"SHOCKING ACQUITTAL, FAMILY FURY & TEN YEARS OF JUSTICE: Four Verdicts That Shattered America"

0:00 Warning. This episode contains references to sexual situations that may be disturbing to some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Callarogus Shock Media. Good morning, I'm Read Carter, and welcome to Celebrity Trials on this Thursday, July tenth. Today we're diving into four verdicts that prove justice comes in all forms, sometimes shocking, sometimes satisfying, and sometimes leaving everyone asking how the hell did that happen. We've got a Connecticut teen who walked free after stabbing four people at a party, families at war over a killer's plea deal, a monster who thought dismemberment was the perfect crime, and a ten year mystery that finally found its ending. Let me start with the verdict that has Connecticut in absolute shock, because, folks, what happened in a Milford courtroom yesterday proves that sometimes self defense claims can overcome even the most damning evidence.

1:03 The prep school killer walks free. Picture This Wednesday afternoon, July ninth, a Connecticut jury finds Raoul Valet not guilty of murder in the death of Fairfield Prep student James McGrath and assaults of three others. The twelve person jury returned the verdicts after two days of deliberations. Let me take you back to what should have been a slam dunk case for prosecutors. Valet, accused of murder in the fatal stabbing of James McGrath at a Shelton party in twenty twenty two, testified that he felt terrified and helpless as he was on the ground getting kicked and punched by a group of teens at a house party with a knife in his pocket. He said he took it out and began waving the knife in every direction, flailing his arms to try to get people to get off of him. But here's what makes this case so infuriating.

1:54 Vale had stabbed Ryan Hines, puncturing his lung, as well as faise On Teelee in his arms and Thomas Tommy Connery in his leg four times, four people stabbed, one dead, and the jury said not guilty. The jury in the Raoul Valet trial was deadlocked on all charges, including the stabbing death of James McGrath and three others at a Shelton house party in twenty twenty two. After the judge ordered them to continue deliberating, the jury requested to listen to Vale's testimony again. The case started with teenage drama that escalated into deadly violence. Witnesses testified that what started as teenage tension exploded into an all out brawl. Valey pulled out a knife and stabbed four people in the scuffle.

2:43 Three survived, James McGrath did not. The jury found Valet not guilty of murder and intentional manslaughter, but were hopelessly deadlocked on a lesser included reckless manslaughter charge. The jury also found Valet not guilty of intentional first degree assault in the stabbings of Ryan Hines and Thomas Connery, but were deadlocked on the charges of reckless first degree assault. As the verdicts were announced, McGrath's father, Kevin McGrath, sat still in the second row of the courtroom's gallery, a blank expression on his face. Outside the courthouse, Kevin McGrath said he was shocked, while commending the prosecutors who handled the case. Here's what bothers me most about this verdict.

3:26 Vale admitted to just stabbing in every direction. That's not self defense, that's reckless endangerment that turned deadly. But the jury bought his story that he was overwhelmed and fighting for his life. The prosecution had video evidence, witness testimony, and Valet's own admissions, but Connecticut's self defense laws require that the force used be proportionate and that retreat be impossible. Apparently, the jury believed Vale couldn't retreat and had no choice but to start stabbing. James McGrath was seventeen years old, a fair Field Prep student with his whole life ahead of him, and yesterday his killer walked free because twelve people decided that bringing a knife to a fistfight was justified self defense. Now let me take you to Idaho, where Brian Coburger's guilty plea has torn victim families apart and raised serious questions about prosecutorial priorities. For thirty months, Brian Coburger and his defense attorneys insisted on his innocence in the fatal stabbings of four University of Idaho students.

4:32 The remarkable change of plea hearing cements a deal that allows Coburger to avoid the death penalty by admitting guilt to charges of burglary and first degree murder in the killings of Ethan Chapin, Zana Kernodle, Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogan. But this wasn't justice, it was legal convenience. Steve Goncalves, father of victim Kailee Goncalves, said, Idaho has failed. They failed me, They failed my whole fan The dad of twenty one year old victim Kailee Goncalves, blasted the move, accusing the prosecutors of mishandling and rushing the plea deal. Steve Goncalves set outside court that the prosecution made a deal with the devil, and later told ABC News he feels like he let his daughter down. The families are split down the middle. Chapin's and Mogen's families support the deal.

