Crime Junkie — "MURDERED: Mary Yoder Part 2"

Date: March 23, 2026
Hosts: Ashley Flowers & Britt Prawat

Overview

This gripping part two episode continues the complicated and emotionally charged story of Mary Yoder's 2015 poisoning death in upstate New York. Hosts Ashley Flowers and Britt Prawat follow the labyrinthine investigation, hone in on the twisting forensic and circumstantial evidence, recount two dramatic trials, and trace a legal saga still unresolved more than a decade later. The episode explores who really killed Mary — her husband Bill, her son Adam, or the beloved office manager and ex-girlfriend of Adam, Kaitlyn “Katie” Conley — and just how closely sinister acts can hide among the people one loves.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Recap of Part One & The Initial Suspicion

• Mary Yoder falls violently ill and dies within 48 hours; toxicology reveals colchicine poisoning.
• Initial suspicion falls on husband Bill, who started dating Mary’s own sister, Kathleen, just two months after her death.
  • “It all seemed a little too perfect for Oneida County Sheriff’s Lt. Robert Nelson and investigator Mark Van Amy.” (Ashley, 03:34)
• Investigators soon receive an anonymous letter pointing blame at son Adam.
• The bottle of colchicine is found in Adam’s Jeep, shockingly with digital evidence pointing back to him.

2. Enter Katie Conley

• Katie is Adam’s ex-girlfriend and longtime office manager at the Yoders’ practice, “more of a family member than an employee.” (Ashley, 04:25)
• “The more she talked, the more convinced they became that Katie sounded a lot like their anonymous letter writer.” (Ashley, 04:57)
• Police now turn suspicions on Katie, driven by digital forensics.

3. The Digital Forensics Trail ([05:34]–[18:16])

• Colchicine was ordered online under Adam’s name to the practice, signed for by Katie; the email (“mradamyoder1990”) was accessed from Katie’s home and deleted from her phone.
• Katie at first denies knowledge but later admits to deleting the account and being the anonymous letter-writer.
• Forensic details:
  • Katie’s searches for poisons and for “how much to kill someone by weight” are found on the office computer and her phone. ([13:13])
  • Scanned fraudulent documents, created and sent with Katie’s phone, match the colchicine order.
  • DNA evidence points to Katie as a major contributor on the colchicine bottle and letter stamp; Adam’s DNA does not appear.
• Notable quote:

  “Guys don’t hang on to the murder weapon because that’s why they get caught.” — Investigator Van Amy ([11:11]) “Guys also don’t use poison. They say it’s a lady’s weapon.” — Katie Conley ([11:33])

4. Investigative Theories & Motivation ([25:37])

• Prosecutors come to believe Katie’s motive is romantic obsession or revenge over her breakup with Adam.
• Historical precedent: Katie previously faked a medical emergency to win Adam back.
  • “Either revenge on Adam or some kind of twisted attempt to pull him back after he dumped her, supposedly for cheating on him.” (Ashley, 25:38)

5. The Community Divides & Trial #1 ([27:52]–[35:48])

• Despite mounting evidence, Mary’s sisters and parts of the community remain suspicious of Bill.
• Defense suggests Bill’s possible motive: troubled marriage, financial windfall, and affair with Kathleen.
• Physical and digital evidence is dissected; prosecution and defense trade attacks over computer forensics, reliability of DNA, and access to office devices.
• Questions about method: Whether Mary drank a protein shake or ate something else, and whether she could have been poisoned at the hospital.
• Jury is deadlocked 10-2 in favor of acquittal; a mistrial is declared after five days of deliberation.

6. Trial #2 and New Evidence ([35:48]–[46:21])

• A backup of Katie’s iPhone is found on Adam’s laptop, showing extensive poison research starting in 2014, screenshots, and documents related to colchicine.
• Defense pivots: New attorney argues Adam could have manipulated evidence, given his technical skills and access to Katie’s devices.
• Katie’s complicated relationship with Adam is further scrutinized: allegations of abuse, a “toxic” dynamic, possible financial and emotional motives for both.

  “If that thought even crosses your mind when you’re in a relationship, run, get out.” — Co-host/Commentator ([45:01])

• Prosecution braces for all-or-nothing outcome, so second-degree manslaughter is added as a lesser charge for the jury.

7. Verdict and Aftermath ([46:30]–[54:51])

• Jury convicts Katie Conley of first-degree manslaughter; she is sentenced to 23 years.
  • Adam and Mary’s family express pain and lingering guilt; Katie and her family maintain innocence.
• Appeals attorney Melissa Swartz challenges the admissibility of digital evidence extracted from Katie’s phone.
• In January 2025, conviction overturned — due to improper search warrants covering the phone’s full data contents.
• Sealing of court records blocks DA from access, creating a legal stalemate and complicating any possible retrial or new indictment.

8. Current Status & Lingering Mysteries ([54:51]–end)

• Katie is released on appeal, but the case remains open, severely hampered by missing and now legally inaccessible evidence.
• Neither Bill nor Adam can be prosecuted for Mary’s death (received immunity during grand jury proceedings).
• Mary’s sisters remain divided; those who pushed for investigation now believe Katie is innocent and fight for her release. Adam blames himself for ever introducing Katie to his family.
• The case remains devastatingly unresolved, with a tight-knit family and community permanently fractured, and no legal closure for Mary Yoder’s death.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “Poison is a lady’s weapon.” — Katie Conley to investigators ([11:35])
• “So even in the best case scenario for prosecutors, that backup is nowhere near as powerful without the phone to back it up.” — Ashley ([53:27])
• “Welcome to my world. I’m honestly not sure anyone has a straight answer on all of the letter stuff.” — Ashley ([56:55])
• “Mary wasn’t killed by a stranger. She was killed by someone she loved, someone she trusted, and someone that she never saw coming.” — Ashley ([57:40])

Important Timestamps & Segments

• [02:06]–[05:01]: Recap of part one & introduction to Katie Conley’s involvement.
• [05:34]–[18:16]: The unraveling of digital and physical evidence linking Katie.
• [25:37]: Summary of prosecutors’ theory and Katie/Adam’s rocky relationship.
• [27:52]–[35:46]: The first trial and community response.
• [35:48]–[46:21]: Second trial, new digital evidence, shifting defense strategies.
• [46:30]–[54:51]: Verdict, sentence, and details of the successful appeal.
• [54:51]–[57:40]: Where the case stands now—unresolved and divided.

Conclusion

The Mary Yoder poisoning case, as chronicled by Crime Junkie, remains a tangled web of circumstantial evidence, fractured relationships, and lingering doubt. Despite digital breadcrumbs pointing to Katie Conley, two juries proved unable to wholly agree, and a stunning legal technicality has thrown the entire case into limbo. The courts, the families, and the community remain divided, perhaps permanently. As Ashley puts it, the only certainty is that Mary was betrayed by someone intimately close to her—a crueler truth than anyone could have imagined.

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