Featured

My First Blog Post

The Missing Valentine: Asha Degree

Hi everyone! My name is Caroline and I’m a big True Crime fanatic. Ever since I was young, I have been absolutely hooked on mysteries. I would read Nancy Drew books in the bathtub in elementary school for hours and then progressed to Agatha Christie novels in middle school, much to my mother’s chagrin. I think she had hoped I would enjoy a topic a bit more tame to be interested in. Sorry mom…

Anyway, with this blog I will be sharing some of my favorite True Crime cases as well as recommending some quality crime podcasts and books I enjoy. Without further ado, I want to tell you about one of the most puzzling cases I have ever came across: Asha Degree.

This case takes place in Shelby, North Carolina on February 14th of 2000. Asha Degree was 9 years old at the time of her disappearance and lived with her parents and brother. On the evening of February 13th, Asha and her brother O’Bryant went to their room they shared to go to sleep around 8 p.m. They were home with only their mother at the time because their father, Harold, worked in the evenings.

Harold returned a little past midnight and checked on the children, which were apparently soundly sleeping. He decided he wanted to unwind for a bit before going to bed and was up until 2:30 a.m. before turning in.

The next morning, Asha’s mother, Iquilla, went to wake the kids up for a bath and only found her son sleeping in the bedroom. She was initially not too worried since they had family close by and thought perhaps Asha went to her grandmother’s home. After realizing she was not with family, a now panicked Iquilla called 911.

It had been badly storming the previous night and search dogs were not able to pick up her scent. They went through her room and found that her backpack along with some clothing was missing from Asha’s room, indicating she had been packing.

It was thought that she had left on her own accord because the doors and windows were locked like they usually were when the family woke up that morning and Asha did have a key.

However, it is definitely worth noting that Asha was not only young, but also sheltered and a generally frightened child. She was very scared of the dark and especially storms and her family thinks it is very unlike her to leave when both of those things were present. Asha was also sheltered as her family was very religious and greatly limited internet use which for some eliminates the idea that an online predator took advantage of her.

Later that evening after Asha still had not been found, her case was broadcasted on the local news. The police received a few different calls saying that a young girl was seen walking with a backpack in the early morning hours on the highway, around 3 a.m. One person even said they tried to stop and call out to her but she ran off into the woods, evidently spooked.

After learning Asha had possibly ran off into the woods, police searched the area and found a shed that appeared as if a young person had been in there. There were multiple candy wrappers, a hair bow, various school supplies, and a picture of a young girl that was not Asha. Asha’s parents confirmed that the hair bow and school supplies were indeed their daughter’s which only heightened the mystery.

Where did Asha go? Was she running from someone? Did she run away from home and meet with foul play? Had someone from the community groomed her and convinced her to meet them at night for a “surprise”? Did her parents have something to do with it?

Investigator’s heads were spinning. More than a year went by with no new leads on where Asha went. In August of 2001, a construction worker digging up some land close to 30 miles away from where Asha was last seen found a child’s backpack.

It was immediately determined to be Asha’s because it had her information on it. Even more disturbing was the way it was found. The backpack was wrapped in multiple bags and buried deeply in the ground. It was a miracle that the construction workers found it at all.

This would be the last update for years until 2016 when police asked for the public to help them find a green 70’s Lincoln car that they believed Asha had gotten into that evening she went missing.

The police also asked for assistance in locating a specific “New Kids on the Block” t-shirt and a Dr.Seuss children’s book checked out from Asha’s elementary school library. Clearly the police have a lead that the public is not privy to involving these items but to this day, no new updates have been provided. It is anyone’s best guess what happened to Asha on Valentine’s Day.

I hope you enjoyed learning about this case. As with all unsolved cases, tell your friends and family about Asha. Someone out there knows something about what happened to this little girl. She deserves justice.

*Please note that this information is from a combination of different sources over the years such as podcasts, missing person reports, and news articles and videos.*

https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/kidnap/asha-jaquilla-degree

MISSING: Asha Degree

#TrueCrime #AshaDegree #NorthCarolina

Tiger King Documentary Review

Hi everyone! Hope you are all doing well. I have recently finished Tiger King on Netflix (along with probably the rest of the world) and have some thoughts on it. By the way, if you haven’t seen it, it’s time to sit down and binge watch it so you can get caught up on all the Twitter memes and Carol Baskin drama.

Let me start off by saying that while this show had some weird twists and turns, I honestly think it is nothing compared to most True Crime series/documentaries. I assume the reason this hit main stream was because one, most of us have nothing better to do and two, this is a heck of a lot more mild than most of the dark True Crime stuff out there.

