The Grimes Files: Gone, Not Silent

In 1965, a quiet night in Villa Rica, Georgia turned deadly when 27-year-old Arthur James Hill was shot nine times by a white service-station attendant. An all-white jury called it self-defense after just twenty-two minutes of deliberation. Nearly sixty years later, The Grimes Files reopens the case — uncovering FBI and Department of Justice records, witness contradictions, and the courtroom bias that erased Hill’s name from history. This is the story of a man unarmed, unmarked, but not forgotten. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-grimes-files-gone-not-silent/donations Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Doug Sager lived two lives — one inside his home in Mathias, West Virginia, and another behind the wheel of a truck that carried him across the East Coast. From Mississippi to New Jersey, his routes traced a silent pattern of violence and fear. In this episode, we follow the highways Doug once drove — the women who crossed his path, the ones who vanished, and the survivor still too afraid to speak. Along the way, we uncover forgotten truck stops, missing files, and the echoes of unsolved murders that stretch from one state line to the next. This episode contains accounts of abuse, sexual violence, and murder. Listener discretion is advised. If you’d like to support future investigations, you can donate directly through this link. https://app.redcircle.com/shows/cef31eb2-a731-4b09-b2e4-f6b293fd4f4a/donations Every contribution helps fund case research, record requests, and outreach to families still searching for answers. If you or someone you know is experiencing abuse, help is available. Call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or text START to 88788. If you are thinking about suicide, dial 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. You are not alone. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-grimes-files-gone-not-silent/donations Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In June 1982, twenty-year-old Kelly Bergh Dove vanished from her overnight shift at the Imperial gas station on South Main Street in Harrisonburg, Virginia. A wife. A mother. A middle child who had already faced more than most her age. That night, she called 911 not once, not twice, but three times — each call sharper and more urgent than the last. Her final words: “Please hurry, he’s back.” By the time police arrived, Kelly was gone. Her purse sat on the counter. A cigarette smoldered in the ashtray. No robbery. No forced entry. No struggle. Just absence. Forty years later, Kelly’s disappearance remains one of the Valley’s most haunting mysteries. And her story doesn’t exist in isolation. Just weeks earlier, in neighboring West Virginia, another young woman — Patty Vaughan — also vanished. The same highways, the same culture of night-shift gas stations, and a landscape where women working alone were left vulnerable. This episode steps back from the Patty Vaughan series to widen the lens: to understand Kelly’s story, the danger of that era, and how the echoes of 1982 still shape the search for answers today. This isn’t just a podcast. It’s an investigation. And if you’re listening, you’re part of it now. ⸻ If You Know Something Harrisonburg Police Department — (540) 434-4436 Crime Solvers of Harrisonburg & Rockingham County — (540) 574-5050 Text tips: Send “HPD” plus your message to CRIMES (274637) For information on the disappearance of Patty Vaughan in Hardy County, WV: contact the Hardy County Sheriff’s Office or the West Virginia State Police Even the smallest detail could matter. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-grimes-files-gone-not-silent/donations Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Patty Vaughan was just 18 when she vanished in 1982. To understand what happened to her, we have to step into the life of the man she disappeared into — Galen Douglas Sager. This episode traces Sager’s story from his childhood in Mathias, West Virginia, through his marriages, the stillbirth of his twin sons, the disappearance of Patty, a manslaughter conviction, and the years of abuse described by his second wife, Ellen. Told through survivor testimony, family accounts, and available records, this chapter reveals how Sager’s violence escalated over decades, how silence shielded him, and how women like Ellen found the strength to survive. Ellen survived. Patty didn’t. The difference isn’t safety — it’s silence. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-grimes-files-gone-not-silent/donations Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In 1982, Patty Vaughan vanished in the mountains of West Virginia. Doug Sager claimed he dropped her at a truck stop. His nephew Ralph later said she never left at all—that he saw her body in the shower. Decades later, human remains were found near Judy Gap. Could they be Patty’s—or someone else’s? Two stories. Two endings. Only one can be true. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-grimes-files-gone-not-silent/donations Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy