The Dream (Kelly Brennan)

Summary

Anatomy of Murder – “The Dream (Kelly Brennan)”

Podcast: Anatomy of Murder (audiochuck)
Hosts: Anna-Sigga Nicolazzi & Scott Weinberger
Date: November 4, 2025

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Overview of the Episode

In this episode of "Anatomy of Murder," the hosts Anna-Sigga Nicolazzi, a former NYC homicide prosecutor, and Scott Weinberger, an investigative journalist and former deputy sheriff, delve into the 2010 disappearance and murder of Kelly Brennan, a beloved nurse from Indialantic, Florida. The investigation is marked by complex personal relationships, a mysterious 911 call about a “dream,” and an unlikely suspect—a woman whose confession blurs the line between guilt and delusion. The hosts, alongside Lt. Todd Goodyear of the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, dissect the murder, the evidence, and the haunting motivations behind a crime that stunned the quiet beachside community.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Disappearance of Kelly Brennan

• Setting: Indialantic, FL—a peaceful beach town (02:34)
• Kelly Brennan, known as a dedicated nurse and reliable friend, vanishes after leaving work for a personal training session she never attends. Her boyfriend, Daniel Trott (the town’s former mayor), grows alarmed when he cannot reach her and reports her missing the same night (03:12–04:39).
• "He starts to drive around in that area. He's also trying to get a hold of her on the phone and of course it's going to voicemail. He can't get in contact with her."
  —Todd Goodyear [04:23]

2. Complicated Relationships and the Immediate Investigation

• Kelly was in the process of divorcing her husband. Daniel Trott, her boyfriend, was also married and in the midst of his own separation (05:40–06:49).
• Initial suspects are Kelly’s estranged husband and Daniel Trott; both men have potential motives (06:22–07:21).
• Police quickly verify Daniel Trott’s alibi via plane tickets and surveillance footage; similarly, Kelly’s husband is cleared with receipts and video evidence from local stores (08:44–10:57).
• "As far as Daniel, we're able to rule him out from the fact that we know that he was on a plane... really didn't have the opportunity."
  —Todd Goodyear [08:44]
• The focus shifts as both primary male suspects are ruled out less than 24 hours after Kelly disappears (12:14).

3. The Unusual 911 Tip and "The Dream"

• The investigation seems to stall until a bizarre 911 call the next morning from the mother of Sheila Trott (Daniel's soon-to-be ex-wife), who claims Sheila had a dream about Kelly Brennan and her location (15:34–17:06).
• "She actually said something to the effect that she believed that her daughter Sheila was having a dream. And she kept seeing Kelly Brennan's face and she thought that she had hurt her."
  —Todd Goodyear [17:06]
• Police are initially skeptical but treat the call seriously due to the caller’s identity and proximity to the Trott family (17:42–18:16).

4. Piecing Together Sheila Trott's Story

• Sheila had left home for several hours the night Kelly disappeared and returned appearing disoriented, eventually experiencing what seemed like panic attacks or seizures (18:48–20:16).
• "She keeps seeing Kelly's face. She thinks she heard her. She thinks she's at Mark's Landing."
  —Todd Goodyear [20:16]
• Sheila’s mother, disturbed by her daughter's statements, calls police—leading officers to Mark's Landing (20:46).

5. Discovery of Kelly Brennan’s Body

• After exhaustive searches, police aviation spots a body hidden in scrub at Mark’s Landing, matching Kelly’s description in her workout attire (22:32–23:26).
• "If you weren't paying attention, you could walk by and probably not know she was there."
  —Todd Goodyear [24:00]
• Blunt force trauma is found as the cause of death, with the attack unusually linked to a female perpetrator (24:30–25:07).

6. Building the Case Against Sheila Trott

• The evidence is puzzling: how did Sheila, a respected real estate broker with no criminal record, lure and kill Kelly at the beach? (25:07–25:53)
• Investigation finds Kelly’s blood in her car, which was parked suspiciously nearby. The location of blood suggests she was ambushed near her home, then transported to Mark's Landing (32:59–33:32, 34:11–35:02).
• Eyewitnesses and physical evidence (flashlight in the bushes, blood pattern) corroborate the timeline and the attack scenario (35:13–36:07).
• "We have a feeling that this is probably where the first event happens...a person could come up behind her and blitz attack her and take her down."
  —Todd Goodyear [35:13]

7. Sheila Trott’s Arrest and Shifting Defense

• Sheila offers no real confession, only references to her “dream.” When a lawyer calls, she stops cooperating (29:28–29:46).
• Her defense narrative shifts over time—eventually she claims to have witnessed a mysterious “man” kill Kelly, but never calls police (37:32–38:02).
• "Sheila now says she went over to confront Kelly about the relationship. And right as she gets there, a person kills Kelly...Sheila follows because she's concerned, doesn't call the police..."
  —Todd Goodyear [37:32]
• Defense at trial focuses on lack of direct evidence and alternative perpetrators, but the jury is confronted by the changing stories and Sheila’s unusual admission (38:32–39:55).

8. Prosecution, Motive, and Verdict

• Sheila’s motive is established as jealousy, anger over loss of status, and financial concerns amid her husband’s new relationship (40:57).
• The prosecution zeroes in on circumstantial evidence: the timeline, physical evidence, family testimony, and Sheila’s incriminating dream (39:52–41:20).
• "Unfortunately for them, you can't really come away from is the fact that she had a dream that said she killed Kelly. It's just a strange case. It's bizarre almost to the fact that you have this dream that unlocks a murder."
  —Todd Goodyear [41:20]
• The jury convicts Sheila Trott of all charges; she is sentenced to life in prison (41:40–41:46).

