← Going West: True Crime
Going West: True Crime
Nicole VanderHeyden // 503
00:41:05
In May of 2016, a 31-year-old woman went out for a night of music and drinks in Green Bay, Wisconsin. But the next morning, her body was found in a farmer’s field, miles from home, and brutally beaten. Investigators soon uncovered a tangled timeline of jealousy and digital footprints that pointed back to the man she had trusted most. But with evidence from a fitness tracker, the entire case against the most likely suspect would be questioned. This is the murder of Nicole VanderHeyden. Pre-order Daphne's thriller novel Night Watcher now! Out July 8: https://www.grandcentralpublishing.com/titles/daphne-woolsoncroft/night-watcher/9781538770900/
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- [00:00]
Daphne
We all have that piece. You know the one, the thing that's so you. You've basically become known for it. And if you don't have yours yet, you'll find it on ebay. Let me put you on fashionistas. Ebay is where you'll find those. One of a kind. Can't stop researching. Stay up dreaming about pieces. I'm talking that Miu Miu off the Runway red leather bomber, the Cousto Barcelona top with the cowboy on it. Or that Patagonia fleece in the 2017 colorway.
- [00:26]
Heath
All.
- [00:26]
Daphne
All these finds are on ebay and they even offer millions of main character pieces backed by authenticity guarantee. Ebay is the place for pre loved and vintage fashion. Ebay things people love.
- [00:40]
Sam
Lights, camera, innovation. Walt Disney Studios chose advanced 5G solutions from T Mobile for business to transform the movie making process. Together we kept a remote production hub in Hawaii and sync with a team in California to bring Lilo and Stitch to theaters this summer. This is picture perfect collaboration. This is Walt Disney Studios with T Mobile for business. Take your business further@t mobile.com now kick off summer with Memorial Day savings at Lowe's right now get five Scott's Naturescapes one and a half cubic foot mulch bags for just $10 plus get up to 40% off select major appliances and save an extra $50 on $500 you spend on select major appliances. $396 or more. Lowe's we help you save valid through 528 mulch offer excludes Alaska and Hawaii. Selection varies by location while supplies last. See lowe's.com for more details.
- [01:56]
Heath
What is going on? True crime.
- [01:59]
Daphne
Your host, he and I'm your host.
- [02:00]
Heath
Daphne and you're listening to Going West.
- [02:04]
Daphne
Hello everybody. Thank you so much for tuning in today. Big shout out to Laurel and Madison who both recommended today's case. I gotta say, this case takes such a turn that I really did not see coming. And that is all I'm gonna say.
- [02:20]
Heath
Don't want to spoil the episode for you guys.
- [02:22]
Daphne
But before we dive into today's case, I wanted to mention I think for maybe the first time on the show that I have a thriller novel coming out this July in the at least for now it's going to be available audiobook and Kindle in other countries too, but hardcover in the US July 8th. It is called Night Watcher. It's actually a fiction novel about a serial killer. So I think a lot of you guys would really like it.
- [02:46]
Heath
And it takes place in Portland, Oregon and Also, just for you guys, just so you know, you can actually pre order the book right now.
- [02:55]
Daphne
Yes. It's also about a paranormal radio show host and she is kind of investigating this serial killer. So again, I think you guys would like it. Like he said, you can pre order it now if you would like. Really, anywhere that you get your books. So check it out.
- [03:09]
Heath
Yeah, let's support Daphne. Let's pre order that book, and without further ado, let's get into today's episode. All right, guys, this is episode 503 of Going West. So let's get into it.
- [03:30]
Sam
SAM.