(Spoiler Alert!) I think that it wasn’t as interesting and juicy as I had hoped. No one died in the supposed murder for hire plot and I guess I really don’t care a ton about big cats (Sorry PETA don’t come for me), so there wasn’t a ton of appeal for me.

Regardless, I watched the whole thing through and thought that Carol Baskin at least does know what happened to her husband. Whether this was because she killed him like everyone likes to think on Twitter or because she just let him leave to go overseas, she probably has a good idea of what happened to him. Parts of me feel bad for her because it was clear she was taken advantage of as a child/young adult but that doesn’t change the stalking of Joe Exotic or the weird husband drama.

In regards to Joe Exotic, I think he definitely had some weird sociopathic tendencies and wanted the attention to always be on him. He seemed like he was someone who thrives on creating and being in the middle of drama.

I found the “big cat world” to be disturbing as most of the big cat men running the facilities were major creepers. I shuddered when I heard about Doc Antle and the way he would treat his female staff members.

All in all, I think this a good introduction/mainstream series for people to dip their toes into the water of the True Crime ocean. Plus, the merchandise that has come out of this show? Absolutely epic (check out some of the white-elephant worthy items, like this “Cup of Joe” coffee cup).

If you’ve watched Tiger King what did you think? Let me know!

Crime and Careers

If you’re reading this blog, chances are you enjoy diving deeper into the world of true crime. You, like me, have probably spent countless hours at one time or another pouring over a certain case that frustrates the living hell out of you. I know I sure have.

As I am about to finish up with college, I am wondering how I can translate my passion for Justice and True Crime into a career.

Personally, one of my dream jobs would be to be the Public Affairs person for the FBI. I am a Public Relations student so this is the love child between PR and a healthy dose of True Crime.

Another job that I desperately wanted growing up was homicide detective (my mom was like ?????). Pretty much every summer, me, my dad (who worked from home) and my older brother would sit on the couch and binge watch the First 48 on A&E. It probably started when I was about 12. I have no idea why they thought it was a great idea to let a 12 year old watch a real life homicide investigation unfold on T.V but it clearly sparked an interest in me.

I was so set on being a homicide detective until my mother one day burst my bubble by telling me you also have to be a cop to do that. I knew I had no desire to be a police officer (I just wanted to be a detective!) so that was out.

Wondering what you can do that involves your interest in True Crime besides the obvious police officer and standard FBI agent?

Lucky for you, I’ve done some of the work so you don’t have to. Boom, you’re welcome.

Do you like science or the T.V show Dexter? Consider being a Blood Spatter Analyst.

Do you enjoy psychology and desperately want to figure out the minds of the most depraved? Consider being a Profiler.

Do you enjoy working solo and think you could be responsible for the safety of others? Consider being a Federal Air Marshall.

Do you like looking at things under a microscope and are probably pretty great at those spot the difference games? Consider being a Fingerprint specialist.

Is your drawing ability quality and do you work quickly? Consider being a Forensic Artist.

I hope these ideas gave you something to think about. Please let me know if any of these inspired you to pursue a different career path!

Things to Keep You Entertained

Hi everyone! Hope you all are holding up well (as well as you can be) in these uncertain and scary times.

I know that for some, this time is not being spent at home because they are essential workers. Thank you to all the grocery store workers, paramedics, gas station attendants, and doctors who are keeping us going. We are very grateful for all you are doing.

For some of us, this pandemic means we are stuck inside more with nothing to do. Even though we probably still have work or school to complete at home, there is no going out to eat or heading to hang out with friends.

This leaves more time for binge watching awesome shows, listening to podcasts, and reading books you haven’t had the chance to.

I have been checking out some awesome books from my local library online. Since I already have a library card, I am able to virtually read all these crime books that I haven’t had the time to read previously.

Here are some of the ones I have been reading or have on my list to read:

I’ll be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara (Finished!)

My Story by Elizabeth Smart

The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule (Finished!)

The Real Lolita by Sarah Weinman

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

Breaking Free by Rachel Jeffs

Burned by Edward Humes

Lost Girls by Robert Kolker

I hope this inspires you to read more during your (possible) extra time at home! Please check out your local library’s webpage to see if you are able to borrow books online for free!

Happy reading!

COVID-19 and Crime

Hello everyone! Hope you all are doing well and staying safe (and inside!) during this really weird and scary time for everyone.

Although the majority of us are staying inside our homes to prevent the spread of the Corona Virus, crime pretty much never stops happening, regardless of who is outside.

Something interesting that is happening right now in cities all across America is inmates are being let out of jail early to prevent the spread of the virus.

I am sure there are plenty of mixed opinions on this decision depending on your thoughts about the prison system.

