downfall of this plan the single biggest mistake is they left their original car that they had driven to Johnny's house during the attack the car keys had fallen out they were misplaced and as they're leaving that rush that's something that they don't have time for they don't have time to look for the damn keys they just took whatever they could find which was Melissa's car keys.
Starting point is 00:36:05 They flee in Johnny's sister's car, and they just leave Grandpa Randall's car parked at the house. When Johnny's mom calls the police, they come to take their statements. They run the plates on the car, Randall Björk, which is interesting. There was a wellness check request out
Starting point is 00:36:22 for him and his wife Wendy. About a week ago, April 2nd 2017, relatives of Wendy's had called the police station requesting a wellness check, stating that their 63 year old sister and her husband Randall and Wendy were not picking up their phones. They were sending text messages, but it just didn't sound like them. It was very odd. They suspected that somebody else was impersonating them and sending text messages from Wendy's phone. The police had gone to their house but because they don't really have a special reason to break in to perform the rest of the wellness check, this is the first call,
Starting point is 00:36:54 the last time the family heard from them was a day ago, they just leave. But now, now they have a very, very good reason. A very big reason. They're gonna force their way into Cassandra's grandparents' home. Back in the interrogation room, Cassandra tells the two detectives that truly nothing, nothing is going according to plan now. What was the plan? Okay, so the plan was that we were both gonna get both of our families. But first we got our grandparents, and that's when we went over to Johnny's house and we attacked his sister and her boyfriend because he wanted to kill his family too. But it didn't work out at all, it just went downhill from there. But how did the plan even start? Who started it?
Starting point is 00:37:34 And this is according to Cassandra because Johnny does not want to talk to the police. Cassandra and Johnny were at the park. This is before they killed anybody, before they killed Cassandra's grandparents, before they attacked Johnny's sister and her boyfriend. Cassandra had run away from home, and they were living in Johnny's car. Well, Cassandra says that she didn't run away, she said she was kicked out. I don't know how much of that I believe, but her version of events goes, I was out, chilling with Johnny and my other friends. But then she came home from curfew.
Starting point is 00:38:02 Grandma's asleep, Grandma wakes up hearing Cassandra come in, and she storms out of her room and just starts losing it on cassandra. and cassandra says, my grandma just got really mad at me saying things like, oh you know, if you don't like it here, we're just gonna find somewhere else for you to stay. she just said that out of the blue. like, she got mad for some reason. and so i was just like, if you're gonna find another place for me to stay, i'm just gonna leave. i'm just gonna find somewhere else to go and she kept bringing up stuff about my mom and you know she kept saying things like I could easily send you back to your mom's house I don't know it just got to the point where I just couldn't take it anymore
Starting point is 00:38:37 because Andra really does not like the alleged threat of being sent back to her mom's house now side note we don't know if this is even what Grandma Wendy said to her. I highly personally doubt it. With everything I could find about Grandma Wendy, it feels like she wanted to protect Cassandra at all costs against whatever she had been experiencing back at her mom's. About a year and a half before Cassandra and Johnny's plan, Cassandra's grandparents filed for emergency custody over Cassandra from their own daughter, Cassandra's grandparents filed for emergency custody over Cassandra from their own daughter, Cassandra's mom.
Starting point is 00:39:07 From the records that I could find and the grandparents' neighbors' statements to the police, allegedly Cassandra was potentially being sexually abused by her stepdad, and her mom was allegedly not doing anything about it. A neighbor said, this all started and came up maybe a year and a half ago when um I just- I just let Wendy tell me and she wanted to talk about things Wendy and Randall had found out about Cassie being sexually abused by her stepdad, Sean And so at that point they filed for emergency custody because Amanda, Cassandra's mom, wasn't doing anything about it And then over the past, I'll say um, three weeks I was over at their house and Wendy had told me
Starting point is 00:39:45 that Shawn and Amanda were being investigated and they had bought all new computers and phone and devices so that they didn't leave any evidence behind, but that Cassandra had written a bunch of information down, a bunch of journaling information, and she said, Wendy told me, what I thought happened in my head was nothing compared to what actually happened. And just never really I didn't ask questions beyond that
Starting point is 00:40:08 I didn't want Wendy to talk about it unless she wanted to I kind of felt like it was maybe a CP thing I don't know it was happening under everybody's nose and once Wendy found out she filed for custody for Cassandra then there were stories that Cassandra had to take out a restraining order against her stepdad because he starts stalking her at school and quote Checking her out of her classes Cassandra said that she had to start online school because her stepdad would go through the classes Literally prowl through the campus trying to find her and check her out Which is interesting that Cassandra has this insanely tense painful relationship with her mom and her stepdad
Starting point is 00:40:46 But she kills the two people in the world that tried to help her and protect her from them her grandparents The police had gone through Wendy and Randall's house and they saw that the entire place filled with pictures of Cassandra Clearly they love her the investigators of course they pick up on that and they ask Cassandra, was your mom part of the plan? AKA, were you gonna kill your mom next if we hadn't caught you? Was your mom part of the plan? Of killing them? Yeah.
