Inside the Degrading ‘Playbook’ of Abuse That Sealed the Alexander Brothers’ Fate

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Trial: USA – Inside the Degrading ‘Playbook’ of Abuse That Sealed the Alexander Brothers’ Fate
Episode Date: March 11, 2026
Host: The Crime Desk, Kayla Brantley
Main Guest: Luke Kenton, Senior Reporter at the Daily Mail

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Episode Overview

This episode of The Trial: USA delves into the climactic moments and key evidence in the conviction of real estate moguls Oren, Alon, and Tal Alexander. After six weeks of intense and graphic testimony in a Manhattan federal court, the brothers were found guilty on all counts of sex trafficking, rape, and related offenses. The discussion emphasizes the "Vent on Bitches" blog—a disturbing digital manifesto—which prosecutors argued revealed the abusive mindset driving their crimes. The show also covers courtroom reactions, legal strategies, and the emotional fallout for the accused's families, then briefly recaps two other criminal cases in the headlines.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Verdict and Its Immediate Fallout

• Announcement of Guilty Verdicts

  • After six weeks, the Alexander brothers were found guilty on every count, including sex trafficking by force, fraud, and coercion. (00:02)
  • The verdict followed 21 hours of jury deliberations.
  • Emotional courtroom scenes: The brothers showed visible distress; their family members appeared shell-shocked.
    • “Inside the courtroom, the brothers sat in stunned silence as the guilty verdicts were read out one by one. Behind them, their parents stared ahead in shock.” — Kayla Brantley (00:02)
  • Alon Alexander’s wife, Shani Zagron, was seen collapsing in tears outside the courthouse. (00:02, 17:22)

• Courtroom Atmosphere

  • The judge ordered no visible reactions, but emotions were palpable:
    • Alon, a trained attorney, dropped his head as each guilty count was read. (04:50)
    • Oren reacted most visibly when convicted on the count of exploitation of a minor, slumping in his chair. (04:50)
    • Tal remained mostly stoic, but visibly shaken. (04:50)
    • Family "shell shocked":
      • “Shlomi and Orly Alexander, the parents, were essentially doing what I'd call a thousand yards there. Shell shocked was probably the word that they looked.” — Luke Kenton (05:20)
    • Shani Zagron, Alon’s wife, broke down emotionally after she thought she was out of reporters' view. (17:22-17:53)

2. Charges, Evidence, and the Government’s Case

• Nature of the Charges

  • 10 counts including multiple charges of sex trafficking, inducement to travel for commercial sex, and, for Oren, sexual exploitation of a minor via video evidence. (06:26)

• Victims’ Testimony

  • 11 women testified; each account strikingly similar despite victims not knowing each other.
  • Descriptions so brutal:
    • “The attack felt like being mauled by wild animals.” — Unnamed victim via Brantley (00:02)

• Prosecutors’ “Playbook”: The Blog

  • The “Vent on Bitches” blog was pivotal, described as a digital playbook for misogyny and abuse:
    • “A manifesto of misogyny and rape and hate... a playbook for how to disrespect and degrade and humiliate women.” — Luke Kenton (09:43)
  • Blog posts included justifications for non-consensual sex, directly linked to the actions described by victims:
    • “One [post] was titled ‘it's not rape if...’ then they would bullet point a series of really twisted caveats to consent. So one of which was if she's asleep, if she doesn't remember it...” — Luke Kenton (10:00)
  • The prosecution tied these entries to real-world incidents, arguing mindset and intent were established. (09:31-11:02)

• Digital Evidence

  • Beyond victims’ accounts, there were text messages and emails corroborating the pattern.
  • Video evidence showed Oren Alexander raping an incapacitated 17-year-old—“the home run in the case.” (11:02, 11:18)
    • “Once you see that, once you see a woman who is incapacitated, who has clearly been drugged...and the age that she was...it's not hard to put the pieces together.” — Kenton (11:18)

3. Defense Strategy and Its Weaknesses

• Approach

  • The defense highlighted inconsistencies in the stories (dates, places, which brother was present), especially in closing arguments. (07:09)
  • Argued some women were “money hungry” or influenced to reinterpret encounters as assault, but this failed to resonate with the jury. (08:20-09:14)
    • “I don't think that was a very strong message, particularly when we've heard such emotional testimony. And I think ultimately the jury believed the women on the stand.” — Kenton (09:14)

