Tipp City Murder /// Part 1 /// 910

Summary

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True Crime Garage: Tipp City Murder /// Part 1 /// 910

Main Theme & Purpose

In this episode, Nic and the Captain dive into the chilling, recent case of Ashley Flynn’s murder in Tipp City, Ohio. The episode introduces the community, reconstructs the events surrounding the homicide, scrutinizes the 911 call made by her husband (Caleb Flynn), and breaks down the initial police investigation—while raising key questions and observations about behavior, evidence, and early public perceptions. As always, the hosts mix somber analysis with casual banter, inviting the listener to examine both the facts and the ambiguities that make this case hauntingly complex.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Introducing the Case & Community

• [04:10–06:00] The episode opens with local media coverage: Ashley Flynn, a popular Tipp City middle school coach and mother, is shot dead in her home during what was initially reported as a burglary gone wrong.
• [05:57, 54:21] Tipp City is a quiet, low-crime Ohio town (~10,000 population), part of the Dayton metro area. The Flynns were seen as an ordinary, close-knit family—Caleb is a music pastor and former American Idol contestant, Ashley was known for warmth and service in the community.
• Memorable quote [05:57] (Nic):

  "Today we are going to be examining the Ashley Flynn murder case. Ashley Flynn was a beloved mother, teacher, and volleyball coach, murdered in her home..."

The 911 Call: Breakdown, Behavior, and Analysis

• [08:55–16:41] The hosts play and dissect the harrowing 911 call from Caleb Flynn, in which he reports a break-in and his wife's shooting. Key moments:
  • Caleb repeats “Oh my God” and urgently pleads for help.
  • He reports finding Ashley with “two shots to her head” and states, “My daughters are here.”
  • He specifies location, shock, and concern increases with confusion as he interacts with the dispatcher.
  • The 911 operator calms him, instructs him on first aid, and requests he check on his children.
  • Police arrive as Caleb is still on the phone.
• Host analysis [16:41–30:05]:
  • The specificity of Caleb’s statement (“shot twice in the head”) stands out as “almost suspiciously specific” [20:28, Nic]. The hosts discuss whether it's plausible, given the chaos of the moment, or a possible red flag.
  • Caleb’s behavior—leaving the children unattended while potentially a killer could still be in the house—is questioned by both hosts.
    • [21:14, Nic]:

      "I need you to be a dad here, man. If I'm sitting there… I don't think I could leave. I'm not leaving my kids alone at all if there's any chance that this shooter… is still in my home."

  • The hosts dissect whether his actions (entering the bedroom, rubbing Ashley’s leg instead of a more typical panic/grief response) are odd or within the wide range of human crisis behavior.
  • The hosts argue over what they would have done, emphasizing instinctive parental protection vs. Caleb’s reported actions.

Examining the Crime Scene & Early Police Report

• [38:22–44:00] The police report is reviewed, especially regarding:
  • The location of Ashley’s body (in bed) and spent shell casings at the foot of the bed; the implication that the shooter stood at the foot of the bed.
  • The “side door” to the garage was open, with a large refrigerator partly blocking it—raising logistical questions about an intruder’s entry/exit.
    • [42:12, Captain]:

      "I want to know what's in the refrigerator? How heavy is this? …Is it a concrete floor, is there some rug, or is it on some rubber mat? How easy is it to push this away? This could be Caleb staging—or some actual evidence of intruder."

  • The Flynns’ dogs—two golden doodles—were present. Their lack of aggressive/alert reaction is discussed briefly [30:48].
• [44:16–48:22] — Police note that Caleb’s handgun, typically kept in the truck’s console (in the garage), is missing. This becomes central to early speculation:
  • Did an intruder know to go to the garage, break in, find the gun (not in the house), and commit the murder with Caleb's own firearm?
  • Or is the absence of forced entry and the odd storage location instead evidence pointing inward?
• [48:22–49:16, Captain]:

  “…If I'm an investigator, I have to believe that somebody broke into this guy's house, knew where he stored the gun…took your gun…and used it to kill your wife…you seem not so worried that there's an Intruder in your house?”

Community Response & Public Safety

• [51:32–55:06] The timeline covers the police and city response:
  • Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation processes the scene. Community and church are deeply shaken; family and neighbors describe the Flynns as generous, loving, “the kind that bake cookies for neighbors.”
  • Tipp City police ask anyone with home surveillance (Ring, Nest, etc.) to come forward, as the house is in a quiet cul-de-sac surrounded by other homes. The hosts speculate that minimal overnight foot/car traffic could make it easier to spot anything unusual.
    • [52:48, Captain]:

      “She has a lot going on…she also works for her church and she's a coach as well. So she's touching a lot of people in that community’s lives and affecting a lot of their lives.”

Raising Doubts & Critical Questions

• Throughout, Nic and the Captain openly question: Does the evidence support a random home invasion, or something much more targeted or staged?
  • Caleb’s demeanor, movements, specifics given, and the gun’s location are all emphasized points of scrutiny—but the hosts note how judgment in a crisis can be unreliable.
  • Community perception is gentle and positive; early suspicion of Caleb is minimal due to the family’s reputation and integration in the church—until police investigation progresses further.
    • [63:27, Captain]:

      “There wasn't a lot of speculation that Caleb was involved in this crime until the cops make an arrest.”

Notable Quotes & Moments

• [19:40, Captain]:

  "My wife's been shot twice in the head—my first thought was like, have I ever heard a 911 call where they're being that detailed?"

• [22:53, Captain]:

  "How many times have we had these cases where it's like, somebody broke into our house and killed somebody, and I just happened to not be sleeping where I normally sleep?"

• [28:51, Captain]:

  "Some of [the dispatcher’s questioning] is tactic to keep them talking because maybe they'll slip up and say something that later on we can use against them."