5:26 We now embark on a new path. We embark on a path of hope and healing, Mogan's family said in a statement. But the Gonkalf's family is furious, and rightfully so. Kaylee Gonkalv's eighteen year old sister, Aubrey Gonkalv's said in a Facebook post that Brian Koberger facing a life in prison means he would still get to speak, form relationships and engage with the world. Meanwhile, our loved ones have been silenced forever. Here's what prosecutor Bill Thompson revealed about Coburger's planning, phone records that placed him near the victim's home, and an account of how he moved through the home on the night of the killings. Thompson also revealed that prosecutors still do not know whether Coburger entered the home with the intent of killing all four students. The evidence was overwhelming. The defendant has studied crime. He did a detailed paper on crime scene processing when he was working on his PhD, and he had that knowledge skill set.

6:29 Several key questions were left unaddressed, including what drove Coburger to carry out the killings, why he targeted the students, and why two other roommates were spared. The families of the four victims, who have desperately awaited answers they believed would be revealed at trial, remained torn over the outcome of the deal. Steve Goncalve's is right to be furious. For nine hundred sixty two days, this monster insisted on his innocence. Then, when faced with a trial where the evidence would finally be laid bare, he took the coward's way out. No explanation, no apology, no answers for the families who've been waiting for justice. Prosecutors say they wanted to spare the families the trauma of a trial, but what they really did was spare themselves the work of a death penalty case and gave a quadruple murderer exactly what he wanted, life in prison instead of the execution he deserved. Now the Shawde Robinson case, on Friday, June sixth, a jury found Maxwell Andersen guilty on all counts, including first degree intentional homicide in the death and dismemberment of Shawde Robinson. The jury of nine women and three men found Andersen guilty of first degree intentional homicide, mutilating a corpse, hiding a corpse, and arson of property other than a building.

7:49 This case shows what real justice looks like when prosecutors and investigators do their jobs right. The two met at Twisted Fishermen on April first, twenty twenty four. Footage from the restaurant shows them getting dinner and drinks. After that, phone records and video surveillance footage found they went to a bar in downtown Milwaukee and then later to Anderson's home on the city's south side, but what happened next reveals the true monster Anderson was. There were photos Anderson took of Robinson that show her incapacitated on Anderson's couch. She is face down, the prosecutor said about the photos. Her face is buried in his couch cushion. He has her breast exposed, and he is grabbing her, grabbing her right breast, the breast that would later be cut off of her body. It took the jurors less than an hour to reach its decision. Anderson is scheduled to be sentenced in August. Anderson did not testify during the trial.

8:45 His defense team did not present any witnesses. During his closing argument, Anderson's defense attorney, Anthony Cotton, said his client had no intent to kill Robinson, but the evidence told a different story. According to the assistant and district attorney, authorities recovered photos from Anderson's phone that showed him groping Robinson as she lay face down on his couch. The prosecutor described the victim as incapacitated, saying she was not able to resist. The jury, made up of nine women and three men, deliberated for forty five minutes over two days before returning the verdict, Anderson is set to be sentenced on August fifteen. In Wisconsin, a conviction of first degree homicide carries a mandatory life sentence. Robinson's mother, Sheena Scarborough, said of the verdict, it's such a heavy weight. There's no such thing as justice. We don't have her. This is what happens when the system works. Thorough investigation, overwhelming evidence, and a jury that saw through a pathetic defense. Maxwell Anderson will spend the rest of his life in prison, which is exactly where he belongs. Back in a moment, welcome back to celebrity trials. I'm reed, Carter, and we're ending today with a case that proves sometimes justice takes a decade, but it's worth the wait. After a quick