• Lack of Division Among Defendants

  • Despite Tal Alexander facing fewer charges, the defense teams worked collectively rather than trying to isolate blame—a possible strategic error. (14:18)
    • “I thought as the case went on, we'd maybe see the defense team fracture...but we didn't see that...I think that probably had a negative effect on Tal ultimately...” — Kenton (14:18)

4. Jury Dynamics and Deliberation

• Deliberation Length & Behavior
  • 21 hours over a weekend, with little communication at first, then technical questions indicating their verdict was turning on legal specifics, not facts. (15:03-15:17)
    • “The question related to a technical aspect of sex trafficking...they were essentially working to just finesse the charge.” — Kenton (15:17)
  • The jury was highly attentive and engaged, indicating the government’s narrative prevailed. (16:33)

5. Personal and Familial Aftermath

• Wives and Family
  • Emotional toll visible, especially for Alon’s wife who attended almost daily. (17:53-17:59)
  • Tal’s wife divorced him after arrest; Oren’s wife attended only sporadically. (17:59)
  • Messages showed brothers discussing getting their wives drunk or drugged during group trips, deepening the picture of ongoing misogyny even within their marriages. (18:53-19:19)
    • Quotes from group chats: “We used to do it with tequila and Xanax.” — Kenton quoting evidence (19:14)

6. Next Legal Steps (18:47–20:18)

• Sentencing
  • Set for August 6. All face at least 15 years on mandatory minimums, potentially life in prison. (13:21-13:52)
• Upcoming Cases
  • Alon and Oren also face three state-level rape charges in Florida, as well as multiple civil suits, with more plaintiffs expected to come forward following the guilty verdict. (19:42-20:18)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “A chilling little-known blog that had sat dormant online for more than a decade...read like a grotesque playbook for abuse.” — Kayla Brantley (00:02)
• “The best thing you can do from the government’s perspective is allowing them to see what you’re saying. And I think that was really the home run in the case.” — Luke Kenton (11:18)
• “I think the prosecution did a fantastic job of showing a distinctive pattern...every single allegation was essentially a rinse and repeat at different places, different times.” — Luke Kenton (07:09)
• “You’ve got to wonder to what degree...the other wives too, knew about what was happening. We know that these brothers led very duplicitous lives.” — Luke Kenton (17:59)
• “I don't think this judge is going to be particularly lenient either, so it will be interesting to see how that shapes out.” — Luke Kenton (13:52)

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Timeline of Key Segments

• 00:02-02:35: Episode Introduction and case summary (verdict, key players, emotional scenes)
• 04:22-06:52: Luke Kenton recounts courtroom reactions and outlines the charges
• 07:09-09:14: Presentation of prosecution and defense strategies
• 09:31-11:47: Focus on digital evidence; the "Vent on Bitches" blog, text messages, and the critical video
• 13:16-15:03: Sentencing expectations and how the collective defense might have impacted outcomes
• 16:26-17:53: Jury behavior and observation, further family reactions
• 18:47-20:18: Future legal proceedings—sentencing date, pending local charges, and civil suit landscape

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Additional Brief Case Updates (20:25+)

• Rihanna Shooting Incident: Recap of charges against Ivana Lizette Ortiz for firing at the singer's home (20:25)
• Corey Richins Trial: Latest twists in the Utah case of a children's book author accused of poisoning her husband (21:40)

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In Summary

This episode starkly portrays the collapse of the Alexander brothers’ public image through chilling physical and digital evidence of premeditated abuse. The courtroom drama is relayed with a focus on the gravity of the crimes and the profound emotional cost to all involved. The chilling details of the "Vent on Bitches" blog, combined with corroborating testimonies and incriminating videos, left the jury little room for doubt. The hosts and guest expert maintain a factual, empathetic tone, giving listeners both the hard facts and a sense of the trial's emotional impact. The episode closes with a look at the next stages in both the Alexander case and two other headline-making legal battles.

