Podcast Summary: The Binge Cases: Killer Story

Episode 4: Dead Body Waking

Host: Steve Fishman
Date: February 23, 2026

Overview

This episode, “Dead Body Waking,” dives deep into the Las Vegas cold case of Sabrina Kidd, a teenage girl whose disappearance haunted tabloid reporter Lyndal Marks. Driven by her own unresolved trauma, Lyndal teams up with Detective Robert Leonard to make a breakthrough in the case with the discovery of new evidence: a life insurance policy naming Sabrina’s landlord Tom Preston as beneficiary. The story unfolds with a compelling blend of investigative tenacity, emotional reckoning, and the high stakes of seeking justice for the forgotten.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Life Insurance Bombshell

• [02:58] Lyndal receives a fax at her newsroom—a $400,000 life insurance policy taken out on 17-year-old Sabrina, naming landlord Tom Preston as the beneficiary.
  • Lyndal: “Here it is. Here’s the motive.” [03:40]
  • Steve: “You don’t need a degree in tabloid news to understand this. Motive. Greed. One of the oldest in the book.” [03:43]
• The insurance policy is a game changer but, as Steve notes, it only provides circumstantial evidence—proof of motive, not murder. [04:07]

2. Friction and Alliance: Lyndal and Detective Leonard

• [05:01] Detective Leonard, previously indifferent after writing off Sabrina as a runaway, is confronted by Lyndal and her camera crew.
  • Leonard on his first impression of Lyndal: “She talks 100 miles an hour.” [07:11]
• Lyndal gets Leonard’s attention with the life insurance policy:
  • Leonard: “Why in the world would someone who’s not a relative or anything be taken out of $400,000 insurance policy on a teenage girl? … Became very apparent that there was something wrong.” [08:00]
• Despite their differences, they become an unlikely team—Lyndal, relentless and emotionally invested; Leonard, stoic and methodical.
  • Leonard: “She had put so much time and effort into it. I thought we were almost like a team at that time.” [08:30]
  • Leonard on Lyndal’s drive: “She just grabbed hold of it and wasn’t gonna let go.” [10:18]

3. The Search for Sabrina: Missing or Murdered?

• [11:03] Initial attempts to trace Sabrina using records, arrests, and social security turn up nothing.
  • Leonard: “That would raise your interest as to how she could have been gone for four years and not had contact with anybody … and be out and about still.” [11:36]
• The absence increases suspicion that Sabrina is dead.

4. The Riverside Discovery

• [13:01] A break comes when a fisherman finds a female body in the Colorado River, technically in Arizona.
  • Lyndal: “I remember getting the call from Detective Leonard who said a body that had been recovered from the river just days after this girl was reported missing. And I’m thinking, oh my God, this could be Sabrina.” [13:54]

5. The Agony of Identification

• The body cannot be ID’d by witnesses or basic dental records; dental work last reported when Sabrina was 12. [14:57]
• Lyndal: “The dental records were incredibly disappointing.” [14:57]
• DNA and fingerprints are complicated due to the state of the remains. Juvenile records are locked, while the hands from autopsy yield little. [15:34]

6. A Mother’s Contribution

• Lyndal pursues an alternative—items touched by Sabrina. Her mother Bobby Sue, in Texas, finds a beloved math certificate in Sabrina’s suitcase.
  • Lyndal: “They found this little math certificate.” [18:43]
• Lab experts manage to extract a usable fingerprint from both the certificate and the remains, achieving a match.
  • Lyndal (on the process): “They were perfect match for one clean fingerprint on that math certificate.” [19:44]
• Steve (on Lyndal’s reaction): “Linda was beside herself. Detective Leonard raised an eyebrow.” [20:08]

7. Confirmation of Murder

• The autopsy reveals no water in Sabrina’s lungs, signifying she was dead before her body entered the river. [21:34]
• Lyndal: “There wasn’t any water in her lungs. She was dead before she entered the water.” [21:34]
• The hyoid bone was fractured, a strong indicator of manual strangulation.
  • Leonard: “She had died of a manual strangulation.” [22:08]
• The case is officially reclassified as a homicide.