• [62:22, Captain]:

  "…Not just that the husband is heavily involved in the church, being a pastor himself…his wife's involved in the church, so their whole family's involved…So anybody that goes to a church knows that if there's something going wrong with a member and that they can take up a collection to help them at the end of the service…but everybody in that town…was saying great things about him."

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Important Timestamps

• [04:10]: Case introduction via media clip—Ashley Flynn homicide reported as burglary gone wrong.
• [08:55–16:41]: Full 911 call played and discussed.
• [22:34–24:32]: Host analysis of the 911 call and theorizing about expected behavior.
• [38:22]: Police report—timeline begins, detective’s first contact, and crime scene walkthrough.
• [42:12]: Discovery of shell casings, analysis of garage door and refrigerator’s obstruction.
• [44:16]: Missing firearm revealed.
• [51:32]: Evidence processed, details about the family, community’s immediate response.
• [55:06]: Press release about request for home surveillance footage.
• [62:22]: Public perceptions, church community’s support, fundraising efforts.
• [63:27]: Early lack of public suspicion towards Caleb.

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Engaging Listener Takeaways

• The podcast’s deep, methodical review turns the case into a real-time investigative puzzle, showing the hosts’ skepticism about the “burglary” narrative while still acknowledging the uncertainty and emotional volatility in such crises.
• Listeners are left to question how we judge the “normal” behavior of people in chaos, the reliability of first accounts, and the impact that small-town trust and social standing have on the direction of both public and police suspicion.

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Endnote

This first installment sets up the context, personalities, and core mysteries of the Tipp City murder case, priming listeners for further developments (and police findings) in Part 2.

Key guidance for listeners: “Be good, be kind, and don’t litter”—the Garage’s enduring sign-off, even when the mystery remains unsolved.

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

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[A]

Welcome to True Crime Garage wherever you are, whatever you're doing. Thanks for listening. I'm your host Nick and with me, as always, is a generous man with a question. Want some whiskey in your water? Some sugar in your tea? Here is the Captain. That's right.

[C]

I'll fill up your cup. It's good to be seen and good to see you. Thanks for listening. Thanks for telling a friend

[A]

this week we are thrilled to be drinking Super Crisp Lager by the folks at Great Northern Brewing Company. Super Crisp was designed with an easygoing lifestyle in mind with with its mild fruity aroma, subtle bitterness and refreshingly light finish. It's brewed specifically for the Australian climate. I'd love to have a sixer of Super Crisp after cutting the grass on a hot day. ABV this is essentially a light beer, 3.5% garage grade four out of five bottle caps. Let's fill up our cups and give a cheers to some of our good garage friends. First up, a cheers to British in Poa County, Alberta, Canada.

[C]

And a big tall cans in the air goes out to Miles from Henderson, Kentucky.

[A]

Here's a cheers to Anastasia R in Cambridge, Maryland.

[C]

And a big we like you Jib goes out to Matt in Hoover, Alabama.

[A]

And last but certainly not least, we have a very special Ron Swanson. Please and thank you. That goes out to Lydia G. All the way over on the Gold coast in Queensland, Australia. Everyone we just mentioned, they went to true crimegarage.com and helped us out with this week's beer fund for the beer run and for that we thank you.

[C]

Yeah BWR you in? Beer run. If you haven't got your tickets yet for the Brian Schaefer Live panel discussion, that's in April at Brewdog in Columbus. Get Those [e-mail] they're going quick, so I don't want you to miss out. And if you're not following us on YouTube, make sure you check out True Crime Garage TV on YouTube. And Colonel, that's enough of the business.

[A]

All right, everybody gather round. Grab a chair, grab a beer. Let's talk some true crime.

[C]

A reported burglary turned deadly as a Tip City school teacher is killed in her very own home.

[D]

Her husband and her two children survived the ordeal.

[A]

Now police are searching for a suspect.

[D]

2News reporter Morgan Anderson is live at

[A]

the scene, working to learn more.

[D]

Morgan, what can you tell us?

[E]

Yeah, Jack, Lauren, as you can see behind me, this is the home that's now taped off after a burglary gone wrong which became a homicide. Tipp City police and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation are actively investigating the scene after 37 year old Ashley Flynn was shot this morning in her home. It happened on Cunningham court just after 2:30 this morning. Police were called for a reported burglary where a woman inside the home had been shot. Flynn's husband and two children were present when officers arrived. Flynn was announced dead at the scene. Both K9s and drones were deployed to look for any suspects, but none were found in the search. 2News spoke with the police on the scene to learn if they had any leads on a suspect or new information. However, they were unable to share any information at this time. We also spoke with residents of the neighborhood and there was a shared general consensus. They can't believe this happened in their community of all places, nor to the Flynn family.

[C]

The neighbors here are all close.

[A]

They all keep a good eye out on everybody.

[C]

My sister's lived here for probably 30 years and never had a problem in the neighborhood. So it's really kind of shocking.

[E]

That same neighbor and everyone we spoke to in the community says they're devastated.

[A]

This week, my captain friend, or I should say this week to all my friends, we are heading out to Tip City, Ohio. Tip City is a city in southern Miami County, Ohio. Nice community. The population is a little over 10,000 people. Founded in 1840 as Tippecanoe City, it was renamed in 1938 because, well, they didn't want to rock the boat as another town in Ohio was named Tippecanoe. Plus Tipp City sounds cool. The city is in the Miami Valley, just 15 miles north of Dayton. And of course Tipp City is part of the Dayton metropolitan area. Today we are going to be examining the Ashley Flynn murder case. Ashley Flynn was a middle school volleyball coach and a teacher with tip city schools and the school system said on its Facebook page quote, she was known for her beautiful smile, warmth, kindness and the positive impact she had on so many both in and out of the classroom and on the court. And quote, Ashley Flynn, a beloved mother, teacher and volleyball coach was murdered in her home. Her husband Caleb Flynn, a one time contestant on the ever popular American Idol, he the husband reportedly found ashley's body on February 16th and called 911 to report a home invasion. Ashley Flynn was a mother of two young kids and just 37 years old. Here is a timeline of the events as they have been unfolding before our eyes. This is all very obviously new, new stuff and this story caught our eyes and so now we bring it to you, the beautiful listeners. All right, starting this off here, it's 2:31am Very early morning hours, Monday, February 16th. Let's remember that this was President's day. So some folks didn't have work that Monday morning. Tip city police officers were dispatched to the Flynn home in the 1900 block of Cunningham Court in Tip city following a frantic 911 call from the victim's husband, 39 year old Caleb Flynn. The call to emergency services was in reference to a reported burglary, possible home invasion, with a resident inside identified by the caller as his wife Ashley Flynn, who had been shot in the head. Let's start off captain with an examination of the call to 911 again. Now let's keep in mind that this is very early morning hours of Monday, February 16th.

[F]

Oh my God.

[G]

Miami County 91 1.

[F]

Oh my. Somebody. Somebody broke into my home. Somebody broke in my home.

[G]

Are they still in there?

[F]

I don't know. I don't know.

[G]

Hey, what's the address?

[F]

932 Cunningham Court City, Ohio. Please, please hurry. Please, please.

[G]

What are you seeing?

[F]

My wife is. She's got two shots to her head.

[G]

Spit.

[F]

Blood everywhere. Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God. Sir, please.

[G]

Ma', am, I need you to take a deep breath, okay? Do you still see anybody in the house? No.

[F]

The door to the garage was wide open. Please hurry. Please. Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God. My daughters are here. My daughters are here.

[G]

Where is she at?

[F]

She's in the bed. She's in the bed.

[G]

Are you with her?

[F]

I am in the room. I'm looking at her. Yes, please.

[G]

You guys have the door locked?

[F]

We have the doors to the garage locked, but into the house? Yes, please.

[G]

Where. Where is that room? Out in the house? My partner's getting them dispatched. Okay, but I need you to answer my questions so I can get you help as fast as I can. Okay?

[F]

What. What question?

[G]

Where are you guys at in the house?

[F]

I'm in the bedroom with her right now.

[G]

Okay.

[F]

My daughter's in their room.

[G]

So you're not. You are not with the children?

[F]

I was with the children when it happened.

[G]

Okay, but you're not with them now?

[F]

No, they're in their room. They're not even awake. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Sir, please, please, please.

[G]

They're. They are heading that way. Okay, I need you to take a deep breath for me. Are you hearing anything?

[F]

No, I rubbed her leg and said her name. She's not answering me.

[G]

Okay, your daughter's not answering you.

[F]

I'm sorry. No, hold on. I'm putting on the shirt. What'd you say? What'd you say?

[G]

Your daughter's not answering you?

[F]

No, they're in the other. They're across the room in their room.

[G]

Okay, are you hearing any kind of noise inside the house?

[F]

No, no, her face is. Oh, sir, her face is white. It's got ghost.

[G]

Okay, who's. Whose face?

[F]

My wife's face.

[G]

Your wife's face?

[F]

The one.

[G]

Yes.

[F]

The one who was shot.

[G]

She was What?

[F]

Shot, I said.

[G]

Okay, where was she shot at?

[F]

In the head. In the head, I hope. There's blood everywhere.

[G]

Okay, is she breathing?

[F]

I. I don't. No, I don't. Ashley. Ashley, baby. Baby, please. Oh, my God. There's no. She's not.

[G]

Okay, she's not responding to you.

[F]

No, no. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God.

[G]

Okay, do you see anybody in the house now?

[F]

It's. No. It's. It's black and the doors are won. The builder took leaving to the garage door was wide open when I ran in there.

[G]

Okay, do you see any kind of vehicles?

[F]

No. No, wait. No, the door. There's a side door in our garage door that's open by the. Oh, my God.

[G]

Okay, I need you to just take a deep breath for me, okay? They're getting to you as quick as they can. Is that door still open?

[F]

Yes, it is. Yes, it is.

[G]

Okay,

[F]

what do I do? What do I do? What do I do?

[G]

Is she breathing at all? If. If you are comfortable, I want you to go and find the Cloth. And I want you to put a cloth on that gunshot wound, okay? Yes. Like a towel, but do not apply direct pressure to it. Just put it on that blood wound, okay?

[F]

Okay.

[G]

I need you to just take a deep breath for me, okay?

[F]

Okay. Okay.

[G]

Just get that cloth and I want you to put it on that wound, but don't apply direct pressure to it, okay? They're coming to you as quick as they can. Okay?

[F]

I just laid it on her head.

[G]

Okay.

[F]

Where are you?

[G]

The juveniles, Are they okay? Have you checked on them?

[F]

I haven't checked on them.

[G]

Okay, can you go check on the juveniles for me?

[F]

The police is here. The police is here.

[G]

Can you go check on the juveniles for me?

[F]

The cops. Just pull his left. Biggest left.

[G]

Okay? I need you to go check on the juveniles for me, okay?

[F]

They're still sleeping. They're still sleeping. Okay.

[G]

You still see them breathing? You don't see any wounds on them?

[F]

No, no, the cop just. The cop just pulled. Sir, sir, sir, sir, the cop. The cop is here. Okay?

[G]

I want you to.

[F]

Okay.

[G]

Open the door for him so he can get into her, okay?

[F]

Okay. He's running. He's coming to me.

[G]

Sir?

[F]

What? I don't know. There's. The door to the grocer was wide open. I'm her. I. His. Her. Her husband. No, I don't think so.

