338. The Double Wedding Killing - The Murder of Thad Reynolds

On this episode, Payton and Garrett dive into the case of Thad Reynolds and his relationship with high school sweetheart Michelle. After divorcing and eventually remarrying, the couple’s second chance at love becomes entangled in a deadly love triangle. Links: Netflix Video Every Monday @11am PST, 12pm MST, 2pm EST 1pm CST https://www.netflix.com/murderwithmyhusband Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/murderwithmyhusband NEW MERCH LINK: https://mwmhshop.com Discount Codes: https://mailchi.mp/c6f48670aeac/oh-no-media-discount-codes Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/themwmh Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/murderwithmyhusband/ Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@murderwithmyhusband Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/into-the-dark/id1662304327 Listen on spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/36SDVKB2MEWpFGVs9kRgQ7?si=f5224c9fd99542a7 Case Sources: NBCNews.com - https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna37321880 NewsBreak.com - https://www.newsbreak.com/comingsoon-1584027/3540078454153-dateline-unforgettable-where-are-thad-reynolds-killers-now TheCinemaholic.com - https://thecinemaholic.com/thad-reynolds-murder-how-did-he-die-who-killed-him/ Oxygen.com - https://www.oxygen.com/dateline-unforgettable/crime-news/scotty-harper-michelle-reynolds-thad-murder WSBTV.com - https://www.wsbtv.com/news/woman-admits-killing-husband-in-love-triangle/241793877/ WFMYNews2.com - https://www.wfmynews2.com/article/news/rome-mans-wife-church-member-charged-in-fatal-stabbing/83-402328709 ThatsLife.com.au - https://www.thatslife.com.au/real-life/thad-reynolds-murder/ NorthWestGeorgianNews.com - https://www.northwestgeorgianews.com/richard-scott-harper-pleads-guilty-to-murde-local-new/article_60e37249-074f-5410-810f-6fe987a2377b.html Murderpedia.org - https://murderpedia.org/female. R/r/reynolds-michelle.htm Archive.org -https://archive.org/details/KNTV_20110730_040000_Dateline_NBC/start/300/end/360 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:02Speaker 00

  Fall never arrives all at once. First the air, then the light. And slowly, the things you love begin to find each other. A jacket meets a dress, a hoodie slips beneath a blazer, an old cap finds a new scarf. Because you don't simply step into the season. You create it layer by layer, until it finally feels like fall. Find fall your way at Ross.

• 0:30Speaker 01

  Stonefire Non is inspired by ancient traditions, baked on stone at blazing high heat. But it's perfect for your new traditions, too.

• 0:37Speaker 02

  I love putting out Stonefire Non with dips for board game night. Or with cinnamon and sugar for my book club gals.

• 0:43Speaker 03

  We enjoy Stonefire Non. Before the ritual summoning of the Nameless Ones.

• 0:47Speaker 01

  We invoke the Nameless Ones, they shall not be named.

• 0:50Speaker 04

  And we do Stonefire pizza parties for the kids. I'm really scared right now.

• 0:56Speaker 01

  Stonefire, from our tradition to yours. Together we on.

• 1:01Payton Moreland?

  You're listening to an Ono Media Podcast. Hey, everyone. Welcome back to the podcast. This is Murder with My Husband. I'm Payton Moreland.

• 1:08Garrett Moreland?

  And I'm Garrett Moreland.

• 1:09Payton Moreland?

  And he's the husband.

• 1:09Garrett Moreland?

  And I'm the husband. We have some beef right now. We're jumping right into it. Go ahead, babe.

• 1:13Payton Moreland?

  I just told Garrett, we were at a work lunch before this lunch meeting.

• 1:18Garrett Moreland?

  I'm pissed. I'm so mad right now.

• 1:19Payton Moreland?

  I don't even know what it was. I couldn't say anything. It happened so fast. And Garrett's like talking and I look over and I, I can see this like booger slowly. It was hard. It was hard. I can see it like slowly moving out of your nose. And I'm like, oh, I'm gonna tell him, but I'm gonna wait for him to finish talking, obviously. Cause like, everyone's looking at you. You just keep going. You just keep talking with so much passion. Flies out of your nose and onto the floor.

• 1:51Garrett Moreland?

  That makes me so mad. Cause listen, it bugs me when I'm talking to you or I'm talking to somebody and like I have something in my teeth and nobody tells me.

• 2:01Payton Moreland?

  That's me.

• 2:01Garrett Moreland?

  I've mentioned this before, or if I have a booger in my nose, tell me. You're like, hey dude, you got a booger nose. Hey dude, you got something in your teeth.

• 2:08Payton Moreland?

  I don't tell anyone.

• 2:09Garrett Moreland?

  Cause I just hate when I'm talking to someone, I'm like, wait, they're staring at something on me right now. I can just tell.

• 2:16Payton Moreland?

  Well, he couldn't see it like, you, it was in my nostril view, not his. But when it flew out, then he could have seen it.

• 2:24Garrett Moreland?

  Did you think he saw it?

• 2:25Payton Moreland?

  I don't know. You were talking so passionately. You were like, bagels.

• 2:29Garrett Moreland?

  Did you see, did you see him look down?

• 2:31Payton Moreland?

  No.

• 2:32Garrett Moreland?

  Oh, my gosh.

• 2:33Payton Moreland?

  And the worst part is I was like, oh, that thing's like inching out. I'm gonna tell him.

• 2:37Garrett Moreland?

  Why didn't you just tap my leg and be like, Garrett, you got a booger in your nose?

• 2:40Payton Moreland?

  Cause you were like talking.

• 2:41Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah. Anyways, okay, that's fine. No big deal.

• 2:45Payton Moreland?

  It was a crusty sucker.

• 2:49Payton Moreland?

  Well, it would have been worse if it wasn't crusty and it flew. I would have stuck to the table or something.

• 2:57Garrett Moreland?

  What if it flew in my food?

• 2:58Payton Moreland?

  In your sushi.

• 2:59Garrett Moreland?

  That's crazy. Oh, my sushi wasn't that great, but my chicken was.

• 3:04Payton Moreland?

  I just had chicken and rice, the usual.