Starting point is 00:41:14 Yeah, no. But I wanted to. We did discuss it, but Johnny was like, we can't waste our time on them. And I was like, okay. But I wanted to. Johnny, Johnny kind of told you not to yeah I mean I don't really know what's going on with my parents you know like I
Starting point is 00:41:30 mean we drove over their house the other day they have new cars you know I don't know what guns they have in their house you know I don't really she says you know a lot by the way so she's not shaken up at all right now no she keeps saying you know as if this is a very normal reaction, very normal response. She's almost trying to get the detectives to nod and agree with her. Like, yeah, of course we know, but no, Cassandra, we don't know.
Starting point is 00:41:53 I don't really know what's going on in my parents' house, so yeah. You didn't know what you would have been met with, is that what you're saying? Whereas your grandparents, you knew it was kind of a safe bet to kill them, correct? Exactly. because she hadn't been on her mom's house in a while, she didn't know where they had their weapons, she didn't know if they had new guns, what kind of cars they drove, it was very hard to I
Starting point is 00:42:12 guess stalk them. back to the original plan though, Cassandra said that she came home after hanging out with her friends, her grandma starts randomly arguing with her, fighting her, and it's after this argument with grandma she just leaves, goes to stay with Johnny in his car. They're sleeping in there just driving from one place to another and she said, We're just all over the place really, just trying to find something to do, just keep, you know, having something to do. We didn't want to just sit around and do nothing. We would find people to chill with, go to the mall or something. They end up at the park where they're sitting,
Starting point is 00:42:43 staring up at the trees and according to Cassandra, Johnny turns to her. Are you afraid? What? Are you afraid to die? No, are you? No. You know we could run away together. Wouldn't that just be the dream? I guess it would be Johnny. Would you like to kill your grandparents? What? Why? I don't know I mean because of everything Cassandra said that she understood Johnny knew everything about her situation with her family everything that she had gone through and all she wanted to do was get away from everything move on with her life and things with her grandparents had gotten so bad recently she had broken her
Starting point is 00:43:20 grandfather's ribs she was on probation for assaulting her grandparents I mean so much has happened. Which is why at the park, the two decide to start over with their lives, start fresh, get away from everyone and everything, and the few problems that they were facing were one, Johnny's ex-wife. Cassandra said, he got married to like this crazy bitch, and then now she's like saying that I'm stalking her when I've only met the girl like twice. But thankfully she lives out of state so they don't really have to deal with her anymore.
Starting point is 00:43:49 Not that there was anything to deal with to begin with. It seems like Johnny's wife had no care for either of them. But other than that their only other problem was they need money and they need their family members dead. The reason for needing them dead is very unclear because I imagine they could have gotten the money without killing them But it does appear that they didn't like the fact that their parents or their families did not like them being together Which side note the reason they need the money is so that they can move to Pensacola, Florida and start a new life Which is about a 5 hour 32 minute drive from Atlanta, Georgia And that's not a far distance to flee after a double homicide
Starting point is 00:44:24 But Cassandra says it was just somewhere where we could escape to escape reality from Atlanta, Georgia, and that's not a far distance to flee after a double homicide. But Cassandra says, it was just somewhere where we could escape to, escape reality. The detectives ask, escape reality or kill grandma? Cassandra responds, no, no, no, no, no, not kill them. Just kind of like escape from everything, you know? Just start my life. I don't know. Like I just wanted to move on from everything, just my family.
Starting point is 00:44:44 I couldn't be around them anymore just because everything we've all been through. It's just so much betrayal So they're not that smart either. They don't have some crazy plans. No, just all vibes all vibes all super gluing doors A thousand dollars to flee a double homicide Yeah, there's not even like crazy motive, just evil. Just plain evil. They solidified it in their minds. This is what they want to do. How they want to go about it.
Starting point is 00:45:11 It's their master plan. They start thinking it actually might be simpler than we originally thought. Everything they could possibly need is already in Johnny's car. Cassandra would poke fun at him. It's like a Mary Poppins car. So much stuff in there. You think surely he's not going to have a tire iron in there. Poppins car. So much stuff in there. You think surely he's not gonna have a tire iron in there and then he does. So the plan is settled. Kill anyone who stands in their way of being together. Both
Starting point is 00:45:32 their families hate them dating and for that they would have to die. The plan is kill Cassandra's grandparents then Johnny's entire family, his mom, his two sisters. They all need to die. Five people are on their little hit list so that they can run off and be together and start a fresh life. They'd only been dating for two months at this point. Romeo and Juliet is probably one of the most well-known stories in the world.
