Based in Fact
Lisa O'Brien
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Top 10 Based in Fact Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Based in Fact episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Based in Fact for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Based in Fact episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
01/23/22 • 87 min
In Episode 1, guests Shelley Levisay and Amy Kingry talk about State of Oklahoma v. Julius Darius Jones. On the evening of July 28, 1999, Jones, armed with a .25 caliber pistol, carjacked and shot Paul Howell in the driveway of his parents’ Edmond, Oklahoma home. His sister and daughters were lucky to escape the carjacking unharmed. In spite of the overwhelming evidence presented at trial establishing Jones’ guilt and post-conviction DNA testing that identified Julius Jones as the person wearing the red bandana described by several witnesses, the Viola Davis-produced The Last Defense in 2018 fueled a media campaign of misinformation that characterized Jones’ guilt as in doubt. In spite of Jones’ extensive prison disciplinary record, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board broke its own rules, holding two hearings and recommending commutation and clemency for Jones. On November 18, 2021, Governor Kevin Stitt commuted Jones’ sentence to life without the possibility of parole.
Shelley Levisay is a criminal defense attorney and owner of Levisay & Associates, an author and podcaster from Shawnee, Oklahoma. She went to the University of Oklahoma College of Law, was Order of Barristers and a Note Editor for the American Indian Law Review. In May, 2022, she will graduate with an LL.M. in Indigenous Peoples.
Amy Kingry has been a paralegal in Oklahoma City for 21 years. She was born and raised in Edmond, Oklahoma and began helping victims of violent crime as a result of the misinformation of The Last Defense and the resulting media campaign. Amy co-founded Oklahoma Victims Innocence Project. OKVIP is a community organization dedicated to supporting victims/survivors of violent crime as they navigate the post-conviction process. Amy’s hope is to let victims of violent crimes know that they still have a voice to speak the truth, no matter how much their voices shake. She’s also a cross-fit enthusiast and, with her significant other, fan of the Oklahoma Sooners and OKC Thunder. Amy is also the proud mom of 5 children and bonus mom to 3 step-children, so there’s never a dull moment in her life.
01/20/24 • 145 min
In Episode 15, Arizona v. Jodi Ann Arias, Part 2, Lisa and Kyle continue their look at the 2008 murder of Travis Alexander, re-cap the five year pre-trial period after Arias' 2008 arrest and indictment and her trial, which began with jury selection in December, 2012. They then looked at her direct appeal, which was decided in March and April, 2020, the disbarment of Arias' first chair attorney L. Kirk Nurmi and prosecutor Juan Martinez. Finally, they looked at her pending state post-conviction claim currently making its way through state court in Arizona.
02/01/22 • 108 min
In Episode 2, I’m joined by Amy Kingry and Jennifer Harmon to talk about the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board. Before the controversial decision to break their own rules to consider Julius Jones’ requests for commutation and clemency, the board was the target of a criminal investigation into its processes after questions were raised about the release of Lawrence Anderson, who was released after serving only 3 years of a 20 year sentence handed down in 2017. The fact that his request for release was denied 2019 should’ve made him ineligible to reapply in 2020. Shortly after his release, Anderson committed a grisly triple-murder. In what is likely to be a developing situation, Amy, Jennifer and Lisa will talk about the rules governing the board, the irregularities in the board’s consideration of Jones’ applications, the resignation of Adam Luck and Governor Stitt’s replacement appointee.
About Amy: Amy is a native of Edmond, Oklahoma and has been a paralegal in Oklahoma City for 21 years. Amy co-founded Oklahoma Victims Innocence Project. OKVIP is a community organization dedicated to supporting victims/survivors of violent crime as they navigate post-conviction litigation. Oklahoma Victims Innocence Project’s goal is to let victims of violent crimes know that they have a voice to speak the truth, even though those voices shake. She’s also the proud mom of 5 children and bonus mom to 3 step-children, so there’s never a dull moment in her life. She’s also a cross-fit enthusiast and, with her significant other, fan of the Oklahoma Sooners and OKC Thunder.
About Jennifer: Jennifer Harmon is a native of Tulsa, Oklahoma, is a community advocate, Alert Neighbor Captain and a Navy veteran. She holds a Master of Divinity from Phillips Theological Seminary. Jennifer co-founded Oklahoma Victims Innocence Project, a community organization dedicated to supporting victims and survivors of violent crime as they navigate the post-conviction litigation process. In 2011, she was a co-founder of Justice For Peggy Gaytan, a city-wide publicity campaign comprised of residents across Tulsa, local media, and small business owners, which was instrumental in helping police make an arrest in the tragic murder of grandmother Peggy Gaytan on December 22, 2011. Jennifer and her husband live in the heart of midtown Tulsa and are fans of the OKC Thunder. Jennifer also spends her free time educating students and midtown neighbors about the Barred Owls of Midtown Tulsa, including tending the livestream.
Finally, we’re joined tonight by Kyle Steinhauser, a candidate for the co-host slot. While I think he’ll be fine, we’ll see how he feels at the end of the episode.
