Brittney Gargol

Summary

Podcast Summary: True Crime All The Time – Episode 495: Brittney Gargol

Hosts: Mike Ferguson & Mike Gibson
Release Date: May 7, 2026
Case: Brittney Gargol murder

Episode Theme & Purpose

This episode dives into the tragic 2015 murder of 18-year-old Brittney Gargol in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, focusing on the investigation’s uniquely modern twist: social media was central to solving the case. The hosts explore Brittney’s background, the circumstances of her death, the investigation, the role of friendships and addiction, the prosecution of her killer Cheyenne Antoine, and the profound questions of guilt, intent, and justice.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Victim and Contextual Background

• Brittney Gargol: Born in 1996, raised by her grandmother due to her mother’s addiction issues and an absent father. She’s described as “bubbly and hyper” [04:35], hardworking (multiple jobs), and days away from high school graduation [04:53].
• Inspirational Friend: Received guidance from 32-year-old Natasha Story, who acted as a mentor and almost a surrogate older sister [05:24].

  “Not a bad person to have in your life when you don’t have a lot of parental guidance... Natasha was like a big sister.” – Mike Ferguson [05:44]

2. Cheyenne Antoine’s Background

• Cheyenne also suffered early trauma: lost both parents young, grew up in foster care, and was a survivor of childhood sexual abuse [10:25].

  “So another young woman that had a rough childhood.” – Mike Gibson [10:25]

3. The Night of the Murder

• March 23, 2015: Brittney posts a selfie with Cheyenne; this photo later plays a key role in solving the case [12:30].
• Cheyenne and Brittney visited Natasha before going out; Natasha recalls the last hug from Brittney [11:19].
• After bar-hopping, Cheyenne claims they attended a house party and later parted ways [19:27]. Later stories from Cheyenne drastically change, a red flag for law enforcement.

4. Discovery and Initial Investigation

• Brittney’s body found on March 25, 2015, in a ditch outside Saskatoon. Signs of strangulation and missing shoes suggest foul play [13:31].
• Tattoos helped identify Brittney; Natasha recognizes her from newscast photos [15:38].

  “I literally dropped on my couch and started crying…I was like, there's no way. She was just here nine hours ago.” – Quoting Natasha Story [16:14]

• The black braided belt found was identified as the murder weapon. Two DNA profiles: Brittney’s, and an unidentified one [21:49].

5. Role of Social Media

• Investigators reconstruct the timeline using Brittney’s social media activity [16:28].
• Cheyenne attempts to appear innocent by posting on Brittney’s Facebook, “I miss you so much… rest in paradise, my angel.” [33:08]

6. Cheyenne’s Alibi and Changing Stories

• Cheyenne first claims she parted ways with Brittney; provides an alibi involving her uncle, later proven false by surveillance footage [23:30].
• Uncle confesses Cheyenne asked him to lie; Cheyenne’s second story involves a supposed argument over drugs with men at a motel [25:54].

  “This story has totally flipped from what it originally was.” – Mike Gibson [26:28]

7. Break in the Case: The Selfie

• In 2017, authorities realize Cheyenne is wearing the murder weapon in Brittney’s last selfie [34:00].
• New DNA testing matches Cheyenne to the belt; she is arrested and charged with second-degree murder and indignity to a body [35:02].

  “In the photo, Cheyenne was wearing a black braided belt… the murder weapon.” – Mike Ferguson [34:30]

8. Prosecution and Sentencing

• Cheyenne eventually admits (vaguely) to her role, claiming amnesia from drugs and alcohol. No motive is established [36:57].

  “She did say she blacked out at some point and was unable to recall what exactly happened.” – Mike Ferguson [36:14]

• Prosecutors secure a plea deal (manslaughter); Cheyenne receives a seven-year sentence [38:24].

  “Seven years is still very light… to kill someone and only get seven years, man, if I'm a family member, I'm upset.” – Mike Ferguson [38:39]

• Family members express frustration and anger at the light sentence and lack of closure:

  “She was a wonderful person whose life was cut short and it's not fair. It's just not fair.” – (Vicki Wickenhouser, Brittney's stepmother) [42:19] “Most days we can't stop thinking about Brittney… what she must have felt, fighting for her life.” – (Jennifer, Brittney’s aunt) [44:00]

9. Cheyenne’s Incarceration and Repeated Releases

• Cheyenne racks up 15 serious and 44 minor institutional charges while incarcerated [44:52], including assaults and drug-related offenses.
• Despite poor behavior and recurring drug infractions, she’s repeatedly granted parole and statutory release only to break rules and be re-arrested (see [47:17]–[53:48]).
• Official parole board: “Your risk to society cannot be managed” [52:42].

  “She got too many chances to prove that dismal history.” – Mike Ferguson [56:35]

10. Addiction, Trauma, and Systemic Issues

• The hosts discuss Cheyenne’s substance abuse and trauma as possible root causes, but highlight personal responsibility and the failure of interventions [54:10].

  “At a certain point…if you don’t want it or…not take advantage of the help, well, it’s not going to work.” – Mike Ferguson [58:02]

11. Justice Denied?

• Throughout, the hosts question whether true justice was served, given the short sentence and lack of remorse or rehabilitation [59:29].

  “Did she receive justice if the person who caused her death served only seven years for manslaughter? I think that's a real question… My answer: no.” – Mike Ferguson [59:29]

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• “It’s pretty easy to rule out accidental or self-inflicted…based on these marks and the bruising.” – Mike Ferguson [14:33]
• “The one thing that did kind of jump out at me was…they looked at surveillance footage…maybe there was only one way in or out.” – Mike Ferguson, on police fact-checking alibis [24:38]
• “She's also saying one of these men threatened her with a gun and said, hey, you gotta help dispose of the body.” – Mike Ferguson [26:12]
• “She has a dismal history in terms of your complete unwillingness to abide by institutional rule.” – Parole Board, quoted by Mike Ferguson [55:40]
• “If you can’t be good in here, how are you going to be good out there?” – Mike Gibson [46:49]
• “Sometimes I think people say what the court wants to hear because it’s in their best interest…” – Mike Ferguson [41:07]

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Noteworthy Timestamps

• Victim’s background: [03:34] – [08:36]
• Murder night and Cheyenne’s background: [09:59] – [11:19], [19:27] – [21:49]
• Discovery and social media’s role: [12:30] – [16:28]
• Cheyenne’s changing stories/alibi breakdown: [23:29] – [26:31]; [33:08] (Facebook post)
• Case’s “aha moment”: [34:00] – The selfie and DNA breakthrough
• Sentencing and parole cycles: [38:24] – [56:54]
• Systemic critique and addiction discussion: [54:10] – [59:29]
• Hosts’ final take on justice: [59:29] – [61:09]

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Episode Tone and Style

• Relatable, conversational, and occasionally humorous (hosts riff and joke with one another)
• Compassionate and empathetic toward the victim and family
• Frustration and bewilderment at the repeated system failures
• Critical, questioning, and reflective on broader justice themes

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Final Notes

The episode powerfully dissects how addiction, trauma, and flawed systems can collide in tragic ways, and how even modern digital tools aren’t always enough to secure full justice. Through a mix of meticulous detail, personal asides, and tough questions, Mike Ferguson and Mike Gibson highlight both the human costs and moral ambiguities at the heart of the Brittney Gargol case.