[G]

Hey, ma', am. Ma', Am, do you still have me on the phone here?

[F]

And then there's a door all the way to the right. That one's open.

[A]

We have transcribed that call. We won't go through every word of it. It's a lengthy 911 call, of course, as usual, you hear a bit of confusion between the husband reporting what he says is happening or has happened inside the home. A little confusion in that communication between him and the 911 personnel receiving the call early on. But you can hear at the end there, Captain, police very obviously on the scene where he's interacting with the officer that responds. There's a lot of. I. I hate these. Right, because we oftentimes try to analyze these and that's. That's what we should do. We should pick them apart and see what we are hearing and tell you what we think we are hearing. But it's always such a difficult thing to do because all of these calls are equally as individualized as the individual making the call themselves. Is it just me or. With the recent 911 calls that we've featured on the show that we've had to put on the show, is there. There might Be a strategy to this, or maybe it's part of the training. But if. It seems to me like the 911 personnel has a hard time of understanding what's going on, the simplicity of what the report is. Thankfully, I've never had to be in those shoes and take these types of calls, but it's. It always feels like there's a little like pushback on some of the. The statements, but maybe that's trying to double down and get information, get more information and get insights from the first. What would be right, this. Typically, the person calling 911 is your first witness. Usually when there's a 911 call, especially of this nature, there's going to be some sort of investigation that is going to take place.

[C]

Well, yeah, and who's going to get this call? The public's going to get this call, so that's important. But also the investigators are going to get this call. And I have reason to believe that they heard this 911 call. One call. And then they thought, man, some of this stuff is just not adding up correctly.

[A]

The call starts off with saying that someone broke into my home. The dispatcher wanting to know, is that person, the intruder still there? The caller, which we now know is to be Caleb Flynn, the husband and father, says, I don't know. The address is given. He's telling him to calm down. I need you to take a deep breath. Is it. Is it just me or does he refer to. Does he say ma'? Am? A couple times. We've, we've had this in previous calls, too. And you can kind of hear Caleb's voice is, is heightened. Certainly during this, there's a lot of Caleb repeating the same short, quick sentences over and over and over again. Oh, my God, oh, my God, oh, my God, oh, my God. I don't know. I don't know. Think, you know, just. Again, I hate to try to dissect it, but.

[C]

No, but it's what we do naturally. I mean, when we hear these calls, just like the listeners, they hear these calls, there's things that are popping in your head. I mean, it's like you just shoveled down a bunch of pop rocks and your ideas are exploding. I mean, when he says, my wife's been shot twice in the head, my first thought was like, have I ever heard a 911 call where there being that detailed? And I know it's because most of the time it's just like, I think this is what happened. Or maybe this is what happened. Or. Or again, if she shot in the head. Wouldn't you just say, my wife, she's in bed. I think she's dead. She was shot in the head.

[A]

Right.

[C]

It's like a Dr. Seuss book. Right. And I wouldn't know without looking at the crime scenes, but was it very obvious that she was shot twice in the head?

[A]

I like that that stood out for you because that stood out to me as well. I was like, well, that seems awfully specific. And then listening to this over and over again, I'm not going to lie, man. I. Sometimes I'm hearing him say that she was shot twice, and on some occasions, I feel like I'm hearing him say shot three times. But regardless of what number he's throwing out there, he's throwing out a specific number. Now, while I found that to be suspiciously specific. Yeah, I, Then I got to thinking about it. I mean, he's. He's not. He's saying that he's in the home when this happened, so he would have heard the shots. So that, yeah, that would make some sense to me, that he may know what that number is or have a belief of what that number to be. I, But I agree with you. It's still a strange part of the 911 call. Probably the strangest part of the 911 call to me, though, is when he's saying that I, you know, is the intruder still in my home? Your home? I don't know. I don't know. So that leaves the door open that the, the, the shooter could still be in your home. And he's saying at some point that he's not with his children. Like, yeah, I need you to be a dad here, man. Like, I understand that this, this is a situation that nobody should ever be faced with or be in, but I don't know, I'm just trying to put myself in his shoes. If I'm sitting there for a. I mean, yes, I want to know what's going on with my wife, but I don't know that for a, For a. A second I had to stop my self from using a expletive there. I don't know for. I don't think I could leave. I'm not leaving my kids alone at all if there's any chance that this shooter or whoever this person may be is still in my home.

[C]

So that goes to my first question that I have for you. If this is you in this situation, and you will, one, if this happens in the middle of the night, why are you not sleeping in the bed? Because from everything I've Read. She's found in the bed.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

So was he sleeping on the couch? And how many times have we had these cases where it's like somebody broke into our house and killed somebody in the house, and I just happened to not be sleeping where I normally sleep?

[A]

Yeah, it's bizarre because it's like the spouse is always on the couch or in a different room, and this is two in the morning, and. Yeah, I wondered the same thing. And I have portions of the police report which are very specific of some of these details, and we'll get into that. The other thing that I thought was strange, too, Captain, was the. Is she alive? I think is the 911 operators asking. And he's like, I rubbed her leg and she's not responding again. Look, I don't know this dude. I don't. I can't. Maybe this is totally normal for him. Again, nobody knows how they would react in. My guess is I would be falling at. At her, you know, falling to her. I wouldn't. I wouldn't be rubbing her leg to see if she responds. And I know that especially with head trauma, back injuries, neck injuries, you've got to be concerned about keeping the. The person still. That's always something you need to keep in mind. But I. I don't think that I'm wrong rubbing her leg and.

[C]

Yeah, but a lot of people say again, to reference a case, Jomine Ramsey. She's on the floor, and the dad falls on top of her and picks her up. And that's something that's very common. I. I came home and my wife was on the floor in the kitchen, and I got on top of her, and I. And I grabbed her and I hugged her.