• 3:06Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah. I mean, I don't know. I guess that's my 10 seconds. That's fine. Good 10 seconds. Thank you for listening. Thank you for watching. Thank you for supporting us. Reminder, we have bonus episodes. Reminder, Peyton's also having a baby here pretty soon.

• 3:22Payton Moreland?

  Pretty soon.

• 3:23Garrett Moreland?

  Technically us. I say Peyton, but it's us.

• 3:26Payton Moreland?

  Well, I'm having the baby.

• 3:28Garrett Moreland?

  I'm the father.

• 3:31Payton Moreland?

  And you're taking care of it.

• 3:33Garrett Moreland?

  And you are not the father.

• 3:37Payton Moreland?

  You are the father.

• 3:38Garrett Moreland?

  But I am the father.

• 3:39Payton Moreland?

  I know. I've been working slowly to try to get ahead. So I can take a little bit of maternity leave, but I haven't made much progress over here on Murder with My Husband, so.

• 3:50Garrett Moreland?

  We really have it.

• 3:51Payton Moreland?

  You guys might be seeing me literally days after I give birth.

• 3:55Garrett Moreland?

  No, we're gonna get ahead because Peyton needs a, Peyton needs a couple, Peyton needs a little bit off.

• 4:00Payton Moreland?

  I mean.

• 4:03Garrett Moreland?

  We're getting there. Everything else is going good. We hope you guys are doing well. Anything else you guys got for us? I got nothing for you. You got anything for me? If you got nothing, then we're gonna jump into this week's case. Shall we do it?

• 4:15Payton Moreland?

  Yeah, let's do it.

• 4:16Garrett Moreland?

  Let's do it.

• 4:17Payton Moreland?

  Our sources for this episode are NBCNews.com, Newsbreak.com, TheCinemaholic.com, Oxygen.com, WSBTV, WFMYNews2.com. That's Life.com.au, NorthwestGeorgianNews.com, and Murderpedia. Sometimes life gives us second chances. An opportunity to turn things around, learn from our mistakes, and make better choices the next time around. A lot of people see second chances as a gift, but I'm not so sure that's always the case. Sometimes the universe steps in for a reason, says, hey,

• 4:59Payton Moreland?

  maybe this wasn't meant to be. Don't take this second chance. Maybe it's time to move on. And when that happens, I think it's important to listen. Because there's usually a reason why things didn't turn out right the first time. Maybe we ignored the warning signs. Maybe we convinced ourselves things would be different. Maybe we told ourselves what hurt us once surely couldn't hurt us again. So no, a second chance doesn't always mean redemption. Sometimes it's just giving the thing that hurt us a chance to actually finish the job. And today's case takes us to Rome, Georgia. Did you think I was gonna say Italy?

• 5:42Garrett Moreland?

  Rome, Georgia.

• 5:44Payton Moreland?

  This is a town about 75 miles north of Atlanta. A little hub in the Bible Belt that centers heavily around strong family values and a dedication to the church. And it's in this little town of Rome that Thad Reynolds has dedicated his life to. He grew up in Rome. He spent all 36 years of his life so far here. So Thad was a name that by 36, basically everyone knew around town. And that's because as he was growing up, he was really involved in sports in high school. When he wasn't golfing or wrestling, he was one of the star players on the local football team.

• 6:29Payton Moreland?

  He even caught the attention of girls at the competing high schools. Like a young, beautiful blonde cheerleader named Michelle Solins. Michelle couldn't keep her eyes off the boy in the number 15 jersey. When she ran into him at a school dance in the fall of 1985, the two were introduced formally and the rest was history. It was a match made in all American heaven. The cheerleader and the football player went on their first date at a tractor pull a short while later in this small town.

• 7:05Garrett Moreland?

  What is that? Oh, a tractor pull?

• 7:07Payton Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 7:07Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 7:08Payton Moreland?

  And even though Thad's whole entire family was there, this first date was one for the history books. The two became known around Rome as Ken and Barbie, the couple everyone wanted to be. But while Thad had a solid home life with a loving and churchgoing family, Michelle, his girlfriend's life behind closed doors, wasn't exactly the object of envy. Michelle's parents separated when she was little and her father passed away when she was only 13 years old. And as a way to get through it all, Michelle's now single mother turned to the church to help her through the difficult time. And Michelle, at 13, turned to other people for a distraction. She loved to be the center of attention. It was like,

• 7:54Payton Moreland?

  she knew from an early age just how far her looks could get her. She loved to be in the spotlight. She loved having her photo taken. And just knew that when she walked into a room, she kinda was the center of it. So it was no surprise when she became homecoming queen in 1986. But even before that, it seemed like she really was just out to get everything she wanted. Her relationship with Thad moved quickly. And just a few short months after dating in high school, Thad had given her his class ring to wear, which in 1986, it's a pretty big deal. This is a sign that he was devoted to her and planned to stay committed.

• 8:36Payton Moreland?

  The date was January 28th, 1986. But not even an hour after putting that ring on Michelle's finger, the country was rocked by some devastating news. That day, the space shuttle Challenger had exploded only 73 seconds after launching, killing every single astronaut onboard. And in some twisted way, it was a metaphor of what their relationship would later become after putting this ring on this same day. But in the meantime, it seemed like smooth sailing for the young, picture-perfect couple. They went to prom together. Thad graduated.

• 9:19Payton Moreland?

  Michelle, with still one more year to go, took home the title of homecoming queen. And after she graduated, the couple decided to make it official. They chose August 15th, 1987 to get married. Matching Thad's jersey and what they considered their shared lucky number, so 15. That was his jersey number. This is their lucky number. They're getting married August 15th. In front of their loved ones, they tied the knot at the Hollywood Baptist Church, both of them just shy of 20 years old. And immediately after getting married, the two get to work building their lives together.

• 9:58Payton Moreland?

  Thad found work at a grocery store. He saved up for a house, vacations, a family, and they got all of it. Around 1992, the couple welcomed their first child, a daughter they named Olivia. But after six years of marriage for these high school sweethearts, things get to be a bit rocky. Both ended up stepping out and cheating on one another. The foundation was now broken. The trust seemed irreparable. It was at that point that Thad and Michelle realized, maybe it just wasn't meant to be. Maybe the Challenger crash was a bad omen after all. So they end up getting divorced in 1993.

• 10:41Payton Moreland?

  Thad moved out and got an apartment. Michelle got a job working at an office. She begins dating other people. But Thad, he was having a harder time getting back on the horse. So instead, he took this time after the divorce to strengthen his connection with God. Which interestingly enough, him starting to focus on his connection with God somehow leads him back to Michelle.

• 11:10Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 11:11Payton Moreland?

  Okay, so they're divorced. She's also now having a hard time in the dating scene. And apparently, this time apart, it made her realize.

• 11:21Payton Moreland?

  Maybe Thad, her high school boyfriend and ex-husband was the one for her. So soon, they started spending holidays together again, and then they actually end up going on family vacations. And after some time, it was like the two had never even gotten divorced at all. They went to couples counseling and then finally in 1997, after four years apart, they decided, that's it. We really are soulmates. We are meant for each other. So they went back to that same church they were first married at, Hollywood Baptist, and in front of the same friends and family members, they exchanged their vows for a second time. And now this

• 12:05Payton Moreland?

  time, their daughter Olivia is looking on too. And I'm only, I, I know I have some like chuckling in my voice, but it's more of like, I'm a sucker for a love story.

• 12:19Garrett Moreland?

  For remarriage?

• 12:20Payton Moreland?

  Yes. Like, I'm not laughing in like, this is ridiculous. I'm laughing in, I've actually heard of this happening before where people get divorced just to reconnect and like, get remarried again.

• 12:35Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah, I've, I feel like I've heard of it happening a few times.

• 12:39Payton Moreland?

  Seems like quite a bit of trauma just to go through, you know, just to get there, but

• 12:45Garrett Moreland?

  Here we are.

• 12:46Payton Moreland?

  Who am I to judge?

• 12:46Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 12:47Payton Moreland?

  And for Olivia, this really felt like a kid's parent trap dream. I mean, she's like, oh my gosh, my parents are back together. Even the local newspapers reported on this about how this estranged couple actually now found once again their happy ending. And after that, they built a new house right next door to Thad's family. And over the years, they have three more daughters. Meanwhile, Thad felt he owed this second chance to his faith. And he made sure to pay it forward. He started volunteering as a deacon while Michelle homeschooled their four kids and volunteered at the Hollywood Baptist Church as well. She helped organize

• 13:31Payton Moreland?

  some of their dance and theater productions. And Thad also got a pretty well-paying job at the Frito Lay Corporation and he began climbing the ladder over there.

• 13:40Garrett Moreland?

  Oh my gosh, you know what I love? The Frito, um, the chili cheese Fritos.

• 13:46Payton Moreland?

  Oh, I used to eat those.

• 13:47Garrett Moreland?

  You don't eat those? And you don't like them anymore?

• 13:48Payton Moreland?

  Haven't had them in so long.

• 13:50Garrett Moreland?

  They're good.

• 13:50Payton Moreland?

  That was very middle school.

• 13:52Garrett Moreland?

  Those are good.

• 13:54Payton Moreland?

  That and hot Cheetos.

• 13:55Garrett Moreland?

  Oh, I can't eat hot Cheetos anymore. Those wreck me. I'm too old for those.

• 13:59Payton Moreland?

  Low-key in middle school, I think my fingertips were always red.

• 14:02Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah, but the Fritos, oh my gosh. Honestly, Fritos are, I feel like kind of underrated. They're pretty good. Anyways, keep going.

• 14:10Payton Moreland?

  I have Fritos at home with Daisy's paws.

• 14:13Garrett Moreland?

  True. That is a good point.

• 14:15Payton Moreland?

  But by 2004, Thad was so invested in the church that he was actually considering becoming a minister full-time. And this is something that actually gave Michelle some cause for concern because this would mean a pretty big change in their lifestyle, since it would take Thad away from the family more for missionary trips. And it also meant less income to the family if he were to leave his job at Frito Lay. So a pretty big change. Not to mention, Michelle, after all these years, after going to this same church forever, was starting to feel a little bit over the area of Rome, Georgia. Her dreams weren't

• 14:58Payton Moreland?

  never really with the church. That was mostly Thad. She wanted to move somewhere more remote, like the Smoky Mountains and live in a cabin, maybe open some sort of bed and breakfast. In fact, the Reynolds had already talked about it and even qualified for a place that was unfortunately scooped up before they could even officially put in an offer. But between this, Thad's deeper commitment to the church and the overall grind of daily life, Michelle once again starts to feel restless in this marriage. She begins to tell her friends she's feeling a little bit ignored by Thad, second fiddle to the church and his

• 15:39Payton Moreland?

  duties there. But before Michelle and Thad could even speak about another separation at this point in their marriage, something happened that actually made the decision for them. This is Tamsin Fidel from the Tamsin Show. Fall in New York City is my favorite time of year. Crisp mornings, that excuse to layer up, walking around the city without melting. And once that shift happens, I genuinely don't want anything on my feet except Bombas. Their new suede moccasins have been my go-to for the second it cools down. Cushy soles, sheerling lining, water-resistant suede. And I have to remember, comfort this good is technically allowed outside the house. When I'm traveling, I reach straight for their compression socks. They help with the fatigue from being on the plane so much. And I feel so much better landing when I have a pair on. My sock drawer is filled with Bombas now. So I have merino

• 16:24Payton Moreland?

  wool for the cold mornings, sweat-wicking pairs for workouts, and a few dressier ones for whatever fall wedding season throws at me. My favorite part, though, for every item you buy, Bombas donates an essential clothing item to someone facing housing insecurity. One purchased, one donated, over 200 million donations and counting. Head over to Bombas.com/audio and use AUDIO for 20% off your first purchase. That's B-O-M-B-A-S.com/audio. Code AUDIO at checkout. This message is sponsored by Greenlight. You know, there were many times growing up in school where I was like, when am I ever going to use this? And let me be real honest with you, a lot of those things have turned out to be true. But you know what I wish they

• 17:08Payton Moreland?

  would have taught in school? Financial literacy. So Greenlight takes the mental load of family life and kind of puts it all into one place. It keeps your whole family in sync, money, safety, and everyday life, all in one place. When you're using it, you can see what your kids are spending, right when they spend it. You can also easily send them money via Greenlight instead of like digging around for cash. And Greenlight just helps your household run smoother. Chores happen without nagging because you can do it all through the Greenlight app. There's also like a schedule that is up to date in real time. So when you're out of milk