Transcript

[Mike Ferguson]

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[Mike Gibson]

Hey, I'm doing good. How about you?

[Mike Ferguson]

I Excellent.

[Mike Gibson]

Oh excellente. Well you know what trying to. This is Thursday. We'll come out near Cinco de Mayo.

[Mike Ferguson]

Possibly.

[Mike Gibson]

Excellente.

[Mike Ferguson]

I can't. I can't look that far in the future. Yeah, it is. It'll be next week, next week sometime. It is. It'll be around yeah, around that time. So around the fifth. So if it comes out on that, you know, happy Cinco de Mayo.

[Mike Gibson]

Exactly. If not still happy Cinco de Mayo.

[Mike Ferguson]

Anyway, we'll drink a Corona for you. Or a Dos Equis.

[Mike Gibson]

Oh, yeah. Or shot a tequila. You don't like my tequila?

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, I used to until I got that one. Until I ate the worm that one time. Yeah, see, that was it for me.

[Mike Gibson]

You always.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, I always take it too far.

[Mike Gibson]

You do.

[Mike Ferguson]

That's why I don't drink anymore.

[Mike Gibson]

No self control.

[Mike Ferguson]

I have no self control. All right, buddy, you ready to get into this episode of True Crime all the Time?

[Mike Gibson]

I am ready.

[Mike Ferguson]

We're talking about Brittany gargle. In March 2015, 18 year old Brittany Gargle was found dead on the side of the road in Saskatoon. Police used social media to solve her murder, focusing on a selfie taken by her friend with her friend Cheyenne Antoine on the night she died. So fascinating stuff. We're going to dive into all of it. Brittany Jane Gargle was born on August 31, 1996 in Saskatoon, the largest city in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan.

[Mike Gibson]

Saskatchewan.

[Mike Ferguson]

There's a lot of fun names to say here. Saskatoon is fun. There is Saskatchewan is fun to say. Britney was raised by her grandmother due to her mother's struggles with addiction. Her father was not in her life. So, I mean, it's a rough situation.

[Mike Gibson]

Sure it is.

[Mike Ferguson]

But it's one that unfortunately a lot of people find themselves in. Yeah, you know, I don't like it, but you know, let's face it, Dad's dip and I think it's a horrible thing. Right. But they do, they take off, they, they leave the family. A lot of single mothers, we've talked about that in the past. But then when you have a single mother who has either, you know, real severe alcohol or, or drug addiction, that is tough.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. At least you had a grandma that was willing to, you know, take care of her.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. Step up and take care of her.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Brittany maintained a positive outlook on life. She was described as a bubbly and hyper girl. Bubbly and a lot of people have described you over in the past as bubbly and hyper.

[Mike Gibson]

Can be bubbly and a girl. Some people have whatever, whatever I need to be.

[Mike Ferguson]

At the time of her death, she was just a few weeks away from graduating high school. One of the people who encouraged Brittany was her friend, 32 year old Natasha Story. They became friends while working at a store in the area and remained friends after they both moved on to other jobs. But Brittany often came to Atasha for advice. Britney had gone through some rough patches and Natasha encouraged her to go to school and pursue her dream.

[Mike Gibson]

That's a good friend right there it is.

[Mike Ferguson]

Now there's quite an age difference. Right. Brittany is, you know, 18ish or she is 18 at, at this point. Probably met her when she was 17 or 18 and a Tasha's 32 but you get the sense like that she's acting as almost like a big sister would.

[Mike Gibson]

Sure. I mean she's got some years in front of you so she, she knows kind of where you're at now.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. She's got more life experience for sure.

[Mike Gibson]

You can say, well, I know where you're at and I know where you want to be. From my life experience you probably got to pursue your degree and go that route because that's what you're going to really want to do.

[Mike Ferguson]

It's really not a bad person to have in your life when you don't have a lot of parental guidance and sounds like Brittany didn't have much if any at all. You know, you and I have probably touched on it before but you know, there's that old saying, if I knew at 17, 18, what I know now, right now you and I are a little longer in the tooth than Natasha was at the time. But still, even if I knew at 17 what I knew at 30, I could have, you know, blown. Blown the doors off this world.

[Mike Gibson]

Sure.

[Mike Ferguson]

You know, but unfortunately you can't go back.

[Mike Gibson]

And I think that's why, you know, a few years ago I started rexwest mentoring.com and it's really taken off. I'm currently booked but it looks like there might be a few openings coming up soon, you know.

[Mike Ferguson]

Okay.

[Mike Gibson]

Rexwestmentoring.com yeah, I mean I, I don't

[Mike Ferguson]

know who needs mentoring in the area of retirement home exotic dancing. But if there's anybody out there, go to rexwestmentoring.com and sign up.

[Mike Gibson]

I guess the set of principles use to do that. You can use them anywhere.

[Mike Ferguson]

They're just life skills.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Is that what you're saying?

[Mike Gibson]

Exactly.

[Mike Ferguson]

Not surprising that you got some openings though. So Britney wanted to pursue a degree in business management. Her dream was to build and own hotels. Oh, how about that?

[Mike Gibson]

I like that.

[Mike Ferguson]

You know, we talk about what people want to do when they get older, you know, young kids, doctor, lawyer, astronaut, whatever. Then as you get older, things kind of change for some people. Now some people might still latch on and hold on to that astronaut, doctor, lawyer, dream.

[Mike Gibson]

Right.

[Mike Ferguson]

But this is very Specific it is, you know, not just to own hotels, to build them.

[Mike Gibson]

Right.