Starting point is 00:45:57 Boy loves girl, girl loves boy, their love is forbidden. No one else believes they should be together except them. It's the two of them against the world and they'll do anything to stay together. it's quite dramatic too. they want to stay together even if blood is shed, even if their own blood is shed, even if that means they need to die in order to be together.
Starting point is 00:46:15 back in the interrogation room, the detectives have more questions. there is a week-long gap between the time that they murder Cassandra's grandparents in cold blood, and when they attack Johnny's sister and her boyfriend. the investigators want to know exactly what they did in that week. is this part of the plan to wait a week? did you schedule that in? what were you spending the week doing? preparing for the next attack? is that it? Cassandra said they didn't really have a plan. they were just taking it quote day by day. so for a week they just stayed in her grandparents home. they slept, ate, ordered Chinese takeout, went to Steak and Shake, blew $200 at Zoomies, the skateboard clothing store
Starting point is 00:46:52 Went on shopping sprees, spent the entire $1,000 they just got from the safe But also spent every last dime in grandma's bank account, did drugs, filmed intimate videos on grandma's phone in the house with their dead bodies laying upstairs. What? They brought all their sheets and blankets downstairs into the living room because they don't want to sleep upstairs with the dead bodies. They spent a week in that house. Not fleeing? No. I don't know is that like more scary or it's less scary because they're not trying to get away I guess they're just hanging out there like they don't care or not afraid about the consequences I think that's more scary, right? Like they're not worrying about consequences of their actions
Starting point is 00:47:36 They're also not emotionally disturbed by their actions if they're able to stay in that house Yeah, and it's not even strangers. I think it would be... I don't think it's understandable, but I think it would make a little bit more sense in most people's heads, okay, if they're strangers, maybe they just killed them for a place to stay. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:47:53 Which is not acceptable, but... Yeah, and one week is a long time, and they didn't even have a moment of realization. And the smell is bad. The caulk and the bleach is not gonna fix it. So it's a constant reminder of their actions, the scent. Now sometimes in interrogations, the detectives will ask suspects questions. Questions that they know the suspect are going to lie in the answer.
Starting point is 00:48:15 But they ask it anyway, because the point of the question is not to learn the truth. It's to catch the suspect in a lie. The investigators are curious. Did you call some people and say hey if you want to come over not for a party or anything but just like I got some money grandparents are out of town do you want to come over? Cassandra says nope I would just tell people like hey you know like I have a free crib but I wouldn't have people come over if you guys are trying to chill I'll come meet up with you I wouldn't like I won't let them go to the house besides Cassandra tells the two officers she only has two friends because quote I'm like chilling
Starting point is 00:48:48 with a lot of people because I don't really trust a lot of people regardless Cassandra tells the officers that they would just go and meet up with their few friends outside of the house they agreed her and Johnny agreed that having someone over at the house was a big quote no no the investigators are nodding because yeah I mean that makes. It makes a lot of sense, but the detective brings out his phone and starts playing Cassandra a video. Come take a look at that.
Starting point is 00:49:11 Cassandra's body tenses. She leans forward. Her eyebrows are all scrunched together. She's staring at his phone. That's you and him, right? Cassandra doesn't speak. She just gives a short nod. That's you and Johnny at your grandparents' house. She doesn't speak. She just gives a short nod. That's you and Johnny at your grandparents' house?
Starting point is 00:49:27 She doesn't respond. He replays the video and she just leans down further, sticking her head closer to the phone. Shit looks like it! Like the living room at your grandparents' house? Cassandra's voice is briefly, oddly robotic. How could that be possible? Who's taking that video? She starts aggressively shaking her head. No, that couldn't be at my grandparents' house. There was no one at my grandparents' house. So that couldn't have been at my grandparents' house.
Starting point is 00:49:52 The detective is no longer playing around with Cassandra. They're no longer burger-eating buddies. He points to his phone. Well, I didn't shit that out. That's what I'm saying. Who? I mean, it sounds like. Wait, let me watch it again. I gotta, that must what I'm saying. Who? I mean, it sounds like… Wait, let me watch it again.
Starting point is 00:50:05 I gotta… That must have been before. Cassandra tries to look the detectives in the eyes to show them that she's being honest. But one mistake, the other detective points out. Well, it couldn't be before, because your grandparents don't like Johnny, and he wasn't at your house much. He didn't go to my house at all. I mean, Cassandra catches her second
Starting point is 00:50:25 mistake. I mean that couldn't have been at my house. That had to be somebody else's house because we had no one at my house. It was just me and Johnny. She's staring at the detectives through her lashes. Her eyebrows are raised. Her eyes are big as if she's trying to convince them. But what is she trying to convince them of? They have the video in question. The video in question shows Cassandra sitting cross-legged on the living room floor of her grandparents' house. She is in the middle of rolling a joint. Johnny is right next to her leaning in.
