One Minute Remaining - Stories from the inmates

The jury deliberated for less than two hours.When they returned, the verdict was guilty on Count 4: First-Degree Murder. Traveontaye Berry, sixteen years old, was facing fifty-two years in prison. The rest of his life, behind bars.In this final episode of our series, Tray talks about that moment. What it felt like to hear the words. The reality of his sentence hitting him. The years ahead stretching out with no clear end.But this is not where his story ends.After more than a decade in prison, new evidence emerged. Two people came forward with sworn affidavits claiming that Myleka Avery, the state's only eyewitness, admitted to them that she lied. That she knew Traveontaye Berry was innocent. That she identified him anyway.Based on these new affidavits, Tray was granted a post-conviction evidentiary hearing. For the first time in more than eleven years, his conviction could be challenged. New testimony could be heard. The truth could finally emerge.This is Part Ten of Traveontaye Berry's story, and the beginning of his fight for freedom: 52 Years in Just 2 Hours.SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE NOW xxEARLY AND AD FREE ACCESS: for as little as $1.69 a week!Apple + HEREPatreon and find us on Facebook here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Over the past seven episodes, we’ve examined the physical evidence gaps, the witness contamination, the unrecorded photo lineup, and the investigative decisions that led to Traveontaye Berry’s conviction.But what does a professional murder investigator see when he listens to these police interviews?In this episode, we sit down with Steve Keogh, a former Scotland Yard Detective Inspector with 30 years in the Metropolitan Police and 12 years investigating homicides. During his career, Keogh investigated over 100 murders across London. He’s written extensively on how murders are really investigated, consulted on major crime cases, and now examines murder investigations for television and his media work.We played him the police interview recordings from the Traveontaye Berry investigation. We asked him to assess the interview methodology, the witness handling, the procedural decisions, and the investigative approach that shaped this case.What Steve identified is a masterclass in how not to conduct a murder investigation. From leading questions to witness contamination, hear how a veteran detective works. This is Part Eight of Traveontaye Berry’s story: 52 Years in Just 2 Hours.Check out Steves podcast hereSIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE NOW xxEARLY AND AD FREE ACCESS: for as little as $1.69 a week!Apple + HEREPatreon and find us on Facebook here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode Five, we heard how police brought two eyewitnesses into the same room and had them confront each other about conflicting accounts. Now, in Part Six, we examine something equally troubling.Myleka Avery, the prosecution's only eyewitness, spent her first two police interviews stating she did not know Traveontaye Berry. She had no idea who had fired a gun in her home that night.Then came the photo lineup.But here's the problem: it was never recorded. The officer conducting the identification procedure failed to document the moment Myleka allegedly picked Tray out of a lineup. Instead, the recording only begins after the fact. We hear the officer ask: "Now I just showed you a photo lineup and you picked someone out. Who did you pick?"The witness identification is one of the most critical moments in any criminal investigation. A recorded lineup protects both the witness and the accused. It prevents suggestion. It prevents influence. It creates an objective record of exactly what happened.This didn't happen. And the witness who couldn't identify Tray two interviews earlier suddenly could identify him in a process that was never documented.This is Part Six of Traveontaye Berry's story: 52 Years in Just 2 Hours.SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE NOW xxEARLY AND AD FREE ACCESS: for as little as $1.69 a week!Apple + HEREPatreon and find us on Facebook here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The police interview with Myleka Avery continues — and by the end of it, her account of the night Carl Green Jr. was murdered has changed significantly.In Part 4 of 52 Years in Just 2 Hours, Myleka now tells investigators that the shooter had actually been inside her home, firing from the kitchen towards the outside. But despite placing the shooter inside the apartment, she continues to maintain that she doesn't know who he was.As the interview continues, another significant admission emerges. Myleka tells police she had hidden a second bullet casing — meaning she had now admitted to concealing two pieces of potential evidence connected to the shooting.With Myleka's account having shifted during questioning, investigators return to the interview room with the first witness, Mikelle Brown, as they continue building the case that would ultimately see 16-year-old Traveontaye Berry convicted of murder and sentenced to 52 years in prison.Trae maintains that he did not kill Carl Green Jr.SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE NOW xxEARLY AND AD FREE ACCESS: for as little as $1.69 a week!Apple + HEREPatreon and find us on Facebook here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After 16-year-old Traveontaye Berry was arrested for the murder of Carl Green Jr. in Freeport, Illinois, police began interviewing people who were inside a nearby home on the night of the shooting. One of those witnesses was Mikelle Brown.In Part 2 of 52 Years in Just 2 Hours, we hear Mikelle's police interview and examine what she told investigators in the hours after the murder.During the interview, Mikelle says she believes multiple people had run through the house that night — an account that officers question and ultimately appear to dismiss as they try to establish who was there and what happened.We also hear Mikelle say she doesn't know Trae, something Trae disputes. He says he knew both of the girls who were inside the house that night.As the investigation into Carl Green Jr.'s murder begins to take shape, we hear the evidence as police heard it and start examining the accounts that would become important in the case against Traveontaye Berry.Trae maintains that he did not kill Carl Green Jr.SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE NOW xxEARLY AND AD FREE ACCESS: for as little as $1.69 a week!Apple + HEREPatreon and find us on Facebook here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today I catch up with Tariq MaQbool, a man who was once looking at life behind bars with no way of getting home. However a recent commutation by the governor means that he could be going home in just four years time. However the fight is not over, Tariq is in a battle with the system on multiple fronts and he's not going to give up. SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE NOW xxEARLY AND AD FREE ACCESS: for as little as $1.69 a week!Apple + HEREPatreon and find us on Facebook here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Christopher Bennett was facing the death penalty for killing his stepfather, Vincent McDorman. Now represented by court-appointed lawyers, Chris says the 18-year-old was confronted with two possible outcomes: spend the rest of his life in prison or risk being sentenced to death.In Part 5 of No One Was Coming, the focus turns to Christopher's defence and the legal strategy being developed as his case moved towards court.Chris describes his relationship with his attorneys, what they told him about the case against him, and the enormous pressure of making decisions that would determine whether he lived or died.The path being laid out would ultimately lead Chris towards a plea agreement — and a sentence of three consecutive life terms totalling 1,800 years.This is Part 5 of No One Was Coming: The Christopher Bennett Story.