Podcast Summary: Real Life Real Crime

Episode: True Crime Time For January 5, 2025 | Foiled Terror Plot, Child Abuse Failures & the Death Penalty Debate

Hosts: Woody Overton & Cyndi Overton

Release Date: January 5, 2026

Main Theme

In this dynamic, hard-hitting episode, Woody and Cyndi Overton dig into several recent and notable true crime stories that highlight everything from foiled terror plots and devastating failures in child welfare, to the effectiveness and morality of the death penalty. Their trademark blend of gritty realism, candid reflection, and dark humor cuts through each case, exposing the pain, outrage, and lingering questions at the heart of real-world tragedies.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Foiled ISIS-Inspired New Year’s Eve Terror Plot

• Location: Mint Hill, NC
• Perpetrator: 18-year-old Christian Sturtevant
• Summary:
  • Arrested hours before planned attack on crowded venues (grocery store, fast food restaurant).
  • Plot involved knives and hammers, reportedly inspired by ISIS; FBI uncovered via social media.
  • Previously exhibited violent warning signs; family worked to keep weapons away, but with limits to their intervention.
• Quotes:
  • Cyndi: “Evidence presented at a news conference revealed that Sturtevant had been planning the attack for about a year…” (03:05)
  • Woody: "Good riddance to him. And he didn't get to kill anybody. And good job to the cops." (06:15)
• Notable Moment: FBI intervention and family’s earlier efforts likely prevented a catastrophe.

2. The Death of Damari Perry and Systemic Child Welfare Failures

• Location: North Chicago, IL
• Victim: 6-year-old Damari Perry, killed by his mother, Janny M. Perry, and older brother
• Summary:
  • Damari was subjected to prolonged cold-water punishment, died of hypothermia, then his body was burned and dumped across state lines.
  • Family delayed reporting his disappearance for 16 days; mother took a plea deal for 20–45 years, avoiding life without parole.
  • Damari, previously in foster care, was returned to mother despite warning signs.
• Quotes:
  • Woody: “Can you imagine that? ... That’s torture.” (08:56)
  • Cyndi: “How do you only get that many years for killing your child?” (10:23)
• Notable Moment: Persistent outrage over lenient sentencing and failures in oversight to protect the vulnerable.

3. Police Child Abuse: The Tragedy of Thomas Valva

• Location: New York
• Victim: 8-year-old Thomas Valva, son of NYPD officer Michael Valva
• Summary:
  • Forced to sleep in an unheated garage—died of hypothermia; 11 prior reports made to CPS, all ignored.
  • Mother won $9 million settlement against CPS, but controversy and in-fighting have delayed payout.
• Quotes:
  • Prosecutor: “No one looking at this can come to any other conclusion other than CPS failed these boys miserably..." (13:19)
  • Cyndi: “Now I’m just as mad at the mother as I am of the father.” (15:25)
• Notable Moment: Hosts’ indignation at not only CPS but also apparent conflicts within the surviving family.

4. Justice System Failures: The Logan Tipton Case & Insanity Defense

• Location: Kentucky
• Victim: 6-year-old Logan Tipton
• Summary:
  • Stranger Ronald Exantis stabbed and killed Logan, attacked siblings; found not guilty of murder by reason of insanity, served less than half of a 20-year sentence, now released.
  • Family expresses total loss of faith in the justice system, deep ongoing trauma, and fear for public safety.
• Quotes:
  • Coral (Logan’s sister): “It’s like my testimony did not matter at all... I seen the man in my room killing my brother, and now he is just free. It just doesn’t make sense to me.” (20:05)
  • Heather (Logan’s mother): “All I could really do at that point was beg them to give him the max that they could give him for the assault charges. There was nothing else we could do. And I still feel helpless and. And now he’s out, like, walking the streets among us. Like, what do we do?” (21:47)
  • Cyndi: “I mean, what’s going to happen is he’s going to kill somebody else.” (25:43)
• Notable Moment: Heartbreaking interviews with the family create an emotional center in the episode.

5. Missing Child in Alabama and Family Secrets

• Location: Walker County, AL
• Victim: 4-year-old Jonathan Everett “John John” Boley
• Summary:
  • John John went missing New Year’s Eve; found dead two days later with his dog alive by his side.
  • Search complicated when police found suspected explosives on father’s property—charged with unrelated offenses.
• Quotes:
  • Cyndi: “Authorities discovered what they believed to be explosive devices on the boy’s father’s property…leading to the father’s arrest on unrelated charges…” (29:14)
• Notable Moment: The tragedy of the child’s death compounds with the father’s legal troubles and police efforts.

