Episode 7: The Guilty Party
Oct 19, 2026
For Temujin Kensu to have a chance at leaving prison, his legal team would have to convince courts that another person killed Scott Macklem. There are theories pointing to at least three suspects…
About Examined: Overlooked cases that never got the real investigation they deserved. Each season features deeply reported stories about crime, punishment, and the people inside the criminal legal system. Nearly 40 years ago, in the parking lot of a community college in Port Huron, Michigan, a 20-year-old student named Scott Macklem was shot dead in broad daylight. His murder shocked the community. It made no sense. The police quickly found their suspect. There was only one problem: the man said he was nowhere near the scene of the crime. And he could prove it. In Examined: The Backfire Effect, journalist Josie Duffy Rice talks with eyewitnesses, investigators and local reporters to unravel a shocking story of judicial apathy and expedience — a story that leaves no one off the hook.
PodSkip has analyzed 2 episodes of Examined: The Backfire Effect, averaging 15.5 ads per episode (28% of runtime).
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Episode 6: The Women
Oct 12, 2026
Note: This episode contains descriptions of rape and sexual assault. With his state and federal appeals almost exhausted, Temujin Kensu turns to the work of private investigators like Herb Welser…
Episode 5: Time Barred
Oct 05, 2026
The trial of Temujin Kensu had happened quickly, just six months from arrest to verdict. What came next was unbearably slow. And with every year that passed, his odds of getting out of prison would…
Episode 4: The Alibi
Sep 28, 2026
At trial, Temujin Kensu’s defense is simple — he was across the state when the crime occurred. In court, he brings multiple witnesses to testify that they saw him in the Upper Peninsula, more than…
Episode 3: The Ninja
Sep 21, 2026
In November 1986, Robert Cleland was the head prosecutor in St. Clair County, Michigan. The morning after Cleland lost a statewide race for Attorney General, Scott Macklem was murdered. Cleland…
Episode 2: The Hypnotist
Sep 13, 2026
Temujin Kensu spent much of his youth wandering, mainly in his home state of Michigan. In 1986 he and his then-fiancée moved to a cabin outside Port Huron, where he briefly dated someone else. A few…
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Episode 1: The Good Cop
Sep 13, 2026
On the morning of November 5th, 1986, students at a community college in Port Huron, Michigan, heard the sound of what many thought was a car backfiring. It was a gunshot, and it killed a student…
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Trailer: The Backfire Effect
Sep 08, 2026
In 1986, a man named Scott Macklem was killed in broad daylight. Eight days later, a suspect was arrested. But now, almost 40 years later, reporter Josie Duffy Rice is re-examining this case. Has the…
Lost Hills is Becoming Examined
Sep 04, 2026
Lost Hills has been quiet for a bit, so we've decided to do something different: turn this feed into a home for a new kind of story, told fresh each season. Starting this fall, this feed becomes…
Episode 8: The Finish Line | Valley of Shadows
Mar 01, 2026
A reunion between two retired detectives brings new focus to the Aujay investigation, just as Hayley and Betsy find out about another tragedy in the Punchbowl area. When a woman and her father are…
Episode 7: The Trial | Valley of Shadows
Feb 22, 2026
While the DEA showers Hager in accolades, the LASD turns against him. But Hager fights back, and drags the department’s dirty secrets out into open court. Betsy and Hayley go through thousands of…
Episode 6: The Big Takedown | Valley of Shadows
Feb 15, 2026
Brandenburg is taken off the Aujay case, but the LASD can’t stop Hager and the federal task force. With the help of wiretaps, informants, and 18 months of investigation, the team pulls off one of the…
Episode 5: The Legend of Bigfoot | Valley of Shadows
Feb 08, 2026
Decades before Jon Aujay’s disappearance, the Devil’s Punchbowl was infamous for something else: Bigfoot sightings. Sasquatch became a known boogeyman in the area. But beneath the folklore lies…