[A]

Mm.

[C]

It's almost like a natural instinct to try to be protective. But my question to you, and I'll just give you what I think I would do, is if I'm in the house and I. Then whether I hear the gunshots or not, at some point, you see your dead wife in the bed, and if there's multiple gunshots to the head, there's going to be blood. And because she's laying in a certain direction, and all the item, you know, she's not on a concrete floor. So all those, The. The. The pillow and the. The sheets, everything's going to be collecting blood. If I'm in that moment and my kids are in the house, my first thought is not to call 911. I need to get to my freaking kids. So then you get to your kids, and then.

[A]

Then the way he Explains it. He's with the kids when this happened, and then he leaves them to check on the wife, and then he's still gone from the kids while he's on the 911 call.

[C]

That's, again, that doesn't make any sense to me because let's just say, hypothetically, I'm sleeping in the room with my kids and I hear some gunshots. My first thought is, I need to protect these kids. I need to make sure whatever is happening out there doesn't get into this room. And maybe at that point, I'm calling 91 to say, somebody's shooting in my house. I'm in the room with my kids. I need police officers here now. Right. Because if you hear gunshots and you don't have a gun on you, you're just gonna walk out. I. I could see the other thing too, of there's danger, and I will run towards that danger. But my first thoughts would be anger and, and protectiveness towards whoever I'm around in that. That household. So I think then when he sees again, I don't know if you can buy much of his story or not, but it's like once you see her laying there and you don't know if this person is in the house, he doesn't seem that concerned. I mean, I've. I've heard stories of guys that have, like, actual fighting training, you know, martial arts, or maybe they're boxers or whatever and something. There's somebody breaking into their house and they run towards the danger because the thought would be, if I can sneak up on this person, or if I can, if I could show such aggressive nature towards this individual, no matter if they have a gun or a knife, maybe I can overpower them or whatever. So I just don't. I don't think a lot of his story is adding up.

[A]

Yeah. And he seems to be moving through the house without a lot of great concern if the intruder's still in there, which multiple times he says he doesn't know if the intruder is still in there. And again, away from the kids. Now here's where. Look, my apologies to the 911 personnel there. This is where the emergency service is taking the call. Smarter than yours truly because we have the husband, Caleb says, oh, sir, her. Her face is white as a ghost. Please help me. Okay? And the. The operator saying, who. Whose face? And he clarifies my wife's face. See, that's where the 911 operators smarter than me because I already made the assumption hearing that call at that portion of the call that he would be referring to his wife's face. So, but. But what's smart about that is we don't know whose face. If. If the intruder still is in the home, it's not inconceivable that the intruder would be a woman. So to hear her faces as white as a ghost, that's smart to request him to clarify, whose face are you talking about?

[C]

Well, it's also not crazy to think that there might be another victim.

[A]

Yes.

[C]

So I think some of it is a tactic to keep them talking because maybe they'll slip up and say something that later on we can use against them.

[A]

I will say, too, when Caleb is moving throughout the home, and some of this is at the request of the 911 personnel, who says if you could get a cloth, some type of cloth to put on the gunshot wound, possibly attempt to slow the bleeding there. So some of that movement is based off of what he's been instructed or asked to do. At one point, he does say that the. There's a side door in my garage that's open. And I think he says in the corner. I couldn't make out exactly what word he's saying there, but he does say that there's a side door in my garage that's open. And I. I will say to my ear, as he's describing that is. He sounds surprised to me, like he's describing something that he's seeing or. Or recognizing for the first time.

[C]

Yeah. And I think there's some speculation on was there items that were in front of that door that would had to be moved for it to be opened?

[A]

So. Yeah. And you'll. You see that in the police report, which is. Which is intriguing here. So. Yeah.

[C]

But to be clear to the listeners, there's Caleb on in the house. We have Ashley, his wife, in the house. She's found in the bed, but I don't think there's any sign of life. And then he has two children in the house, and we don't have any other individuals in that family in the

[A]

Flynn house, there is likely their two dogs inside the home as well.

[G]

Right.

[C]

But I'm guessing what kind of dogs are there? Are we. We got German shepherds? Do we got pit bulls? Or do we have Yorkies? Because I think that matters. Like, when I had a Yorkie, that Yorkie was not going to stop anybody. Wasn't going to scare anybody either.

[A]

No. And. And typically any variety of dog is terrified by extremely loud noises, which I would assume that, you know, unless this perpetrator had a silencer or some kind of suppressor this that these would be loud gunshots. These from my understanding they are golden Doodles are the two family dogs. This show is sponsored by Better Help. I can think of so many great women and ladies who have had a deep and wonderful impact on my life. Women deserve to be celebrated, but we should also recognize that many women carry emotional weight at work, in relationships and families and the roles that they play for others. Whatever you're navigating career expectations, parenting, caregiving or More therapy with BetterHelp can help you check in with yourself, unpack what's feeling heavy and build healthier pathways forward. BetterHelp is the world's largest online therapy platform and handles the initial therapist matching work for you. 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[C]

So let's just be clear.

[A]

Just to be clear, on Monday, February 16th, at approximately 0240 hours, Captain Smith contacted me regarding a homicide scene where Sergeant Rismiller was present. So this is the. This report is coming from the responding detective. Okay, so police have already been on the scene and. And the detective is writing his report from the time he receives the call to arrive on the scene and then what he witnessed once there. So he says. I immediately reached out to Sergeant Rissmiller who was working the night shift. He informed me that officers had been dispatched to 932 Cunningham Ct. In the city of Tip City for a burglary in progress. The reporting party identified Caleb Flynn had told dispatch that someone had broken into his home. He also reported that he did not know if the suspect was still inside the residence. Additionally, Caleb reported that the garage door was open and his wife had been shot in the head and was not responding. Sergeant Rismiller advised that upon his arrival at the scene, he cleared the residence and located a female, later identified as Ashley, lying in bed with a gunshot wound to the head. To protect the integrity of the crime scene, he instructed that only a single medic enter the home to aid the victim while minimizing contamination.

