This time last year Stephan Sterns was given 21 life sentences for the death of 13-year-old Madeline “Maddie” Soto.

Maddie was reported missing February 26, 2024, after she didn't made it to Hunter’s Creek Middle School in Orlando. Mom's boyfriend, Sterns, initially claimed he had dropped Maddie off that morning, but surveillance footage showed the lie.

Two days later, March 1, 2024, Maddie's body was found in a wooded area near St. Cloud. Her death rules a homicide by strangulation. Investigators believe she was already dead the morning she was reported missing and that Sterns moved her body that day when he said he was taking her to school. Video evidence showed Sterns discarding items, including her backpack and school laptop, into a dumpster at the apartment complex where she lived.

Forensic analysis of Sterns’ phone revealed images and videos of child sexual abuse, dating back to when Madeline was as young as eight. When investigators initially looked at the phone, they found it had been factory reset. He claimed that was an accident.

Sterns was arrested February 28, 2024 on charges of sexual battery and possession of child sexual abuse material, and later indicted for first‑degree murder and multiple sexual offenses. Sterns pleaded no contest to first‑degree premeditated murder and guilty to 60 other sex crime charges. He began serving his 21 concurrent life sentences with no possibility of parole at the Central Florida Reception Center.

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Terrence Woods Jr., a talented and educated young television producer vanishes while filming near an abandoned mine. According to the crew on set, Terrence suddenly bolted down a steep hill at full speed and vanished without a trace—a narrative many doubt. As the investigation unfolds, a mountain of unsettling red flags emerges: a local sheriff's department treating the case as a simple runaway, international crew members quickly fleeing back to London, conflicting eyewitness accounts, and highly suspicious physical evidence. From missing pants and muddy shoes packaged in plastic bags to tampered camera photos and pages ripped directly out of Terrence's diary. Was it a sudden psychological break, or something more sinister?

Joining Nancy Grace today:

• Brian Fitzgibbons -  (Plymouth, MA) Director of Operations for USPA Nationwide Security, Leads a team of investigators specializing in locating missing persons, former Marine and Iraq war veteran, Instagram: @uspa_nationwide_security
• Mehul Anjaria - (Los Angeles) Cohost of Podcast: "Crime Redefined" and Forensic DNA Expert
• Dion Mitchell - (Los Angeles) Cohost and Executive Producer of Podcast "Crime Redefined", X/Instagram: @crimeredefined, Tik Tok: @crime.redefined, Facebook: crimeredefined
• Dave Mack - (AL) Investigative Reporter, 'Crime Stories'

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Pregnant Reagan Simmons-Hancock brutally murdered by her friend Taylor Parker, October 2020. Her unborn second child cut from her womb and abducted, ultimately dies.

Parker had been faking a pregnancy for months. She brutally stabbed and bludgeoned Reagan, then performed a crude C-section to remove the unborn daughter, Braxlynn Sage Hancock. Police say Reagan’s three-year-old daughter was present in the home but was unharmed .

After the attack, Parker fled with the baby toward Oklahoma. but was stopped by a Texas state trooper for erratic driving. She claimed she had given birth in the car. At the hospital, medical staff confirmed Parker had not given birth and had previously undergone a hysterectomy, making pregnancy impossible. DNA testing confirmed the baby was Reagan’s. Parker was arrested and later convicted of capital murder, murder, and kidnapping.

Reagan’s mother, Jessica Brookes, is pushing for legislative change to protect pregnant women

Joining Nancy Grace today:

• Jessica Brookes - Mother of Reagan Hancock
• Emily Shirey - Sister of Reagan Hancock
• Greg J. Morse - attorney Morse Legal; current CJA counsel (Southern District of Florida); Former West Palm Beach Public Defender’s Office; Author: “The Untested” found on Amazon; website: morselegal.com
• Caryn Stark - Forensic Psychologist, renowned TV and Radio trauma expert and consultant, www.carynstark.com, Instagram: carynpsych, FB: Caryn Stark Private Practice
• Thomas Coyne - Medical Examiner, University of Florida. District Eight Medical Examiner, State of Florida. Toxicologist. Forensic Pathologist and Neuropathologist.
  Naomi Channell - TV Producer, host of the "REAL" Podcast, IG - @naomichannell, X - @Naomi_TV
• Sydney Silvagni - Investigative Reporter, 'Crime Stories'

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Amanda Roarke's boyfriend tells 911 operator, "I murdered my girlfriend." Ex-boyfriend gets 60 years for attacking woman with a hatchet. 16 children removed from squalid rural Ohio home. Sydney Silvagni reports.

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New reports say the FBI determined ransom notes related to Nancy Guthrie were fake. TMZ's Harvey Levin pushed back on the claim, having received several of the notes. Less than 24 hours later, FBI bosses say they've not made a ruling either way. Investigators continue to treat her disappearance as an active case, with DNA and video evidence still under forensic review. Now, who to believe?