• 17:51Payton Moreland?

  or someone needs new cleats, it just goes on this shared list that everyone can add to. Join the 6.5 million family members who trust Greenlight. Garrett has younger siblings. They've used Greenlight and it is so amazing to watch them learn about money in the safety of their home. You've got enough on your plate. Greenlight keeps it all in sync. Get started at greenlight.com/husband. That is greenlight.com/husband. Greenlight.com/husband. Go check it out now. So it's July 5th, 2004, now in our story. And that morning, Thad Reynolds wakes up after the holiday weekend to return to work. He gets to his job at the Frito Lay warehouse

• 18:35Payton Moreland?

  around 6:00 AM. His friends said he actually liked to go there bright and early so he could get his work done and then be home for the kids by early afternoon. But that day, Thad never really gets to settle into his workday because a short while later, his coworker finds Thad bleeding out on the floor of his office at the Frito Lay warehouse.

• 18:59Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 18:59Payton Moreland?

  So this coworker immediately calls 911. He tells the operator that Thad appears to have been attacked, possibly stabbed to death. And so authorities rush over to the scene. Now, Rome, Georgia is not the kind of place that you would expect to see something like this. If they have two murders a year, that's considered a lot.

• 19:24Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 19:25Payton Moreland?

  But what happened to Thad is clearly no accident when responders get there. Detectives show up and they discover that Thad had been stabbed at least a dozen times in his office.

• 19:38Garrett Moreland?

  Well, I mean, there's obviously going to be cameras. You're in a very big company.

• 19:45Payton Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 19:45Garrett Moreland?

  Going to be cameras. We're going to know who it is. So curious to see what happens.

• 19:50Payton Moreland?

  I realize I didn't say he had succumbed to his wounds by the time.

• 19:55Garrett Moreland?

  Oh, so he's dead.

• 19:55Payton Moreland?

  Yes, he's dead.

• 19:56Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 19:57Payton Moreland?

  Um, his autopsy later counted 19 stab wounds.

• 20:00Garrett Moreland?

  Jesus, man, come on.

• 20:02Payton Moreland?

  And whoever did this really, they did a sloppy job because there is evidence all over this crime scene. For starters, they find the sheath of a hunting knife not far from where Thad's body is discovered. There's also a pair of broken prescription glasses on the ground nearby. And they aren't Thad's, but they do have his blood all over them. So, you know, they know it was part of the crime. And when they speak to witnesses, a few people say they think they actually saw the assailant rip out of the parking lot around the time the crime was committed. Apparently, they were driving recklessly and

• 20:44Payton Moreland?

  driving a burgundy reddish minivan. Because you, you have to keep in mind, like, this isn't a public, I mean, yes, it's his private office and earlier in the morning, but this is still a public place. Like people, it's still a workday.

• 20:58Garrett Moreland?

  Interesting, yeah.

• 21:00Payton Moreland?

  So detectives are thinking, well, this shouldn't be too hard to solve. We have quite the assortment of clues here. And this doesn't seem like some random robbery. Nothing was taken from Thad. His wallet was still on his body. Plus, the warehouse wasn't the kind of place that left massive amounts of cash laying around. Like, nothing really seemed stolen. And the brutality of the attack doesn't fit the MO for a Frito Lay warehouse robbery either. So that motive just isn't adding up, which was why investigators felt, despite being murdered in his office, this murder was actually very personal.

• 21:43Payton Moreland?

  Now, later that day, the police have the unthinkable task of breaking the news to Thad's family. They show up at Michelle's home, knock on the door to tell her, hi, your husband's been found stabbed to death at work. Now meanwhile, Thad's mother learns about it while she is still at work. So she and Thad's sister race over to Michelle's house to console one another, be there for Michelle and his four daughters. And they say Michelle's totally in shock, like in a trance. They end up calling for an emergency prayer group that night at the Hollywood Baptist Church. And meanwhile, the police are trying to dig deeper into who might have wanted Thad

• 22:24Payton Moreland?

  dead. You know, the typical, we need to learn everything about him. So the following day, they ask the public for help. They say the suspect, they believe, was spotted fleeing the scene in a red minivan. And if anyone noticed anything between the hours of 4:30 and 6:30 a.m. in the area, to please just give a call, like, nothing's too small. And somebody does. It's a man who works at the Floyd Medical Center in Rome, Georgia. He was stationed in the tech department and had the job of switching the company over to a new phone system. One day, not too long ago, he said

• 23:07Payton Moreland?

  he was working on the phone lines, when he overheard a colleague having an intimate conversation with someone who clearly was not his spouse. So he's calling in with workplace drama. He's like, let me tell you this story. And he said, this same colleague, who I think I literally caught on the phone lines cheating on his wife, well, he actually happens to drive a red minivan, exactly like the one police on the news said they were searching for.

• 23:39Garrett Moreland?

  I was gonna say, there can't be too many people there that have a red minivan.

• 23:43Payton Moreland?

  Right. And his name was Scott Harper. And it's not just the red minivan that makes this person call. He says, I actually have more details about this, because it's not just that I overheard Scott talking and he drives a red minivan. The person that he was having that intimate conversation with?

• 24:04Garrett Moreland?

  With his wife?

• 24:06Payton Moreland?

  Was with the victim's wife.

• 24:07Garrett Moreland?

  Oh, my gosh.

• 24:09Payton Moreland?

  Michelle Reynolds.

• 24:10Garrett Moreland?

  You're lying.

• 24:11Payton Moreland?

  So I mean, this is an insane tip. Like, when he calls over and he's like, listen, it's my job, I was working on the phone lines, like, this has nothing to do with the Frito-Lay warehouse, but it has everything to do with the victim, because this guy, he drives a red minivan, and I definitely heard him having an intimate conversation with the victim's wife.

• 24:29Garrett Moreland?

  The amount of cases that we cover where someone is murdered because of cheating or a relationship or something along the lines, insane.

• 24:39Payton Moreland?

  And it just-

• 24:40Garrett Moreland?

  So many.

• 24:41Payton Moreland?

  You know, the other week, when you were saying, how many people out there do you think are capable of murder?