[Mike Ferguson]

To build your own. That's a very specific and what's the word? Lofty.

[Mike Gibson]

Lofty goal. Yeah, it really is.

[Mike Ferguson]

In addition to schoolwork, Brittany also had multiple jobs, including at a pizza shop and her local German cultural center. In her free time, she enjoyed outdoor activities such as snowboarding, camping and boating.

[Mike Gibson]

I know you enjoy some snowboarding now and then.

[Mike Ferguson]

I've never been snowboarding in my life. I've never been snow skiing in my life.

[Mike Gibson]

Really?

[Mike Ferguson]

Never? Not one time. I've never gone to one and we have some that are not that far away.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Where it's like snow year round. I don't know how they do it.

[Mike Gibson]

Maybe you probably just been doing the sledding, you know, just like Clark Griswold.

[Mike Ferguson]

Don't do that either. Wow. I don't do any snow sports whatsoever.

[Mike Gibson]

So basically you really do not leave this studio at all?

[Mike Ferguson]

No, I, I've tried regular skiing.

[Mike Gibson]

Okay.

[Mike Ferguson]

Couldn't get out of the water.

[Mike Gibson]

No.

[Mike Ferguson]

They make it, people make it look so easy. My wife, my daughter, man, they just pop out of the water and they're doing one legged. I can't even get out of the water. It almost pulled my arms out of the socket. Now my weight maybe could have played a factor there. I'm sure that doesn't help but have

[Mike Gibson]

been who was driving the boat too, you know. Well, you need a good person behind that wheel that knows how to get you up.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, you know that's true. Because you do have to kind of floor it.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. The right momentum. You have to hit it just right to get you up and then back down.

[Mike Ferguson]

And that was my one, that was my last time because I thought I, these arms are going to come flying out. I got bad shoulders anyway.

[Mike Gibson]

So sometimes can give you a, a nice little enema too. So.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, we don't, we don't need that.

[Mike Gibson]

No.

[Mike Ferguson]

On the night of March 23, 2015, Britney decided to go out to a party in Saskatoon with her friend Cheyenne Antoine. Britney and Cheyenne had been friends since the ninth grade. The girls bonded over their past. Early in life, Cheyenne lost both of her parents and grew up in the foster care system. She was also a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. Wow.

[Mike Gibson]

So another young woman that had a rough childhood.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. So I, I could see how, you know, people could bond over something like that. They went through some similar type of things. According to Britney's friend Natasha Story, both girls stopped by her home that night. Brittany asked to borrow some Gas money. Natasha asked Brittany what her plans were. She said she was going out with a friend and was considering going to a party later that evening. Natasha told Brittany to be careful and to call her if she needed anything. Brittany gave her a hug and that was the last time she saw her. So, I mean, I do want to go back to, you know, Atasha again. She's quite a bit older, 14 years older, but really seems as though she was a good friend to Brittany.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Trying to help her with guidance, maybe help her with money every now and then. Just like an all around good friend, just.

[Mike Gibson]

And everybody needs a good friend like that. Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

At 1202am On March 24, Brittany posted a selfie of her and Cheyenne getting ready at Britney's home. This was Britney's last known correspondence. And you know, you and I talk about social media a lot because it comes up in most of the cases that we do that are fairly recent. Right. Obviously in cases that occurred prior to the Internet or social media, you're not going to have it. But you know, 18 year olds, pretty big on social media.

[Mike Gibson]

Absolutely.

[Mike Ferguson]

I would say from even younger to, you know, late teens, early 20s. And then I think maybe people start to slow down, then they pick back up maybe when they get a little bit older. But I, I don't know because I, I'm not a huge social media person. But when you say that's the last time someone was on social media, well, that's a pretty big deal for someone who's always on.

[Mike Gibson]

For sure it is.

[Mike Ferguson]

You know, they're always posting, doing this and that. For me, I don't know when the last time I was on. So it's, it's really not a big deal.

[Mike Gibson]

No, no.

[Mike Ferguson]

If I were to go missing, you wouldn't make anything out of it.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. I remember when I used to be on all the time.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Mike Gibson]

And then I stopped all together. People thought something happened to me. It did, you know, and then. And did. Yep. And then, you know, recently I got back on again but, but I can see, you know, when you're posting something every day or liking and then just

[Mike Ferguson]

all of a sudden it stops. Silence.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, I mean people, I think they're going to ask that question like, yeah, what happened to them?

[Mike Ferguson]

But luckily we had the podcast, people still knew you were on it.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

I did get some questions about, you know, is this AI? Are you just using Gibby's voice? I was like, no, because if so I would make him sound way more intelligent, more, more immense.

[Mike Gibson]

I like

[Mike Ferguson]

so around 6am on March 25, 2015, a passing motorist called police after finding a female's body in a ditch on a remote road on the outskirts of Saskatoon, not far from a landfill. Okay. When you're talking about landfills, last week we were talking about like a quarry.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Any situation like that. Okay. I start to get a little suspicious, especially because, you know, when you're talking about a criminal case. The caller noted that the victim was cold to the touch and her shoes were missing. Law enforcement immediately suspected foul play because there were marks on the victim's throat and bruising consistent with a homicide, which makes perfect sense to me.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, that's not good. When, you know, when you hear things like that, you know that she would have suffered.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. I think it's pretty easy to rule out accidental self inflicted. You're going to rule all of that out pretty quickly based on these marks and the bruising and. And all that. Police collected a leather jacket, a watch, and a belt from the crime scene, hoping to get more information about the unidentified victim. And, you know, it's interesting in a lot of these cases because, number one, they have to identify the victim.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

First and foremost, you can't really do much of an investigation without that.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. You got to know who this person is. So you know how to kind of walk backwards from that spot.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. How do you know who to talk to, where to look if you don't even know who the person is? That morning, they published photos of the victim's tattoos which included a couple of stars and a lion's head. A Tasha story saw the news release and called the police to identify the victim as Brittany Gargle.

[Mike Gibson]

That'd be rough.

[Mike Ferguson]

Oh, you know, we just got done talking about. Right. Atasha, what a good friend she was to see this kind of on the news. Yeah. And you don't know anything's wrong with your friend. And the story is, victim found murdered. Here are the clues we have. And you immediately know that those tattoos belong to her. I can't imagine what that's like.

[Mike Gibson]

I mean, just think about it. If that was your best friend and you see that article, I mean, I just think your stomach would just sink.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. You'd be sick.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Over it. She recalled, I literally dropped on my couch and started crying because I was like, there's no way. She was just here nine hours ago.

[Mike Gibson]

How bizarre. You know, I mean, we just spent time with her.

[Mike Ferguson]

Investigators looked through Britney's social media accounts, hoping to recreate a timeline of her final hour. And again, I know I've talked about it. But I think that's something that investigators have now that, you know, obviously they didn't have in the 60s, 70s, 80s, even in the early 90s. This kind of digital footprint that almost all of us are leaving pretty consistently.

[Mike Gibson]

Pretty true. I mean, think about social media. Think about the. Those smart watches.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Mike Gibson]

That track some of your movements.

[Mike Ferguson]

Sure. Just logging on to the Internet.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Some Internet usage.

[Mike Gibson]

Getting into some of these vehicles now they have tracking devices in them as well.

[Mike Ferguson]

Gps. Yeah, GPS in the phone. So I. I do think all of that comes into play a lot in some of the newer cases that we. That we do talk about. Yeah. Police questioned Cheyenne, who said she and Brittany went bar hopping around Saskatoon, starting at Manchester Brew Pub and ending at Colonial Pub and Grill. And, you know, what led them to Cheyenne was that they saw that Cheyenne Antoine had contacted Brittany via Facebook, writing, where are you? Haven't heard from you. Hope you made it home safe.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

So again, once you find out who the victim is, and now they know that it's Brittany, they're gonna start looking for boyfriends, friends, people in her inner circle.

[Mike Gibson]

But it's interesting that, you know, Cheyenne probably called, called, didn't get a response, and then knew, you know, as most people today would post something on social media because they know how often people view their social media accounts.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. Yeah. Well, I, you know, I don't think younger people talk on the phone nearly as much as. As we used to.

[Mike Gibson]

Not at all.

[Mike Ferguson]

I think a lot of the communication is text, social media, things like that. I just don't hear my girls talking on their cell phones at all.

[Mike Gibson]

No, I believe that it's all much at all. I mean, you know, to get a hold of my son, it's like text messages. And I'm like, hey, just call me, please. Are you available to talk?

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Mike Gibson]

Because it's going to be easier for me. Instead of me doing this, I can just talk to you.

[Mike Ferguson]

So, yeah, it's just a different generation. And yeah, you know, I know my girls, they grew up with phones from the time they were. I don't know when we got them their first iPhones, but, you know, 14, 15. So, you know, they're really good with the texting and all that. And I'm just like, okay, they got

[Mike Gibson]

all those shortcuts down.

[Mike Ferguson]

Oh, whatever, you know, and there's the emojis that half of them, I still don't understand. Some of them are dirty and I'm not supposed to understand.

[Mike Gibson]

You keep sending me the Eggplant thing.

[Mike Ferguson]

I'm like, dude, don't eggplant parmesan. I don't, I don't even know what that is. Around 4am they attended a house party and Brittany began hanging out with an unknown man in his 30s. She and Brittany eventually parted ways. Cheyenne was dropped off at an assisted living facility where she visited her uncle. Cheyenne got her uncle on the phone with police and he corroborated her story, saying he saw Cheyenne sometime after 4:00am on March 24th. So, I mean, obviously, I think if you're the police, you got to start to focus in on this, you know, unknown man in his 30s.

[Mike Gibson]

I mean, it sounds like a good spot to start. You know, the Cheyenne's alibi doesn't sound super solid, you know, but not bad.

[Mike Ferguson]

Not bad. But I think you also have to look at Ed. Motive.

[Mike Gibson]

Right?

[Mike Ferguson]

What's the motive? Could be something, you know, maybe. But they've been friends since a young age. What is she going to get out

[Mike Gibson]

of the murder but this unknown man, you never know.

[Mike Ferguson]

No, and I think that's for me, you know, if I was a detective and I learned that. Okay, I'm starting there. A few days after Britney's body was found, her postmortem examination confirmed she was strangled. And the murder weapon was the black braided belt found at the crime scene. She was not sexually assaulted. The belt was sent to the lab for testing. Two DNA profiles were identified. One matched Brittany and the other was unidentified. So the one matching Brittany, you would expect. Sure it's her belt.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Or I mean, I'm assuming it's her belt. We don't know for sure, but it was there at the crime scene. If it was used to strangle her, you would expect her DNA to be on it 100%. But then the other DNA profile you have to believe is from the killer.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Now not being able to identify it is a huge hurdle. It is at this point. Meanwhile, police began following up on Cheyenne's account of her night with Brittany. Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile. I don't know if you knew this, but anyone can get the same Premium Wireless for $15 a month plan that I've been enjoying. It's not just for celebrities. So do like I did and have one of your assistant's assistants switch you to Mint Mobile today. I'm told it's super easy to [e-mail]

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[Mike Ferguson]

We're married. Me to a human, him to a bird. Yeah, the bird looks out of your league.

[Mike Gibson]

Anyways, get a'@libertymutual.com or with your local agent.

[Mike Ferguson]

Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Surveillance footage showed both girls at the Manchester pub, but not at the Colonial pub and Grill. And I think, you know, for police, this cast a little bit of doubt on Cheyenne's account of the night. Additionally, security footage from the assisted living facility showed that Cheyenne never went there to visit her uncle.

[Mike Gibson]

That's going to be a problem.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, it is a problem. It's also making my statement of, okay, well, what's the motive? Look, possibly as though there was a motive and we just don't know what it is yet. Police talked to Cheyenne's uncle again, and he soon confessed that he lied because Cheyenne asked him to do so. She told him that she and Brittany went to a bar and eventually ended up at a motel with two men where they drank and used drugs. And you and I talk about alibis in almost every episode that we do. You know, there are strong alibis, and then there are alibis like this, where you have someone's mom or friend or relative saying, well, that person was with me all night, or from this time to this time. But there's really no other way to corroborate it other than this person's word. And we've found out that a lot of those tend to fall apart.

[Mike Gibson]

They do.

[Mike Ferguson]

Or not be true. Now, the one thing that did kind of jump out at me was, okay, they looked at surveillance footage. They didn't see Cheyenne. I'm assuming because this was an assisted living facility that maybe there was only one way in or out. Or that they had surveillance footage on every possible entrance and exit. Yeah, because that's the only way you could really say that.

[Mike Gibson]

Look, I've been to a lot of senior living homes.

[Mike Ferguson]

I know you have.