- [03:59]
Daphne
In May of 2016, a 31 year old woman went out for a night of music and drinks in Green Bay, Wisconsin. But the next morning, her body would be found in a farmer's field, miles from home and brutally beaten. Investigators soon uncovered a tangled timeline of jealousy and digital footprints that pointed back to the man she trusted most. But with evidence from a fitness tracker, the entire case against the most likely suspect would be questioned. This is the murder of Nicole Vander Heyden. Nicole Meyer, better known as Nikki to her family and friends, was born on March 29, 1985 in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, which is a coastal town situated on the shores of Lake Michigan, just about 45 minutes southeast of Green Bay. Born to Vicky and Steve Meyer, she grew up alongside siblings Heather, Brent and Brandon. Nicole graduated from high school in 2003 and enrolled in the University of Wisconsin, Green Bay, just hoping to further her pursuit of education in the field of science. So she completed a double major in science and education, graduating with a Bachelor of science degree in 2010. And then, amazingly, she spent six years working in Green Bay public schools as a substitute high school science teacher. And actually, while completing her degree, she got married and had two kids, Michaela and Tyler. According to her family, she was always a mom first and did whatever she could to make her kids feel loved and cared for. Nicole's friend Tiffany told 48 Hours that Nicole embodied light, spirit, a verve, and a zest and zeal. Other friends, of which there are many, call Nicole adventurous, big hearted and kind. Aside from her children, her greatest joy came from spending time outdoors and just staying active in general after a divorce rendered her the single mom of her two young children, again, Michaela and Tyler. Nicole Van Der Heyden slowly began dating again in early 2015, and it was around that time that she met Doug Dietree. Doug's family owned and operated a building company, and he was known for being an eligible bachelor in Green Bay, not to mention the fact that he owned a home and seemed ready to settle down. So things seemed good between them at first. And their relationship grew serious very quickly because after dating for only a month, Nicole was pregnant. Though it was a little bit hasty, the couple excitedly prepared for the baby and she moved into Doug's house, which was just south of Green Bay in Ledgeview, Wisconsin. Then In October of 2015, 30 year old Nicole gave birth to a son that they named Dylan.
- [07:27]
Heath
And though their relationship seemed pretty blissful early on, the couple were navigating their fair share of problems within the first few months of their son's life, because just three weeks before she disappeared, Nicole told her mom, Vicky, that Doug had beaten her. So, obviously horrified by this, Vicky was actually trying to get Nicole and the kids to come live with her, to take them under her wing and just get him away from Doug. But Doug was also sharing the issues that he had with Nicole and their relationship to people in his own circle. Shortly before her death, he texted his mom, Diane, saying that he was feeling resentment about being tied to Nicole through their son, writing to her, this is going to be nothing but hell for 18 years. He also admitted, quote, I'm very seriously thinking about telling Nicole and the kids that they have to move. I'm not cut out for this life one bit. Though he later did claim that he didn't remember sending this text.
- [08:26]
Daphne
It does suck because sometimes we send text messages in the heat of the moment if we're upset about something or something that might look dramatic later. So it does kind of suck that this is just being aired for everybody to read and to hear just because he did say it. But it was clear that things just weren't really going well between them.
- [08:47]
Heath
Yeah, not looking good so far. But on the evening of Friday, May 20, 2016, so just about seven months after having their son, Nicole and Doug, who were still together and just kind of trying to make it work, had plans for a fun night out, which appeared to be a first since Dylan was born. Her friend Dallas offered to watch the baby for the evening and told Nicole to stay out as long as she wanted and just kind of cut loose. Nicole and Doug met up with some of Doug's friends to see Steel Panther, which, if you guys don't know who Steel Panther is, they're basically like a silly kind of parody 80s hair metal band. Like, they're just, they're kind of a ridiculous band. They're fun and they just make fun of themselves, but they dress up with like the eyeliner and the makeup and all, all that Stuff, they're pretty fucking hilarious.
- [09:36]
Daphne
You and your dad like them.
- [09:38]
Heath
Well, apparently so did Doug and Nicole because they went to a bar called the Watering Hole in Southwest Green Bay to go see them. And just based on the type of band that Steel Panther is, they probably had an amazing time. Then after the concert, Doug split off, promising to meet up with her later. So Nicole continued her own night separately and went out with his friends to a bar called the City Sardine can, which is near downtown. And it's described on Google as a quote, cozy bar with live music and bar games offering beer, wine and hard liquor and a patio. So basically just kinda your run of the mill bar. And it's very fitting to the name. Its interior is adorned with a fake shark's head, fishing nets and other ocean themed decor. Now, Doug's friend Angela happily welcomed Nicole into their group when they got together. So she tried to make sure that Nicole felt included despite being without Doug, since obviously he just kind of scurried off.