Transcript

[Kayla Brantley]

The Crime Desk Arresting Podcasts the verdict is in. After six weeks of graphic testimony, disturbing allegations and emotional scenes inside a Manhattan federal courtroom, real estate brothers Oren Alan and Tal Alexander have been found guilty on every count in a sweeping sex trafficking case prosecutors say spanned more than a decade. Jurors heard from 11 women who accused the brothers of drugging and raping them, allegations so brutal that one victim told the court the attack felt like being mauled by wild animals. But prosecutors say the key to bringing down the once high flying real estate moguls and their lawyer brother may have been something unexpected. A chilling little known blog that had sat dormant online for more than a decade. The site, titled Vent on Bitches, read like a grotesque playbook for abuse, filled with misogynistic posts about women and twisted claims that it wasn't rape if a victim was sleeping or didn't remember. Prosecutors paired those posts with text messages, emails and real world encounters described by victims, arguing it revealed the mindset behind the crimes. After 21 hours of deliberations, the jury agreed. Inside the courtroom, the brothers sat in stunned silence as the guilty verdicts were read out one by one. Behind them, their parents stared ahead in shock. And moments later, outside the courthouse, the Alain Alexander's wife was seen collapsing on the street in tears, sobbing as friends tried to console her. In this episode of the Trial USA we take you inside the dramatic final moments of the case and what comes next for the disgraced brothers who now face the possibility of life in prison. Daily Mail senior reporter Luke Kenton was inside of the courtroom when the verdict came down and he joins us to walk us through exactly how it unfolded. Plus, we bring you the latest developments in two other major everything we know so far about the woman accused of opening fire outside Rihanna's Los Angeles home and the newest twist from the Corey Britton's trial, where the children's book author accused of poisoning her husband with fentanyl laced Moscow mule is fighting for her freedom. From the Daily Mail, this is the Trial usa We'll be back in just a moment.

[Adam Grant]

Hey, this is Adam Grant, host of Ted's podcast Rethinking with Adam Grant. Let me share with you why smart finance leaders turn to Bill. They know that clarity isn't just helpful, it's strategic. As the intelligent finance platform, Bill uses AI to automate the busy work for nearly half a million businesses so they can focus on intentional growth, eliminate the friction and start scaling with the proven choice. Visit bill.compenven to talk with an expert about automating your business finances and get a $250 gift card as a thank you. That's bill.com proven terms and conditions apply. See offer page for details.

[Kayla Brantley]

This is an ad by BetterHelp.

[Luke Kenton]

Did I talk too much? Can't I just let it go? I was thinking so much.

[Interviewer]

Take a breath.

[Kayla Brantley]

You're not alone.

[Interviewer]

Let's talk about what's going on.

[Kayla Brantley]

Counseling helps you sort through the noise with qualified professionals, and online therapy makes it convenient. See if it's for you. Visit betterhelp.com random podcast for 10% off your first month of online therapy and let life feel better.

[Hayden]

Howdy, howdy ho, and welcome to Fantasy Fan Fellas. I'm Hayden, producer of the Fantasy Fangirls podcast and your resident lover of all things Sanderson.

[Stephen]

And I'm Stephen, your bookish Internet goofball, but you can call me the Smash Daddy.

[Hayden]

And we are currently deep diving Brandon Sanderson's fantasy epic Mistborn. But here's the catch. Steven here has not read Mistborn before.

[Stephen]

That's right.

[Kayla Brantley]

Hey.

[Stephen]

Hey. So each week, you'll get my unfiltered, raw reactions to every single chapter.

[Hayden]

And along the way, we'll do character deep dives, magic explainers, and Steven will even try to guess what's next. Spoiler alert. He'll be wrong.

[Stephen]

News flash. I'm never wrong. Episodes come out every Wednesday, and you can find Fantasy Fan fellows wherever you get your podcasts.

[Kayla Brantley]

I'm joined now by Luke Kenton, senior reporter at the Daily Mail.

[Interviewer]

Luke, you were inside of the Manhattan courtroom throughout the whole trial and especially there on Monday when the jury reached their verdict. Can you just describe off the bat, what were the initial reactions to the guilty verdict?

[Luke Kenton]

So before the verdict came in, the judge did warn that she wanted no reactions when the verdict comes in, for better or for worse.

[Interviewer]

A difficult thing I can imagine.