[Mike Gibson]

And there's typically only one point of entry for visitors and guests, you know. Now, is there a back door way to sneak in? Sure. Or sneak out. But, yeah, typically you have to go through one. One entry. And, you know, they want you to sign in and all that kind of.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. So I know you usually have to. To use the back door to escape. I do after the show because, you know, there's throngs of women who are trying to get at you.

[Mike Gibson]

I mean, to be honest, at this point, I can still outrun most of them, but, you know, not. It's getting harder.

[Mike Ferguson]

It's getting harder and harder every year.

[Mike Gibson]

Yes.

[Mike Ferguson]

So, you know, her uncle confesses to lying. Cheyenne told her uncle that they fought over cocaine before she went to use the bathroom. When she returned, Britney was dead on the bed with marks on her neck. Oh. She said one of the men threatened her, meaning Cheyenne, with a gun, and demanded that she helped dispose of the body.

[Mike Gibson]

I mean, this is a big turn of events, right? I mean, this story has totally flipped from what it originally was.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. I would say it's. It's pretty much done a 180.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Right.

[Mike Gibson]

It really has.

[Mike Ferguson]

From, okay, we parted ways, I went to go visit my uncle to now we're partying with these men using drugs. There's cocaine. All of a sudden I come back from the bathroom and Britney is dead.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. So, I mean, how long were you in the bathroom?

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, and, and also, I think if you're, you're police, you were already suspicious because you're starting to figure out that, you know, Cheyenne's alibi is not holding up now with the changing of the stories. I mean, she's got to be right there as prime suspect number one or at least very involved in, in whatever happened. And let's not forget, she's also saying that one of these men threatened her with a gun and said, hey, you gotta help dispose of this body. Police thoroughly investigated this story and they found no proof that any of this ever happened. Police re interviewed Cheyenne on May 3, 2015. At this time, she was in jail for shoplifting charges. According to the cbc, she was caught shoplifting and threatened a store's loss prevention officer with an allegedly HIV contaminated needle.

[Mike Gibson]

Okay, you grab me, I'm going to stab you with this needle, buddy. And it's got stuff on it.

[Mike Ferguson]

So, you know, first of all, if you're kind of on police radar.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

For your best friend's murder, do you then go shoplifting?

[Mike Gibson]

I would say no. But if you have a problem and it sounds like maybe she might have had a drug problem, could have been the way you get the money for to buy those drugs is to go shoplift the stuff and then turn around and sell it to make yourself some money.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, some people. Yeah. A lot of people do that. Cheyenne, though, she wasn't willing to talk about Britney's debt, Police still considered her a prime suspect. But as we've seen so many times, there just wasn't enough evidence for an arrest warrant. And again, I think that has to be very frustrating for police. Obviously, it's frustrating for family members of. Of a lot of victims, too, when you think there isn't kind of a. An absolute number one suspect.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

And you think, oh, this person obviously had to have had something to do with it, but police can't charge them with anything.

[Mike Gibson]

No. I mean, at this point, she just said Brittany was fine. I went the bathroom, came back out, and one of these guys strangled her, left her dead on the bed, and

[Mike Ferguson]

then forced me to help dispose of the body.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

I mean, I would think at the very least you could do something with tampering of evidence or, you know, something misuse of a. A corpse or something like that. But I don't think that's what they're looking for here. They think she played a much bigger role.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

So they're, they're wanting to go after her for. For murder is. Is what I get from it. So as the weeks passed, Brittany's family was becoming frustrated. Like I said, it's. It's natural. Right, right. With how the investigation was progressing. And they were worried that the case would go cold. And I think frustration is one thing. I think a lot of victims, family members, you know, experience that. But this other idea is something we probably don't talk about enough, and that's that they're not going to solve this. The case is going to go cold, and we're still going to be wondering 20, 30, 40 years later.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, who, who, who did it? Was it, you know, Cheyenne, or was it one of these guys or, you know, who.

[Mike Ferguson]

But that's got to be a real fear.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Because who wants to spend the next 30, 40 years wondering about that every day, Frustrated that you don't have the answers? All of that is. Has got to be tough.

[Mike Gibson]

Nobody wants that.

[Mike Ferguson]

Unexpectedly, they received a call from Cheyenne's aunt, who said Cheyenne returned home in a panic. Shortly after Brittany's estimated time of death. She was crying and said she strangled Britney.

[Mike Gibson]

There's a different side of the story now.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, but it's one I think police were leaning towards. Now, maybe they didn't know exactly how it happened, but I think they believed that her story was BS So they, they knew something was not correct. Brittany's family contacted police who contacted the aunt, and she Gave them the same version of events.

[Mike Gibson]

So, you know, here's a member of Cheyenne's family Basically turning in Cheyenne. I mean, good for her, right? Because she's doing the right thing.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. I mean, you would hope that everyone would do that.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

But we know they don't. No, there are some family members, There are some friends who will cover even when somebody gets murdered. Right now, I think for most people, most people listening, most people watching would say, oh, I don't think I could live with that type of information. That's a lot to put on somebody, right?

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

But you have to weigh that with turning your family member in.

[Mike Gibson]

I mean, you turned me in for not paying for a big Mac once, so.

[Mike Ferguson]

Oh, I would turn you in for jaywalking if I thought it would amount to anything.

[Mike Gibson]

If it meant that I had to get that ankle bracelet back on. Yeah. Monitor system.

[Mike Ferguson]

So investigators did follow up interviews with Cheyenne, obviously. How could they they not after this information? But she continued to deny knowing anything about Britney's death, and there still was not enough evidence to arrest her. On September 10, 2015, Cheyenne posted a comment on Britney's facebook writing, I miss you so much. You came and visited me in my dream last night. Miss you so much. You were way too young to go rest in paradise, my angel.

[Mike Gibson]

You know, if she didn't do anything that's really sweet and touching.

[Mike Ferguson]

It's something you would expect from a best friend. Right. You know, anniversaries, birthdays, the anniversary of the death, Things like that. You would expect people to come out and make those type of posts. Yeah. Now, if it turns out that she had something to do with it, then what is it?

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. Somebody phone. Maybe guilty. Maybe it's somebody that's just putting some fluff out there to make her look better.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. Maybe misdirect the police or make them not look as closely at her. In 2017, almost two years after Brittany was killed, Investigators had an aha moment. According to prosecutor Robin ritter, they circled back to the selfie Brittany posted shortly before she died. In the photo, Cheyenne was wearing a black braided belt that looked just like the one found at the crime scene, which was determined to be the murder weapon. A new round of testing confirmed the unknown DNA profile on the belt belonged to Cheyenne.