[C]

That's smart.

[A]

As he entered the residence, he observed that the side door to the garage remained open. So this would be what Caleb had mentioned in the 911 call. Proceeding to the master bedroom on the northeast side of the home, he again observed the female Ashley in her bed, appearing to have been shot in the head. Based on his observations, he believed the case was a homicide, noting two gunshell casings on the bedroom floor near the foot of the bed. So we have two gunshell casings, per this report, that were found on the bedroom floor near the foot of the bed. I don't know her positioning in the bed, and this report doesn't give that. But at that hour, it wouldn't be crazy to assume that she was sleeping and that her head would be at the head of the bed and her feet at the foot of the Bed. This based off of where these gun shell casings fell, we can surmise that the shooter likely stood at the foot of the bed and aimed toward the victim and fired the gun. It goes on to state, after responding to the scene, I, the detective spoke with the reporting party, Caleb Flynn, to obtain permission to enter the home and observe the crime scene. Caleb signed a consent form authorizing me and other tip city police department personnel to enter. Detective Klein and I then entered the residence and and conducted a walk through of the master bedroom where I observed two gunshell casings near the foot of the bed. We also observed Ashley lying in the bed with what appeared to be a gunshot wound to the head. So they're doubling down on some of the information, but it's clarifying that more than one person is witnessing these details at the crime scene.

[C]

No, and I think it's also smart. But also we have some evidence, so we have these shell casings. So we're going to learn a little bit about what type of gun. And also, was there any evidence, DNA, fingerprints on the shell casings? And if not, do we have any cleaning agents on the shell casing?

[A]

Upon exiting the master bedroom, we moved to the garage and observed a side door on the north, north side of the home that was open. While examining the door, we noticed a large refrigerator. This goes to what you were talking about here, Captain. Positioned directly in front of being the door. The placement indicated that the refrigerator would have had to have been pushed in order to open the door. So given that description, it sounds like this refrigerator would partially block the opening to the store or completely block one from opening the door.

[C]

Yeah, and so I want to know what's in the refrigerator? How heavy is this? How easy is it to be moved? Everybody's garages are different. But is it a concrete floor, is there some rug, or is it on some rubber mat? How easy is it to push this away? Because to play devil's advocate, this could be something that Caleb is staging. But this also could be some kind of evidence of actual intruder.

[A]

And I would like a better description of this refrigerator. It's not necessary per this report. But keep in mind, doors to your home open inward, not out. So if an intruder entered the home via this door, they wouldn't have the ability to be on the inside of this door. To move the refrigerator, they, they would have to open the door either enough to then move the refrigerator or open the door and move the door, pushing the refrigerator at the same time if, if even possible.

[C]

Yeah, and I, I'd want To know that I would want to do just some preliminary testing myself before. And again, maybe it's something that you don't have to make your mind up on completely to. To have charges against somebody.

[A]

While in the garage, we observed two vehicles. A 2024 Ford truck with an Ohio license plate and a 2016 Chrysler with an Ohio license plate. After walking the area, another officer informed me that while clearing the house, he had observed the center console of the Ford truck to be open. He relayed that Caleb had told him that his handgun was typically kept in that console.

[C]

This I have a problem with, because I don't know why you'd keep your gun in your car. But again, I don't know why he owns a gun. People buy guns for many reasons, but one of them is protection. And so did he have a job, or was there something in his lifestyle where he felt safer by carrying the gun in the vehicle? Or maybe, maybe it was a compromise with his wife. I want a gun for protection, but she's like, I don't want a gun in the house. So did he keep the gun in. In the car? Because that was their compromise.

[A]

Yeah. Did she know that he had a gun would be another thing that would be interesting to know that.

[C]

And when did he buy this gun?

[A]

I think it's a smart question. I think that it's something that many folks would question, and I'm glad that, that it's questioned here. However, I do think that storing a gun in a vehicle, or at least from time to time, might be a little more common than, than most folks may believe to be. I mean, I know if I go on a road trip, I have a gun in my car. When I drive to the Waffle House, I'm not packing. I know people that carry a gun with them every time they're in a vehicle. I'm not of that group.

[C]

I typically only pack when I'm going to Waffle House.

[A]

But if I, if I'm do. If I'm going on a road trip, I have a gun in my vehicle with me now, right To. In his defense. And, and, and you. You were smart with some of that. Like, maybe it was a compromise that he wanted a gun, she didn't want it in the house, and so they, they will live with it in the garage. I want, and I expect gun owners to be as incredibly thoroughly responsible as possible, as humanly possible. What does that mean? I don't care. Especially if there are kids in the home, which we know, we have young kids, two of them inside this Home living there, especially if you have kids. But even if you don't, I think that a responsible gun owner keeps their firearms or firearm locked up. And some consoles, some consoles do lock, and in one creative way, if you don't have a gun safe, might be to keep your gun in the vehicle, in the console, whether it locks or not. With the, with the vehicle locked and alarm set and keys in a position where the kids cannot get to them.

[C]

Yeah. My argument against that, though, would be out of all the things that you have access to your parents, you might not feel comfortable going into their closet or going underneath their bed or certain parts of their. Their room. To me, when you have a family, even with small children, the car becomes more of a commonplace. And that's. That's what I don't like about that. But there are, you know, again, responsible gun owners that not only have it locked in their console, but there might be a. However they're storing the gun might be a locked box in itself. My big question, though is, do we find the gun in that console? No.