10:17 jury deliberation, Brooks Howk and Joseph Lawson were found guilty in the Crystal Rogers murder case on Tuesday morning. The jury recommended a sentence of life for Hawck and twenty five years for Lawson. For ten years, the people of Bardstown, Kentucky have been haunted by one question. What happened to Kristel Rogers? July third, twenty fifteen. Crystal Rogers last scene alive at Huck family farm with Brooks Huck. July fifth, twenty fifteen, Rogers car found on the side of the Bluegrass Parkway with a flat tire. Her keys, purse, and phone were still inside. Brooks Howk, Rogers's ex boyfriend, was originally charged with murder and tampering with physical evidence. Jurors convicted Howk on tampering and a different murder charge, murder principle or accomplice. Essentially, it means jurors found him guilty of murder but couldn't determine if he killed Rogers or played a role in her murder. Lawson was charged with conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence. Jurors found him guilty on both charges. His father, Steve Lawson, was convicted on similar charges back in May. The evidence that convicted them was devastating. Evidence presented in court revealed that a hair similar to Crystal Rogers was found in the trunk. According to the prosecution, the car was spotted near the Hawk family farm the night Crystal Rogers vanished on July third, twenty fifteen. The prosecution's case relies on circumstantial evidence. They hoped jurors will recognize that Howck repeatedly

11:51 lied about his whereabouts when Cristel disappeared, and that Howck and the Lawsons were communicating the night she vanished and into the early hours of July fourth. But the most powerful moment came during the penalty phase. Kylie Fenwick, Roger's second oldest daughter, testified during the penalty phase. I've waited a long time for this, Fenwick told jurors from the witness stand. I just want you all to be fair and go with what's in your heart. Jurors returned just five minutes later with a life sentence recommendation on the murder charge for Hawk and five years on tampering to be served consecutively. Joseph Lawson was recommended to receive twenty years on conspiracy and five years on tampering consecutively. Rogers's family returned home to Bardstown Tuesday evening to locals lining the streets dressed in pink, the young mother's favorite color. Crystal.

12:44 Rogers's oldest daughter, Ashley Miller of Owensboro, was fourteen at the time her mother vanished. I remember riding in her car singing music to the top of our lungs, going to the pool and going to chuck e cheese all the time, Miller told reporters after the verdict. But here's what still haunts this case. Prosecutors maintained that Rogers was killed on the Hawk family farm, although her remains have never been discovered. Ten years later, Crystal Rogers is still missing. Her family has justice, but they don't have closure. Special Prosecutor Shane Young implored the jury to give the maximum sentence to Hawk and Lawson, arguing that Hawk engineered the conspiracy to gain custody of the young son he and Rogers shared, and that he paid fifty thousand dollars to Lawson to move Roger's car. They planned to kill her, get rid of her, and make it look like she just left. Young told jurors what connects these four cases is the stark reminder that justice isn't a math equation.

13:49 It's a human process with all the flaws that entails. In Connecticut, a jury looked at a teenager who admitted to stabbing four people and decided he was the victim. That's not justice, that's jury nullification. Based on sympathy for a young defendant who cried the right tears at the right time. In Idaho, prosecutors traded the death penalty for legal convenience, leaving victim families split and a killer who gets to live while his victims don't. Sometimes the system protects itself more than it protects victims. In Milwaukee, detectives and prosecutors did everything right. They built an airtight case, presented overwhelming evidence, and secured justice for shot A. Robinson.

14:30 That's how the system is supposed to work. And in Kentucky, ten years of patient investigation finally paid off Brooks Hawk thought he'd gotten away with the perfect crime. He was wrong. The truth has a way of surfacing even after a decade. These cases remind us that American justice is deeply imperfect. Sometimes the guilty walk free because juries by self defense claims that defy common sense. Sometimes victims' families are betrayed by pros secutors who prioritize efficiency over accountability. And sometimes, if we're lucky, the system works exactly as it should. Tomorrow, we'll dive deeper into the psychology of family annihilators and examine new developments in the shawan Comb sentencing, where oj Simpson's lawyer warns Diddy could face substantial prison time when he's sentenced on October third, exactly thirty years after the OJ verdict that changed everything. That's celebrity trials for today.

15:29 I'm read Carter. Remember justice isn't always swift, and it's not always satisfying, but it's always riveting and sometimes just sometimes it's exactly what the victims deserved. See you tomorrow,