• 24:47Garrett Moreland?

  A lot, unfortunately.

• 24:49Payton Moreland?

  If it comes to a love triangle, way more than I think we think. I'm not saying that's what's happening here. I'm not saying that's what's happening here.

• 24:57Garrett Moreland?

  The psychology behind having a connection to someone is so interesting, because people freak out.

• 25:05Payton Moreland?

  Well, also betrayal.

• 25:06Garrett Moreland?

  People freak out.

• 25:07Payton Moreland?

  Like, there's a whole nother level to it, which is just betrayal is traumatizing.

• 25:13Garrett Moreland?

  But I mean, like, people will kill for people that-

• 25:16Payton Moreland?

  To have an affair.

• 25:17Garrett Moreland?

  Yes, that's what I mean. Like, the emotion, like, the psychology around it is just kind of mind blowing to me. Because I'm like, I'm not gonna kill anyone.

• 25:27Payton Moreland?

  Like Chris Watts murdering his pregnant wife and two daughters to be with a mistress?

• 25:31Garrett Moreland?

  But it happens so much.

• 25:33Payton Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 25:33Garrett Moreland?

  It happens so much.

• 25:34Payton Moreland?

  It sounds unbelievable.

• 25:36Garrett Moreland?

  But it happens all the time?

• 25:37Payton Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 25:37Garrett Moreland?

  Like, what is wrong with you guys?

• 25:39Payton Moreland?

  So, let's talk-

• 25:40Garrett Moreland?

  There's a lot of fish in the sea.

• 25:43Payton Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 25:44Garrett Moreland?

  Like, realistically, there's a lot of fish in the sea, move on.

• 25:47Payton Moreland?

  It is interesting.

• 25:49Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 25:50Payton Moreland?

  Because whether it's that way or the other way of, like, you cheated on me, and now I'm gonna kill the girl or the guy.

• 25:56Garrett Moreland?

  Just move on.

• 25:58Payton Moreland?

  I don't know.

• 25:59Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah, anyways.

• 26:01Payton Moreland?

  So let's talk about Scott Harper, for a second, the guy, okay? He also happened to be a volunteer deacon at the church alongside Thad Reynolds. But he had since been promoted to family pastor.

• 26:14Garrett Moreland?

  Nice.

• 26:15Payton Moreland?

  Now we have some church drama. And in many ways, he and his wife Paige actually lived pretty similar lives to the Reynolds.

• 26:24Garrett Moreland?

  He's married too?

• 26:24Payton Moreland?

  Mm-hmm. They also live next door to their parents in Rome, Georgia. They had three little girls, and they were heavily involved in the Hollywood Baptist Church, which is where Thad is spending a lot of his time and where him and Michelle got married twice. Now, like Thad, Scott also had another full-time job. After doing a tour in the Air Force with the Combat Communications Unit, he got a job working in the telecommunications department at Floyd Medical Center. Now, outside of their jobs and civic duties, the two families were actually pretty close, too. So it's not like Thad doesn't really know Scott. They were always attending the same

• 27:05Payton Moreland?

  prayer groups together, the same barbecues. They had even gone on family camping trips together. But Thad didn't just see Scott as a good friend, he also saw him as a role model, someone who he genuinely admired, and whose trajectory within the church was worth modeling himself off of. However, their wives, Paige and Michelle, never quite formed the same kind of bond as the husbands did. Michelle always sensed that Paige was a bit jealous of her, especially when Michelle and Scott started working closer through their church programs.

• 27:49Payton Moreland?

  Michelle, as part of the church's theater program, started teaming up with Scott, since he was the youth pastor at the time. That meant more meetings, phone calls, email exchanges, and that's also how Michelle learned that Scott actually went to the same high school as her, and was just two years younger. So, the reason the girls aren't besties is because Michelle is like, she's jealous, I spend so much time with her husband, even though our families are family friends. But again, like Thad and Michelle, Scott and Paige were also having some rough patches in their marriage, apparently. In fact, Scott had started going

• 28:31Payton Moreland?

  to Thad for marriage counseling, and had even confided in him-

• 28:36Garrett Moreland?

  Oh, my gosh, this is horrible. This is ridiculous. This annoys me.

• 28:42Payton Moreland?

  Well, okay, so Scott goes to Thad, you know, for marriage counseling. He confides in Thad about something that leaves Thad a little unsettled. Scott tells Thad during marriage counseling, I actually think your wife, Michelle, is the perfect wife. And I wish my wife, Paige, was more like her.

• 29:07Garrett Moreland?

  What is wrong with people?

• 29:10Payton Moreland?

  So, when Thad is, when Thad's good old buddy friend comes to him and says, I'm unhappy in my marriage, I'm having troubles, and I actually just wish your wife was my wife, or, you know, my wife was more like your wife. So then, after this, Thad goes to Michelle, and he's like, I know these are our couple friends, I know we go to church with them, I am not comfortable with you being around Scott, at least not alone. Because Thad knows Scott just admitted this to him. And he's like, listen, I don't have any reason, something just feels off. But Michelle, she couldn't avoid him forever. A lot of her work at the church required to be around Scott,

• 29:49Payton Moreland?

  have his input and help. And Paige begins to sense that her husband, who she is having marital issues with, might also have some feelings for Michelle. Now, not too long before this, the couples had actually taken a rafting trip together, and Paige felt on this trip, Michelle and Scott were being a little bit too flirty. Turns out, her instincts were right, and so was Thad's. And by May 2004, things were heating up further. It was around this time that Michelle said she started to feel neglected by Thad, that she was second fiddle to the church. So,

• 30:34Payton Moreland?

  as Scott starts laying it on, according to Michelle, she realizes, I actually like the attention from him. From there, the vacation flirting turns into emails and messages of the two complimenting each other, they go to church together, they're serving together, things get sexier.

• 30:54Garrett Moreland?

  Thing, emails.

• 30:56Payton Moreland?

  Which I just want to-

• 30:59Payton Moreland?

  Let you know, some of these emails they would send had positions they would like to try.

• 31:04Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 31:06Payton Moreland?

  Which

• 31:07Garrett Moreland?

  Good for them.

• 31:07Payton Moreland?

  Productive emails.

• 31:09Garrett Moreland?

  Uh huh.