- [10:38]
Daphne
Now, at first it seemed like Nicole was having a good time. She was dancing, drinking, and chatting with others. But as it got later, Nicole was clearly agitated that Doug had just disappeared without any real explanation as to where he was going. So she started to take her frustrations out on him via text, accusing him of staying behind in order to, like, flirt with other women while leaving his girlfriend and the mother of his child with all of his friends. So, growing angrier by the minute, Nicole is texting Doug, asking what girl he's with, things like that. And then she followed these up with, fuck you, abusive asshole, and you hurt me all the time. So it seems like overall, Nicole was done with his antics and really, in a lot of ways, their relationship. She was done with how he treated her, just across the board. But at some point around midnight, she tried calling him and he didn't answer yet. Shortly afterwards, a friend of theirs tried him and Doug picked up, which enraged Nicole because it felt clear that he was, you know, ignoring her calls while taking others.
- [11:48]
Heath
Yeah, that's super shitty. Like, your girlfriend is calling you and then your buddy is literally right there and you, you answer his phone call but not hers.
- [11:57]
Daphne
Yeah, especially because she's asking you, hey, are you with another girl? So she's like, why won't you answer that question? Like, why are you ignoring me? Why are you mia?
- [12:06]
Heath
And if he's not, there's an easy way to clear that up. Just say, no, I'm not with another girl.
- [12:11]
Daphne
Right. So again, here she is just like still at the bar with his friends, they move out to the patio. She's sitting outside with them. This is actually on security footage. We have this footage of her sitting outside on the patio with them. And she just finally had enough. So she got up and left by herself, heading west on South Broadway, away from the sardine can. One of Doug's friends followed after her to make sure that she was okay and see if they could get her to come back, but Nicole refused. So off she went into the darkness. On that Friday, May Evening at around 12:30am Doug eventually arrived home and went to bed and claims that when he woke up, Nicole was still gone. So he's saying that he didn't see her after they split up at the concert at all. The next morning, he was hungover and reeling from their nasty fight via text the evening prior. So he says that he didn't think much of her absence at first. You know, they weren't on good terms, so her being gone made sense. But by that afternoon, Saturday, May 21, 2016, Doug as well as Nicole's friends and family were starting to really grow anxious that she hadn't returned, especially because Nicole was still breastfeeding Dylan. So she really wouldn't just go off and disappear on purpose.
- [13:36]
Heath
Well, earlier that day, in another, more rural part of town, a call came into 911 in which two teenage boys claimed to come across a body. The boys were helping out on a farm, prepping the ground for seeds to be planted, when they spotted the naked body of a woman lying face down on her stomach, her arms folded across her forehead. There was a large amount of blood on her face and in her hair, staining it red. And it was clear to them that this woman was dead. So the grandfather of one of the teens who actually owned that property called 911 on behalf of the kids to get police out there right away. Anxiously, he told the dispatcher, quote, we just found a human body lying in some wheat. Oh, God. When the dispatcher began to ask if the person was beyond help and whether or not she should offer instructions for cpr, he interrupted by saying, yeah, no, it's beyond help. When asked if CPR could possibly revive the victim, the caller paused and said, it's starting to decay.
- [14:43]
Daphne
Like, what a horrific morning. And this guy must have been so confused as well, not knowing why or how a stranger's body is on his property. And now he has to get a really good look at them to relay the condition to the dispatcher.
- [14:59]
Heath
Oh, yeah. I mean, actually, the injuries were so extensive that the caller couldn't even determine whether the victim was a man or a woman, only that they had long hair. So from the jump, the first investigators to arrive on the scene believed that she had been sexually assaulted and strangled elsewhere, then discarded on that farm. On a stretch of highway not far from where the remains were recovered, a pile of bloody clothing, which had likely been quickly tossed out of the window, was recovered and included the school lanyard with Nicole's picture and her name. So obviously, this really helped determine her identity. But on top of this, dental records confirmed that it was 31 year old Nicole Vander Heyden. Brown County Sheriff's Sergeant Richard Lopnow reported the extent of the injuries that she suffered were pretty horrific. There was trauma to her neck that would indicate possible strangulation. In addition to lacerations and bruising throughout her body, her fingernails were damaged, indicative of defensive wounds. That tells us that she was fighting for her life. Back in Nicole's neighborhood of Ledgeview, and in fact, right outside of her house, two joggers passing by noticed what looked like a pool of blood in the road and more along the curb, proving that the crime scene stretched all the way back home. In the yard was a thick black phone cord that investigators later surmised had been used to strangle Nicole, as well as clumps of her blonde hair. So investigators quickly came to the conclusion that she had been murdered just 118ft from her house, having been stomped on, beaten and strangled in the street, then transported in a car to the field where she was discarded.