[Luke Kenton]

Incredibly so, especially after six weeks of very emotional testimony. And, yeah, so in the gallery, it was. It was very quiet, but we saw from the brothers some emotion there. So with alone, he's a trained attorney. He was looking at the jury with, you know, his chin raised, very proud. And as that verdict came, and as each guilty count came, the head fell, his eyes closed. With Orin. His outburst came when the last charge was read out, which was exploitation of a minor, which specifically applied to him. He slumped back in his chair, stared at the ceiling, and Tal was in front of them, who's been fairly emotionless throughout the trial and not really moving or interacting that much, but his head was down and his arms were in Front of him, behind them, we had the family who have been there throughout the trial, Shlomi and Orly Alexander, the parents were essentially doing what I'd call a thousand yards there. Shell shocked was probably the word that they looked. Neither of one sought to comfort the other. I think they were just sat there trying to process what was happening. And Shani Zagron, who is alone, Alexander's wife, was sat there with her arms crossed, head down, and she was clearly trying to fight back the emotion, but I think eventually it became too much and she sat down next to her in laws and then turned away from reporters. And you could kind of see the shoulders shaking as if she was crying, but she didn't want to be seen to be showing emotion.

[Interviewer]

And were any of the victims present in court for that?

[Luke Kenton]

None of the victims were present for that, no.

[Interviewer]

Can you walk us through exactly what these charges were and what they were found guilty of?

[Luke Kenton]

Absolutely. So they were found guilty on 10 counts in the end that include multiple charges of sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion. We had inducement charges to travel for commercial sex charges. And again with Oren Alexander, we had the sexual exploitation of a minor charge, and that related to a video that was played in court showing Orin raping an incapacitated 17 year old.

[Interviewer]

You've been covering this trial from the beginning, and I wanna know, in your perspective, did this seem like a slam dunk case? Did it seem from the outset that they were going to be found guilty on all charges? How did the defense present their case? What were some of your observations?

[Luke Kenton]

Yeah, I think. I think the prosecution did a fantastic job of showing a distinctive pattern in each of the 11 women who testified. Stories. These women do not know each other, but every single allegation was essentially a rinse and repeat of the one that appeared before at different places, different times, different, you know, decades or whatever. That was really effective. And it was very emotional testimony and you could tell it was resonating with the jury along the way. But at the same time, the defense did a really fantastic job of poking holes in those stories, finding inconsistencies that were sometimes seemingly insignificant or sometimes fairly significant. Dates of when things happened, locations of when things happened, which brother was present out of the twins. Those things were very important for raising reasonable doubt. And I. In closing arguments, you almost felt like the momentum was with the defense. Mark Agnifolo, who represented Oren, who was previously involved in the Diddy trial, really went to town on those inconsistencies. And he presented himself to the jury, as an everyman, he's like, I'm just going to tell you both sides and here's how it is. And he goes, to me, this would be the logical thing to happen. And you really felt like he was, he was doing a great job of maybe unwinding the government's narrative in the final hour, but clearly that didn't land. And I think one thing that, that wasn't particularly effective from the defense's point was framing these women as money hungry when many of them were not filing civil suits and claiming that they were perhaps influenced to reframe consensual encounters as rapes years after the fact because of things that they've read online. I don't think that was a very strong message, particularly when we've heard such emotional testimony. And I think ultimately the jury believed the women on the stand.

[Interviewer]

In most cases that I see, when it comes to, you know, rape, sexual abuse, it's usually a he said, she said without much to back it up. But here in this case, we had so much evidence, text messages, emails, even a blog that was uncovered. Can you speak a bit about that?

[Luke Kenton]

Yeah, absolutely. I think the blog particularly was a really, really effective piece of evidence that really wrapped the conspiracy of what was going on together.

[Interviewer]

And what exactly was that blog?

[Luke Kenton]

So the blog, which unfortunately is still active, was a blog called Vent on Bitches. And it's our understanding that the blog was set up by friends of Alone and Oren. And the defense claimed that Elon and Oren weren't specifically involved in the blog. But we don't know if that's true or not because there are references to them on it. And the way it was presented to the jury was that this was a manifesto of misogyny and rape and hate. And it was essentially a playbook for how to disrespect and degrade and humiliate women. And that's what the government said this was. This was their aim, was to degrade and humiliate. And in that portion of testimony, we heard excerpts from that blog. So there were articles on it. One was titled it's not rape if and then they would bullet point. A series of really twisted caveats to consent. So one of which was if she's asleep, if she doesn't remember it, and then they would use those excerpts and link back to accusations made by some of these women showing that these online messages were having real world effect. They were taking these instructions and using them to enact their fantasies or whatever it was.