9. Aftermath and Reflections

• The episode closes reflecting on the pain extending to all involved—Kelly Brennan, her family, Sheila Trott’s mother and sons who courageously testified, and the lingering ambiguities about Sheila’s true mindset (41:55–43:07).
• "I've also thought a lot about Sheila Trot's sons and her mom. What they did was brave and I'm sure very difficult. They called police when she made the strange statements and then ultimately testified at trial. When called by the prosecution as a prosecutor. I say they obviously did the right thing, but I can also see how very difficult that must have been. And I'm sure they were conflicted. You can continue to love someone even when you know they've done very bad things. So I feel for them too."
  —Anna Sega Nicolasi [43:07]
• The fundamental message remains: even among messy, complicated relationships, violence is never the answer.

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Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• "If you weren't paying attention, you could walk by and probably not know she was there."
  —Todd Goodyear [24:00]
• "She gives the actual location. So almost in some weird way, in her mind, she decided she wanted her found. But I've never really seen her display remorse in anything she's ever said."
  —Todd Goodyear [42:15]
• "It's the pattern. This case is a perfect example. It's the digital crumbs that look ordinary until they line up a little too neatly...and that's what solves it. Justice came together the same way the lie came apart, piece by piece."
  —Scott Weinberger [42:30]
• "Relationships can be messy, they can cause pain, they can end. But they shouldn't lead to violence and obviously never to murder."
  —Anna Sega Nicolasi [43:07]

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Timeline of Major Events

• Kelly Brennan reported missing: (Feb 15, 2010) [03:12–04:39]
• Both male suspects (husband & boyfriend) cleared: [08:44–12:14]
• Mother-in-law calls about “the dream”: [15:34–17:06]
• Sheila Trott experiences panic/medical episodes: [18:48–20:16]
• Police find Kelly's body at Mark's Landing: [22:32–23:26]
• Vehicle with blood evidence discovered: [32:59–33:32]
• Timeline for Sheila’s potential involvement established: [36:07–36:22]
• Sheila Trott arrested: [37:04]
• Sheila’s defense shifts, trial & guilty verdict: [37:32–41:46]

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Tone, Language, and Storytelling

The episode maintains a methodical, insider’s perspective, blending detailed investigation techniques with a narrative style that humanizes both the victim and those affected by the crime. The hosts’ tone is respectful, analytical, and at times, empathetic—especially when reflecting on the ripple effects for everyone close to the case. Policeman Todd Goodyear provides clear, procedural insights and first-hand assessments throughout.

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Summary

This episode lays bare the intricate layers of the Kelly Brennan case: a tragic death ensnared in jealousy, projection, and the unraveling of marriages. What at first appeared a classic spurned-lover crime became a twist-filled tale when the killer—a woman—emerged from the unlikely space between dream and reality. Through policework, family courage, and dogged evidence-gathering, justice was achieved, yet the human cost remains—reminding us that relationships, while fragile, should never lead to violence.

For listeners: This episode weaves investigation, psychology, and courtroom drama into a haunting story about fatal obsession and the search for truth, piece by piece.

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Transcript

[Scott Weinberger]

Welcome back to Listen to youo Heart.

[Todd Goodyear]

I'm Jerry. And I'm Jerry's Heart.

[Scott Weinberger]

Today's topic, Repatha Evolocimab heart. Why'd you pick this one?

[Todd Goodyear]

Well, Jerry, for people who have had a heart attack like us, diet and exercise might not be enough to lower the risk of another one. Okay.

[Scott Weinberger]

To help know if we're at risk.

[Todd Goodyear]

We should be getting our LDL C, our bad cholesterol checked, and talking to our doctor. I'm listening. And if it's still too high, Repatha can be added to a statin to lower our LDL C and our heart attack risk.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Hmm.

[Todd Goodyear]

Guess it's time to ask about Repatha.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Do not take Repatha if you are allergic to it. Serious allergic reactions can occur. Get medical help right away if you have trouble breathing or swallowing. Swelling of the face, lips, tongue, throat or arms. Common side effects include runny nose, sore throat, common cold symptoms, flu or flu like symptoms. Back pain, high blood sugar and redness. Pain or bruising at the injection site.

[Scott Weinberger]

Listen to your heart.

[Todd Goodyear]

Ask your doctor about Repatha. Learn [e-mail] or call 1-844-repatha.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Hey, welcome into Walgreens. Hi there.

[Todd Goodyear]

Hey.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

All right, hon. I'll grab the gift wrap cards and.

[Todd Goodyear]

Oh, those stuffed animals the girls want.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Great.

[Scott Weinberger]

And I'll grab the string lights and some.

[Todd Goodyear]

How about I grab some cough drops? This is not just a quick trip to Walgreens. I'm fine, honey.

[Scott Weinberger]

Well, just in case. You know what they say, Tis the season. This is help staying healthy through the holidays.

[Todd Goodyear]

Walgreens extra value meals are back.

[Scott Weinberger]

That means 10 tender juicy McNuggets and medium fries.

[Todd Goodyear]

And a drink are just $8 only.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

At McDonald's for a limited time only.