- [16:51]
Daphne
On Nicole's back, there was this herringbone pattern that looked like she had been struck with or stomped on with a man's tennis shoe. But this was so much more than that, because in total, Nicole sustained more than 240injuries. The pink bracelet from the steel panther concert still clung to her wrist, and on her feet were the ankle socks that she had worn the night before. But other than that, there was nothing found with her body, and she had been discarded just 3 miles or 4.8 kilometers from her home. So, you know, of course, it had been hard for the owner of that farm to identify her gender because of all these injuries, but also because, you know, this was May, it's Wisconsin. There's a lot of humidity. It was very warm. It was late spring. So that explains that. Well, as word broke that a body had been found, it was incorrectly reported that the body had been that of a male. Because of this general confusion due to the great number of wounds to her body and, of course, the decomposition. So her loved Ones temporarily breathed this sigh of relief, thinking that she could still be out there safe somewhere. Though as far as they knew at that point, there was still no sign of Nicole. So finally, at 4:30pm, Doug nervously called the police to report that his girlfriend had not returned home the night prior. And when police arrived to speak with him, he investigators already knew that Nicole was deceased. But knowing that Doug was instantly the prime suspect because he was her partner, they arrived at his house to take his statement and just kind of suss out his account of events from the previous evening before dropping that bomb on him. Now initially though, Doug was puzzled at her absence. He claimed that he didn't necessarily believe that anything bad had happened to her, but admitted that this was out of character for her and that he was concerned about where she could be. Cause although he and Nicole had only been together for about a year and a half at this point, he knew her routine. When asked why he had waited until so late in the day to make the report, he said that he was hungover and hadn't been feeling well and that he had taken some time to shower and clean himself up before raising the alarm that Nikki had failed to come home. 34 year old Doug was brought into the police station for a formal interview. And once detectives had him in an interrogation room, they admitted that they had found a body and that they were working to formally confirm its identity, but that the woman they found bore similarities to Nicole.
- [19:43]
Heath
They essentially told Doug that they would search the house that the couple shared for evidence and asked him to give them the clothes that he had been wearing the night before. So stunned by this, Doug maintained that he had nothing to do with Nicole's disappearance and presumed murder, and that besides being an asshole a little bit on the phone, he hadn't done anything wrong the night prior. He then broke down in sobs saying, I want her back. She needs to come back. When investigators left him alone for observation after this, he spoke softly under his breath, apparently to Nicole, saying, who did this? I will find them, Nicole. I will find them. I love you. I love you. I loved you. I really did. So although he was adamant that he wasn't involved, he really couldn't provide an alibi beyond, you know, having been at home after he split off from Nicole at the concert. But despite his seemingly devastated reaction to the news, Nicole's friends and family report that he was far from a model boyfriend. As you know, obviously we already know, but this was the kind of detail that police were very much looking for. When police spoke with Nicole's sister, Heather. She claimed that their relationship had been really rough lately due to his frequent drinking and use of cocaine. Aside from being suspicious of him cheating on her with other women, Heather also claimed that he had been violent towards Nicole on multiple occasions. So, acting on a hunch, detectives spoke with several of Doug's ex girlfriends to get kind of a bigger picture of what he was like as a partner. And one of them actually claimed that she was once tackled by him during a fight and that he ended up breaking her ankle in the process. Then another woman said that he had placed a tracking device on her car. Numerous women accused him of being possessive, controlling, and even abusive, just like Nicole herself had. So it's pretty safe to say that suspicions against Doug were mounting. Inside the garage of the couple's home, police found a pair of Doug's tennis shoes whose tread matched that of the pattern on Nicole's back. And on the back of her car, they noticed red droplets that resembled blood. So just two days after her body was discovered on May 23, 2016, Green Bay Police arrested Doug for the murder of his girlfriend. My friends, spring is coming up. We're doing some spring cleaning, and we're also buying some new things to be able to replace those old things.