Episode 1 - Updates
Based in Fact
02/08/23 • 144 min
In Season 2, Episode 1, Kyle and Lisa update the cases and topics covered during Season 1, including recent events and developments in Texas v. Reed, Echols v. Arkansas, Oklahoma v. Glossip and Texas v. Skinner. They talked about the executions of James Coddington, Benjamin Cole and Richard Fairchild and Oklahoma's challenge to the federal Bureau of Prison's interference in the execution of John Fitzgerald Hanson. Finally, they talked about some of the cases they'll talk about during Season 2.
Intro: Roberta Glass
Artwork: Ati Abdo MacDonald
Audio Editor: Emily Walker
11/02/23 • 164 min
In Episode 12, Notable Supreme Court Cases, Part 3 Kyle and Lisa talked about cases decided between 1995 and 2010, including Schlup, Atkins, Roper, Crawford, House and Panetti. They looked at the background of each case, the issues raised by the Petitioners and the decisions of the Supreme Court. We are open to suggestions for any cases we missed and we will do this again next season.
Episode 13 - New York v. Ronald Joseph Defeo, Jr. - The Amityville Horror: Haunting or Hoax?
Based in Fact
11/02/23 • 188 min
In Episode 13, Lisa is joined by Roberta Glass, of The Roberta Glass True Crime Report, for a look at the case of State of New York v. Ronald Joseph Defeo, Jr.. Defeo murdered his father, mother, two sisters and two brothers in the early morning hours of November 13, 1974. Defeo was arrested, tried and convicted in November, 1975. Lisa and Roberta talked about the murders, Defeo's trial, conviction and sentence and the claims made by George and Kathy Lutz, who bought the house in December, 1975. The Lutz family's claims of paranormal activity in the house during their 28 days there led to the book, "The Amityville Horror," by Jay Anson. They also talked about the controversy surrounding the Lutz' claims and the allegations made by William Weber, Defeo's trial attorney, who claimed that the haunted house story was hatched over multiple bottles of wine with the Lutzes.
08/26/24 • 116 min
In Episode 12, State of Texas v. Linda Anita Carty, Part 2, Lisa and Kyle continued their look at the case against Carty, who was convicted of capital murder in 2002 for the May, 2001, kidnapping and murder of 20-year old Joana Rodriguez so that Carty could steal Joana’s 4-day old baby. Carty recruited drug dealers/thugs to commit a home invasion, promising them a large cache of drugs and money. Joana’s body was found in the trunk of a car rented for Carty by her daughter and Joana’s newborn son, Ray, was found in the daughter’s car, thankfully unharmed. They talked about Carty’s initial federal habeas claim and her first successive state post-conviction claims, which involved wild accusations of prosecutors’ threats and coercion by her co-defendants.
04/30/23 • 124 min
In Part 3, Lisa and Kyle conclude their discussion of the 1994 murder-for-hire of Farah Baquer Fratta, a mother of three gunned down in her garage in Humble, Harris County, Texas. In Parts 1 and 2, they talked about the case against Farah’s estranged husband, Robert Fratta, who was executed on January 10, 2023 and Joseph Prystash, a felon and gym rat who acted as Fratta’s middleman. In this episode, they talk about the case against Howard Paul Guidry, the trigger man. They talk about the case against Guidry, his first trial and conviction, which was vacated by a federal judge in September 2003, his re-trial, direct appeal and state and federal post-conviction claims, which concluded with the denial of Guidry’s petition to the United States Supreme Court in 2022.
03/24/23 • 88 min
In Part 2, Lisa and Kyle continue discussing the 1994 murder-for-hire of Farah Baquer Fratta, a mother of three gunned down in her garage in Humble, Harris County, Texas. In Part 1, they talked about the the case against Farah’s estranged husband, Robert Fratta, who was executed on January 10, 2023. In Part 2, they look at the case against the middleman, Joseph Prystash, a felon and gym rat with Fratta at the President and First Lady Health Club in Harris County. They talk about the evidence against Prystash, his capital murder conviction, direct appeals and state and federal post-conviction claims.
07/04/23 • 187 min
Lisa and Kyle continue their review of the case against Richard Glossip, who was convicted of the 1997 murder-for-hire of his boss, Barry Van Treese. In Part 2, they talked about the 2022 propaganda campaign being waged by his advocates in the media and his 2022 state post-conviction claims. They continued their discussion of the two writs currently pending at the U.S. Supreme Court, the result of the Oklahoma Attorney General’s “independent” investigation that we learned was directed by Reed Smith and, by extension, Don Knight and the disposition of Glossip’s 2023 state post-conviction application, the shenanigans involved in that process, Glossip’s clemency hearing and his challenge to those proceedings in the Oklahoma County district court. Finally, they talked about Glossip’s 2nd writ pending before the U.S. Supreme Court.
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FAQ
How many episodes does Based in Fact have?
Based in Fact currently has 51 episodes available.
What topics does Based in Fact cover?
The podcast is about News, True Crime and Podcasts.
What is the most popular episode on Based in Fact?
The episode title 'Episode 3 - State of Texas v. Joseph Andrew Prystash: The Middleman's Role' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Based in Fact?
The average episode length on Based in Fact is 126 minutes.
How often are episodes of Based in Fact released?
Episodes of Based in Fact are typically released every 9 days, 1 hour.
When was the first episode of Based in Fact?
The first episode of Based in Fact was released on Jan 23, 2022.
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