[Todd Goodyear]

Prices and participation may vary. Prices may be higher in Hawaii, Alaska and California. And for delivery, our aviation unit sees what they believe to be deceased female. If you weren't paying attention, you could walk by and probably not know she was there from the air. You got a much better view. She has suffered from blunt force trauma. And that the death's not going to be natural. We probably are working a homicide.

[Scott Weinberger]

I'm Scott Weinberger, investigative journalist and former deputy sheriff.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

I'm Anna Sega Nicolasi, former New York City Homicide prosecutor and host of Investigation Discovery's True Conviction.

[Scott Weinberger]

And this is Anatomy of Murder.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Indialantic, Florida, is a quiet little beach paradise that gets its name from its location. It's nestled between the Indian River Lagoon and Atlantic Ocean.

[Scott Weinberger]

This quiet tourist town Is the kind of place people come to unplug kayaks at sunrise beach paths by sunset. But on February 15, 2010, the tide turned dark. Kelly Brennan, a well respected nurse, vanished under troubling circumstances. Lt. Todd Goodyear of the Brevard county sheriff's office, who at the time was assigned to the criminal investigations division, knows this case well.

[Todd Goodyear]

Kelly worked at one of the local hospitals. I think she was a technician there. And she was an avid cyclist, was involved in some charitable work. She had been reported missing the night before on the 15th, around probably 9, 45, 10 o' clock in the evening. She had left work to go to one of the local gyms where she worked with a personal trainer. She never made that appointment. Her vehicle was not at her residence, but it was not at the gym either.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Everyone who knew Kelly described her as a good friend and overall caring person. She was also known to be reliable and punctual. Those who knew her best said she would never have blown off a session with her trainer, especially not without a call.

[Scott Weinberger]

And it wasn't just her trainer she missed that night. She was also supposed to see her boyfriend, Daniel Trott, right after the workout.

[Todd Goodyear]

Daniel was supposed to meet Kelly at the gym. So he goes to the gym and Kelly's not there. He finds the personal trainer. He actually saw him walking around in the parking lot and said, you know what's up? And he said, kelly's not here.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

After that brief conversation, Daniel already sensed something was wrong.

[Todd Goodyear]

And this is totally not like her. He starts to drive around in that area. He's also trying to get a hold of her on the phone and of course it's going to voicemail. He can't get in contact with her. Goes and talks to her roommate who she's living with and she hasn't seen her or talked to her.

[Scott Weinberger]

Now to many it may seem like a little quick to involve the police, But Daniel saw the situation very differently. He was certain Kelly was in danger.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

According to friends, Kelly had left work early evening, then headed straight home to change for the gym.

[Scott Weinberger]

No one had seen her since. That left Daniel extremely worried. So Daniel reached out to Brevard county sheriffs to report Kelly missing. Investigators took the call seriously right from the start. It probably didn't hurt that Daniel Trott was a name they knew very well.

[Todd Goodyear]

Fairly well known in the town of Indian Atlantic. He had been the mayor and was quite active in politics.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

A police bulletin was put out on Kelly's car and a cross county search began for any sign of the local well known Nurse.

[Scott Weinberger]

But as detectives continued to gather pertinent details about Kelly, they made an important discovery about Daniel's relationship with Kelly that did raise new questions.

[Todd Goodyear]

She was married. She was in the process of a separation and divorce from her husband, and she had moved out of the house and was living with a friend.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

The man she'd been married to wasn't Daniel. He was the other man now turned boyfriend after Kelly had separated from her husband.

[Scott Weinberger]

So, Anasika, this is really a good bit of intel as you begin your victimology portion of your investigation. Knowing your victim, a pending divorce can touch things like motive, money, custody, access, even escalation. And the status of relationships, as we all know, is often relative as you're attempting to develop your next steps in building a pool of potential persons of interest.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

And of course, even hearing this, well, you know, then you're okay, you're looking at her husband, soon to be ex. Maybe it's this new boyfriend. Or who knows whether Daniel had something else going on. But as deputies tried to untangle the romantic web, it was only getting stickier because Daniel Trott explained that he too had been a married man. The well to do former mayor and airplane pilot was in the midst of a separation that he claimed would soon end in divorce.

[Scott Weinberger]

It was only a few hours in, and this seemingly routine missing persons case already had a lot of factors to consider. Todd shared what was going through his mind.

[Todd Goodyear]

You started looking at who's your potential suspects. Well, we have the husband. We also have the motive for a.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Jealous husband angry over an affair and then his wife leaving him is obvious. But police also had to consider if the new boyfriend, Daniel Trott himself, might have had reason to want Kelly to disappear.

[Scott Weinberger]

So you're probably thinking this yourself, right? How many times have we heard this story? A wealthy guy with a political career involved in a scandal. And at this stage of the investigation, you really can't rule anything out.

[Todd Goodyear]

You know, the majority of times it's somewhat in your circle. So now a little different. Interviews take place with Daniel. He was interviewed at the scene, but now we're going to interview him again. And at the same time, we need to find her husband because obviously they're estranged.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Detectives. Desire to find and speak with Kelly's husband quickly became priority. After a more in depth conversation with Daniel.

[Todd Goodyear]

We know that there had been a violent incident once before between her husband and Daniel, so he needs to be cleared as a suspect.

[Scott Weinberger]

This case is moving fast. We still don't know what happened to Kelly, but tracking down her husband has to be job number one.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Investigators also continue to keep a close eye on Daniel.