[Interviewer]

So a huge digital footprint there, along with messages. And then I think the most damning thing was that video of Orin, and he did get charged with sexual exploitation of a minor because of it. And when you have that tangible evidence, I don't really see how you can get around that.

[Luke Kenton]

No. And I, I. The best thing you can do from the government's perspective is allowing them to see what you're saying. And I think that was really the, the home run in the case. I think once you see that, once you see a woman who is incapacitated, who has clearly been drugged in some form, being sexually abused and the age that she was, when you've got 10 other women saying the same thing, it's not hard to put the pieces together.

[Kayla Brantley]

We're taking a quick break after this.

[Adam Grant]

Hey, this is Adam Grant, host of ted's podcast, Rethinking with Adam Grant. Let me share with you why smart finance leaders turn to Bill. They know that clarity isn't just helpful, it's strategic. As the intelligent finance platform, Bill. Bill uses AI to automate the busy work for nearly half a million businesses so they can focus on intentional growth, eliminate the friction, and start scaling with the proven choice. Visit bill.compenven to talk with an expert about automating your business finances and get a $250 gift card as a thank you. That's bill.com proven terms and conditions apply. See offer page for details.

[Hayden]

Howdy, howdy ho, and welcome to Fantasy Fan Fellas. I'm Hayden, producer of the Fantasy Fangirls podcast and your resident lover of all things Sanderson.

[Stephen]

And I'm Stephen, your bookish Internet goofball. But you can the smash Daddy.

[Hayden]

And we are currently deep diving Brandon Sanderson's fantasy epic Mistborn. But here's the catch. Steven here has not read Mistborn before.

[Stephen]

That's right.

[Kayla Brantley]

Hey.

[Stephen]

Hey. So each week, you'll get my unfiltered raw reactions to every single chapter.

[Hayden]

And along the way, we'll do character deep dives, magic explainers, and Steven will even try to guess what's next. Spoiler alert. He'll be wrong.

[Stephen]

Newsflash. I'm never wrong. Episodes come out every Wednesday, and you can find Fantasy Fan fellows wherever you get your podcasts.

[Interviewer]

And now that the brothers have been convicted, what happens next? What are the next steps?

[Luke Kenton]

So the next steps are. Sentencing has been set for August 6, so the judge allowed slightly more time than usual because obviously we've got three defendants in the case, and maybe they'll want to rally some sort of supporting witnesses to help mitigate some of these

[Interviewer]

charges and what sentences are they facing?

[Luke Kenton]

So, obviously, they were found guilty on all 10 counts. Some of these charges carry a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years. So it's difficult to say how little time they could get, but they are facing up to life in prison, and

[Interviewer]

they will at least get 15 years

[Luke Kenton]

each, you would expect. So, yeah. And I don't think this judge is going to be particularly lenient either, so it would be interesting to see how that shapes out.

[Kayla Brantley]

I do wonder, since they all were

[Interviewer]

tried at the same time, if, aside from Orin having that extra charge, if maybe one of them didn't partake as much but still got slapped with the same thing just because they were coupled together. Do you have any insight on how that works?

[Luke Kenton]

Yeah, that was the argument that Tahl Alexander's attorneys made in opening statements and closing was the fact that he'd been, quote, unquote, swept in the tide along with his brothers. And I thought as the case went on, we'd maybe see the defense team fracture slightly from their. From their tactics in the courtroom, but we didn't see that they worked as a collective. I think that probably had a negative effect on ta ultimately, in the end, I thought there'd be more finger pointing within the brothers. Within the brothers. But there wasn't. And, yeah, he was facing the least charges. His last allegation against him was a few years before the brothers, but he's now in the same situation as them.

[Interviewer]

And it took the jury about 21 hours to finally reach that verdict. Is that considered, you know, a long time? Did that come pretty quickly? What did that say about, you know, how the prosecution presented their arguments?

