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More often than we’d like to believe, people get away with murder. As cases grow cold, cops retire. Witnesses die. Evidence disappears. Unsolved, a true crime podcast series from USA TODAY and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, guides listeners through these real-life mysteries, uncovering new clues along the way.
Season four of Unsolved delves into the disappearance of Alexis Patterson, a 7-year-old girl who disappeared on her way to school in 2002. At first, there was a massive search and sympathy for her family, but that quickly changed as her parents became suspects. Over the years, there have been conspiracy theories and false leads and cases of mistaken identity. Still, her mom has never given up hope that Alexis will come home again someday.
Season three of Unsolved tells the story of Father Alfred Kunz, whose throat was slit inside St. Michael School in 1998. Some believe his death was linked to his battles against evil. Others believe his all-too-human flaws were to blame.
Season two of Unsolved, released in 2017, examines the case of toddler Michelle Manders, who vanished from her bedroom in the middle of the night in 1981. Did she wander alone into the darkness? Or was she kidnapped?
Season one of Unsolved, released in 2015, explores the circumstances surrounding the death of 14-year-old John Zera, who disappeared from Franklin High School in 1976. The seven episodes follow investigators through decades of dead ends as they hold on to hope of finding the killer.
Subscribe to Unsolved on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher Radio or wherever you get your podcasts. For more information on the series, visit http://usatoday.com/unsolved.
Season four of Unsolved delves into the disappearance of Alexis Patterson, a 7-year-old girl who disappeared on her way to school in 2002. At first, there was a massive search and sympathy for her family, but that quickly changed as her parents became suspects. Over the years, there have been conspiracy theories and false leads and cases of mistaken identity. Still, her mom has never given up hope that Alexis will come home again someday.
Season three of Unsolved tells the story of Father Alfred Kunz, whose throat was slit inside St. Michael School in 1998. Some believe his death was linked to his battles against evil. Others believe his all-too-human flaws were to blame.
Season two of Unsolved, released in 2017, examines the case of toddler Michelle Manders, who vanished from her bedroom in the middle of the night in 1981. Did she wander alone into the darkness? Or was she kidnapped?
Season one of Unsolved, released in 2015, explores the circumstances surrounding the death of 14-year-old John Zera, who disappeared from Franklin High School in 1976. The seven episodes follow investigators through decades of dead ends as they hold on to hope of finding the killer.
Subscribe to Unsolved on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher Radio or wherever you get your podcasts. For more information on the series, visit http://usatoday.com/unsolved.
39 Episodes
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1After more than 20 years of turning us down, the Milwaukee Police finally release more than 10,000 pages of records on their investigation of Alexis’ case. Some of the contents are completely unexpected.
After a three-year delay in reporting due to the pandemic, we ask the experts to evaluate the DNA profiles of Alexis' mother and the woman in Ohio to figure out, once and for all, whether the two are related.
Two reporters travel to Ohio to see if they can get to the bottom of the claims that a young woman there is Alexis Patterson.
Fourteen years after Alexis disappeared, a man from Ohio comes forward to say he believes his estranged wife might be the missing girl.
Some witnesses say they saw a red truck outside Alexis' school around the time she vanished. Could it have belonged to a serial killer?
Police come up with the theory that Alexis ran away after her mom tells them about an argument over cupcakes.
Alexis’ stepfather, LaRon Bourgeois, has a troubled history with police. That is enough to raise their suspicions after she disappears.
Despite Milwaukee’s history of segregation and distrust between Black residents and police, the whole city comes together to search for 7-year-old Alexis Patterson, who disappeared somewhere in the 242 steps between her home and school.
Alexis Patterson’s walk home from school was just 242 steps. But on May 3, 2002, the 7-year-old never made it. The story of Alexis’ disappearance started with a massive search and sympathy for her family, but that quickly changed as her parents became suspects. Over the years, there have been conspiracy theories and false leads and cases of mistaken identity. Still, her mom has never given up hope that Alexis will come home again someday.
I’m working on a new investigation about missing children of color, and one of them is going to be the focus of Season 4.
Still have questions about the murder of Father Alfred Kunz? Want to hear more about what was going on behind the scenes of the podcast and of the investigation? Kunz's good friend Peter Kelly and retired detective Dawn Johnson joined host Gina Barton at a live event, where they provided some answers.
Twenty years after Kunz’s murder, members of his former parish gathered at Mass to pray for his soul. Police, who had launched a social media campaign in connection with the anniversary, scanned the crowd for their suspects.
Detective Wayne Honer was among those who did not believe teacher Brian Jackson killed Father Kunz. While Detective Kevin Hughes was chasing Jackson, Honer focused on a different suspect.