[Todd Goodyear]

Now you have a suspect pool. You would have had Daniel. They're in a relationship. And then you have Kelly's husband, who would be a prime suspect as well.

[Scott Weinberger]

Police needed answers from both men in Kelly's life. Where had Daniel been before he was seen at the gym? And detectives really needed to lock that information down.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

And as it turned out, Daniel's account was easy to verify. He had just gotten back to Florida from Atlanta.

[Todd Goodyear]

As far as Daniel, we're able to rule him out from the fact that we know that he was on a plane. We know when he arrived in Melbourne on that plane, and we know that he went from the plane to the gym, really didn't have the opportunity.

[Scott Weinberger]

And this is why timelines are an investigator's best friend. We know that Kelly left work around 6 and never made it to her 7pm training session at the gym. So whatever happened to her took place before Daniel's plane landed in Melbourne.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

But what had happened? And where was Kelly's husband? Deputies were dispatched to find him and bring him in to talk.

[Scott Weinberger]

Detectives quickly found Kelly's husband and grabbed a statement from him.

[Todd Goodyear]

Her husband, who works for a restaurant chain, was actually in Orlando training a new management candidate at that restaurant.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Still, detectives noted that his job training allowed Kelly's husband to have been back in town within the most critical window of time, about 6:30pm which would have been about half an hour after Kelly had finished her shift at the hospital.

[Scott Weinberger]

Investigators had to really zero in on where Kelly's husband went next. They were more than just a little skeptical when he claimed to have run errands in a neighboring town.

[Todd Goodyear]

And then he stops at a Blockbuster Video to pick up a videotape, then goes to a Walgreens to pick up, I believe, a prescription, and then goes home.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

And that was a story that nobody in the room took at immediate face value. It's obviously an absolute must for police to verify Kelly's husband's whereabouts the night she disappeared. Did he have witnesses or anyone who could corroborate his account?

[Scott Weinberger]

Well, in fact, deputies found something even better.

[Todd Goodyear]

We're actually able to find out at what point he bought the videotape from Blockbuster. They have the receipt. It's time stamped. We actually had video from the Walgreens showing him they're actually purchasing the prescription. So we can put him in a time frame. He was not in county even at that point. We know at what points in times he was at the two stores that he wouldn't have been able to more than likely do this. So we can pretty much count him out as a suspect.

[Scott Weinberger]

So it won't come as any surprise that I'd like to look at it in two different ways. The first, making the job of confirming his alibi very simple. I mean, receipts, videotape evidence putting him at those locations just as he said. And it is likely that may be enough. But what I really want to nail down is that timeline completely. And here's why. When an alibi is just as, you know, Ana Sega, too obvious, somebody being at certain locations that clearly have video evidence, maybe it's a bit of misdirection as well. I'm just saying. Yeah.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

But at the same time, we know that documents tend to be better evidence than people because people can fall into they forget something, they have a motive to lie. Or at least these are holes that can be poked by the defense where documents or physical evidence are just that. And absolutely you always have to look around them. And sometimes something that may seem great on its face has to be looked in further. But here, you know, it had been less than 24 hours since Kelly Brennan had disappeared, really without a trace. And investigators, based on their investigation, based on these documents and the other things they found out, both from the new boyfriend and the soon to be ex husband, well, they had cleared the two at least most obvious likeliest suspects.

[Scott Weinberger]

And none of the beloved nurse's friends had seen her since she left for work. And so far a massive search had failed to locate her car.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

It seemed like investigators were getting nowhere fast. Then a 911 call came in and it was one of the strangest tips they'd ever heard. Foreign.

[Scott Weinberger]

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[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

There had been no signs of Kelly since she disappeared and her somewhat complicated recent personal life was at the forefront of the investigation.

[Scott Weinberger]

Kelly was separated from her husband and involved in a relationship with the town's former mayor, Daniel Trott. That relationship had started when Kelly was still married.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Daniel Trott himself was also still married, on his way to what appeared to be a messy divorce. All three of these relationships were about to come under even closer scrutiny. Based on a tip that came in via 911 the next morning, the caller told police about a woman who had a disturbing quote unquote dream about Kelly Brennan.

[Todd Goodyear]

It was the next morning, about 7:30 in the morning. Indian Atlantic Police Department received a phone call and got this story of a dream. And she kept seeing Kelly Brennan's face and even gave a location where she thought she was.

[Scott Weinberger]

Investigators weren't sure what to make of the tip. Officers were dispatched to get a full statement from the caller in the Atlantic.

[Todd Goodyear]

Police Department responded out to a call and once they got there they realized that they were probably involved in a death investigation. At that point they called our homicide unit to assist. I responded out to the scene in the Atlantic along with the entire homicide unit.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

But what was it about this dream that pretty much convinced officers that Kelly unfortunately was most likely dead?

[Scott Weinberger]

And clearly that is unusual. Stories about dreams sometimes don't make it past the 911 dispatch center where tips often come in.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Well, in this case it was who was filing the report that had Todd and His team doing the follow up. The caller was Daniel Trott's mother in law, the mother of his soon to be ex wife, Sheila Trott.