[Luke Kenton]

It felt. It felt like a long time. And also it was over a weekend, so it felt even longer than perhaps it was. What was interesting was in the first two days of the deliberations, so before the weekend hit, we didn't hear from the jury at all. There were no notes passed, and I didn't know how to read that situation at all. But it wasn't until Monday morning, late Monday morning, when the first note came. And it was a good indication of the direction that the jury were heading in, because the question related to a technical aspect of sex trafficking, which was, can someone be sex trafficked if they didn't have direct contact with the person that is trafficking them? Which related to a specific victim, and why that was maybe indicative of the direction that we were going in is because they were working out the kind of legal framework of the charge on the basis that they believed a crime had already taken place. So they were essentially working to just to finesse the charge. And when that came through, and a similar note came through later on in the afternoon, you started to feel that maybe the momentum was shifting away from him. And surely enough it was.

[Interviewer]

When you were sat in court during all these testimonies, did you observe the jury and any of their reactions?

[Luke Kenton]

Yeah, something we heard throughout from the judge in this case was that we had a very attentive jury. And that was true. They were really engaged with whoever was speaking, whether it was an expert or if it was a victim speaking emotionally. They were very, very, very engaged to the final moment. And I think that ultimately shows why the result went the way it did, because on closing, lots of smoke and mirrors from the defense to build reasonable doubt. But I think they were so attentive along the way that they had the facts very clear, and I think it made the decision fairly easy for them in the end.

[Interviewer]

You mentioned alone Alexander's wife shaking and crying and breaking down once the verdict was handed down. But I also saw photos of outside on the streets of Manhattan, completely in tears.

[Luke Kenton]

Yeah, there were photos that, that we captured. I really feel like the family was trying to not show weakness in the courtroom. I think when she thought she was a safe enough distance away, she really let it out. She was, she was sat with a, with a family friend on the street corner, just, just bawling her eyes out. And I think it's difficult not to feel sympathy for her in the sense that, you know, she's, she's a young mother of two children potentially now that their father will not be in their lives moving forward, not in a normal way.

[Interviewer]

And she was one of the only wives to stick next to her husband out of the three brothers.

[Luke Kenton]

Yeah, Shani Zagron was there pretty much every day. There was just a week period where she wasn't. Tal Alexander's wife divorced him pretty much immediately after they were first arrested. And Orin's wife has come a handful of times, but she never stayed for the full day. And she wasn't there when the verdict was read out either. And you've got to wonder to what degree that Shani, and maybe the other wives too, knew about what was happening. We know that these brothers led very duplicitous lives. We know that front facing, they were, you know, charming real estate brokers and a lawyer, but behind the scenes, in their text messages and the way that they acted with their friends, they were obviously completely different people. So what side did she see? And now she has to grapple with the fact that perhaps the life she's led for the last four or five years has just been a complete lie.

[Interviewer]

And there were some texts that were shown that even showed the brothers speaking about their wives, isn't that right?

[Luke Kenton]

Yeah. There was a group chat relating to a group trip in 2020, which again, was one of these pieces of evidence that really showed the brothers in a bad light. They were talking about how they needed to get these women drunk so they could finally sleep with them. And one of the texts from the friends, yeah, we used to do it with tequila and Xanax.

[Interviewer]

And this is speaking about their wives.

[Luke Kenton]

Speaking about their wives on a group trip.

[Interviewer]

Wow.

[Luke Kenton]

And the defense explained it away as just hijinks. And there was no suggestion that these women were drugged on this trip. But it shows still they have this misogynistic view of women.

[Interviewer]

So this federal case is over, but the legal proceedings for the three brothers is not. What do they have to face next?

[Luke Kenton]

So Alone and Orin still face three state charges of rape. Back in Miami, the indication is prosecutors are moving forward with that case. So they have to face those charges at some point. And then second to that, we've still got dozens, both in New York and Miami of civil lawsuits. And after this verdict, you would expect more women to come forward. Now, we know there's been a culture of fear that surrounded these victims for a number of years. I think now that they've been found guilty on all counts, now that they're facing life behind bars, more women are going to come forward. Because I think the suggestion is that this may just be the tip of the iceberg.

[Interviewer]

All right, thank you very much, Luke.