6. Death Penalty Debate: Execution of Harold Wayne Nichols

• Location: Tennessee
• Perpetrator: Harold Wayne Nichols
• Summary:
  • Nichols executed 35 years after his 1988 rape and murder of Karen Pulley, plus multiple additional rapes.
  • Lethal injection detailed; debate about his ‘remorse’ and spiritual transformation, but family and hosts unmoved.
• Quotes:
  • Woody: “Y’all, does that sound harsh to you? Well, he raped and murdered. Think about that.” (33:39)
  • Cyndi: “Did he bring her back to life?” (33:58)
  • Woody: “...they’re not killing to teach people not to kill. They’re killing because it’s the law...” (34:00)
• Notable Moment: The hosts staunchly defend the death penalty for heinous crimes, expressing little sympathy for the executed.

7. Brutal Domestic Homicide in Ohio

• Location: Ohio
• Victim: 36-year-old Lakeisha Malone
• Summary:
  • Beaten to death with a wooden club by Andre Redmond, father of her child; quickly arrested at the scene.
• Quotes:
  • Cyndi: “This was a brutal weapon, improvised by her alleged attacker... wounds consistent with multiple blows.” (39:17)
• Notable Moment: Another chilling reminder of escalated domestic violence at the start of the new year.

8. Failed Bank Robbery, Attempted Cop Murder & 95-Year Sentence

• Location: Fort Worth, TX
• Perpetrator: Leland Williams
• Summary:
  • Williams, desperate for money after an argument with his child’s mother, attempts a botched bank robbery, shoots an officer at point-blank range, but forgets to demand money, then flees.
  • Officer survives, Williams gets 95 years with parole possible after 30.
• Quotes:
  • Woody: “He just started shooting...he forgot to demand money.” (46:51)
  • Brown (surviving officer): “I struggle. It’s me versus me every day. I wasn’t going to let a couple gunshots take me out.” (52:03)
  • Cyndi: “Props to him for continuing to do the job.” (52:21)
• Notable Moment: The court demonstration with a plastic gun highlighting intent to kill, the resilience of the wounded officer.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “How do you only get that many years for killing your child?”
  — Cyndi Overton (10:23)

• “No one looking at this can come to any other conclusion other than CPS failed these boys miserably and as a result, Thomas died.” — Ray Tierney, Prosecutor (13:19)

• “It’s like my testimony did not matter at all…I seen the man in my room killing my brother, and now he is just free. It just doesn’t make sense to me.” — Coral, survivor of Logan Tipton case (20:05)

• “Did he bring her back to life?” — Cyndi Overton, regarding Nichols' remorse (33:58)

• “He just started shooting... he forgot to demand money.” — Woody Overton, on failed Fort Worth robbery (46:51)

• “I struggle. It's me versus me every day. I wasn't going to let a couple gunshots take me out.” — Deputy Brent Brown (52:03)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• [02:22]—Foiled Mint Hill ISIS-inspired terror plot
• [06:15]—Damari Perry murder; failures in child protective services
• [11:16]—The case of Thomas Valva and repeated government failures
• [17:26]—Death penalty: death row and controversies
• [19:36 - 25:08]—Logan Tipton case: Family expresses heartbreak over horror and failed system
• [27:05]—Missing Alabama boy, John John, found deceased, father arrested on unrelated charges
• [30:38]—Execution of Harold Wayne Nichols; debate on death penalty
• [39:17]—Lakeisha Malone’s domestic homicide
• [41:04]—Fort Worth case: botched robbery, shot officer, 95-year prison sentence

Tone & Closing

Woody and Cyndi’s conversation remains raw, sometimes darkly humorous, utterly direct, and deeply empathetic with victims and survivors. They challenge leniency, highlight law enforcement dedication, and underscore the urgent need for systemic reform. Each story is treated as fuel not just for outrage but for necessary conversation and action.

For listeners who missed the episode:
This installment is as gripping as it gets, weaving together news, firsthand experience, and searing opinion in a collection of stories that demand attention—and justice.