[Todd Goodyear]

Sheila's mom, she actually said something to the effect that she believed that her daughter Sheila was having a dream. And she kept seeing Kelly Brennan's face and she thought that she had hurt her.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

And Scott, this is one of those record scratch moments that it's like, wait a second, they're looking at Kelly's soon to be ex husband. Maybe they're looking at the new boyfriend. But no one is thinking kind of beyond here, but here you now have the money. Mother of Daniel Trott's soon to be ex wife calling in with this really just crazy scenario. Not something that happens every day but is quickly going to turn investigators attention.

[Scott Weinberger]

Yeah, and you probably won't be surprised then, Singa. And I must admit I'm not someone who believes deeply in premonitions, especially in something as serious as a homicide investigation. But let's just talk about it for a second first. How credible is the statement and was she in the right frame of mind when she made it? Questions that could potentially be cleared up by beginning to ask the questions. And as it turned out, the lead only gained credibility when detectives learned that Sheila's mom was calling from inside the Trots home along with the Trots two adult sons.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

And so at that point, it's obviously critical not to get a group story with family members potentially helping each other remember what happened. So. So detectives went to the house and spoke with Sheila, her sons and her mom separately.

[Todd Goodyear]

The agents were interviewing Sheila up in the house and the other agents were doing interviews in their vehicles to try to find out what the circumstances, what the series of events were.

[Scott Weinberger]

Those events had begun the night before when Sheila's two sons arrived at her house for a visit.

[Todd Goodyear]

The story from the sons as Sheila had left the night before and she left sometime around 6 o' clock in the evening, said she was going to Walmart and she would be back.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

But more than four hours had passed before Sheila ultimately got back.

[Todd Goodyear]

Probably close to 11, 1045, they hear Sheila, she walks into the house and she begins to have what appears to be like a panic attack. She gets real dizzy, doesn't feel good, to the point that they call 911 and the ambulance comes out. She gets checked out by the ambulance. She does not want to go to the hospital.

[Scott Weinberger]

The EMS crew left Sheila to recover at home. But not long after they departed, her symptoms returned.

[Todd Goodyear]

Approximately an hour later, she starts to have another event, a medical event where she's almost having a seizure. And at that point they call 911 again as she is transported to the hospital where they run tests and eventually release her back. And she comes back home with her son. A little short time after that is when she calls her son to come in. And she's talking now about this dream and having seen Kelly. I think I've hurt Kelly. I keep seeing her face. And the son's of course, freaked out by it, Calls his grandmother, Sheila's mom, and says, hey, you need to come up here because something's wrong with Mom.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Sheila's mom was disturbed enough by the story to immediately, immediately get in her car and make the hour long drive from her home in the middle of the night.

[Todd Goodyear]

She drives up, goes up and talks to Sheila. She gets the same type of story from Sheila that she's having this dream. She keeps seeing Kelly's face. She thinks she heard her. She thinks she's at Mark's Landing. She goes, we need to call the police. Has anybody called the police? There's something wrong here. She then calls the police, which now starts the police investigation. We confirmed who she was talking about as Kelly Brennan. We were aware, and Indian Atlantic actually had become aware as well that we had a missing persons report on Kelly.

[Scott Weinberger]

Although investigators were concerned about what they heard, the interview with Sheila herself left them wondering if any of it was true.

[Todd Goodyear]

She doesn't remember anything other than she had this dream and she had what she thought was seizures. She's not forthcoming with a lot of information other than she admits that she had the dream.

[Scott Weinberger]

So for me, whether she's believable or not at this very moment is not really important. Keeping her engaged, keeping her talking, that's important because even though down the road you may be able to disprove this fact, it is given on the record.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

And of course, when I hear it, I'm completely suspect of everything she's saying, at least about this being a dream and something that's just coming to her in the night. But, you know, look, the most important thing right then and there is to find Kelly. And of course, investigators are very cognizant of the fact that it's likely too coincidental to be amounting to no more than really a supposed dream. And investigators were convinced that the best way to figure out what had really happened was to take a closer look at the few details they'd been given.

[Scott Weinberger]

Deputies were dispatched to the quiet beach at Mark's Landing, where Sheila claimed she dreamed about seeing Kelly once We found.

[Todd Goodyear]

Out that she had said something about Mark's landing. We then contacted some of our general crimes agents from our south precinct, which would be familiar with the area, to go down into that area, see if they located anything.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Officers walked around the outer portion of the beach access and also the parking area and found no signs of Kelly.

[Scott Weinberger]

It seemed like the tip may have been nothing more than Sheila's emotions getting the better of her. Then came the call that would change everything.

[Todd Goodyear]

We also called in our aviation unit to come from above and see if they saw anything. And so while the interviews are going on, our aviation calls in and actually says they've observed what they believe to be a body in the palmettos there at the beach access in Mark's landing nearby.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Officers were immediately dispatched to the location.

[Scott Weinberger]

It was a brush filled area on the side of a wooden walkway leading to the beach.

[Todd Goodyear]

At that point, investigators arrive, go out and confirm that there is a deceased female there, give us a description of what she was wearing.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

And detectives did know that Kelly had last been seen not long before she was supposed to have an appointment with her personal trainer.

[Todd Goodyear]

She was wearing workout attire, and she also had a heart monitor on that she would wear to go at a fitness club. And it matches the description of what, more than likely, Kelly would have been wearing.

[Scott Weinberger]

Investigators sealed off the area around the body and fanned out across the pathway, scouring the path for any clues or physical evidence.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

It was a tough area for investigators to process. The beach access was damp, sandy, and covered in thick foliage.