[Kayla Brantley]

Police in Los Angeles say a woman accused of opening fire outside the home of Rihanna could now face life in prison if convicted. Prosecutors say 35 year old Ivana Lizette Ortiz drove to the singer's Los Angeles property on Sunday and allegedly fired multiple rounds from an AR15 style rifle from inside her white Tesla. Authorities say Rihanna her partner asap. Rocky. Their three young children, Rihanna's mother and two staff members were on the property at the time. Investigators say they could easily have all been hit. Ortiz is now facing 14 charges, including attempted murder, 10 counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm, and three counts of shooting into an inhabited dwelling. A police say she also fired toward a neighboring home. She allegedly fled the scene, but police tracked the vehicle and arrested her around 30 minutes later in a shopping mall parking lot in Sherman Oaks. Ortiz has appeared briefly in court, where bail was set at over $10 million and a judge ordered her to stay away from Rihanna and surrender all firearms. Investigators say the motive remains unclear, though Ortiz had previously posted online messages targeting the singer. Her next court hearing is scheduled for May 26 as the case moves forward. Last week on the Trial usa, we brought you inside the case of children's book author Corey Richins, the Utah mom accused of poisoning her husband with a fentanyl laced Moscow mule. Now her murder trial has hit a brief pause after dispute over a controversial piece of evidence known as the Walk the Dog letter. Prosecutors say the six page document was written by Richins and addressed to her mother and appears to contain instructions about how to handle Aspen of the case. They argue it could show Richens trying to influence witnesses or shape the narrative around the investigation, something they say could point to a consciousness of guilt. Richen's lawyers strongly deny that. They say the document was not a real letter at all, but part of a fictional manuscript she had been writing. The disagreement over how the jury should see that evidence, along with hours of recorded interviews from a key witness, led the judge to temporarily halt proceedings while both sides argued over what should be shown in court. The trial is expected to resume shortly, with prosecutors preparing to call what could be one of their final witnesses. So that's it for today. We'll be back with a new episode next week. The Trial USA is part of the Crime Desk. Subscribers can listen ad free, get early access to new shows, full access to archive and the Members only podcast the trial plus visit thecrimedesk.com to find. Find out more. The link is in the show Notes. Follow us on TikTok@dailymailcrime and on Instagram he trialpod. Leave a comment on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or send us a voice note on WhatsApp [phone] and start your message with the word trial. I'm Kayla Brantley. Thank you for being with us.

[Luke Kenton]

Foreign.

[Adam Grant]

Hey, this is Adam Grant, host of ted's podcast Rethinking with Adam Grant. Let me share with you why smart finance leaders turn to Bill. They know that clarity isn't just helpful, it's strategic. As the intelligent finance platform, Bill uses AI to automate the busy work for nearly half a million businesses so they can focus on intentional growth, eliminate the friction and start scaling with the proven choice. Visit bill.compenven to talk with an expert about automating your business finances and get a $250 gift card as a thank you. That's bill.com proven. Terms and conditions apply. See Offer page for details.

[Hayden]

Howdy, howdy ho, and welcome to Fantasy Fan. Fellas, I'm Hayden, producer of the Fantasy Fangirls podcast and your resident lover of all things Sanderson.

[Stephen]

And I'm Stephen, your bookish Internet goofball. But you can call me the Smash Daddy.

[Hayden]

And we are currently deep diving Brandon Sanderson's fantasy epic Mistborn. But here's the catch. Steven here has not read Mistborn before.

[Stephen]

That's right.

[Kayla Brantley]

Hey.

[Stephen]

Hey. So each week, you'll get my unfiltered raw reactions to every single chapter.

[Hayden]

And along the way, we'll do character deep dives, magic explainers, and Steven will even try to guess what's next. Spoiler alert. He'll be wrong.

[Stephen]

Newsflash. I'm never wrong. Episodes come out every Wednesday, and you can find Fantasy fanfellas wherever you get your podcasts.

[Luke Kenton]

Carvana is so easy. Just a click and we've got ourselves a car. See? So many cars. That's a clicktastic inventory. And check out the financing options payments

[Stephen]

to fit our budget.

[Luke Kenton]

I mean, that's Clickonomics101.

[Stephen]

Delivery to our door.

[Luke Kenton]

Just a hop, skip and a click away. And bot, no better feeling than when everything just clicks.

[Kayla Brantley]

Buy your car today on Carvana. Delivery fees may apply.