Personally, I think that this is a good move and smart in the fight to not spread the virus more than is “needed”. I think it is also a smart move because it is only those who have committed low level or victimless offenses getting to leave.

Inmates are people and deserve safety like the general population does. It is a wise decision to protect not only the inmates but also those working in the prison, since new people generally come in and out everyday.

What are your thoughts on COVID-19? How do you feel about low level offenders being released early? Do you think almost everyone should be released or none at all? Let me know below!

In the meantime, keep yourself safe and wash your hands!

Your New Binge Watching Show

If you have Hulu, you’re in luck. My all time favorite crime related show has two seasons on the platform. Even better, if you have cable you’ll be able to log into your cable provider and watch all nine seasons!

What am I talking about you may ask? I’m only referring to one of the greatest shows ever: Disappeared by Investigation Discovery.

If you’re as fascinated by missing person’s cases as I am, you’ll be glued to this show.

This show features many missing person’s cases that are rather well known such as Maura Murray and Bryce Laspisa but also many lesser known cases.

The show’s format usually reenacts part of what is known to have happened in the case as well as interviews from family and friends. Most of the time, you will not know the outcomes at the end of the episode. However, sometimes with the older ones you will be able to look up the case and see that developments have been made (Remains found, suspect arrested, etc.).

Although the show is currently on a break, avid watchers such as myself have our fingers crossed that the show will start back up again soon.

Until then, grab some snacks, a friend, and get to binge watching! Let me know in the comments down below what your favorite episode is!

What the…?

It’s been an interesting past few days to say the least. Last Friday night, I was driving on I- 485 and saw something that made my crime senses go off. On the side of the road, six police officers were parked with no troopers inside. Also on the side of the road was a van with the hazards on and the medical examiner’s car. Now I don’t know about you, but in all my years of living in a big city, I have NEVER seen the medical examiner out and about. I was pretty sure the only thing that the medical examiner does is examine dead bodies but I wanted to check online before I jumped to conclusions.

Sure enough, the only job of the medical examiner is to examine dead people that appear to have died in a possibly suspicious way. I was so intrigued by this considering I had never seen the medical examiner’s car before. Something was definitely going on.

I keep checking the news to see if there has been anything reported about a body found in the area but so far I have come up with nada. I wish there was a way to look at police reports and see what was going on. My best guess is that they have not been able to get into contact with the person’s next of kin. That’s usually the reason the police hold off telling the press about finding a body. I don’t think it’s possible that they had found nothing with that many police officers and the medical examiner there.

I’ll keep you all updated on what I find out in the next few weeks. Does anyone have any similar stories? What weird or unusual events have happened where your crime spidey senses went off? Let me know in the comments below.

Let’s talk about True Crime Podcasts

Between appointments, visiting friends and family, and just general day to day driving, it seems I’m always in the car. For a long time, thinking about how much time I “waste” in the car would make me cringe. However, once I discovered podcasts, the game all changed for me and I started to enjoy my daily commute.

If you like both True Crime and podcasts, odds are you have heard of some of these podcasts. Below I am going to tell you some of my favorite shows and my favorite episodes from them. If you give any of them a listen, feel free to let me know your thoughts in the comments down below.

Crime Junkie: This podcast is my absolute favorite. I eagerly await Monday mornings when a new episode is released. The show is hosted by two women who are childhood best friends: Ashley Flowers and Britt Prawat. Crime Junkie covers it all: Murders, Serial Killers, Missing Persons Cases, Wanted, and Conspiracy theories.

Recommended Crime Junkie episode(s): (I had to do two for this podcast, I couldn’t help it!) 81: SERIAL KILLER: Israel Keyes and MISSING: Maura Murray (Part 1).

Sword and Scale: This podcast is for the more intense True Crime fan. Most of these episodes are really dark, so take caution. However, it is fascinating (in a horrible looking at a car wreck sort of way) to see to what some humans will do to others.

Recommended Sword and Scale episode: Episode 124 Kirsten Hatfield.

Hostage: This podcast covers hostage situations in all forms whether it is a kidnapping or prisoner of war. The Parcast Network definitely produces well-researched pieces and this show is no exception.

Recommended Hostage episode: The Ariel Castro Kidnappings Pt. 1: Michelle Knight

Serial Killers: As the name suggests, this show gets dark- quick. However, it is very factual and provides insight into the psychological state of the killer and why they did what they did (Childhood, mental state, etc.). P.S: The one I linked will really creep you out.

Recommended Serial Killers episode: The Toy-Box Killer

Gone: This podcast is more mystery based than True Crime per say but it makes for an interesting and rather mild show compared to these other ones mentioned above. I recommend this for a casual True Crime or mystery fan!

Recommended Gone episode: The Alcatraz Escape