[Todd Goodyear]

There's a little fence and an opening that you would walk down a dirt path. It branches off a couple different times that leads to the actual beach. And as most of the beaches in Florida, there's a lot of what we call scrub palmettos. And they're very bushy with the fronds coming out. And she is hidden a short ways into those. If you weren't paying attention, you could walk by and probably not know she was there.

[Scott Weinberger]

Detectives were convinced the crime scene had been carefully chosen to conceal Kelly's body.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

That didn't really add up with the facts so far in the case. Remember, Sheila Trott had told them where to find her.

[Scott Weinberger]

So while detectives considered those contradictory details, the medical examiner shared more clues that seemed at odds with what they knew.

[Todd Goodyear]

They look at her, she has injuries which appear to be blunt force trauma of some sort to her head. There's also some blood. It appears that the death's not going to be natural, that we probably are.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Working a homicide at that Point detectives were definitely puzzled. Kelly had been beaten to death and then disposed of in the bushes along the beach. It wasn't the type of crime scene they'd naturally connect to a woman who'd once been Kelly's friend. That woman being Sheila Trott.

[Scott Weinberger]

And just an aside. According to the FBI, less than a tiny percentage of blunt force attacks like this one trace back to a female offender.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

And just a little bit more about Sheila Trott. Well, she was a successful real estate broker known for her philanthropy, and she had no criminal record. On the surface, there were doubts whether this woman herself was capable of this type of crime.

[Scott Weinberger]

And even if Sheila was the killer, how had she lured Kelly to the deserted beach?

[Todd Goodyear]

I think at that point in the investigation, we probably weren't sure. There was some evidence that it appeared like she had been drugged there to the final resting place. But did something happen right there at the access and then she was moved into there, or was she from another location? I don't know if we had a concrete feeling at that point that this happened somewhere else, that she was moved here, but it was obvious that she was moved at least into that location to be hidden.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Less than 24 hours after Kelly Brennan disappeared, she'd been found along the beach. She was no longer missing. She'd been murdered.

[Scott Weinberger]

Investigators already had a solid prime suspect, Sheila Trott, a scorned wife with the potential motive to kill Kelly.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

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[Scott Weinberger]

Brevard County Sheriff's Lt. Todd Goodyear had a very unusual murder to solve.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

To some, it might appear to have been an open and shut case that Kelly Brennan had been the victim of a rage fueled attack potentially unleashed by an angry ex wife furious over an affair that had led to the breakup of her marriage.

[Scott Weinberger]

But so far, some of the evidence didn't line up with that story, despite Sheila Trot providing what could be viewed as a confession.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

And that's where the story gets more complex because Sheila claimed to have had this quote unquote dream where she had seen Kelly's face. And then there were these varying accounts about Sheila talking about hurting Kelly. The detectives interviewing Sheila Trott in her home hoped to get a clearer picture of what actually had happened and hoping that she would clear things up.

[Todd Goodyear]

She admits that she had the dream, but she doesn't remember anything about what happened or give any specifics into it. And at the time that the agents were talking to her, she gets a phone call and the person on the other line is an attorney. At that point, Sheila takes the attorney's advice and says, I don't want to talk to you anymore.

[Scott Weinberger]

Investigators next step was to get search warrants for Sheila Trott's home and her car.

[Todd Goodyear]

Because now at this point we have a person who has told us they had a dream that they may have hurt a person and we find that person and they're deceased, probably from violence.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

But the searches didn't turn up much to corroborate Sheila's account or lead to evidence of criminality. And so investigators, if they're not getting much there. They're going to turn to other avenues. You know, still remember they haven't found Kelly's car, and she lived in a residential area. It wasn't at her home and it wasn't at the personal trainers. They're also gonna look to see if there's any potential witnesses to see if they can help figure out what happened to Kelly from the time she was last seen to then found at the beach.

[Scott Weinberger]

And as you know, Anastega, there are some natural steps that you need to take at a point of investigation. Once you've narrowed down your potential target, you know you've done the best you can to gather any relevant evidence at the scene. And by the looks of this, it may be only where the victim was dumped. But you've spoken to witnesses who may either aid your potential target's alibi or dispute it. And that's obviously valid information. And then you also turn back to your victim, because as we all know, forensic examination or an autopsy can really be a game changer. And in this case, the first break in the case did come from Kelly Brennan's autopsy.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

The medical examiner's conclusions explained a lot more than just the cause of Kelly's death.

[Todd Goodyear]

She has multiple blunt force injuries to her head, which is what caused her death. Most of them were to the back and, I believe, side of her head. So it appeared that someone came up behind her and caused these blows. His best guess was something like a hammer.

[Scott Weinberger]

The autopsy report painted a grim picture of Kelly's last moments alive. She had been taken by surprise and violently beaten.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

The blows themselves must have been hard enough to fracture her skull. And the number of strikes left no doubt about the intent. Yet when they're looking at everything they had, there's no evidence of robbery or any sexual assault, which left the possibility that either this is some random attack or something deeply personal.

[Scott Weinberger]

Yeah, personal is definitely at the top of my mind on this, Anasega. I mean, whoever ambushed Kelly meant to kill her.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Investigators were still digesting the possibilities when they got the next big break on the case.