• 31:09Payton Moreland?

  Now, before long, the two are meeting up in the parking garage as Scott's work, getting in the backseat of his car together. And that was that. They are having a full blown affair.

• 31:19Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 31:19Payton Moreland?

  Okay. Just take in the reality of this entire situation and everything that's happened. And apparently this affair was really intense. Scott was falling for Michelle hard. Part of him reliving the high school experience he never got to have. He's stealing the homecoming queen away from the star football player.

• 31:39Garrett Moreland?

  Gosh, that's, oh, it's so cringy. I'm not gonna lie.

• 31:43Payton Moreland?

  And what was at first a once in a while meetup turned into an everyday affair. They would tell their spouses they were going to the gym. And then they would meet up at a motel down the street from the church where Michelle and Thad got married twice. If Scott and Michelle weren't together, they were emailing or on the phone with each other. After just a month together, they were already talking about leaving their spouses to run off with each other. They even spoke about Portland, about moving there, starting a new life there. But Michelle told Scott, I don't think I'm gonna be able to leave Thad without the, like, a fight going down. After everything they'd been through, she's like, I don't think he's just gonna walk away this time.

• 32:28Payton Moreland?

  Especially now that he was a leading figure in their church and wanted to center his career around it. And I've heard of this before, but getting divorced once, let alone a second time, would definitely go against church values and what he believed in and what he stood for. And that's when Michelle made one memorable comment to Scott. She said, quote, "If you want me as your bride, you're probably just gonna have to outlive Thad."

• 32:57Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 32:58Payton Moreland?

  Now, of course, Scott's coworker didn't have all, everything I just told you, all of these juicy details to share with the police, but

• 33:08Garrett Moreland?

  They figured it out pretty quickly, I imagine.

• 33:11Payton Moreland?

  He had overheard one of those steamy phone calls at the height of the affair, obviously. So between that and Scott's red minivan and Thad being murdered, he's like, I feel like I have to call you.

• 33:25Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 33:25Payton Moreland?

  I feel like I needed to call you and let you know. And detectives are like, thank you, sir. This is a very reasonable lead. They keep digging into Scott to see if there's any connection between him and the crime scene. And what they find is shortly after Thad was killed on July 5th, Scott went to the medical center where he worked with an injury on his right hand. They stitched him back up. But when his coworkers asked, yeah, come in, we'll do it what happened. He said he had heard it at the gym that morning in a, quote, weightlifting accident. So the day his mistress's husband is murdered, he needs stitches at work. But that's not all.

• 34:09Payton Moreland?

  Police also go to his place of work and discover all of the steamy emails that were exchanged between he and Michelle. They're still on his account. Remember, it's 2004. So it's not like all of this was happening on a smartphone. And this is kind of ironic considering Scott works in IT. You would expect him to, like, have deleted things off his computer and wiped it. Though, shockingly, this isn't even the worst of it. As investigators dug deeper, they found that four days before the murder on July 1st, 2004, Scott had actually made a stop at a local Kmart. If you're listening to this, do you still have Kmart where you are? Is that still a thing?

• 34:53Garrett Moreland?

  Kmart, yeah. Kmart is.

• 34:55Payton Moreland?

  Kmart closed in my hometown.

• 34:57Garrett Moreland?

  I thought they were still open in some places, but I don't know. I guess I haven't seen a Kmart in a long time.

• 35:03Payton Moreland?

  That place kind of feels like the back rooms a little bit.

• 35:05Garrett Moreland?

  A little bit.

• 35:06Payton Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 35:06Garrett Moreland?

  I could see that. All right, guys, we're jumping into an ad and it is the one and only Skims.

• 35:12Payton Moreland?

  We love Skims and I'm so excited I get to talk to you about their loungewear and pajamas. If you follow me on Instagram, I just posted, but I did get one of their sleep sets. That's like a deep burgundy color. So cute, so rich, so soft. And then I also got a fleece set that's like this chocolate brown. So freaking cute. I love a good matching set and I love Skims. Again, the sleep set I got is the soft lounge sleep set. I always get asked like what exactly it is.

• 35:53Payton Moreland?

  Um, so yes, the soft lounge sleep set, it has the perfect weight, the perfect stretch. The fabric will not irritate your skin. Honestly, I recommend Skims to everyone due to just the quality and the comfort that it brings. So go check out their cotton fleece sets or their sleep sets right now.

• 36:14Garrett Moreland?

  Shop Peyton's favorite loungewear and pajamas at skims.com. After you place your order, be sure to let them know we sent you select podcast in the survey and be sure to select our show in the dropdown menu that follows.

• 36:26Payton Moreland?

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• 37:10Payton Moreland?

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• 37:55Payton Moreland?

  Um, so anyways, so four days before the murder, Scott apparently had gone to Kmart. And you know what? He bought a hunting knife, matching the sheath that was left at the crime scene. And this is something that is confirmed on Kmart's security footage as well. So police are pretty sure they have their guy, right? On July 7th, detectives have Scott come down to the station for an interview. They didn't show all their cards immediately after getting this tip. They, they did some investigating first so that they would have something under their belt when they finally did interrogate him. And one of the first things they ask him is, hey, where's your glasses? Don't you usually wear prescription lenses, like eyeglasses?

• 38:40Payton Moreland?

  And Scott doesn't have a good answer for this because his prescription glasses are sitting bloodied up in an evidence locker after being found at the crime scene.

• 38:50Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 38:51Payton Moreland?

  And the police also end up impounding Scott's red minivan and taking it in for processing.

• 38:56Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah. I mean, I feel like it's gonna be pretty open and shut.

• 39:00Payton Moreland?

  So they do interrogate him. They don't arrest him that night. They let him go home. But a day later, they do get their warrant. And Scott is arrested for the murder of Thad Reynolds. Motive being that he wanted to be with Thad's wife. And shockingly, after getting arrested, he confesses. He admits to police that he stabbed Thad Reynolds 19 times, even saying, quote, "I want what you got," right before he did it. So when he's stabbing Thad, right before killing him, he said, "I want what you got," talking about Michelle. But he insists to police, "Listen, I know where you're going next.

• 39:45Payton Moreland?