Starting point is 00:50:53 His gaze is just transfixed on her, like he can only see her in the entire room. It honestly might've been cute, or one of those couple videos, oh my God, look at the way he looks at her. But of course, hindsight is 20-20 he looks at her with puppy dog eyes does not take his eyes off her face
Starting point is 00:51:10 even when she breaks eye contact which is the majority of the video so that she can continue rolling her joint Johnny is just staring people have a lot to say about you like you- I don't listen to those people though like I love you you kick ass The clip cuts. It's a super short clip or at least the one that was made public was
Starting point is 00:51:37 But none of the video content is actually that important other than the fact that Johnny and Cassandra are rolling a joint in her dead Grandparents house this video is taken after their murder and someone else is taking the video Someone else had been at that crime scene. I have been obsessed with watching C dramas recently and there is no better way to unwind after a long day than to play a show and really immerse myself in a whole new world while being entertained by the most honestly unhinged plot lines. But the worst part about watching shows in a foreign language is that you miss out on so many jokes and subtitles
Starting point is 00:52:11 that subtitles cannot pick up on. So for me it's so frustrating to feel like I'm missing a whole layer of the plot because my husband is always like, no no no, let me re-explain this joke because it's a play on words, it means this, it means that, and it's just that's not in the subtitle That's why every evening before I watch my C dramas I use Rosetta Stone to teach me Chinese and then when I watch the show I get to revise all the new words I learned and I love that Rosetta Stone teaches you words that you can immediately use. It's very applicable I use Rosetta Stone because it is one of the most trusted language learning programs It's available on desktop too, but I prefer using the app so I can use it anywhere.
Starting point is 00:52:47 It's the only language app that I've been able to stick to using consistently. It doesn't ask you to memorize vocabulary lists or grammar rules because the whole learning process is supposed to be intuitive and it works. With Rosetta, you learn to speak, listen, and think in your target language and it's designed to feel like you're naturally picking up the language. The material comes in these bite-sized lessons that you can complete in less than 10 minutes where first you learn the words, then the phrases, and then whole sentences and my favorite feature is Rosetta's true accent feature that gives you feedback on your pronunciation
Starting point is 00:53:18 which is what i struggle with the most the app is really convenient to use and you can even download lessons offline so if you're learning italian for example, you could brush up on your vocabulary while on a flight to Italy You could also learn French, Korean, Japanese, Arabic, or one of the other 25 languages that Rosetta Stone offers The best part is if you sign up now, you can get access to all the languages Rosetta Stone has to offer For the rest of your life for 50% off. Don't put off learning that language There's no better time than right now to get started. For a very limited time, our listeners can get Rosetta Stone's lifetime membership for 50% off.
Starting point is 00:53:51 Visit rosettastone.com slash rotten. That's 50% off unlimited access to 25 language courses for the rest of your life. Redeem your 50% off at rosettastone.com slash rotten today. off at RosettaStone.com slash Rotten today. I've got an open crib, plus they left me like a thousand dollars. You want to come over?" That's not happening. First of all, it's 8.30 p.m. She can't just go over. She's already laying in bed. She's 17. Her mom's never going to agree to it.
Starting point is 00:54:31 But more than that, something in her gut is telling her not to accept this invitation. Do not go to Cassandra's house. The whole situation is just so weird. It didn't make sense. Why would her grandparents leave her that kind of money? They're also not the type of people to just randomly pack up and go on vacation Especially not now when Cassandra is going through a lot running away hanging out with Johnny whom they hate
Starting point is 00:54:52 The investigators they know this already. They've interviewed all of Cassandra's friends and by some ironic miracle Almost every single person Cassandra invited over for a massive rager at the house after her grandparents murder Rejected the invitation in the interrogation room the investigators break her down. We got a problem man as you know I'm a cool dude. So is she the detectives are talking to Cassandra I've been doing this a lot longer than you've been alive. Okay, so I'm not a bullshitter I don't know what those DA investigators what type of you know They are how many times they talk to you But I'm cool as shit with you as long as you're cool as shit with me
Starting point is 00:55:29 They're really trying to play into this 17 year old they sat there and ate McDonald's with her Do you think it's working though for for yes, absolutely So she actually wants that kind of relationship. It's almost wants that kind of relationship. It's almost very bizarre. The way she's so callously talking about her grandparents' murder is so cold. You wouldn't even expect that from a full-grown adult of how heinous and evil it is. But her yearning and desire for the detectives to like her is almost childlike. When children will say anything to try and fit in. It's very bizarre.
Starting point is 00:56:05 The mixture of that something so evil and then this very bizarre childlike quality is unsettling. He says, I'm cool as shit with you as long as you're cool as shit with me. But when lying and stuff like that starts, I've got a problem. I believe that people were at that house. OK, unfortunately, you're in this. There's no saving face right now. I'll be honest with you, dude.