- [22:27]
Daphne
And when we do that, we want to save as much money as we can.
- [22:31]
Heath
And that's exactly why we love Rakuten. Rakuten is the smartest way to save money when you shop, because you can earn cash back at over 3,500 stores. I mean, we're talking fashion, travel, electronics, and more.
- [22:45]
Daphne
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- [22:55]
Heath
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Daphne
You got to love it.
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Heath
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Daphne
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- [23:13]
Heath
That's R a k u T e n your cash back really adds up. This show is sponsored by BetterHelp.
- [23:22]
Daphne
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- [23:39]
Heath
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- [23:49]
Daphne
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- [23:58]
Heath
And one of the main goals of BetterHelp is that they want to match you with the right therapist, the one that works for you. So it's easy to switch therapists at any time at no extra cost. So you can find your perfect match.
- [24:11]
Daphne
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- [24:18]
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- [24:24]
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- [24:40]
Heath
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- [24:49]
Daphne
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- [25:30]
Sam
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- [25:56]
Daphne
That's hometap.com ever since switching to T mobile, something weird has been happening. I get to cut lines.
- [26:05]
Sam
Oh, right this way.
- [26:06]
Daphne
Who me? I can stream shows at 30,000ft and I was able to buy reserve tickets for my favorite band.
- [26:16]
Sam
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- [27:47]
Daphne
As police built out their case against Doug dietree, they questioned a guy named Greg Matthew, who is a friend of his that was supposedly with Doug on the night of Nicole's murder. But he stormed out of the interrogation room. And really what happened is that naturally, detectives had asked him about an hour long period of time where his phone was either dead or turned off that night because that really doesn't look look good for him. But he refused to answer the questions and he left. According to both Doug and Greg, when his friends at the sardine can alerted Doug that Nicole had wandered off, he and Greg drove around the area trying to find her. But when they couldn't, they returned to the sardine can, Met back up with friends, and had another drink before heading home for the evening. So this is giving an opportunity for Doug and Greg to potentially go off and do something else. Right, Nicole?
- [28:44]
Heath
Right. There's a little bit of a time frame that's missing.
- [28:47]
Daphne
Right. But while these were not the best optics for Doug in the wake of his girlfriend's murder, the evidence against him was simply not there. And the case that investigators had built against him was quickly falling apart. Like, not only had Nicole's car not moved from where it was parked in the garage all weekend, but the blood found in the back belonged to Nicole's daughter Michaela after she had recently gotten hurt. So at first they were wondering, the police were maybe her body had been transported in her Own vehicle, but it hadn't moved. And then after they tested the blood, it turned out to be her daughters.
- [29:23]
Heath
And how often does something like that happen in a case? Right? You find blood in a car. It's almost. It's almost certain that that's probably how the victim was transported.
- [29:33]
Daphne
Yeah, no, this is like, so weird that that didn't pan out. Doug's not really panning out. It's like it was such a clear. Oh, here we go. This is. This is what happened.
- [29:43]
Heath
Yeah, it's looking like everything is pointing towards Doug.
- [29:46]
Daphne
Well, also, Doug's shoes were negative for her blood as well. And the footprints found on Nicole's back didn't even end up matching. But what really sealed the argument of his innocence was the activity on the Fitbit that he had been wearing around his wrist during the time that her murder would have taken place. Place at the time Nicole was believed to have been killed. The only activity on the Fitbit showed that Doug was home and asleep with only two short bursts of activity, which would account for when Doug said he woke up to go to the bathroom. Both times noticing that Nicole was not home yet. And the few steps that he had taken in the night were certainly not enough activity on the tracker to murder Nicole and dispose of her body. So Doug was released just over two weeks after his arrest.