  Michelle had nothing to do with this." He said she had no idea I was gonna do this. She had no idea I was gonna kill her husband. But the police aren't so sure that this is the case because the emails they found seemed to tell a little bit more detailed story. Now, when Michelle is brought in for questioning, she does admit to the affair. But she's like, I had no idea he was gonna kill my husband. However, there were a few people who said they found Michelle's behavior rather suspicious after she learned about the news of the murder and not like, quote, "Oh, she wasn't crying. That was weird."

• 40:26Payton Moreland?

  No, apparently Michelle was cracking jokes and just kind of saying some weirdly inappropriate things after hearing the news of her husband's death. That night, she allegedly even pulled out a brand new black dress from her closet that she had recently bought and told people, "This is what I'm gonna wear to his funeral." Which people are like, that's just so, like, you just found out. But I, I don't judge. I'm, it's hard for me to judge.

• 40:51Garrett Moreland?

  I mean, I feel like I do judge. So anyways, I judge because

• 40:55Payton Moreland?

  I mean, if I found out you died, the last thing I would be thinking about is what I'm wearing to your funeral.

• 41:01Garrett Moreland?

  Also, it's like she would have, I don't know. I feel like she probably knew that it was him that did it.

• 41:06Payton Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 41:07Garrett Moreland?

  Her husband dies, like, you don't go, oh, my gosh, who, who killed my husband? Oh, the guy you're probably sleeping with.

• 41:13Payton Moreland?

  And that you told, hey, you're gonna have to outlive him.

• 41:15Garrett Moreland?

  Exactly. Like, come on. Yeah.

• 41:18Payton Moreland?

  Yeah, that is the other thing. Do you think she, okay, say in.

• 41:21Garrett Moreland?

  No, she knew. She knew a hundred percent right away. She knew.

• 41:24Payton Moreland?

  Hypothetically, she has no idea that Scott is gonna kill Thad.

• 41:29Garrett Moreland?

  You know.

• 41:30Payton Moreland?

  The second she finds out Thad's dead.

• 41:32Garrett Moreland?

  Thing that comes into your mind is, oh.

• 41:34Payton Moreland?

  Does she immediately call him?

• 41:36Garrett Moreland?

  I mean, I don't know if she calls him, but I think she knows.

• 41:40Payton Moreland?

  And that's only if she didn't know beforehand.

• 41:42Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah, correct.

• 41:43Payton Moreland?

  So this is obviously just the opinions of those who were around Michelle. After she got the news, the truth, and what she was really feeling about Thad's death. Well, police find some of that information tucked away in messages to Scott. Turns out, as they're reading through these messages, emails, they realize that Scott and Michelle were referencing their partners as quote, "Nats" for some time. So obviously.

• 42:18Garrett Moreland?

  Nats.

• 42:19Payton Moreland?

  Not like Nats, they're like annoying little pesky, they're obviously not being very thoughtful of their partners. And from there, things escalated as Michelle joked with Scott on how she might be able to get rid of Thad. She's like, maybe I can induce a heart attack by slathering extra butter on his food. Or make him a pasta dinner one night and poison the sauce. So she's openly having these conversations with Scott. And little by little, police notice in these emails that these conversations seemed to go from some type of weird, twisted fantasy to a possible reality, especially after Michelle told Scott,

• 43:03Payton Moreland?

  "Listen, the only way we're gonna ever be together is if you outlive my husband." Now, by June, again, the murder happened in July. Michelle's emails to Scott had shifted. She started to tell him where Thad was gonna be and at what times he would be there. However, Michelle claimed this was just so that Scott could show up and finally tell Thad about the affair. Like when police confront her about this, she's like, no, I just wanted him to go tell him we were having an affair. But police obviously suspect there's more to it than that, that they were probably over the phone talking about killing him. And then in emails, like following up the conversation without like specifically writing details.

• 43:47Payton Moreland?

  But it gets worse. I mean, as the weeks passed, nothing seemed to be done about Thad. Scott never showed up to tell him about the affair. And the emails show that Michelle is starting to get frustrated. By July 4th, the weekend, she in emails claims she's ready to cut things off with Scott because he hasn't confronted that. But she gave him one more chance. She said, listen, I'm telling you right now, Thad will show up to work the next morning at this time. And the night before, Scott then sent her something along the lines of, quote, "I'm ready for tomorrow. Stop me if you have any hesitation." And Michelle responded back, "No hesitation, I'm ready.

• 44:32Payton Moreland?

  Please be observant of your surroundings and be careful. I do want to spend time with you. I want to be your wife." And then less than 24 hours later.

• 44:41Garrett Moreland?

  Like a movie.

• 44:42Payton Moreland?

  Her husband was dead.

• 44:43Garrett Moreland?

  That is insane.

• 44:44Payton Moreland?

  Now, obviously, these emails aren't going, "Please go kill my husband." There's obviously phone calls happening in between these, but please be observant of your surroundings when you're just having your boyfriend go tell your husband that he's your boyfriend?

• 45:01Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah, I mean, I could see both sides in that, to be honest, like.

• 45:03Payton Moreland?

  It's a good defense.

• 45:05Garrett Moreland?

  Because like, I don't want a lot of people hearing what

• 45:08Payton Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 45:08Garrett Moreland?

  you're saying. Like, I don't know if I necessarily would say it means kill.

• 45:15Payton Moreland?

  It literally fits for both.

• 45:17Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah.

• 45:18Payton Moreland?

  Stop me if you have any hesitation. Be careful. So. Apparently that night, Scott called Michelle and told her what he had done. He said on this phone call, he wanted to confess it to the police, but Michelle told him to wait until after Thad's funeral, which she doesn't end up making it to, by the way. Because the same day that Scott Harper was arrested for murder, so was Michelle Reynolds. And now they were both facing the possibility of the death penalty. So the cops, detectives, the DA, the state, they were like, uh, we think we have enough to prove that she was somehow involved.

• 45:59Garrett Moreland?

  Interesting. I don't think they do. So I'm curious to see how the trial goes.

• 46:03Payton Moreland?

  Him saying, no, she didn't. And her saying, no, I didn't. Like, this looks bad for me, but it really was just supposed to be him going to confront him. I had no idea he was gonna murder him.

• 46:14Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 46:14Payton Moreland?

