Plot Twist Podcast: A Grave Affair
Plot Twist Podcast: A Grave Affair
Jenelle Vincent & Morgan Leper
A podcast about everything that happens the funeral home and beyond- death, decomposition, and the macabre. We’re digging deep into stories you’ve never heard before, visiting unique burial sites, and shining light onto funerary scandals. And there may or may not be a little bit of wine involved...
S2 E14: Cadaver Dogs
If you listen to enough true crime podcasts, you've probably heard multiple cases where cadaver dogs played a role. But we wanted to know what happens before a dog even gets to its first case... we're looking into how they're trained and some examples of how cadaver dogs fit into the justice system.Resources:Cid Torrez vs. State of Florida, casetext.com"Cadaver detection dogs: A review of their capabilities and the volatile organic compound profile of their associated training aids" by Rushali Dargon and Shari L Forbes, WIREs Forensic Science"What the dog smelled: The science and mystery of cadaver dogs" by Chris Oke, CBC News"What to Know About Cadaver Dogs" by Laura Mueller, The Spruce Pets"Experts: Cadaver dogs 95 percent accurate, can smell remains 15 feet underground" by John O'Brien, Syracuse.com"What goes into training a cadaver dog" by Mason Brighton, Spectrum News 1"Here’s How Cadaver Dogs Are Trained To Find Dead Bodies" by Drusilla Moorhouse"Sully the 'rock star' cadaver dog at centre of Douglas Garland triple murder trial on Monday" by Meghan Grant, CBC News
Dec 4, 2023
44 min
S2 E13: Eternal Tenure- University Cemeteries
American universities are giving a new meaning to dark academia with the rise of on-campus burials. We’re discussing our feelings about spending eternity at our alma maters, and revealing a conspiracy behind a historical college cemetery. Don’t miss our stories about the people who never left their college campus!References:“College Campuses with Cemeteries”, collegetimes.co“Fordham University History”, Fordham.edu“Jesuit Cemetery, Fordham University” by Mary French, New York City Cemetery Project“Who’s Buried at Fordham?” by Bob Fetterhoff, The Ram Newspaper“A Grave Place, ISU’s Cemetery Stands Alone” by Carrie Sutton, Iowa State Daily“Cemetery History”, iastate.edu“ISU’s Cemetery is a Rare Landmark” by Sara Tennessen, Iowa State Daily
Nov 10, 2023
41 min
Mini Episode: Graveyard Ghost Stories
For our second annual Halloween mini episode, we brought our friend John along for the cemetery shenanigans as we try to out-spook each other with (somewhat) true ghost stories.
Nov 1, 2023
20 min
S2 E12: Green Cemeteries- A Forest of Graves
How can we make the funeral industry more environmentally friendly? We took a trip to one of only ten conservation cemeteries in the United States to find out! Morgan will go over some of the most glaring problems when it comes to human burials, and Jenelle will explain some greener options (and debunk some myths too).
Sep 8, 2023
56 min
S2 E11: Breaking Story- Body Snatcher Suspect Arrested
An underground body snatching ring revealed? The body snatching story we covered in episode 9 goes deeper than we thought. We have some inside information as a recent suspect in the case has been right under our noses all along.References: "Bullitt County Man Arrested and Charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon" Press release from U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Kentucky"Harvard Medical School Morgue Manager Sold Body Parts, U.S. Says" by Michael Levinson, New York Times"Families sue Harvard over theft of body parts from morgue, saying loved ones were picked over ‘like trinkets at a flea market’" by Minyvonne Burke, NBC News"Grisly scene: FBI finds stolen human remains 'decorated' around Mount Washington man's home" by Joseph Garcia, Taylor Woods, WHAS News 11"FBI finds human remains 'decorated' around Bullitt County man's home during search" by Matthew Keck, WLKY"Bones used as decor in home of Kentucky man linked to Harvard Medical School human remains scheme" by Andrew Wolfson, USA Today"Investigators find stolen human remains as decorations in man’s house" by Jessica Goodman, Boston 25 News2 separate oddities sales Facebook groups
Aug 3, 2023
48 min
S2 E10: Radioactive Corpses