Starting point is 00:56:27 We heard a conversation that took place in there where somebody was bitching about the smell and Johnny's like, no dude, it's just sewage. There's a sewage problem upstairs. Cassandra would never admit to this, but it was later confirmed by the people that were over because she invited a bunch of people over, only two people came, her drug dealers. So the drug dealers came and they took videos of them rolling a joint
Starting point is 00:56:48 yes now none of them knew that her dead grandparents were upstairs but they could smell something disgusting in there Cassandra and Johnny tried to play it off as a sewage issue that they couldn't flush the toilet and Johnny took a big poo and tried to flush it didn't flush so it had just been sitting there for days during the interrogation cassandra states that johnny just starts randomly telling her to pour bleach all over her grandparents bodies to help with the smell and he starts randomly gluing the door shut inside the house she said he went in my garage and found i don't know what it's called like the i don't know the caulk yeah and then glued the. She tells the officer she didn't know what the point was.
Starting point is 00:57:26 He didn't tell her why he was doing it. He just grabbed it and started doing it. And she was quote, just like, yeah, okay, you got it. And just watched him. But later she would admit that she invited people over, they wanted to throw a party, and in order to do that she would have to pour bleach on her
Starting point is 00:57:42 grandparents' body to hide their decomposing smell. And Johnny caulked the doors shut so that they could have people over just to give you a recap they kill her grandparents attack Johnny's family get sprayed with bear mace Johnny's mom calls the police and they're on the run Jason opens the door to his apartment and he's a face-to-face with Johnny and a girl named Cassandra shirtless Johnny Johnny's eyes are bloodshot. It looks like he'd been crying. Well no, it looks worse than that. There's just red marks all over his face and body. Do you mind if we come in Jason? My mom and I fought again. She pepper sprayed me.
Starting point is 00:58:15 Jason lets Johnny and his girlfriend Cassandra in. Jason had been friends with Johnny since they were in middle school but it was a little strange. He was just showing up unannounced. They hadn't really been close since middle school. They naturally grew apart. Jason stayed with their original group of friends and Johnny started hanging out with this different group doing drugs. They never really had like this big fight or anything, but they just didn't fit together anymore. But now Johnny has showed up explaining to Jason that he got into this huge fight with his mom and he cannot think of anywhere else to go.
Starting point is 00:58:47 This was the first place that popped up into his mind. He lets them in and they end up spending the night. The next morning, it does kind of feel like they're all back in middle school again. Johnny's talking to Jason's mom while she's preparing breakfast for everybody. They've always had quite a close relationship. Johnny's cracking jokes with Jason. Jason's drinking coffee on the balcony He goes out to walk the dog and that's when he starts noticing something's not right Parked directly in front of their apartment unit and Jason knows just about every car in this parking lot
Starting point is 00:59:16 There is a new car But the plates are temporary meaning a neighbor did not just buy it or lease the car if that was the only odd thing though It wouldn't be that alarming. However, the car is suspiciously parked directly in front of Jason's unit, practically staring into the ground floor windows. And it happens to be a fully blacked out suburban SUV straight out of an FBI undercover surveillance operation. That's the vibe it's giving.
Starting point is 00:59:42 It's strange, but what is Jason going to do about it? He just takes a mental note of, oh, that's a little bit strange, but it's giving. It's strange, but what is Jason gonna do about it? He just takes a mental note of, oh, that's a little bit strange, but it's not something that he can really investigate. Eventually, he makes his way back into his room when all of a sudden, it's a voice booming into the unit. It feels like it's coming from the sky itself. Unit 184, Johnny Ryder, come outside.
Starting point is 01:00:04 Like a megaphone a megaphone Jason's like what the hell is going on then it happens again unit 184 Johnny writer come outside It is 10 a.m. On a Sunday morning is Jason asleep right now. Is he dreaming? Jason walks out into the living room and he looks down and there are red dots on his body and on the walls Wait on Jason's body Yes, this is real very very real. He's got to get his sister and mom out of here He has no idea what's going on But he knows that they got to leave as they're about to step out he sees from the corner of his eye
Starting point is 01:00:37 Johnny grabbing a knife from their kitchen and walking straight towards Jason and his family What the hell is he about to do is he about to stab stab them? Johnny walks straight up to their faces, leans in closer and closer, and then gives Jason a hug. I'm sorry man, so sorry for everything. I love you. I wish I didn't bring this on to you and your family. He drops the knife, leans over, and says the same thing to Jason's sister and gives her a hug. And with that, Johnny lets them walk out of the unit. Walk straight into a swarm of SWAT teams that circle them. Jason said it felt like he was walking into basically every cop in the county.