Joining Nancy Grace today :

Caryn Stark- NY- Forensic Psychologist, renowned TV and Radio trauma expert and consultant, www.carynstark.com, Instagram: carynpsych, FB: Caryn Stark Private Practice

Michael Harrigan - Fmr. FBI Agent for 22 years - Chief, Firearms Training Program at Quantico, VA. Led the FBI's Violent Criminal Apprehension Program (ViCAP), Current principle with the Pax Group, LLC, a crisis management and risk assessment entity

Brian Trascher - Vice President of the United Cajun Navy, https://unitedcajunnavy.org

Dr. Jim Jones - cyber security and digital forensics expert, digital forensics program director and associate professor, George Mason University

Dr. Kendall Crowns - Chief Medical Examiner Tarrant County (Ft Worth), Host of the Podcast "Mayhem in the Morgue", Lecturer: Burnett School of Medicine at TCU (Texas Christian University)

Sydney Silvagni -Investigative Reporter, 'Crime Stories'

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Philadelphia police are hunting two 16-year-old boys accused of shooting a college student for his phone. Wisconsin man sentenced after years-long sexual abuse of an unconscious victim unearthed in online brag group. Texas woman tries to conceal murdered boyfriend's remains in concrete. Sydney Silvagni reports.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mackenzie Shirilla is serving 15 years to life at the Ohio Reformatory for Women, convicted on 12 counts, including murder and aggravated vehicular homicide. Police say Shirilla deliberately crashing her car into a brick building at 100 mph. Two passengers were killed, Shirilla's boyfriend, Dominic Russo, and their friend, Davion Flanagan. Data from the car's black box showed Shirilla floored the gas pedal and never used the brakes, making calculated steering and gear adjustments before impact. She was 17 at the time.

The Ohio Supreme Court has declined to review Mackenzie Shirilla’s post-conviction appeals, ruling the petition was filed late and the trial court lacked jurisdiction to excuse the delay. Shirilla’s lawyers, in court documents, said they requested the review due to a calendar mistake. They filed the appeal one day past the deadline.

Jailhouse recordings and prison records reveal demands the double killer is making behind bars Recordings from her time at the Ohio Reformatory for Women exposed her begging for perks like an iPad, complaining about being bored, and scheming with her mother. A prison document details 23 complaints and 36 violations against her, including flashing her breasts to visitors, possessing contraband like paints and monopoly money, and refusing job assignments.

Shirilla will not be eligible for her first parole hearing until October 2037.

Joining Nancy Grace today:

• Christine Russo - Dominic Russo's older sister - Host, "The Big Sister: Unhinged Podcast," Instagram: @thebigsisterunhinged, www.youtube.com/@TheBigSisterUnhinged
• Shyann Topping - Mackenzie Shirilla's prison girlfriend in 2023 TikTok: shyanntoppingg
• Dr. Bethany Marshall - Psychoanalyst, Host "On the Couch with Dr. Bethany," Author: "Deal Breaker,” featured in hit show: "Paris in Love" on Peacock, www.drbethanymarshall.com , Instagram & TikTok: drbethanymarshall, Twitter: @DrBethanyLive
  John Mobley - Trial attorney, John Mobley Law Firm
• Dr. Kendall Crowns - TX Chief Medical Examiner Tarrant County (Ft Worth), Podcast "Mayhem in the Morgue," Lecturer: Burnett School of Medicine at TCU (Texas Christian University)
  Joel Waldman - Co-host of "Surviving the Survivor," Author of "Surviving the Survivor: A Brutally Honest Conversation about Life (& Death) with My Mom: A Holocaust Survivor, Therapist & My Podcast Co-Host", Co-Founder and Creative Director at Content Product Media
• Dave Mack - Investigative Reporter, 'Crime Stories'

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Alex Murdaugh's second murder trial in the deaths of his wife and son is now scheduled for April of 2027. His 2023 convictions were overturned by the South Carolina Supreme Court which ruled former Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca “Becky” Hill improperly influenced the jury. Murdaugh remains incarcerated for 22 state financial crimes and 14 federal charges serving both sentences concurrently, unaffected by the murder retrial.

A status hearing is set for August for Judge Debra McCaslin to decide pending motions on a change of venue and allowing independent DNA testing of samples from under Maggie Murdaugh’s fingernails, among others.

Joining Nancy today:

• Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson - Murdaugh's former housekeeper, Author: Within the House of Murdaugh: Amid a Unique Friendship, Blanca and Maggie, website: https://withinhouseofmurdaugh.com
• Mark Peper - Criminal defense attorney, PeperLawFirm.com, Twitter: @PeperLawFirm
• Dr. Bethany Marshall - Psychoanalyst, https://www.drbethanymarshall.com/, Instagram FB & TikTok: drbethanymarshall, Twitter:@DrBethanyLive, Author: "Deal Breaker," featured in hit show: "Paris in Love" on Peacock, Host: "On The Couch with Dr. Bethany Marshall"
• Brian Fitzgibbons - Director of Operations for USPA Nationwide Security, website: www.uspasecurity.com, Instagram: @uspa_nationwide_security,
• Thomas Coyne - Medical Examiner, University of Florida. District Eight Medical Examiner, State of Florida. Toxicologist. Forensic Pathologist and Neuropathologist.
• GiGi McKelvey - Journalist, Host of the podcast “Pretty Lies And Alibis”, prettyliesandalibis.org, Facebook, IG, TikTok: @PrettyLies And Alibis, Twitter: @PrettyLiesAlibi
• Dave Mack - Investigative Reporter, 'Crime Stories'

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.