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------This series contains discussion of child sexual abuse, physical abuse and domestic violence. If you or someone you know needs support, help is available.Australia1800RESPECT (sexual assault and domestic violence, 24/7): 1800 737 732Blue Knot Foundation (adult survivors of childhood trauma): 1300 657 380Bravehearts (child sexual abuse support): 1800 272 831Kids Helpline (ages 5 to 25, 24/7): 1800 55 1800Lifeline (crisis support, 24/7): 13 11 14United StatesChildhelp National Child Abuse Hotline (24/7): 1-800-422-4453RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline (24/7): 1-800-656-4673National Domestic Violence Hotline (24/7): 1-800-799-7233988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline (24/7): call or text 988United KingdomNSPCC Helpline (adults concerned about a child): 0808 800 5000Childline (for anyone under 19, 24/7): 0800 1111NAPAC (adult survivors of childhood abuse): 0808 801 0331Rape Crisis England and Wales (24/7): 0808 500 2222Samaritans (24/7): 116 123International For domestic violence services in other countries, visit hotpeachpages.net for a directory of helplines and agencies worldwide.If a child is in immediate danger, call emergency services: 000 in Australia, 911 in the US, 999 in the UK.SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE NOW xxEARLY AND AD FREE ACCESS: for as little as $1.69 a week!Apple + HEREPatreon and find us on Facebook here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the summer of 2003, in the small Virginia town of Craigsville, 18-year-old Christopher Bennett shot and killed his stepfather, Vincent McDorman. Christopher never denied killing him. He confessed, took a plea deal to avoid the death penalty, and was handed three consecutive life sentences totalling 1,800 years.But behind that front door, Chris and his siblings say, was a man the town never saw. Years of abuse. Children told to pray for help that never came. And a report of what was happening to his little sisters, made just one day before the shooting.Over this series, Jack chats with Chris from inside Buckingham Correctional Center about his childhood, that night, the sentence designed to outlive him, and a family still fighting to bring him home.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------This series contains discussion of child sexual abuse, physical abuse and domestic violence. If you or someone you know needs support, help is available.Australia1800RESPECT (sexual assault and domestic violence, 24/7): 1800 737 732Blue Knot Foundation (adult survivors of childhood trauma): 1300 657 380Bravehearts (child sexual abuse support): 1800 272 831Kids Helpline (ages 5 to 25, 24/7): 1800 55 1800Lifeline (crisis support, 24/7): 13 11 14United StatesChildhelp National Child Abuse Hotline (24/7): 1-800-422-4453RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline (24/7): 1-800-656-4673National Domestic Violence Hotline (24/7): 1-800-799-7233988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline (24/7): call or text 988United KingdomNSPCC Helpline (adults concerned about a child): 0808 800 5000Childline (for anyone under 19, 24/7): 0800 1111NAPAC (adult survivors of childhood abuse): 0808 801 0331Rape Crisis England and Wales (24/7): 0808 500 2222Samaritans (24/7): 116 123International For domestic violence services in other countries, visit hotpeachpages.net for a directory of helplines and agencies worldwide.If a child is in immediate danger, call emergency services: 000 in Australia, 911 in the US, 999 in the UK.SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE NOW xxEARLY AND AD FREE ACCESS: for as little as $1.69 a week!Apple + HEREPatreon and find us on Facebook here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kelly and Doug Nichols and their two daughters are, seemingly, your normal all-American family. Kelly grew up on a farm in rural Illinois; she has a strong faith and even stronger family values. She and Doug met when the pair were in their early twenties, dated for four years, and then got married. Doug worked in IT, while Kelly enjoyed a long and happy career as a dental hygienist, respected and loved by her patients and by the community.As the family grew, they did all the things young, busy families do. They went on adventures and holidays, the girls played sports, and they attended church every Sunday. And, like almost all families, they documented the years through pictures and videos, especially of their two young daughters. Treasured family memories. Memories that would one day land them both in prison, arrested, tried and convicted of possessing and producing child pornography.It all started when allegations were made against Kelly's husband, Doug. Allegations he denies. Allegations we cannot go into, as they are still making their way through the court system. These allegations had nothing to do with Kelly, but they would be the catalyst for what came next.As part of the complaint, the person making the allegations told police that if they took Doug's phone and computer, they would find evidence to back up her claims. So they did. But they found nothing. What they did find, however, while searching through the computer and phone, was those very family memories: thousands of pictures and videos of the two kids. As police went through the files, they said they found what they deemed to be images and videos of a sexual nature.They took what they had found to a grand jury, and very quickly this supposedly normal all-American family were having their lives dissected and pulled apart online, their faces plastered across the internet under headlines like "Decatur Couple Arrested on Child Porn and Sex Charges."This is a case where we can truly say: it could happen to you.SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE NOW xxEARLY AND AD FREE ACCESS: for as little as $1.69 a week!Apple + HEREPatreon and find us on Facebook here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.