The Misery Machine - The Case of Aiden Hutchins + Hannah Griner

Episode Date: September 29, 2023

This week, Drewby and Yergy head down to Florida to discuss the case of Aiden Hutchins and his half-sister, Hannah Griner. Aiden was supposed to live with his father, Nick Hutchins, here in Maine... But when his ex-wife, Brandy Hutchins, refused to turn the little boy over, Nick headed to Florida to bring his son home. However, when he arrived, Brandy and the kids were nowhere to be found. Shortly after, the Polk County Sheriff's Department received a tip that led them to a trailer where Brandy was hiding out with Aiden and Hannah in tow. However, when deputies arrived on scene, Brandy had done the unthinkable... Support Our Patreon For More Unreleased Content: https://www.patreon.com/themiserymachine PayPal: https://www.paypal.me/themiserymachine Join Our Facebook Group: https://t.co/DeSZIIMgXs?amp=1 Instagram: miserymachinepodcast Twitter: misery_podcast Discord: https://discord.gg/kCCzjZM #themiserymachine #podcast #truecrime Source Material: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=6640186639394466 https://fox23maine.com/news/instagram/maine-father-shares-devastating-story-10-year-old-son-murder-mother-sister-florida-custody-battle-suicide-aiden-hutchins https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12456953/Florida-mom-Brandy-Hutchins-kills-kids-losing-custody.html https://www.facebook.com/dylan.kirk.3597 https://www.facebook.com/hannah.griner.3 https://www.facebook.com/lily.shrine https://www.facebook.com/hutchins.race https://www.gofundme.com/f/3ax7k-justice-for-aiden?member=29085119&sharetype=teams&utm_campaign=p_na+share-sheet&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100069064531848 https://amberalert.ojp.gov/about/guidelines-for-issuing-alerts https://lawandcrime.com/crime/absolutely-devastating-for-everyone-florida-mom-murdered-son-and-daughter-in-mobile-home-after-losing-custody-battle/ https://ufhealth.org/baker-act#:~:text=The%20Baker%20Act%20is%20a,determine%20their%20needs%20for%20treatment. https://www.facebook.com/polkcountysheriff https://www.redbull.com/us-en/utv-racing-guide https://spectrumnews1.com/ca/la-west/news/2023/09/01/jay-father-mourns-son-s-murder-in-florida https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/tragic-custody-battle-ends-in-horror-florida-mother-kills-children-self-101693500247278.html https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crime/florida-brandy-hutchins-murder-suicide-b2400730.html https://nypost.com/2023/08/29/florida-mom-kills-kids-self-in-apparent-murder-suicide-after-losing-custody-battle/ https://cafemom.com/news/mom-killed-her-kids-herself-amid-custody-dispute https://www.sportskeeda.com/pop-culture/news-what-brandy-hutchins-do-florida-mom-kills-children-suspected-double-murder-suicide https://abc3340.com/news/nation-world/florida-mother-kills-children-herself-after-court-order-to-return-son-to-father-jay-maine-aiden-hutchinson-custody-battle-polk-county-florida-judicial-system https://www.pressherald.com/2023/08/29/florida-mother-kills-2-children-herself-over-court-order-to-return-son-to-father-in-maine-sheriff-says/ https://www.sunjournal.com/2023/08/31/jay-father-mourns-sons-murder-in-florida-hopes-to-bring-changes-to-court-system/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandy-hutchins-267b5011a https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mory4CuCumI&ab_channel=NEWSCENTERMaine  

10-year-old Aden Hutchins was supposed to have a new life in rural Maine. According to his father, Nick Hutchins, it was a fresh beginning for him, and he was looking forward to it. Nick had recently been granted primary custody of Aden, who had been living with his ex-wife, 43-year-old Brandy Hutchins, and his 19-year-old half-sister, Hannah Greiner, in Florida. Nick was a native of Jay Maine who had moved to Florida in 2006 to attend the Motorcycle Mechanics Institute in Orlando. It was there in the sunshine state that he met Brandy, who was a sickle mom. The two were married for a short period of time after the birth of Aden, but subsequently split up. Nick returned to Maine in 2016 and took a job at Central Maine Power Sports in Auburn

