Episode 196: Colleen Slemmer | The Cult of Christa

On January 13, 1995 Detectives in Knoxville, TN arrived at a murder scene in Tyson Park. This was unlike anything they had ever seen before. In the dirt leading up to the victim’s body they found finger marks, which implied the victim had been physically dragged to a more remote location while fighting desperately to save her life. Her clothes were strewn up in the surrounding trees, covered in blood, and she had been beaten horrifically and slashed with what they assumed as a knife. She had a deep impact wound on the left side of her head and it appeared that brain matter was visible.  This was a brutal murder and they knew it would rock the community of Knoxville, especially because the victim was college aged, and they had many universities and post high school programs located around them. But what the detectives feared far more than fielding phone calls from concerned parents was the fact that, in the midst of America’s ‘Satanic Panic’, their victim had a pentagram carved into her chest.  Sponsors: IQBAR To get your 20% off, just text TCC to 64-000 Acorns Head to acorns.com/tcc or download the Acorns app to start saving and investing for your future today! Sources: A Love to Die For by Patricia Springer Amazon Link for book https://casetext.com/case/state-v-shipp-13 Newspapers.com Access to TN newspapers  https://myfox8.com/news/court-upholds-sentence-for-only-woman-on-death-row/ https://nashvillebanner.com/2024/09/17/christa-pike-death-sentence-isolation/ https://casetext.com/case/pike-v-state-15 https://www.opn.ca6.uscourts.gov/opinions.pdf/19a0205p-06.pdf https://www.tncourts.gov/sites/default/files/docs/response_-_to_motion_1.pdf https://archive.ph/20130127053544/http://www.ksdk.com/news/crime/article/311792/147/Death-row-inmate-woos-NJ-man-and-guard-to-help-plan-escape https://www.opn.ca6.uscourts.gov/opinions.pdf/19a0205p-06.pdf https://www.chattanoogan.com/2016/3/11/319852/Chattanooga-Federal-Judge-Upholds.aspx