Starting point is 01:01:18 He found out after leaving his apartment that his childhood best friend had tried to kill his sister and her boyfriend and that he and his girlfriend had murdered both of her grandparents. And now with Jason and his family gone, the two of them are trapped inside of this apartment unit. With SWAT teams outside, police shouting their names, threatening to break in. They're cornered. If they're gonna go out, they're gonna be arrested. If they stay in, how long is that gonna last? They can't just sit there like ducks waiting to be arrested, so what the hell are they supposed to do? i would say that the most popular group within the police force are the canine dogs but second to them, also with four legs, are likely the explosive ordinance disposal devices
Starting point is 01:01:56 they're basically robo-cops they're robots that specialize in going into dangerous crime scenes to figure out what's going on they're programmed to neutralize explosive devices and they most commonly are named Spot and Roscoe, like dogs. They can see, hear, basically sense things around them and respond accordingly, but their most valuable feature is their expendability. They're completely disposable. What do they look like? Is it one of those like...
Starting point is 01:02:22 Like, do they look like a dog or...? It looks like a steamer, a clothing steamer, like a tripod and it's all controlled by the SWAT team from a remote-controlled joystick. This is what they send into Jason's apartment. The cops are not taking any risks on this one. They both know Cassandra and Johnny are armed and dangerous. They can't risk sending in humans or their dogs. This is the perfect situation to test out the Robo dog. They send it in, they start maneuvering
Starting point is 01:02:51 through Jason's house, they're spinning, the camera is rotating as it advances, looking for clues on where they are. Are they planning something? Are they planning on bombing someone? They don't know anything. On the screen that displays the camera feed, the authorities watch as the robot moves through the empty apartment and
Starting point is 01:03:09 advances down the hall and comes towards a door and immediately they are alarmed because there is a stain on the outside of the door and it looks like blood Johnny, Cassie say something there's a microphone on it radio silence nothing they have to be in there. The officers have no idea what they're about to walk into. Did one of them turn on the other? Did they harm each other? Did they harm themselves? What are they doing in there? They use the robot to swing open the door and slumped on the tile floor of the restroom in each other's arms, soaked in a growing pool of blood are the bodies
Starting point is 01:03:41 of Cassandra and Johnny. They had tried to self-exit together. Authorities rush in and rush them to the hospital. A lot of netizens liken Cassandra and Johnny to be a sick Romeo and Juliet couple. Not so much objectively, but maybe the narrative that they probably felt themselves. Nobody wants to see us together so we have to kill them all, our love is stronger than all, we will die without each other. That's what she said? That's what netizens feel like they felt.
Starting point is 01:04:08 But Cassandra would later tell the investigators. At the park, when they were planning these mass murders, serial killings really, Cassandra claims Johnny told her, Let's be Bonnie and Clyde. He said that to you? Yeah, I was like, okay. An interesting part of this interrogation is the detectives ask if she's seen the movies and she shakes her head no.
Starting point is 01:04:28 Of course. You have or you haven't seen the movies? Of course I have. While shaking her head? Yeah, aggressively shaking her head no. That's weird. The other detective says, oh, I'm just saying I'm 29 and I haven't seen the movies.
Starting point is 01:04:44 Yeah, my mom was really into old movies so when I was a child I used to watch a lot of oldies. Interesting. Regardless, some netizens think they're sick wannabe versions of Romeo and Juliet, they themselves think they're sick wannabe versions of Bonnie and Clyde, and it all hinges, both couples, Romeo and Juliet, Bonnie and Clyde, hinges on the fact that they are loyal to nobody but each other. During the interrogations, both Johnny and Cassandra seem to be very concerned about each other whenever they're brought up.
Starting point is 01:05:12 During Cassandra's questioning, she's asked about how she feels about Johnny now after they killed together, and she says, I still have feelings for him. I care about him. I guess I'm gonna ask a corny question. Is it love? Yeah. I talked to Johnny a couple days ago and Cassandra perks up. She looks concerned. She looks stressed. Is he okay? Yeah, he's fine. He sends his regards and all that stuff. Is he like is he doing okay? No, he's fine He's actually better off than you. You know, his cuts weren't that deep or anything Really? I could have sworn he did worse than me because I remember when we were in the bathroom He just kept going and I kept telling him to stop Yeah, maybe just tougher skin. I don't really know
Starting point is 01:05:49 The police asked Johnny about his feelings towards Cassandra Is that your girlfriend Cassie or is it just a friend or what? Is she okay? Yeah, no, no, no, she's fine Johnny sounds genuinely relieved. How long have you guys been dating? A lifetime it feels like. I't live without Cassie. Like I don't know why I never felt this about any other girl They don't only been dating a few weeks before they decided to kill everyone in their lives But this is how they talk about each other Which side note Cassandra's interrogation video has gone viral for how absurd her behavior is in the sense that She's not outright acting crazy in the video per se, but in the fact that she's oddly calm and she has these moments where her mask drops
Starting point is 01:06:31 and she just seems very unhinged. It's terrifying to a lot of people. From the get-go, there's this really uncomfortable moment in the interrogation room where one of the detectives, there's two in the room with her, one of them is trying to rip off her zip ties. Since she's in CAS, they can't handcuff her. They're trying to use scissors to get her zip ties off and maneuver between her giant CAS and he tells her he's trying to get the scissors away from her face so he doesn't accidentally and she finishes his sentence. Stab me?