- [30:39]
Heath
I mean, seriously, thank God for that Fitbit, because that really gave us such insight into this investigation. But then suddenly, four months passed since Nicole's murder and there was no movement in her case. And it was a complete shock to everybody that really thought that Doug was not innocent. Her generally safe Midwestern community, as well as her family and friends, heavily mourned her and remained on edge, just hoping that answers would be around the corner. And then finally, enough DNA was gleaned from one of her socks to enter into the CODIS database. And the investigation received a very lucky break when there was a hit. A 38 year old man named George Burch Jr. Was a match for the DNA, as he had served prison time for several crimes in Virginia. He had actually even gone to trial for a murder in the late 90s, so just under 20 years earlier, but he had been acquitted. And basically the story there is that George was accused of shooting a man named Joey White in the head on October 29, 1997, in front of an apartment complex in Newport News, Virginia. Now, George and Joey had a long standing rivalry because Joey was the leader of the hood's mob gang. And George Burch Jr. Claimed that Joey had it out for him, Joey and his friends had apparently apprehended and beaten George multiple times and had threatened to do even worse. And after an argument over the phone with Joey and some of his fellow gang members, George and a few of his friends headed for the Camelot apartment complex in Newport News. This clash between the two groups ended in Joey's death by firearm. And thus George Burch, Jr. Who would have been about 19 years old at this time, was arrested at the scene and proclaimed that Joey's death had been an accident, that he was being threatened with death as well, and that he shot his firearm in the air just to scare him off. On June 22, 1998, a jury acquitted him on five counts of murder charges. There were audible gasps in the courtroom when he was let off, and Joey's mother even stormed out of the room with another woman, yelling, I hope you rot in hell. Joey's sister Carla remembers. He looked at us, laughed at us, you know, the whole time, smirked. His friends and family proclaim that before the fight that ended his life, he was trying to turn his life around, and he left behind a young daughter. So this acquittal was very devastating for Joey's entire family and circle. George Burch, Jr. Had also served time for burglary and firearms convictions, but this was by far his most serious charge. Aside from his lengthy rap sheet, he was also on probation and he was forbidden from leaving Virginia. But obviously he ignored this stipulation.
- [33:39]
Daphne
George wound up in Wisconsin because he was navigating a separation from his wife at the time, and he had a friend in Green Bay, so seemed like a fine place to land. And wanting some space and a fresh start, he moved in with Edward and Linda Jackson as their friend and now roommate. George was actually described as fun loving and personable. According to Edward, he loved to talk to people, especially women, and was known for being quite charming. Mere hours after Nicole's body was found, George had gone fishing with Edward and seemed to be in high spirits. Actually, there is a photo out there of him smiling with a fish that I will post. But on the boat, Edward did recall noticing that his buddy George had cuts on his hands. But the real smoking gun was the car of the Jacksons that George had been driving, a red Chevy Blazer. About a month after Nicole's murder, the car had been involved in a hit and run incident in which it was set ablaze and totaled. And conveniently, the front passenger seat had been burned. After they determined that his DNA was a match to a sample found on Nicole's sock This red Chevy Blazer was determined by police to be the car that George had been driving on the night of Nicole's murder and the vehicle he would have used to transport her body. Under the guise of investigating the hit and run, investigators asked to search his phone and George obliged, obviously not knowing that they actually were searching his phone to see if there was any evidence of him being involved in Nicole's murder. And this proved his very crucial movements on her final night. So 31 year old Nicole had wandered into a dive bar near his home called Richard Craniums, which is described on Google as a quote, casual tavern featuring league sports, pool tables and darts, plus happy hour specials. Very much a dive bar. And George Birch Jr. Was a regular there. Richard Cranium's is on the same street, South Broadway, and about a 10 minute walk from the sardine can. So as she walked down this street downtown, she would have come right upon Richard Cranium. Frustrated with Doug, Nicole and George got to talking and she asked him for a ride home, to which he agreed. But this gesture of goodwill quickly turned sinister when having taken her home, George made a pass at her outside her house and Cole spurned his advances. Angry by her understanding and rightful refusal, he sexually assaulted her and then dragged her from the car and beat her. Despite putting up the fight of her life, Nicole was no match for his 6 foot 7, 250 pound frame.
- [36:42]
Heath
That is a big guy.