Immediately after Father Alfred Kunz’s death, St. Michael teacher Brian Jackson moved in with Kunz’s best friend, Father Charles Fiore. Detective Kevin Hughes was convinced Jackson was the killer.
Support for this episode comes from Audible. Go to audible.com/un to listen to your favorite books.
A Dane County sheriff’s deputy came to believe his nephew, Joe Cavanaugh, was Father Kunz’s killer. The attack on Kunz was similar to one Cavanaugh was believed to have committed against his grandfather.
St. Michael had been robbed in the months before Father Alfred Kunz’s death, and police believed the robbery and Kunz’s murder may have been connected.
Police have evidence that Father Alfred Kunz had performed exorcisms without the support of the church hierarchy, which official Catholic exorcists characterize as risky and foolish.
Support for this episode comes from Care/Of. For 50% off your first month of personalized Care/Of vitamins, visit takecareof.com and use promo code MJS50.
Father Alfred Kunz and Father Charles Fiore had reportedly been investigating sexual misconduct by priests without authorization from church leadership. Their efforts crossed the state line into Illinois.
Father Alfred Kunz met Mora Smith at Brian’s Diner, where she often served him breakfast. The two became close, with him helping her spiritually and financially. After Kunz’s death, police interrogated her and her two young sons.
Support for this episode comes from Audible. Go to audible.com/un to listen to your favorite books.
On the last night of his life, Father Alfred Kunz taped a radio show with co-host Peter Kelly and best friend Father Charles Fiore. Sometime after 10 p.m., Kunz was involved a struggle, which ended with an unknown assailant cutting his throat.
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This story could be told in one sitting. The podcasts are half ads, 40% recap, and 10% story.
This story could be told in one sitting. The podcasts are half ads, 40% recap, and 10% story.
most excellent story. I don't listen to crime series. I prefer one story per episode. I'm glad I listened to all of your story. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
if you wanna get away with any crime at all...do it in Wisconsin ‼️
the police sure missed something... EVERY THING,‼️‼️🤬
SH##‼️‼️‼️
det quarmie?? I've got some quarmes there. what a sh## investigation!
very sad for mum 😢
Bloody hell ‼️ even Quincy was smarter than her and that show was in the 70s‼️😱
did they ever investigate Joe? he probably took michelle and used Terry to get her
This dude was a POS, a rapist, abuser etc. Glad he was investigated thoroughly.
This is why he was killed. Not for giving masses in Latin or anything like that. And the sexual "misconduct" type stuff goes back to the beginnings of the Church itself, it didn't start because of the '60's or whatever Catholics think.
I would hate to be this senior gentleman now, defending the utterly sh$%%y decision to classify this as an "accident". The one DA is just being common decent and ethical like we all should be, all the time, but right now he is looking like a mighty superhero in my eyes. Just for having common sense and decency and not wanting to be lazy about this child's death.
Abusers and baby killers can sure LOVE a SIDS diagnosis can't they? A lot of baby killers have gotten away with it because of a jumpy to the conclusion of SIDS, and lazy coroners are their accomplices. Joe is a POS. Why are there so many POS's in this "safe" little community? Why do half the local cops love these POS's so much?
I would like to remind the old lady that they do not convict people for no reason, for things like rape and child molestation and child abuse. The Courts in fact have a very weak will for getting justice in those kinds of crimes. So if this guy got any time at all, for these crimes, he did something to deserve it. Even with Courts that bend over backwards to see that guys like this never see any consequences for their actions, this guy did time -- and it wasn't his Lawyer's fault. He is a lying manipulative POS, too, and why not. People will believe any POS who claims he didn't do it.
Really difficult to listen to the old lady being an apologist for a convicted child molester.
I am appalled by the failures and the indifference of the Police involved here. They allowed petty interpersonal dislikes and departmental p@$$ing contest type stuff sabotage finding out what happened to this little girl. The fact that there was a local convicted child molester who resembled the sketch - that the detective they thought was a "nuisance" pushed to have released - is infuriating now. They were determined to rewrite the truth so that this little girl "ran away from home and fell in the river", and that scenario just isn't possible.
I regret but it needs saying: the father Mike was a DICK. Such a DICK. The Mom sure took a lot of Sh$& before she finally broke. Of course he finally "upgraded" to a "better" (likely much younger) wife.
if she did call Joe first I think that makes total sense.. she falls asleep with a friend over waiting for her husband to pick her up.. she wakes up to find her friend and daughter both gone.. it totally makes sense to call just to make sure her daughter didn't go with him for whatever reason
why would it be weird for a woman who wants kids to want to see pictures of a new friend's kids? that's not suspicious at all.. I love seeing pictures of people's kids, doesn't mean I'm gonna kidnap one