[Mike Gibson]

Wow. I mean, that's what they needed right there.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. And, you know, you could make the argument, oh, why did it take him so long to figure that out? But there's a lot of stuff going on in an investigation, like you've mentioned

[Mike Gibson]

in the Past each year, DNA testing and all that gets better and better and better, so.

[Mike Ferguson]

And it does.

[Mike Gibson]

I'm sure there was some development there too.

[Mike Ferguson]

It does. But I think if they had thought it was Cheyenne's back then, they probably could have matched it to her.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

She just wasn't in a database.

[Mike Gibson]

Right.

[Mike Ferguson]

So that's why they didn't get a match first time around. On March 7, 2017, Cheyenne was arrested and charged with second degree murder and causing indignity to a body.

[Mike Gibson]

There's a charge that you were looking for.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, but I don't know that I've heard that one very often. Cheyenne was finally willing to talk about what happened on March 24, 2015. She admitted she and Brittany went to a house party and used drugs and alcohol. They were both heavily under the influence, and her last memory was from about 4:30am after they went to McDonald's. At one point, they argued, but she couldn't remember why.

[Mike Gibson]

Okay.

[Mike Ferguson]

And I. I could. I could understand this, you know, if you've had a lot to drink, throw in some drugs in there as well. Okay. Things might be a little fuzzy now. We already know she's a liar. She's lied multiple times. But she could be telling the truth about that, that things are a little hazy.

[Mike Gibson]

That happens when you party too hard. Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

She did say she blacked out at some point and was unable to recall what exactly happened. But she woke up hours later and knew something terrible had happened. According to prosecutor Robin Ritter, Cheyenne didn't offer a reason as to why she killed Britney. And this kind of goes back to what I said earlier. You know, they've been friends since like the 9th grade or something.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

They're not in a relationship. What is the motive? But as you and I talk about often, sometimes there. There really isn't a motive if you have kind of a snap type moment.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. Yep.

[Mike Ferguson]

It's not like something was planned out. Drugs, alcohol. Words are exchanged, people get heated, and the next thing you know, something really bad happens. Well, there really wasn't a motive for it. It was a heat of the moment type of thing where somebody got mad and killed somebody else.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. They went too far.

[Mike Ferguson]

But those, I think, can be tougher to solve because, you know, there is no motive.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. I mean, sometimes it could be like a jealousy thing. Like, I can't believe that these people are giving you more attention at the party than me and.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. Or I liked this guy. Or. You know what it is? Prosecutors couldn't establish criminal intent, but they did prove reduced intent it's not something I've really heard of.

[Mike Gibson]

Me neither either.

[Mike Ferguson]

The charges against Cheyenne were reduced from second degree murder to manslaughter.

[Mike Gibson]

Okay, so they really dropped those charges down?

[Mike Ferguson]

They did. Now I understand why. First degree murder would be hard. Right, right. In a snap situation, we just said that there's no motive, but there's no, there's really no intent.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

There's no planning. There's nothing like that. So I could see it being dropped. Now being dropped all the way to manslaughter is quite a bit.

[Mike Gibson]

It is.

[Mike Ferguson]

On January 15, 2018, Cheyenne pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to seven years and prison.

[Mike Gibson]

Pretty light, but it is manslaughter, so.

[Mike Ferguson]

But seven years is still very light.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

You know, there are people. Now we are talking about Canada.

[Mike Gibson]

That's true.

[Mike Ferguson]

So it's hard for me to, you know, compare that to the U.S. but, you know, here you would get more for armed robbery or burglary.

[Mike Gibson]

Some drug charges.

[Mike Ferguson]

Some drug charges, yeah. So I get it. Manslaughter is a much lesser criminal offense than first degree murder. But still, to kill someone and only get seven years, man, if I'm a family member, I'm, I'm upset. I would be, I'm not happy.

[Mike Gibson]

Yep. I would be very upset.

[Mike Ferguson]

Not happy with that, that sentence at all. Cheyenne's lawyer, Lisa Watson argued she lacked intent for murder because she was drunk and hot and didn't remember strangling Brittany.

[Mike Gibson]

Well, she says she doesn't remember.

[Mike Ferguson]

True, Very true. While Cheyenne accepted responsibility for Brittany's death through her lawyer, she maintained that she didn't remember killing her Attorney. Lisa Watson told the court, per cbc, she knows the family would like an explanation, a reason, but unfortunately she can't provide that.

[Mike Gibson]

Let's remember she didn't accept responsibility initially.

[Mike Ferguson]

That's true.

[Mike Gibson]

She finally accepted responsibility.

[Mike Ferguson]

But yeah, she lied in the beginning, ultimately accepted responsibility, but still says, can't really give an explanation because I don't know exactly what happened. Now to your point, that could be true. Right. Because of the drugs and alcohol. Or that could be a way to maybe wriggle out of some of the, the more serious charges. I don't know.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, maybe she knew how to play the system a little bit.

[Mike Ferguson]

Could be. Cheyenne also gave the following statement through her lawyer. She said, I will never forgive myself. Nothing I say or do will ever bring her back. I'm very, very sorry. It shouldn't have ever happened.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, Look, I mean, if she really felt that way, then yeah, it's. There's absolutely nothing you can do and you will absolutely not forgive yourself and you will think about this for the rest of your life. You know?

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, and I think we all hope that somebody like that would. She took another person's life.

[Mike Gibson]

Exactly.

[Mike Ferguson]

Now, again, I'm somewhat dubious of what people say in court because sometimes I think it is heartfelt, it's true. Other times I think people are just saying what they know the court wants to hear because it's in their best interest to say this or that. We don't know.

[Mike Gibson]

Right.

[Mike Ferguson]

At the end of the day, Cheyenne is really the only person who truly knows how all of this went down and what state of mind she was in when she did it. Either she remembers it all exactly but has played it off as though she doesn't or she really doesn't know.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. I remember at one point there was a conversation that might have been over the cocaine. And I think, how terrible is that for anybody to lose their life but sure to lose it over because you

[Mike Ferguson]

know of something to do with cocaine,

[Mike Gibson]

you're getting an extra line more than I am or whatever it is. Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

I don't know how cocaine works. Apparently you do. You must have a lot of experience with it. I. I don't know. I've seen movies. Yeah.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

But the lesser charges angered Britney's family. Her stepmother, Vicki Wickenhouser told reporters after sentencing, she was a wonderful person whose life was cut short and it's not fair. It's just not fair.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, we echo that, right? I mean, we just said the same thing.