Starting point is 01:06:59 It's just this very weird, awkward moment. But the detectives try to breeze past it and then all three of them the two investigators and Cassandra decide to eat quote family style according to the detective and during that she asks one of the detectives who's already finished their fries if they want some of hers. at one point in the interrogation she's asked about how the plan came to kill her grandparents came about and she brings up the previous charge against her Grandparents that she has that she's currently on probation for for physically assaulting her grandparents
Starting point is 01:07:32 And she says I fought them, you know I might have broken my grandpa's ribs when you know for that charge for simple assault and simple battery and it just got really worse We just kept arguing all the time and then I don't know. I guess things just seem different They didn't look at me the same anymore She's saying her grandparents did not look at her the same anymore Like they didn't I don't know what was their vibe like they have this vibe. They didn't really know what to do They didn't really like know how to be around me. I guess Which first of all she keeps saying, you know as a way to make it seem like her actions are much more understandable, but no, we don't know.
Starting point is 01:08:08 in addition, it's crazy that she's shocked that her grandparents are treating her differently after she broke her grandpa's ribs and physically assaulted them. in another notable part of the interrogation, cassandra is asked about her controlled aggression. the investigators know that she grew up with martial arts, and they were intrigued. martial arts is all about controlled aggression did Cassandra feel controlled aggression when she went to kill her grandparents or was it an emotional decision in that moment? Cassandra tells them it was a mixture of both that she just started feeling very sad for herself
Starting point is 01:08:38 it's both honestly when I was there, I don't know, just all my emotions just kind of came out like I wasn't just angry, I was sad but I was heartbroken at the same time because it was just like why did all this stuff have to happen with my family? you know? like why did I have to deal with all this bullshit? I just kind of got really tired of it, I couldn't handle it anymore I just kept exploding inside almost
Starting point is 01:09:00 I just wanted to run away and be by myself with someone and start a new life Other notable moments include when Cassandra's asked about her shopping spree She stated that she took her grandma's debit card and they asked do you remember what kind of bank it was or anything? Oh, it was a Visa credit card or debit card. Do you remember what color it was? It was gray gray and it had um, it had writing on it. It like c-i-t-i oh city bank yeah city cassandra makes this weird face where she sticks out her tongue and rolls her eyes like shaking her head like duh how could she not know duh and she looks slightly embarrassed cassandra tells the detectives that she only used the money found in her grandma's wallet because she could not locate her grandpa's.
Starting point is 01:09:45 She says, I couldn't find his wallet so I had no idea where his wallet was. I just had my grandma's wallet in her purse. The investigators tell her, He hid it underneath the bed. We found his wallet. Cassandra's nostrils literally flare and she starts smirking. You did? She throws her head back and rolls her eyes and she has this smirk on her face like almost unbelievable this guy Smart guy we almost didn't find his wallet and his cell phone. They were under his bed
Starting point is 01:10:12 Really? Wow. Yeah, I mean, I guess that's where he started hiding it. This is so creepy Yeah, like she is so unbothered. It's like a game Yeah She's having a blast. Having fun. By the time that the case is ready to go to trial, the media could not call the two Romeo and Juliet or even Bonnie and Clyde,
Starting point is 01:10:32 not because they deserve those titles though, but because the couples, they turn on each other. They had broken up since their arrest and were now blaming each other for their crimes. Both of them plead guilty and receive two life sentences plus 21 years, however they are both eligible for parole in 60 years. now one of the biggest debates in the courtroom was would they have committed this without the influence of each other? and it
Starting point is 01:10:56 seems that most netizens believe that cassandra was actually the driving force. even cassandra's friends say, cassandra is... i was really close with her. however, she's always just been a very selfish person. she always has been the type that doesn't care about anyone but herself. she just wants to do her own thing. she would get into violent fights with people and she just always has this oh i don't care i'll defend myself attitude. i mean the cops had to have been called out to her house a bunch of times. She was on probation during the time for hitting her grandma. Do you think that Cassandra was in love with Johnny? The police asked one of her friends. Honestly, Cassie's the type of person to use anyone she possibly could
Starting point is 01:11:36 to get what she wanted. I mean I did love Cassie as a person but honestly very very selfish. She only cared about herself. I don't know what was going on in Johnny's mind because i've only met him a couple of times and a lot of people did know him. they said he didn't seem like the type to kill anyone or anything. he just wanted to get by in his life. he was pretty nice. a lot of people speculate that cassandra fed johnny whether it was lies, exaggerations, or a story about how evil her grandparents and her whole family was perhaps Johnny with his drug addiction and his ADD and his depression disorder perhaps he felt like he had to protect her
Starting point is 01:12:13 is what some people say I'm not defending Johnny at all I think what both of them did is insane and heinous now as for the remorse I think both of them have differing levels of remorse, and it's Cassandra's grandparents who are killed. Cassandra said, I mean, I feel like a terrible person. I feel like the worst person on the planet.
