Podbit · Dateline NBC
In August 2006, youth pastor David Vander Meer hiked Angels Landing at Zion National Park with his wife Bernadette before sunrise — and came back alone, saying she had fallen. Investigators were suspicious but couldn't prove a crime, so the case was closed as an accident for nearly two decades.
In the hush money trial, Blanche cross-examined Michael Cohen with relentless aggression — calling him a flat-out liar and reminding the jury Cohen had once called Trump a dictator who 'belonged in a cage like an animal.' Trump didn't win the case, but Blanche's fight deeply impressed him.
Glenn Jackson called 911 to report his wife Ella missing and opened with 'this is not an emergency.' He said he personally didn't think anything was wrong, that his son was fine, and that he only called because he heard on a TV show you shouldn't wait to report someone missing. It's one of the most eerily calm missing-person calls on record.
Ella's adult son Philip made a second 911 call roughly 24 hours after Glenn's, insisting this was not normal for his mother and urging investigators to take it seriously. The lead detective credits Philip's call as the reason the investigation got off the ground.
Jason Hans, Ella's ex-husband and close friend, also lost his first wife Irina to an unsolved murder more than 20 years ago. The coincidence made investigators look hard at him — but it also gave him a harrowing frame of reference for understanding what Ella suffered.
Jason Hans told Blayne that Ella's murder — being killed by her own spouse — was the more enraging of the two tragedies because marriage is supposed to be where you're safest. The randomness of Irina's death was a societal failure; Ella's was a personal betrayal.
Irina Hans was shot point blank near the Green Line metro in the DC area in 2002, during the height of the DC sniper panic. Nothing was taken. A can of mace was found in her hand. Investigators believe someone knew her routine. Prince George's County Police are still seeking tips at 1-866-411-TIPS.
Ella Jackson secretly recorded close to 70 interactions with Glenn as she tried to build a case to safely leave him. She feared his money and connections would let him win custody of Alex if she left without evidence. She also wrote in her journal and told her son Philip exactly who to blame if anything happened to her.
Body camera footage captured Glenn harassing women at a dog park, squatting and standing repeatedly in a way that made them uncomfortable enough to call police. The lead detective, a college professor who filibustered interviews with meandering explanations, described Glenn as always wanting to be the smartest person in the room.
Glenn arranged a play date with a friend, then removed both their phones to the car before essentially confessing to Ella's murder. The friend delayed telling police because he wasn't sure it was real — a decision that baffled both Andrea and Blayne.
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