[Mike Ferguson]

I know for a fact if I was a member of the family, I would feel the exact same way. You know, my loved one is gone forever and the person who took her life got seven years and let's face it, probably won't even do the seven years.

[Mike Gibson]

Right.

[Mike Ferguson]

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[Mike Gibson]

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[Mike Ferguson]

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[Mike Gibson]

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[Mike Ferguson]

Brittany's aunt Jennifer said in her victim impact statement, most days we can't stop thinking about Britney. What happened that night, what she must have felt, fighting for her life. And again, you know, if you're the family, I. I don't think. Okay. Was justice served in some capacity. It was because the. The person who did this is being held accountable. Right. But not accountable to the degree that you would probably like. Right. They're going to get out much earlier than. Than you would like for them to. And the family still doesn't have all the answers that they would like to have.

[Mike Gibson]

No. There's a big piece missing. Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

During her time in prison, Cheyenne received 15 serious institutional charges.

[Mike Gibson]

Oh.

[Mike Ferguson]

Including assaulting a corrections officer.

[Mike Gibson]

Not good.

[Mike Ferguson]

She racked up 44 minor charges for drugs, diverting medication, threatening staff, and disobeying authority.

[Mike Gibson]

So not a ideal inmate.

[Mike Ferguson]

No, not at all. Now, I'm sure a lot of inmates rack up charges.

[Mike Gibson]

Sure.

[Mike Ferguson]

But Cheyenne was granted day parole in June 2020, but it was revoked four months later when she overdosed, used a laptop without approval, and was, quote, generally disrespectful.

[Mike Gibson]

Well, it sounds like. Yeah. Pull her back in. Don't let her, you know, be out during the day if she's being disrespectful, overdosing and not, you know, following the rules.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, I talked about being very upset. If I'm a fan member. I am going to be livid if I find out that two years after the conviction, this person is out on day parole.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

You know how I feel about day parole. I know I've talked about it before. I. I don't get it. I understand the idea of rehabilitation. I understand the idea of trying to acclimate this person back into the world. I really don't want killers, though, shopping at the same grocery store as I do, who then have to later report back to prison. I just. I don't like that idea. I really don't.

[Mike Gibson]

I just don't think she deserved the right to be out after racking up all the violations that she did.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, and I think you have to cup. You have to factor that in as well. Right. How do you get day parole when you're so far from a model inmate?

[Mike Gibson]

Be good in here. So I know you can be good out there. If you can't be good in here, how are you going to be good out there?

[Mike Ferguson]

So I'm with you. That doesn't seem to be a good recipe. And obviously we know it didn't work because the minute she got out, she's using drugs, using a computer, which she apparently wasn't supposed to. In 2021, she completed her first six week intensive addiction program and went unlawfully at large and was arrested in March 2022.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Shortly after that, she attacked a correctional officer after being denied a shower.

[Mike Gibson]

Not gonna let me shower. I'll show you. Not gonna let me take a shower. Come here. Come here.

[Mike Ferguson]

I know people like their showers, but. Cheyenne was granted statutory release on March 28, 2024. Most offenders serving fixed length sentences are given statutory release after serving two thirds of their sentence. This allows them to finish serving their sentences on conditions as they reintegrate into the community. The parole board set the conditions and offender must follow during their release period.

[Mike Gibson]

See, the problem with something like that is you already have a track record of this individual not really doing well, you know, so maybe just hold her for the whole length of time.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, I, I guess. But what happens when now you can't hold her past seven years?

[Mike Gibson]

No.

[Mike Ferguson]

So eventually she's gonna get out. And is anything gonna be any different? I, I kind of understand this part. I'm not as upset about it, I guess, as I am about the day parole. That, that part really bugs me for some reason. But you know, this is basically like parole kind of. But you have all these conditions and if you fail to meet them, they're going to send you back.

[Mike Gibson]

I just think she has a problem listening to authority. I think she has a problem following, you know, guidelines.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well. And she also has a, a problem with addiction.

[Mike Gibson]

Well, yeah, I mean, that's probably the, what's driving all this, Right?

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. And that could be the underlying factor that causes many of these other things to happen. But you know, she's released. Her release was suspended when just three days later, she got into an emotional state during a conversation with a halfway house staff member and refused to let them enter her room during room checks.

[Mike Gibson]

Well, why would you not want somebody in your room to do a room check?

[Mike Ferguson]

Probably because you got something in there you don't want them to find.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

After a suspension, the board reviews the case to decide whether to cancel an offender's release or allow them to continue living in the community. This time, the board decided Cheyenne could remain on statutory release after she was accepted into a residential treatment facility.

[Mike Gibson]

That's probably where she needed to go from day one.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, well, she did go, remember? And got into trouble. Trouble. In May 2024, Cheyenne went to a residential drug treatment center in Calgary. Soon after her arrival, staff found syringes and a pill in her room. She tested positive for amphetamine and the center withdrew support. Yeah, she left the facility and was again unlawfully at large until she was arrested on June 2, 2024.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, she's. She's definitely has a problem with drugs addiction. And I don't know. I don't know how she's going to stay out of trouble until she can fight that. That monster. And that's a hard monster to fight.

[Mike Ferguson]

It is. But I. I have to question the parole board here because they keep making these decisions, and I don't know what they're based on. She seemingly has done nothing to prove that she deserves to be, you know, set free.

[Mike Gibson]

That's true.

[Mike Ferguson]

But yet time and time again, they keep saying, well, you know, it's okay. Just don't do this. Well, and she goes and does that. It's like, I don't know, it's kind of like telling your kids you're in timeout, but, you know, you sneak a cookie if you want.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

What.

[Mike Gibson]

What good does that even do? Put time out.

[Mike Ferguson]

I. I don't. I don't get it. So apparently she pulled door handles in a parking lot until she was able to get into an occupied vehicle. Stole a key. She was seen laughing in the driver's seat after hitting another vehicle and driving away. Okay, well, don't forget, she's kind of hopped up on amphetamine.

[Mike Gibson]

Oh.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. So I'm not sure that her thinking is all that clear. She was driving erratically and was in the oncoming traffic lane for several hundred meters, causing other cars to pull off the road. She hit another occupied vehicle and tried to steal a van before police were able to arrest her.