Ever wonder how bodies are handled after a nuclear accident? Radioactive corpses may be more common than you think, with certain cancer treatments leaving patients with radiation in their bodies after death. We're looking into guidelines for handling these situations, and what happens when they're not followed.Resources:"Here’s why you shouldn’t cremate radioactive dead people" by Beth Mole, ArsTechnica"Radiation Contamination Following Cremation of a Deceased Patient Treated With a Radiopharmaceutical" by Nathan Y. Yu, MD1; William G. Rule, MD1; Terence T. Sio, MD, MS1; et al- Journal of the American Medical Association"A Radioactive Dead Body Contaminated An Arizona Crematorium" by Zahra Hirji, BuzzfeedSafety Information, Lutathera website"Brachytherapy", my.clevelandclinic.orglutetium 177 medication profile, Lexicomp"Radiation Safety Concerns in Brachytherapy", nrc.gov"Richard Leroy McKinley- Specialist 4th Class, United States Army" by Michael Robert Patterson, Arlington National CemeteryUniversity Hospitals of Cleveland resources"Medical Examiners / Coroners: Information for Radiation Emergencies", Radiation Emergency Medical Management, US Department of Health and Human Services"Guidelines for Handling Decedents Contaminated with Radioactive Materials", CDC"SL-1: America's First Nuclear Disaster", Kyle Hill on YouTube
Jul 13, 2023
44 min
S2 E9: Body Snatchers 3: A Social Media Scandal
We're back with another corpse stealing scandal! A man was selling human remains on a social media page, and it turns out they were sourced from a mortuary worker who was harvesting them directly from the bodies she worked with. We infiltrated some online oddities groups to see if we could find some human remains for sale- and we were surprised by what we found.Resources:"Historical skulls, other body parts being sold on Facebook — report" by TOI staff, Times of Israel"Sicko sold stolen body parts on Facebook: cops" by Snejana Farberov, New York Post"Judge orders mental evaluation for local woman accused of selling body parts on Facebook" by Mary Hennigan, Arkansas Times"Arkansas woman accused of selling human body parts via Facebook messenger arrested" by 5NEWS Web Staff, 5 NewsOnlinejeremyleepauley.comthegrandwunderkammer.comThe Grand Wunderkammer Facebook pagemultiple "oddities" Facebook groups
Jun 21, 2023
49 min
S2 E8: Colorado’s Fire and Ice Funerals
Inspired by our trip to Colorado, we looked into a couple of post- mortem options that are unique to the state: fire and ice. Learn about the Frozen Dead Guy Days and the United States’ only public open-air cremation site in this episode!Resources:frozendeadguydays.com“Frozen Dead Guy/ 100 Wonders/ Atlas Obscura”, Atlas Obscura on YouTubecrestoneendoflifeproject.org“Crestone End-of-Life Project”, Atlas Obscura.“Crestone End-of-Life Project”, fourcornersgeotourism.com“How did the Vikings Honor their Dead?” by Thaddeus Morgan, history.com“Bronze Age Cremation Burials and Funeral Practices at Carmanhall, Co. Dublin” by Fiona Reilly, Anna Brindley, Denise Keating and Penny Johnston“The Complete Guide to Buddhist Burial Practices and Rituals”, Better Place ForestsUnited States Census Bureau: Crestone, Colorado
May 24, 2023
54 min
S2 E7: Taxidermied People
This episode, we're talking taxidermy- human taxidermy. We'll be covering two of the most famous examples of human taxidermy attempts in recent history, and discussing the ethics of the practice. "English Philosopher’s Dressed-Up Skeleton Goes on View in New Glass Display" by Theresa Machemer, Smithsonian Magazine"El Negro reburied in Botswana", news24.com"Auto-Icon"- Bentham Project, ucl.ac.uk"The History of Taxidermy", all-taxidermy.com"The Man Stuffed and Displayed like a Wild Animal" by Frank Westerman, BBC"Why Philosopher Jeremy Bentham's Severed, Stolen, and Poorly Preserved Head is Back on Display", CBC.ca"Why are there No Human Taxidermies?", technology.org Video: "The Man Who Had Himself Taxidermied: Jeremy Bentham", Tom ScottVideo: "Ask a Mortician: Human Taxidermy?", Ask a MorticianAshley Eve on YouTube
May 6, 2023
43 min
S2 E6: American Catacombs
Under the streets of the city that never sleeps, there is an underground burial room in the basement of an unassuming church. Join us as we explore the catacomb's dark tunnels and learn about the burial ban that led to its creation.Resources: "For $7M, spend the afterlife in a crypt at Nolita’s Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral" by Dana Schulz, 6sqft.com"No Burial Line of 1832" by Liz Volavka, History of Health in New York"19th Century Knock Seer Gets Grave of His Own at Old St. Patrick’s Cemetery" by Christie L. Chicoine, Catholic New York"New York’s First Cathedral: The Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral" by Joyce Mendelsohn and James E. Garrity, oldcathedral.org"Pierre Toussaint", slaveryandremembrance.org"Venerable Pierre Toussaint", Archdiocese of New York WebsiteDictionary.comMerriam-Webster Dictionary Notes from "Catacombs by Candlelight" Tour (https://takeawalk.com)
Apr 12, 2023
46 min
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