- [36:43]
Daphne
Big. So he then grabbed the phone cord from his vehicle, well, his friend's vehicle, because it had a phone in it to finish the job. Panicking when he realized what he had done, he threw Nicole's body back into the car and sped away from her home. But we have to realize, like, this was so aggressive. There were over 240injuries to her body. This wasn't just like, oh God, what did I do? He beat her senselessly and then he strangled her with a phone cord.
- [37:13]
Heath
Yeah, I mean, it just shows you the amount of anger that was put into this attack on Nicole. You know what I mean?
- [37:21]
Daphne
Just because she rejected him, but he still got what he wanted, he sexually assaulted her and that just wasn't enough.
- [37:27]
Heath
I'll just never, I'll really never understand this idea of, you know, getting turned down or getting a refusal from like sexual advances and then, and then becoming violent towards a woman. Like it's, why can't you just be like, okay, she's not interested. Like, were you really that embarrassed? Are you literally that much of an insecure loser?
- [37:50]
Daphne
What gives you the right to think that any of that is. Okay. Well, he then discarded her body in the field, where it was found hours later by the teens, and threw her belongings out the window. And his phone records painted a clear picture of most of these events, showing him at Richard Cranium's, then Nicole's residence, then the farm where he left her body. And then at 4:22am he finally arrived back at home to his friend's place. But despite this overwhelmingly incriminating evidence, When George Burt Jr. Was arrested on September 7, 2016, he refused to confirm the suspicions of police and calmly told detectives that he wanted a lawyer. And it must have been so frustrating for police that they couldn't search that Chevy Blazer for physical evidence since it had been set on fire. But these movements are obviously very telling.
- [38:51]
Heath
And we can obviously assume that he was trying to get rid of that physical evidence by burning the Chevy Blazer. But really, at the end of the day, it didn't do anything for him.
- [39:01]
Daphne
They had what they needed anyway.
- [39:03]
Heath
So George's trial began on February 19, 2018, and the defense immediately tried to paint Doug as the true murderer. Despite the lack of evidence against George's.
- [39:14]
Daphne
Defense team must have been so happy that they could use Doug as a scapegoat here. Yeah, like, they. They had something that felt kind of solid.
- [39:24]
Heath
Yeah, I mean, they were like, basically, Doug is the pawn in this scenario. Well, the defense tried to put forth the narrative that George had indeed met and spent time with Nicole that night, but that as investigators initially believed Doug had been the one to blame for her death. His team laid out the explanation that George had driven Nicole to her home early on the morning of Saturday, May 21, 2016, under the assumption that they were going to have sex, even though.
- [39:54]
Daphne
Her boyfriend was there. Like, make it make sense.
- [39:57]
Heath
Yeah, it doesn't make any sense. Well, the next thing he knew, he says both he and Nicole were being attacked by none other than Doug, who then forced George to help him move his girlfriend's body. Okay, so stupid. Well, according to George, the pair were having consensual sex in his car outside of the residence. And the next thing he knew, he woke up on the ground to see Nicole's body nearby, covered in blood. He believed that Doug had knocked him unconscious with a gun before. Doug then ordered George at gunpoint to place Nicole's body in the car and drive to the nearby field, where it was later found. Doug then supposedly ordered George to carry Nicole's body down an embankment, where he left her, all the while with a gun pointed at him. When he finally set her body down, he says, that's when I turned and with everything I had, I lunged at him and pushed him as hard as I possibly could. However, Doug nor George sustained any injuries from this alleged confrontation because it didn't happen. Yeah, it's not real.
- [41:03]
Daphne
But the defense pushed on, also trying to poke holes in the claim that Doug's Fitbit activity proved that he was asleep at the time of Nicole's murder. Because they were like, pointing to different lawsuits that had been filed against the company of Fitbit, calling into question the accuracy of their data. They're trying to say, no, he wasn't asleep. And. And I can prove it, because Fitbit is not reliable to go on for something like this. And to be fair, the judge did agree to exclude the sleep specific data, but did allow the step counting data, which still did not bode well for George's case. However, likely the strongest argument for George's guilt was that his DNA was on the phone cord with Nicole's as well as on the sock, whereas Doug's DNA was nowhere to be found. When George took the stand, he offered little information of note and calmly denied all the charges leveled against him. But on March 1, 2018, a guilty verdict was reached after just three hours. Victim impact statements were read for the court for two hours. And actually one of the most compelling testimonies came from Doug's mother, Diane. She told the court, quote, burch threw Nicole away like she didn't even matter. She did matter. We loved her and we miss her. All Nicole wanted from him was a ride home. A ride home, back to Doug, back to her baby. In closing, please go home today, hugged your loved ones, tell them you love them, show them you love them. Which is a nice sentiment, but saying that she wanted to go back to Doug when he was known to be abusive towards her, and that they were in an unhappy and unhealthy relationship with her. Is this a little.