[Mike Gibson]

It's causing all kind of havoc.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. So she was charged with two counts of robbery and one count each of evading police, resisting arrest and dangerous driving. The board suspended her statutory release and determined her risk to society can't be managed. So they released her or revoked her statutory release in February 2025. Her risk to society cannot be managed. I think that's correct. My problem is it seemed to take him way too long to figure that out.

[Mike Gibson]

That's what I'm thinking. I think you could have figured that out probably after the second release that

[Mike Ferguson]

didn't go well or maybe even after the first. But it's like they just kept giving her chance after chance and every time she kept, you know, messing up. According to the board decision, they said you successfully deceived your case management team and ultimately the board into believing you were motivated to attend further treatment to address your substance abuse and trauma. You then breached virtually all of your special conditions within one day of your release, choosing to immediately acquire and use illicit substances and absconding from the treatment facility where you were ordered by the board to reside one day.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, I mean, do I really believe that she was able to pull one over on them?

[Mike Ferguson]

I don't. I. I don't think so either. I think that's some wording they used maybe to kind of make themselves look a little bit better. I just think they made the wrong decision flat out.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah.

[Mike Gibson]

And this is just them kind of cya.

[Mike Ferguson]

I get it. You want to get this person help. I understand that because I think you're right. A big part or maybe even the heart. The root of the problem is her substance abuse issues probably leading to a lot of other things. But.

[Mike Gibson]

And it probably started when she was young because, you know, she had the problems with her family, you know, abuse and things like that. So yeah, there's a root cause there that was probably never addressed that led to the drug addiction and that was never addressed. So.

[Mike Ferguson]

And the board did acknowledge that, you know, she was exposed to drugs at a very early age as well as alcohol, and continues to use substances to cope with the abuse she suffered in foster care. But they went on to say she's been able to access cultural programming and an extensive network of community support. So I think they're, they're acknowledging the fact that, yeah, she dealt with or is still dealing with a lot of issues from her childhood that were real. They did happen. During her post suspension interview, Cheyenne claimed she left the treatment facility because it was too strict. I can't handle all this strictness.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, I don't like being told what to do.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, who does? But when you kill somebody, kind of the part of the punishment is being told what to do and what not to do.

[Mike Gibson]

That's exactly right.

[Mike Ferguson]

She overdosed more than once and was hospitalized. She stole the vehicles because police refused to come get her. When she tried to turn herself in, she got strange reasoning for a lot of different Things she does. She really does.

[Mike Gibson]

I don't know if her, if she's in her right state of mind.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah, I, I don't either. I don't know how much of it is fueled by the drugs and how much of it is just like an inability to take responsibility for your actions. I think there's, there's a part of that here as well. The board concluded that Cheyenne has a dismal history in terms of your complete unwillingness to abide by institutional rule and the conditions of your release. And that part I would wholeheartedly agree with. I think she got too many chances to prove that dismal history. That's the only issue I would take with it. Cheyenne's seven year sentence ended on April 18, 2025. She has been deemed a high risk to reoffend.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah, I think absolutely she is.

[Mike Ferguson]

I don't know how she couldn't be. But again, it's part of my problem with the seven year sentence. And I get it. They have guidelines, probably men and max sentence, you know, Guidelines.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

But seven years to me is so light for killing someone that you're kind of in a way painted into a corner. Can't hold the person for longer than seven years unless they rack up a bunch of other charges, I guess, in prison.

[Mike Gibson]

But in this, this case here, they let her out after two. Basically.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. They kept trying.

[Mike Gibson]

Trying to get her. Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

To let her out. And I get it. Canada has a different way of doing things than, than we do here. I'm not saying one is better than the other. What I will say is I think seven years is a little light.

[Mike Gibson]

Yep, I agree with you.

[Mike Ferguson]

And, and maybe they gave her more chances than what I would have if I was on a parole board. I think I would have thought after the first, maybe the first, but definitely the second time that, hey, you don't deserve this early parole because you can't seem to follow the rules. So you go back and just do your whole seven and then after that, we'll see how it goes.

[Mike Gibson]

I just don't feel like they ever addressed the underlying issue of the drugs. No.

[Mike Ferguson]

But they did say that she had access to all these community programs and things in the facility. At a certain point, Gibbs, if you're a person who's struggling, especially with addiction, even if all the help in the world is there, if you don't want it or if you decide not to take advantage of the help, well, it's not going to work. No.

[Mike Gibson]

It comes down, do you want this or don't you want this? I mean, you're going to have to put the work in. You're going to have to.

[Mike Ferguson]

And you got to want to quit. Yeah, some people say they do, but they really don't.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. Until that happens, you're probably just going to be on that merry go round.

[Mike Ferguson]

And the first time that you're outside and. And you're in the presence of something, you're. You're not going to say no to it because you haven't made the decision yet that that cannot be a part of your life. So as we wrap this one up, I think there are questions here. You know, we go back to Brittany Gargle. Did she receive justice if the person who caused her death served only seven years for manslaughter? I think that's a real question for me, but I. I know my answer and I. I would say no. I don't. I don't consider that to be justice.

[Mike Gibson]

I agree with you. I really do.

[Mike Ferguson]

You know, I think one of the problems in this case was that prosecutors just had a real hard time kind of establishing criminal intent. And then of course, you had Cheyenne claiming that she had no memory of killing her, which meant investigators had no motive to go on. And that is the one thing that I would. I guess you'd have to say was pretty smart on her part. Right. She didn't come out and admit that I did this, but she kind of skirted it.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

By framing it inside of this kind of drug induced or alcohol induced haze.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah. I blacked out, man. I don't. Did I? I guess maybe I did do that.

[Mike Ferguson]

I must have done it, but I don't remember doing it. I don't know why I did it. How can I, you know, be stuck with first degree or maybe even second degree? So. But you know, again, of all of it, that's. That's what I have the most problem with. And I'm sure the family does as well.

[Mike Gibson]

Y.

[Mike Ferguson]

That would be very frustrating for me to know that this person who killed my loved one got out in seven years, and they did so while in those seven years being given every opportunity to leave the facility and do this and do that, and at no point did they ever toe the line. Right. They broke the rules at every juncture, but yet they just kept giving her chance after chance.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

But that's it for our episode on Brittany Gargle. And that's it for another episode of True Crime all the time.

[Mike Gibson]

Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

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[Mike Gibson]

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[Mike Ferguson]

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[Mike Gibson]

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[Mike Ferguson]

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[Mike Gibson]

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[Mike Ferguson]

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