Episode 4: Outlaw Country | Valley of Shadows
Feb 01, 2026
As Detective Brandenburg follows leads in the Aujay case, he finds himself with an unlikely ally. A young buck narcotics detective named Darren Hager, who’s trying to dismantle a meth syndicate run…
Episode 3: Tweaker Talk | Valley of Shadows
Jan 25, 2026
At the time of Jon Aujay’s disappearance, California is under siege by a meth epidemic and the Antelope Valley is the epicenter. So when investigators receive tips that Aujay was killed after…
Episode 2: An Unreasonable Act | Valley of Shadows
Jan 18, 2026
Find episode 1 of Valley of Shadows on the Valley of Shadows show page. After deputy Jon Aujay disappears, the sheriff’s department claims he was suicidal — pointing to marital troubles and erratic…
Important Lost Hills - Dark Canyon Update | Lost Hills
Nov 12, 2024
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department listened to our podcast and now they’re asking us some new questions — and answering some of ours. Are they ready to reopen the investigation into…
12. Dig Two Graves | Lost Hills
Jul 16, 2024
Dana lays out all the evidence, and we await results from forensic testing. We reconnect with Mitrice’s loved ones, as they celebrate what would have been her 39th birthday. See…
11. The Suitcase | Lost Hills
Jul 14, 2024
A round of cold calls yields brand new information tying the Person of Interest to Mitrice. We return to the fort in the woods, and make a startling discovery. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy…
10. The Wallypad | Lost Hills
Jul 09, 2024
The home of a local firefighter is infiltrated by an informant hoping to get more information on the Person of Interest. And a hike planned for Dark Canyon instead leads to the Lost Hills Station.See…
9. Fearful Witness | Lost Hills
Jul 07, 2024
A 2011 exhumation of Mitrice’s remains leads to a second autopsy. Meanwhile, a woman describes a disturbing encounter in Monte Nido around the time of Mitrice’s death. See omnystudio.com/listener for…
8. Rick Trouble | Lost Hills
Jul 02, 2024
We learn everything we can about our Person of Interest — a longtime member of the Monte Nido community, who went from golden boy to convict to off-the-grid survivalist living in the woods. We check…
7. In the Shit | Lost Hills
Jun 30, 2024
Looking for a way into Dark Canyon, we follow a former pot grower on a treacherous route, and pay a visit to the Porn Ranch, which borders Dark Canyon. Plus, a retired LASD sergeant reveals that…
6. Reconnaissance | Lost Hills
Jun 25, 2024
Eleven months after her disappearance, Mitrice’s naked remains are discovered in an abandoned pot field in Dark Canyon, just above Monte Nido. Deputies on scene make a controversial decision…
Bonus: Get Jim | Lost Hills
Jun 23, 2024
Three years before Mitrice’s arrest, Mel Gibson was arrested for drunk driving on Pacific Coast Highway. An interview with the arresting officer, James Mee, reveals the power wielded by celebrities…
5. So Close | Lost Hills
Jun 18, 2024
As the months pass with no sign of Mitrice, rumors abound. Law enforcement questions the artist behind a creepy mural. And deputies raid a fort in the wilderness looking for human remains. See…
4. Hopscotch | Lost Hills
Jun 16, 2024
Six hours after her release from Lost Hills Station, Mitrice is spotted in the rural community of Monte Nido. Investigators find Mitrice’s footprints, and neighbors report unusual disturbances around…
3. Call for Help | Lost Hills
Jun 12, 2024
Mitrice arrives at Geoffrey’s restaurant in Malibu on Sept. 16, 2009, claiming she’s there to “avenge the death of Michael Jackson.” When she walks out without paying, a restaurant staffer calls 911…
2. My Light | Lost Hills
Jun 09, 2024
Investigators search Mitrice’s impounded car and find several journals she wrote in the last months of her life. Never before shared publicly, the journals offer details about Mitrice’s mental state…
1. Vultures | Lost Hills
Jun 09, 2024
As Mitrice Richardson’s disappearance dominates news headlines, the Sheriff’s Department defends its decision to release her with no phone, no wallet, and no ride. Meanwhile, Mitrice’s autopsy raises…