8. Raw Family Grief

• Lyndal calls Bobby Sue and the family with the tragic news, delivering both devastation and a form of closure.
  • Lyndal: “They were absolutely devastated because now they knew that their daughter, their niece, was dead. … but there was a relief that after so many years, they knew they had closure.” [22:38]
• The trauma deepens for Bobby Sue, who spirals into self-destruction and guilt.
  • Lyndal (quoting Bobby Sue): “I am a failure. I failed as a mother. I let my daughter die.” [24:17]

9. Targeting the Suspect, Tom Preston

• All suspicion points to Tom Preston, but evidence is circumstantial.
  • Leonard: “It all pointed towards Preston. However, there wasn’t a lot. Everything we had was circumstantial, meaning the evidence didn’t directly prove a thing.” [24:48]
• Despite taking the case to the district attorney, the lack of direct evidence stalls prosecution.

10. High-Risk Confrontation: Lyndal Interviews Preston

• Lyndal arranges a meeting with Tom Preston in a Las Vegas diner, going undercover and wired—against the wishes of her husband/editor, Dan.
  • Lyndal’s resolve: “I’m a lone wolf. I go out there, I do the story. I get the story. No one’s gonna tell me not to put a microphone on and go and ambush a killer. I’m sorry. No one’s gonna tell me not to do that.” [28:33]
• The tense encounter sees Preston initially charming but quickly suspicious. When Lyndal presses him, he abruptly ends the meeting and flees.
  • Lyndal: “He just said, I’m done, and he walked out. … This is just going pear shaped.” [31:01]
• She attempts a confrontational question as Preston escapes, captured on camera.

Memorable Moments & Notable Quotes

• Lyndal’s Eureka Moment:
  "Here it is. Here’s the motive." — Lyndal ([03:40])
• On the Insurance Motive:
  "Why in the world would someone who’s not a relative or anything be taken out of $400,000 insurance policy on a teenage girl?" — Detective Leonard ([08:00])
• Leonard’s View of Lyndal:
  “She just grabbed hold of it and wasn’t gonna let go.” ([10:18])
• Lyndal’s Grit:
  “I’m a lone wolf. … No one’s gonna tell me not to put a microphone on and go and ambush a killer.” ([28:33])
• On Identification’s Challenge:
  “Dental records were incredibly disappointing.” — Lyndal ([14:57])
• On Family Devastation:
  “I am a failure. I failed as a mother. I let my daughter die.” — Bobby Sue (via Lyndal, [24:17])
• On Breaking the Story:
  “He just said, I’m done, and he walked out. Oh man, this is just going pear shaped.” — Lyndal ([31:01])

Key Timestamps

• 02:58: Introduction of the life insurance policy—game-changing evidence
• 05:01–08:00: Lyndal confronts Detective Leonard, secures his involvement
• 13:01: Breakthrough—discovery of a Jane Doe in the Colorado River
• 18:43–20:08: Bobby Sue’s find and the successful fingerprint match from the math certificate
• 21:34–22:08: Autopsy confirmation—death by manual strangulation, confirmation of murder
• 22:38–24:17: Notification and emotional fallout for Sabrina’s family
• 24:48–25:53: Mounting case against Tom Preston; prosecutorial obstacles
• 28:33–31:46: Wired meeting between Lyndal and Tom Preston; tense, high-stakes confrontation

Episode Tone & Character

The tone is investigative and tense, with both emotional reflection and hard-hitting journalism. Lyndal is depicted as dogged and daring, while Detective Leonard is world-weary but quietly caring. Emotional beats are handled with sensitivity, particularly around family trauma and Lyndal’s personal stakes.

For the Next Episode

The episode ends on a cliffhanger, teasing revelations from Tom Preston’s son and former boyfriend Jim Bixel, suggesting new, explosive leads to be uncovered.

This summary captures the essence, tension, and progress of Episode 4, giving listeners a vivid sense of the story’s direction and stakes—even if they've never tuned in before.