[A]

Well, they don't outright say so, but it sounds to be that they didn't find the handgun, which, remember in the report, the police report, they describe it as a handgun. Again, the truck would allow. Would offer something that. That a common lockbox wouldn't. Where there's an actual alarm that would be triggered and go off. If somebody tried to access that vehicle for any reason, especially if they were attempting to get that gun out of there, the gun will. Will circle back to the gun.

[C]

Yeah, but. But here's the thing, though. So right now, if I'm an investigator, I have to believe that somebody broke into this guy's house, knew where he stored the gun. If the gun is not present anymore, that gun, now we have some shell casings. So there. I'm sure the gun is registered on some level. So then you get to know what kind of gun that was, and that's something he can't fib on afterwards. To piece together this puzzle, I'm going, somebody breaks into your house and they. They have to go through the side door on the garage and move the refrigerator and then get into your car, which you didn't have left locked, which is fine, you didn't have it locked, but you have a gun in it, so not find that it's not locked. And then this person took your gun again, if it's not present, and used it to kill your wife.

[A]

And presumably.

[C]

And you seem right, and you seem not so worried that there's an Intruder in your house?

[A]

Yes, that. That's the, that's what we're led to believe anyway based off of what limited information we have here. Like I one thing that will come out eventually that we don't have in our Batman utility belt to tell this story is what were the movements of the persons in that home prior to the 911 call? What were they doing earlier that day on that Sunday night? That these are all things that that jump in my mind of of details that I would like to know. A brief description of the home. It's a. Is it right ranch style home, three car garage. It looks to be positioned at the end of a cul de sac. Nice home, nice neighborhood, nice street. And this is a very Tip city, very low crime in Tip City. So continuing on with our timeline here at 2:40am we're still President's Day Monday, February 16th the overnight tip City sergeant alerted detectives. We talked about the detective responding on the street scene here. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation was contacted and sent to the scene to collect evidence. They have the evidence processing team that arrived on the scene and they made arrangements. Law enforcement made arrangements for Ashley Flynn's family to come to the house to get the couple's two elementary age daughters who had been sleeping inside to take them and move them to another location from the police report. After two detectives completed their walkthrough of the scene, they contact the BCI to request an evidence processing team and met with Caleb, the husband and coordinated with Miami county victim witness to arrange the removal of the juvenile children from the home. Miami county victim witness was present during the removal. At 4:28am Caleb Flynn agreed to speak voluntarily with police and was taken to the Tip City Police Department again per the affidavit the police report, once the children had been removed I the detective spoke with Caleb Flynn to ask him if he would be willing to come voluntarily to the police department to speak with us. He agreed. At approximately 04.28 hours on February 16, Caleb was transported to the Tip City Police Department for an interview. It was at 5:54am that same day that Tip City Police Chief Greg Adkins issued the first press release regarding the homicide investigation and identified the victim as Ashley Flynn. We spoke briefly at the top of the show about who Ashley was, but who was Ashley Flynn? This from the Dayton Daily news. Ashley coached 7th grade girls volleyball at Tippecanoe Middle School and worked as a substitute teacher for Tip City Schools where she also was a former full time teacher. For the past year she had served As a teacher for LifeWise Academy and Tip City, a nonprofit that provides Bible based education to public school students away from campus during school hours.

[C]

Yeah, so I think like a lot of typical families in America, you have young kids. She is a full time teacher. She has a lot going on. She, I know that she also works for her church and she's a coach as well. And so she's touching a lot of people in that community's lives and affecting a lot of their lives. And then so I think at some point it seems like she goes to part time, continuing to do all of her, let's say, side projects. But this is kind of common because child care costs are so expensive. And so by having one parent working, let's say part time, they can run around the, you know, they can run the kids to different sporting events and activities and help with the homework and all that stuff.

[A]

As for Ashley's family, while still working as a music pastor, Ashley's husband, Caleb Flynn, in 2013 appeared as a contestant on the 12th season of American Idol. During an interview for the show, he shared, quote, I love my wife more than anything. She is very, very pretty. I love her. End quote. Neighbors said the Flynns and their two elementary age daughters are often seen outside with the family's two golden doodles. They have a volleyball net set up in the backyard, a basketball hoop along the driveway, and they would often toss a softball outside.

[C]

Yeah, it was a beautiful neighborhood in a pretty large neighborhood. But it seemed like there was some space between the houses. They lived in a ranch, I believe that was a three car garage. But what's interesting about where they were situated was they're in a court. So that's gonna, that's gonna do some good things for us as far as during the investigation because if we have any cameras on the other houses, we might be able to get some kind of surveillance. But also what's interesting about their house is their house partly backs up to another court, but it also backs up to a field. So there's not a row of houses directly behind their house.

[A]

Shortly before noon on that Monday, the reverend, his name is Jordan Hansen, the lead pastor of the Christian Life center the family, the Flynn family's church, informed members of the church that, quote, a beloved member of our church, devoted servant of Jesus and wife, mother, daughter, and so many other roles she filled with grace, devotion and unconditional love, was murdered in her home. Ashley Flynn is with Jesus. Please pray for her husband and two daughters and extended family left behind. Please pray for the ongoing investigation Please pray for God's very presence to bring comfort to an unfathomable situation. Just before noon that day, Captain, we have Chief Greg Atkins, the police chief for Tipp City issued a second press release stating this investigation will take time as investigators continue to collect, process and analyze all evidence at the scene. The release also asked. This is something you were getting to ask for anyone in the community with information, specifically video footage. So much talk about NEST cameras, ring doorbell cameras, simply safe cameras ADT we are very lucky to be living in a day and age where you can equip your home with these security measures. And like we've said on this show before, at least in my case Captain, I like to get even. Even if I can't prevent you from harming me, I at least want your ass to get caught. So, so put kill me. You're going to be. It's going to be videotaped, sir.