before taking his current job at Mountainside Power Sports in Wilton. Aside from being a mechanic, Nick also loved racing UTVs. Nick had always fought to be part of his son's life and had done so since 2006. He traveled with his father Bruce multiple times from Maine to Florida to be with his son during the holidays, only to be disappointed when Brandy would blatantly refuse to follow court-ordered visitation. But rather than throwing his hands up, Nick kept trying. He always wanted the best for Aiden, and now it looked like that was becoming a reality. On Wednesday, August 30th, Aden was supposed to start his first day of fifth grade at Spruce Mountain Elementary School,

the home of the Phoenix. Brandy, who worked as an insurance adjuster, was supposed to travel to Maine with Aden on August 21st, 2023. But when Brandy didn't show up, Nick filed an emergency court order, which granted him permission to take custody of his son. A Florida judge ordered Brandy to hand Aden over at the Polk Police Station by Friday the 25th with the 6 p.m. deadline. The day prior, Nick, Bruce, and a friend loaded up his truck, and they all made the 24-hour drive

from Jay Main to Lake Wales, Florida. But when the father made it down to Florida, Brandy was nowhere to be found. Either was Aiden. Like many cases we've covered recently, Aden did not meet the criteria for an Amber Alert. According to the Department of Justice, the criteria for issuing an Amber Alert are as follows. There is reasonable belief by law enforcement that an abduction has occurred. The law enforcement agency believes that the child is in an imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death. There is enough descriptive information about the victim and the abduction for law enforcement to

issue an Amber Alert to assist in the recovery of the child. The abduction is of a child aged 17 years or younger. The child's name and other critical data elements, including the child abduction flag, have been entered into the National Crime Information Center system. It's unclear if there were other key points that excluded Aden from an Amber Alert. The law enforcement didn't have reason to believe that the 10-year-old was in any imminent danger. This might be because Brandy had no prior criminal history. She had no history of violence toward her children or unlawful.

and no history of mental health issues that would warrant the Baker Act. For those unfamiliar, the Baker Act is a Florida law that enables families and loved ones to provide emergency mental health services and temporary detention for people who are impaired because of their mental illness and who are unable to determine their needs for treatment. This wasn't the case with Brandy at all, and Hannah wouldn't have qualified for an Amber Alert due to her being 19. So where were they? A frantic search for Brandy, Aidan, and Hannah ensued over the weekend. Detectives were worked around the clock so that Nick could take his little boy back home with him to Maine.

According to Sheriff Grady Judd, on top of looking for Aden, his department pinged phones. What was curious, however, is the lack of public awareness that Aden was even missing. If you Google his name, there were no news articles published that indicated the little boy was even missing at all. Even the Polk County Sheriff's Department Facebook page, which is very active, was devoid up anything regarding Aidan Hutchins. Instead, friends and loved ones took to social media, making posts and reaching out to anyone that might have any idea where Aidan, Brandy, or Hannah were.

But on Sunday, August 27th, police received a tip that led them to believe that the mother was hiding out in a trailer with her children. It's been noted in some publications that the tip was the result of one of Nick's social media posts being shared 178 times. At about 12.30 p.m., sheriff's deputies made their way over to a mobile home located in the Waverly neighborhood, just 12 minutes north of Lake Wales proper. However, they made a grim discovery, one that Sheriff Grady Judd called absolutely devastating for everyone, including his deputies who responded to the tragic scene. Inside of the trailer, the bodies of Aden Hutchins, Brandy Hutchins,

and Hannah Grina were located. All had sustained gunshot wounds that proved to be fatal. Brandy had shot both of her children in cold blood, and then carried the same deed out of her on herself. In a press conference that same day, Sheriff Grady Judge shared the tragic news. Hello, everyone. I don't know what channel just find it. Sheriff Grady Judd here, I'm going to release some information to you that is absolutely devastating for everyone. For the investigative team that's work in this case, but first and foremost for the family. This started as a domestic event whereby an ex-husband and an ex-wife were dealing with child custody. And to get to the bottom line, this last Thursday, the ex-husband had come down from Maine

to appear in court with his ex-wife because she had not appropriately turned over custody of their 10-year-old, beautiful little boy. So the judge listened to the arguments and directed her to turn over the child at this district station by Friday afternoon at 6 o'clock. Well, Friday afternoon at 6 o'clock came and went, and the child was not turned over pursuant to the judge's order. Let me underscore this point in front.