- [42:59]
Heath
Yeah, it's a little messy.
- [43:01]
Daphne
Well, when. Judge. Judge. When George was asked by the judge if he would like to make a statement in response, George declined, simply saying, no, sir. So fed up with his lack of accountability, Judge Zukowski snapped back, saying, you know, just a thought, Mr. Burch, you said, yes, sir and no, sir. But the manly thing would have been to say, alright, you know, I did it, I flipped out, I did whatever. Cop a plea, do something and step up to the plate. You chose not to do that and still haven't done that. You dropped a body off in a field and then 12 hours later go on a boat and be smiling like nothing happened. Like you didn't have a care in the world. How can we explain that? That isn't human, that is not normal. This is the most brutal murder that has ever been committed by one person in the history of Brown County. That's how severe this case is. This family is destroyed and will never be like this again. This is a crime that I believe would merit the death penalty. And for that you have to die in prison.
- [44:16]
Heath
Damn, that is some strong words.
- [44:19]
Daphne
I love when judges just rip em apart. Yeah, just let it out like that because he's right.
- [44:26]
Heath
Well, in addition to ordering then 40 year old George to life in prison without the possibility of parole, Judge Zukowski determined that George is unable to profit from any book or movie about the case and that all profits from any such venture will go directly to the families of Nicole and Doug.
- [44:45]
Daphne
It's a nice little tack on there.
- [44:47]
Heath
Well, frustratingly, George has continued to maintain his innocence despite all the evidence and his conviction. In 2021 he appealed his conviction with his defense attorney claiming that his cell phone evidence should have been made inadmissible in court because it was gleaned by ill sought means.
- [45:06]
Daphne
Yeah, because they, they weren't honest about why they were looking inside the phone.
- [45:10]
Heath
Right. But the use of cell phone data was granted and his conviction was upheld.
- [45:28]
Daphne
Thank you so much everybody for listening to this episode of Going Wild.
- [45:33]
Heath
Yes, thank you guys so much for listening and thank God that that piece of shit George is exactly where he belongs and where he will remain for the rest of his shitty life.
- [45:43]
Daphne
I wonder how many other cases like there exist out there, out there like this.
- [45:49]
Heath
Exist.
- [45:50]
Daphne
Yeah, because I mean at first all signs pointed to Doug and if this case had happened maybe 50 years earlier, Douglas, Doug might be imprisoned to this day for this case.
- [46:01]
Heath
It's very true. I mean Doug isn't the most stand up guy either. But he did not murder Nicole and that's what really matters.
- [46:09]
Daphne
Yeah, hopefully things are different now. He did get full custody of their child, so hopefully they are as happy as they can be and safe out there. But yeah, I just, I mean DNA is what broke this case and it really did take such a turn because it looked like it was going one way and then it completely turned. Thanks to codis.
- [46:30]
Heath
Well, thank you guys again for listening to this episode. Thank you for the recommendation for this episode and also just want to say real quick before we leave, you guys, Daphne's book Night Watcher is going to be coming out on July 8th but you can pre order it right now. So go and pre order the book. I know you guys are going to love it.
- [46:49]
Daphne
Well thanks. Thank you guys so much and we will see you again on Tuesday.
- [46:53]
Heath
All right guys. So for everybody out there in the.
- [46:56]
Daphne
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- [48:19]
Sam
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Daphne
Take control by asking your doctor about Ingrezza.
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Sam
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Daphne
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Sam
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Daphne
Who me? I can stream shows at 30,000ft and I was able to buy reserve tickets for my favorite band.
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Sam
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- [49:55]
Heath
And the winner by knockout is Pataday Patter Day.
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Sam
Bring it on.
- [50:04]
Daphne
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