[Todd Goodyear]

Two of our deputies that are patrolling the area actually come upon her vehicle parked in an area of duplexes that is not too far from where Kelly was living at the moment. Moment probably a mile away. Her vehicle is backed in to a parking space. It's not quite parked correctly. It's a little bit outside the lane.

[Scott Weinberger]

The way Kelly's car was parked did provide Todd with some important clues.

[Todd Goodyear]

It's back then like somebody was trying to hide the License plate that you wouldn't see it.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

In addition to the attempt to hide the tag, it also appeared that the parking job was rushed. And a good look inside the car explained why the driver wanted to get away from it as fast as they could.

[Todd Goodyear]

We seal the vehicle, tow it to our processing center, and then start to go through that. And in that vehicle, we find a large amount of blood in the passenger side. And I believe there's some transfer maybe to the outside of the vehicle.

[Scott Weinberger]

And the blood evidence and where it was located provided more insight into the way the ambush style attack had unfolded.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

It was now believed that the killer had used Kelly's own car to transport her from the scene of the attack to the beachfront where her body was found.

[Todd Goodyear]

We have blood in Kelly's vehicle, but it's her vehicle, and in fact, there's a lot of blood on the floorboard on the passenger side seat. Our belief she was probably put into the vehicle with her head down, and that's why all the blood's there.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

And you know, Scott, here, while there's a lot of question marks, there's things that they're able to start putting together, right, Is that Kelly's clearly found at a beach. But now if her car has blood inside of it, that presumably is going to come back to her forensically when they test it, well, then at some point she was inside that car. So did the killer take her to the beach and then come back? Too soon to tell, and it's still a question mark. But that scenario does sound more likely.

[Scott Weinberger]

The pieces now are all starting to fit. It's obvious evidence that Kelly's car was ditched post crime. And that vehicle not only contained the victim's blood, but very possibly forensic evidence tying back to the person likely responsible for her murder. So the theory for police was back to the townhouse where Kelly was living. It seemed likely that she was attacked close to her car, most likely after she had changed clothes for her workout.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Crime scene experts next scoured the area between her home and the parking lot.

[Todd Goodyear]

We go back to the residence where she's living. Some of the agents start to look around. They find an area in the grass where it looks like the vehicle had been pulled off the driveway into the grass in the front yard. At the same time they're looking there, they find blood.

[Scott Weinberger]

So detectives were confident they had just found the original crime scene. The pieces, as I said, of the puzzle, were all now falling into place.

[Todd Goodyear]

So now we have a feeling that this is probably where the first event happens at the same time, canvassing the neighborhood, a witness comes forward, a neighbor who says, hey, as I was driving back out, I noticed a flashlight in the yard at Kelly's residence, up toward the side of the house, where it would have been easy for a person. As Kelly came out of the house, this person could come up behind her and blitz attack her and take her down. And then at that point, the vehicle's moved over to where they can pick her up and put her into the vehicle.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

So this new witness gave important corroboration that this is indeed where Kelly was attacked. I mean, a flashlight in the bushes and now blood. Pretty conclusive when taken together with other evidence. So investigators had now established a solid theory of the attack. They also already had this, remember, potential motive.

[Scott Weinberger]

And based on what Sheila's son had initially told police, their mother was unaccounted for from before 6pm until almost 11.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

The same time frame in which police believed Kelly was killed.

[Scott Weinberger]

Now, all that remained was to answer the final question. Was Sheila Trot the person who committed this crime? Todd believed the evidence in Kelly's car provided that answer.

[Todd Goodyear]

Why did she end up that way? You know, probably face first down, probably because there was a person not with great strength, so it would fit to be a woman. And she pushed her in head first and then flipped her up. So it kind of makes sense of how the blood pattern is in the vehicle as to how somebody would put her in if you're not that much bigger and stronger than the body you're trying to put in.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Investigators believe they now had enough to charge Sheila Trott. They had circumstantial evidence, plus her own statements.

[Todd Goodyear]

So at that point, we go to the state attorney's office with the evidence that we have, and they give us an arrest warrant, which we take to a judge, Judge signs it, and Sheila is arrested.

[Scott Weinberger]

But this case was far from.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

As the trial approached, prosecutors heard whispers that Sheila Trott had changed her story. In fact, that foggy memory had grown clear.

[Scott Weinberger]

And this new account threatened to nullify all of the state's evidence.

[Todd Goodyear]

It's a crazy case. Sheila now says she went over to confront Kelly about the relationship. And right as she gets there, a person kills Kelly. This man kills her, kills Kelly, and she sees it happen. And the man puts Kelly in Kelly's vehicle and drives away. And Sheila follows because she's concerned, doesn't call the police, doesn't let anybody know what's happening. She follows down to Marsh Landing and get rid of the body.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Admit what you have to deny what you can maybe she felt she had to admit she was there, but now come up with this alternate or in innocent explanation. So she goes with what I call the ghost defense. Meaning she would transfer all her own criminal conduct to this nameless, faceless person that police would obviously never find.

[Scott Weinberger]

Yes. Somebody else did it. Right. And the defendant just happened to be there at the very same time. And that new story wasn't the only obstacle the prosecution faced at trial.

[Todd Goodyear]

I think that the main defense was, hey, they don't have any evidence that directly relates to my client. They didn't find a murder weapon. No one actually saw her do it. No one saw her put the car there. The police say that they cleared these suspects, but did they really?

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

In the courtroom, you were always worried about how the jury will view your evidence, including a defendant's changing story.