[C]

I mean there's been many things that we have said on the shows and also guests that have said hey if, if crime is happening then do X, Y or Z and it gives you a chance. Well, if you don't know if you're going to live and you fight like hell, you might not even just be fighting for your life. It might be fight for your life but also fight for justice because you're going to collect so much DNA evidence. And one of the things that's interesting in this case is I saw on one of the crime shows where they actually took the whole neighborhood and they did a 3D rendering and where I think this is becomes important. Like I said with the, with the. Flynn's living in a court, we're going to have some more opportunities to have different angles of their house and the surrounding. Now you might not get so much of that from the back because they backed up to a field, but they're deep within side the development meaning we should have evidence of there's, there's not a million streets that lead to their court.

[A]

And, and you're right given the them being well into that cul de sac near the end of it, you have homes that are positioned differently than they would be on a typical street. So you, you, you have the opportunity here, if folks have those cameras set up to have multiple angles and like you said and just like the tip city police department was asking, they were requesting any video footage that anybody may have. And this is the thing. Don't review, do not review it and go well I don't need to see it, send it in. I didn't See anything, call the police department, just give it to them, let them review it. That's their job. That's what, that's what our taxpayer dollars go to their department for, for them to analyze it and for them to decide if anything is of importance.

[C]

Well, and one of the nice things about living, see, I live in a development that's kind of out in the country. So at 2, something in the morning on a Sunday or. Well, actually it'd be Monday morning, but Sunday going into Monday, if you're driving back in my neighborhood and you're not parking the car to get in your house because you live there, you probably shouldn't be in my neighborhood. And I'm guessing that this neighborhood was similar. And like you said, with some people not working the next day, you just have, you're going to have less movement. And so what, what we're not clear on, unless you know this information. We just have a call. We don't have him stating that he heard the gunshots. Right, Right.

[A]

He doesn't say that in the call.

[C]

Right. So we now, the cops might have some collection of evidence or collection of information that he gave them that might not be truthful information, but that is going to focus our timeline down more. But if he's making this call again early morning hours on Monday, again even at 10 o', clock, 11 o' clock at night, these types of neighborhoods, they, they calm down, there's less movement. So we should have a really good idea of do we have cars coming in. And because there's so many houses, you might get the car on multiple cameras, which then would give you multiple angles and possibly identifier like a bumper sticker or a license plate.

[A]

Yeah, and I would think, I mean 10,000 people live in this city. That's, that's not a heavily populated area. So I would wager, Franklin, that on most Sunday nights after 6, 7pm that unless there's something major going on in Tip City, which oftentimes there wouldn't be, I bet you Tip City is pretty much a ghost town.

[C]

Right.

[A]

Come six, seven o' clock on a Sunday night. And keep in mind, this is February, it gets dark, it's still getting dark pretty early. This is Sunday night going into Monday and Monday very early in the morning when the 911 call comes in. On that same day, the Tip Cities city manager, his name is Eric Mack, he released a statement that said in part, the city manager and members of city council are deeply saddened by the tragic events that took place. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and loved ones of the victim. During this difficult time, the safety of our residents remains our highest priority. Tip city has always been a close knit community and moments like this impact us all. The now typically we wouldn't hear from the city manager in cases that, that we cover. I think it points out to the safety and the, the, the lack thankfully, of violent crime that takes place in tip city. So Tip City violent crime rates, basically this city experiences two violent crimes a year. So it's, it's roughly like one, one violent crime per 5,000 people that live there. You have roughly 10,000 people that live there. That breaks down to roughly only two violent crimes committed in tip city each year. And, and to be clear, most years that's not a homicide. In fact, this city many, many years without a homicide or even a non negligent manslaughter. So a very safe area as far as violent crime rates go.

[C]

Well, and what's also interesting about this case is not just that the husband is heavily involved in the church, being a pastor himself and a worship leader and performing music at the church, but his wife's involved in the church, so their whole family's involved in the church. So anybody that goes to a church knows that if there's something going wrong with a member and that they can take, take up a collection to help them at the end of the service. You'll often see that. And so I'm assuming that's going on in the church, but also they're setting up a GoFundMe. I don't know if that was through the church or if that was just through a friend, but everybody in that town that, and I think this is important. If they have a collection going and somebody sets up a GoFundMe and everybody is saying, hey look, Caleb is this great guy, he's involved in the church. All the neighbors are saying great things about him. There wasn't a lot of speculation that Caleb was involved in this crime until the cops make an arrest.

[A]

Yeah. So let's, let's go down that road for just a second and add a little color to that because we have Tuesday morning, the Cunningham court where the Flynn family lived. Their neighbors are being interviewed by the local media there and they, these neighbors are expressing shock, of course, sadness, but also fear over the death of Ashley Flynn and the reported home invasion with one neighbor saying specifically that she is getting ready to install a security system that day or later that week. Remember, we recommend simply safe neighbors. And then to, to expand on the, the family here, those same Neighbors said that at Christmas time, this is the stuff that almost makes you choke up when you hear about these horrible tragedies. They say at Christmas time the Flynn family would bake cookies and have the two little girls deliver the goodies door to door to, to the people on the street.

[C]

It's sad too, because like that, that's one of the best ways you can teach your kids is by setting the example. You can sit there and tell them all, all you want to care about others and be kind to others. And you know, this is a neighborhood, it's a nice neighborhood. So it's not that the neighbors needed cookies made for them, but it's a kind thing to do. And then obviously I, I think one of the perks if, if you have a church community in your life, one of those perks is that the children see people in the community, in the church community trying to help others in, in the community. So much more to get to in this Tip City case. Thanks for joining us here in the garage. Stick around for part two. And until then, be good, be kind, and don't litter.

[D]

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