Robin Lyons's Blog: Research Blog

It’s sad for everyone when a couple with a child divorces. When a divorce is contentious, it’s even worse. Then add to the drama the ex-wife’s new boyfriend, who is arrogant and full of himself—her friends had a bad feeling about him.

If you’re like me and know little about how law enforcement actually functions, then I’m sure this true crime will blow your mind as much as it did mine.

A 39-year-old married police officer, father of two young children, and field-training officer sat in his police vehicle in a residential neighborhood with a rookie in training.

It’s hard to believe that a highly educated man would think he could hire a contract-killing on his partner and get away with it nowadays. And he wasn’t just highly educated—he was a practicing attorney.

The man in this true crime lived where peacocks roamed his neighborhood. As he stepped outside to leave for work, he saw two men harassing a muster of peacocks across the street from his home. He asked them to stop.

The two first met in a Christian group while attending college. At first, the man’s messages and invitations seemed awkward but harmless. The woman declined his advances and attempted to move on with her life. But his interest in her didn’t stop.

You’ve heard about the grandparent scam, where fraudsters call and say your grandchild has been in an accident and needs money or has been arrested and needs bail money. I doubt you’ve heard whether the criminals are ever caught and punished.

People naturally open their doors when someone on the other side knocks or rings the bell. We naturally trust people. It’s built into our DNA until someone compromises that trust, but until they do, we open the door.

Both business partners had former drug trafficking convictions. They had been associated for over twenty years. Both should have been skeptical that a new business idea in which they agreed to become partners might be unsuccessful. They formed the partnership.

A young couple—the father was 41 years old and the mother, 37 years old. In the backseat of their car as they parked near a pizza place were two of their three children—a son, age eleven, and a daughter, age seven.