time there was absolutely zero evidence in the court order or testimony that there was any violence or threat of violence or danger. So when the child was not turned over, then late on Friday night, we were notified that she was in violation of the court order. Well, our detectives did something that normally does not occur. Our detectives worked through the weekend to try to find this 10-year-old little boy so we could turn him over according to the court order to his father so his father

could take him back to the state of Maine. We pinged phones. We'd look for the child. The friends also did some social media. On the social media, they said hey, if you've seen the child,

let us know. Will we get a call today? and arrive at a residence at about 1230 this afternoon. When we arrive at the residence at 1230, the information we had was that she is inside this mobile home with her 19-year-old daughter and her 10-year-old son. And the 19-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son or have different fathers.

Here's what we know. Brandy Hutchins, the mother of the 10-year-old, the mother of the 19-year-old, from every indication in our investigation now, has murdered her 10-year-old child and her 19-year-old child. Murdered them. I can't imagine a more horrific set of circumstances. My heart breaks for all of the family. We're devastated for this beautiful 10-year-old child, all because mom did not want to turn the child over to the rightful father pursuant to a court order. Now, what's interesting about this, she has no criminal history.

She has no history of Baker Acts. There was no indication that there should be any violence. But it was violent. This was a domestic event, a court ordered event where she had to turn custody over to the ex-husband, and she wasn't going to do that. So she murdered the 10-year-old. The 19-year-old daughter was there and murdered her as well. There's a lot of investigation to still occur.

But I can tell you this, we're heartbroken and devastated over this horrible. horrible, horrible event. At 4.44 p.m., Nick took the Facebook to share the tragic news. He said, It is with a heavy heart that I am writing this to give everyone an update about my son, Aden Hutchins, who was missing and taken by his mother on August 25, 2023, decided to murder him. He was killed by her today, August 27, 2023. He will forever be in my heart and did not deserve this.

Rest in peace, my sweet boy. I will see you again. I love you. In the wake of Hannah Greiner's death, her devastated boyfriend, Dylan Kirk, posted dozens of photographs of his late girlfriend whom he described as a soulmate. He said, I love you, Hannah. I miss you so much, what I would do to just hear your voice one more time, to get a hug one more time, to hear you say I love you one more time, I would do anything to have you here.

I'm so sorry. And I love you, Hannah. I feel so bad I wasn't there to protect you. I never thought this would happen. We were supposed to be forever. But we still will be, I'm going to love you to the day I die, Hannah. I love you so much till I see you again.

A go-fund me was started by Michael Orand on behalf of Bruce and Nick Hutchins. According to Michael, the money will be used for legal fees to fight this system, so hopefully this doesn't happen to anyone else. Paying for funeral expenses, paying for my friend Nick to take off work to grieve during this hard time.

As of the date of this recording, the fundraiser has collected, over $6,000 of his $10,000 goal. According to Nick, in his eyes, the court system failed, and we're inclined to agree. Brandy never gave a good reason to the court as to why she didn't want to allow him time with his son. From the looks of it, they never seemed to take matters seriously when the mother deliberately ignored court-ordered visitation. He said, quote, I'm never going to be whole again. I wanted him to get a good education, spend quality time with him, and to give him the quality

of life he deserved, end quote. Nick wants to make changes to the court system in the Amber Alert system. According to the father, we can honor him and get some changes made. Aidan's memory needs to live on. As the story is still developing, we'll keep an eye out for updates as they become available. There has to be more to this story than what's been currently released. Drewby and I are native Mainers, and the J area is rather special place to me. I have friends whose kids would have been Aden's classmates.

Our hearts are with Nick Hutchins and his family as they mourn the loss of Aden and hope that they will soon be able to finally bring him home so that he can rest in peace.