[Scott Weinberger]

So are they lying now or were they lying then? But with Sheila Trott, there was another aspect for prosecutors to contend with. Trod had never really confessed. She always said what she saw was a dream.

[Todd Goodyear]

Because the interesting part of it, did she really have medical events or was that a show? You know, that's the crazy part. Was she really having a physiological response to what she had done or was she trying to, in some form, come up with some type of defense?

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

That medical event was the seizure like symptoms that had medics going to her door. So was it a guilty conscience that caused the physical symptoms? Well, I'd argue yes, but the defense would likely say it was actually an unrelated event that then caused those strange statements. So as a prosecutor, you're going to remind the jury it is important that they use their common sense when they make their decision.

[Todd Goodyear]

Obviously she had some forethought of what she was going to do. I mean, because obviously she parked, she laid in wait, she waited for her to come out, she attacked her from behind. She had a weapon with her. You almost got to believe that she picked the spot to put her. I don't think it was by chance. There's a ton of beach accesses she could have picked, but that one's farther away, but not too far, but, you know, far enough away. There's not a lot of people down there, particularly at that time of night. There's not a lot of traffic.

[Scott Weinberger]

So the trial itself ended up as a clash between the two stories. One in which Sheila Trott was a victim, a woman in the wrong place at the wrong time, an unlikely witness to Kelly Brennan's murder.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

And in the second scenario, the prosecution's evidence, she was depicted as the Scorned wife furious at Kelly, this younger woman who had stolen, in her view, her life and her husband. A situation that had apparently made her angry enough to start to fixate and then formulate a plan to beat Kelly to death with a hammer.

[Todd Goodyear]

She was upset about the relationship, particularly the fact that he was spending money on her financially. I think it was a problem. I think she was used to living a certain lifestyle, and I think she saw it maybe going away.

[Scott Weinberger]

As the trial reached its conclusion, it seemed obvious the defense had one problem that couldn't be conjured away by a ghost defense.

[Todd Goodyear]

Unfortunately for them, you can't really come away from is the fact that she had a dream that said she killed Kelly. It's just a strange case. It's bizarre almost to the fact that you have this dream that unlocks a murder.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

After both sides rested and summations were complete, the jury deliberated and then returned with their verdict.

[Todd Goodyear]

She was found guilty on all charges. It's a shame that a young woman died because of that wasn't a dream.

[Scott Weinberger]

Sheila Trott was sentenced to life behind bars. It was a fitting end to an unusual case riddled with contradictions.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

There is still some lingering mystery. Why did Sheila Trott talk to her family about this, quote, dream? And why did she tell them where she had left Kelly Brennan?

[Scott Weinberger]

Was it a legitimate medical event or a sign of guilt? Those are questions that will likely never be answered.

[Todd Goodyear]

She gave the actual location. So almost in some weird way, in her mind, she decided she wanted her found. But I've never really seen her display remorse in anything she's ever said. I don't really see a person with remorse.

[Scott Weinberger]

In most homicides, it's rarely the slam dunk piece of evidence that cracks it wide open. It's the pattern. And this case is a perfect example. It's the digital crumbs that look ordinary until they line up a little too neatly. It's an alibi that seems fine until you hold it against one camera, one receipt, one neighbor who remembers the time, 10 small tells, all pointing the same way. And that's what solves it. Justice came together the same way the lie came apart piece by piece.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Relationships can be messy, they can cause pain, they can end. But they shouldn't lead to violence and obviously never to murder. I've also thought a lot about Sheila Trot's sons and her mom. What they did was brave and I'm sure very difficult. They called police when she made the strange statements and then ultimately testified at trial. When called by the prosecution as a prosecutor. I say they obviously did the right thing, but I can also see how very difficult that must have been. And I'm sure they were conflicted. You can continue to love someone even when you know they've done very bad things. So I feel for them too. And say to you all, it's another reminder about how many layers of people are affected by every murder. But of course, the person we should end on is Kelly Brennan. She was ambushed and brutally murdered. She wasn't yet 50 years old. She should have had many more years of life. Tune in next week for another new episode of Anatomy of Murder.

[Scott Weinberger]

Anatomy of Murder is an audio Chuck.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Original but produced and created by Weinberger Media and Frasetti Media.

[Scott Weinberger]

Ashley Flowers is executive producer.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

This episode was written and produced by Walker Lamond, researched by Kate Cooper, edited by Maria Passingham and Phil Jean Grande. I think Chuck would approve.

[Todd Goodyear]

Did you know 39% of teen drivers admit to texting while driving? Even scarier, those who text are more.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Likely to speed and run red lights.

[Todd Goodyear]

Shockingly, 94% know it's dangerous, but do it anyway. As a parent, you can't always be.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

In the car, but you can stay connected to their safety with Greenlight Infinity's driving reports. Monitor their driving habits, see if they're using their phone, speeding and more. These reports provide real data for meaningful conversations about safety.

[Todd Goodyear]

Plus, with weekly updates, you can track their progress over time. Help keep your teens safe.

[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Sign up for Greenlight [e-mail] podcast come.

[Todd Goodyear]

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[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

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[Todd Goodyear]

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[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

Good different.

[Todd Goodyear]

Try something that feels like you.

[Scott Weinberger]

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[Todd Goodyear]

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[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

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[Todd Goodyear]

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[Anna Sega Nicolasi]

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[Todd Goodyear]

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