Starting point is 01:12:31 But at the same time, it was just kind of like, I don't know. I mean, I feel heartbroken, but I don't know. It's really weird. Like, I'm just really sad about it, and that's like one of the reasons why I wanted to, you know, kill myself, you know, and just overdose because there was so much stuff going on between me and my grandparents already. Like I couldn't handle it anymore. She has most remorse for herself. During the sentencing, Johnny, Johnny's statement is a little bit unhinged, if I can be honest with you.
Starting point is 01:12:58 He said he found God in prison, which is, and this has nothing to do with religious preference or affiliation, but I think he chose the worst possible time to bring up his newfound love for Jesus Christ. During his statement to the court, Johnny says, I would like to express my deepest apology to the Beorj family. I'm so sorry for the pain and grief that I've caused you all. There's absolutely no justifiable reason for the circumstances of why I'm here today. When I look back, I see what was truly lost and I was searching for love from the wrong source.
Starting point is 01:13:27 And yet I know what I have done is evil and is deserving of hellfire. I have not been a responsible person in the past, but I would like to start if I could right now." He continues, Please, I beg you all, I beg you all, forgive me for what I have done. It is with a deep desire that my foolishness not be the reason for all of you to be Unforgiving and have a hardened heart for what it is written for if you forgive men for their trespasses Your heavenly father will also forgive you But if you do not forgive men for their trespasses neither your father forgive you and your trespasses
Starting point is 01:13:57 Basically to put it simply he's telling the victims family to forgive him unless they want to burn in the vast depths of hell for the Rest of eternity he's saying God told you so so you better forgive me or else you are gonna be the one that goes to hell and not me which is the most unhinged thing to say during your statement for a double homicide but he continues I would now like to address another murder that has taken place the murder victim was a male he was honestly a great role model for everyone and anyone who looked up to him. I tortured him. I laughed at him while he died. I beat him to the point of knowing no one could recognize him.
Starting point is 01:14:30 Is he talking about how he pummeled Randall with his fist until he passed out? Then he grabbed a knife and stabbed him and then slit his throat. Is that what he's addressing right now? Johnny continues, That man's name is Jesus Christ. What is going on? He was sent by God to die on the cross and shed his innocent blood so that we could be forgiven for all of our sins. We as the human race can now have fellowship with God,
Starting point is 01:14:55 our Father through his son Jesus, who dies but was risen by the power of God. The judge was not having it. She said, I'm not sure that I've ever imagined such a well-planned, despicable, heinous act to be committed by two such young people. The judge was not having it. She said, that you had parties and ordered Chinese food with two people that you had brutally murdered laying upstairs. Many of Wendy and Randall's family members felt a very deep, cutting sense of betrayal when they found out what happened to them. One of Randall's siblings would say,
Starting point is 01:15:36 Their devotion was so profound it makes the betrayal even more devastating. I wake up in the middle of the night and begin to be haunted by what happened. Was Randall awake when he was attacked? Was he frightened? Was he an agony long? He had endured so many physical trials in his life. Did he die quickly? Did Cassie see his face? Did he see Cassie's face? Somebody loved so much, someone he had been so proud of and someone he had given so much to My heart is still broken thinking about it. At night I wake up and I see dear Wendy. How did she die? She must have died inside first. Seeing Cassie looking into her eyes must have crushed her spirit.
Starting point is 01:16:10 The one person that she was so devoted to. Did Wendy die inside then or was it when she saw her high school sweetheart laying dead next to her? I can only hope that shock numbed her. Johnny and Cassie brutalized her little body and her spirit. What level of disregard and disrespect does it take to do something like that? How could anyone be so maliciously inhumane? I wonder what lack of compassion compels someone to act out such a heinous murder.
Starting point is 01:16:37 I want to forget Wendy's slippers on the fifth stair leading up to the death rooms. Wendy had such tiny feet feet and those little slippers stayed there perched there for days after the murders. Did they stay there while Cassie and Johnny were partying with their friends? I don't want to know. And that is the case of 17 year old Cassandra and 19 year old Johnny. What are your thoughts on it? I just keep getting shocked by these teens that's just so cold-blooded and it makes me scared to have children Yeah, I mean I do think that there Perhaps were things that happened along the way not by wendy and randall, but maybe it was influence of peer's environment
Starting point is 01:17:18 I don't know, but it's just terrifying because these are your flesh and blood. This is your children. These are your children's children your grandchildren Yeah, how can they turn on you like that? Especially when it's so undeserving. I don't know. What are your thoughts? Please leave in the comments be safe and i'll see you guys in the next one. Bye

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