  Now, while they had a confession from Scott, obviously prosecutors knew Michelle's case was gonna be a lot harder to try, mainly because there was nowhere in these emails that Michelle explicitly talked seriously about murdering her husband. She joked about poisoning him. She joked about trying to give him a heart attack. She never said, "You should go stab him." Now, from the way everything was written, it really did seem like she could have just been pressuring Scott to confront Thad with the truth instead, like we said. However, her behavior behind bars didn't exactly show a woman who, number one, just unknowingly lost her husband to murder,

• 46:56Payton Moreland?

  and number two, was blindsided by her lover who committed that murder. In fact, Scott and Michelle keep in touch and they continue on with the relationship behind bars. In recorded conversations, Michelle and Scott were caught asking each other what the other was wearing. Michelle jokingly said, "Orange." At one point, she said to Scott, quote, "I don't believe that I've ever been loved as much by somebody as I have by you, and I mean that." So despite both being arrested for murdering her husband, it's not stopping

• 47:31Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 47:31Payton Moreland?

  this infatuation.

• 47:33Garrett Moreland?

  That doesn't surprise me.

• 47:35Payton Moreland?

  They even were still talking about ending up in Portland one day, as if even though he confessed. Yeah.

• 47:43Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 47:43Payton Moreland?

  But like, he confessed.

• 47:45Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 47:45Payton Moreland?

  But there was one thing missing from every one of these conversations, and it was any proclamation of their innocence or admission of guilt from Michelle. So like, they never addressed the subject of her knowing or not knowing. However, there was one other clue detectives uncovered after her arrest that suggested maybe she wasn't oblivious to Scott's plans after all. Turns out she had an insurance policy on Thad, one that would have given Michelle a $250,000 payout. However, sources don't indicate when that policy was initiated or how close it was to his death, and it's really not that unusual for people to have life insurance policies on their spouses, so.

• 48:31Payton Moreland?

  But prosecutors add it to the pile anyways. And meanwhile, detectives are trying to find more ammunition against Scott. Turns out, another employee in his IT department led detectives to a server room where they said Scott had been seen hiding some stuff. And after removing one of the floor tiles at his work, okay, in this server room, they discover a treasure trove of evidence from the crime scene.

• 49:02Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 49:03Payton Moreland?

  Inside an old JCPenney's bag were the bloody clothes and shoes Scott had been wearing during the murder. And the knife, the murder weapon. And a receipt for the murder weapon. Now, with this, this is obviously very open and shut with a confession and all of this being found. The prosecution comes up with another plan. One that might help them finally uncover Michelle's true role in all of this. So they went to Scott with all of the evidence and told him, hey, there's a good chance you're gonna get the death penalty, like.

• 49:36Garrett Moreland?

  Wow.

• 49:36Payton Moreland?

  This is open and shut. But if you agree to a plea deal and testify in court against Michelle telling us the truth about if she knew about this, we will take the death penalty off the table.

• 49:51Garrett Moreland?

  Interesting. It's so interesting because it's a great tactic. But we know nowadays, death penalty hardly ever goes through.

• 50:00Payton Moreland?

  Still scary.

• 50:01Garrett Moreland?

  So it's scary, I get, but I feel like it wouldn't work anymore. It's a tactic.

• 50:05Payton Moreland?

  But also, like, they're not saying, hey, tell us the truth and we'll take the death penalty off. They're saying, hey, tell us that she was involved.

• 50:13Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 50:13Payton Moreland?

  Which is also hard, right?

• 50:15Garrett Moreland?

  Yes.

• 50:16Payton Moreland?

  It doesn't have to be the truth. But what do you think? What do you think he did?

• 50:21Garrett Moreland?

  Oh, I don't think he did it. I think he's obsessed with her.

• 50:23Payton Moreland?

  This is all it took for Scott to betray.

• 50:26Garrett Moreland?

  Really? Wow. Okay.

• 50:28Payton Moreland?

  Girl. In Scott's taped confession, he admitted to a conversation between him and Michelle where she said, quote, "When you talk with Thad, what if it gets ugly?" And when he asked her what she meant by that, she replied, "I love you. As long as I end up with you, I can deal with just about anything." Now, Scott said he took that to mean she was willing to see Thad dead if it meant they could go on together, which isn't exactly telling him to kill him, but also it doesn't look great either. Um, he also claimed that after he told Michelle that he killed Thad, he heard relief in her voice, like this is what she wanted all along.

• 51:10Payton Moreland?

  Once Michelle got word that Scott was gonna testify for the prosecution against her, she also accepted a plea deal. She agreed to 10 years for voluntary manslaughter and another 10 years for being party to a crime of burglary for the fact that Scott entered the Frito-Lay warehouse that day to commit the crime.

• 51:31Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 51:32Payton Moreland?

  Scott was ultimately sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. And I hate to tell you this, but Michelle still maintains to this day that she never helped plan this. She never thought he was gonna kill him. She thought he was going there to confront him about their affair.

• 51:53Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 51:54Payton Moreland?

  And she's like, I, I'm serving time for a crime I didn't even know was gonna happen. And Scott himself has said, well, she didn't explicitly tell me to do it, but she definitely felt like it was alluding to it kind of.

• 52:08Garrett Moreland?

  I'm actually a little surprised she got convicted.

• 52:10Payton Moreland?

  She took a plea deal.

• 52:11Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah, like, I'm kind of surprised that, I don't know.

• 52:14Payton Moreland?

  That she didn't just try her luck at trial?

• 52:16Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 52:16Payton Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 52:17Garrett Moreland?

  I guess it's scary, right?

• 52:19Payton Moreland?

  But I will say, despite the fact that she, like, has now said, I'm, I'm like, serving time for a crime I didn't commit, she still says she deserves this sentence anyway, for simply having had the affair and like, leading to this murder.

• 52:36Garrett Moreland?

  Fair, yeah.

• 52:37Payton Moreland?

  She claims if she didn't even have the relationship with Scott, Thad would most likely still be here today.

• 52:42Garrett Moreland?

  Oh, duh.

• 52:44Payton Moreland?

  And so she's like, that's why I think I should serve time, because I'm the root cause of this. And Scott, he kind of backs her up. After accepting the plea deal, he went back on his confession. So he accepts the plea deal to not get the death penalty, and then he comes out and says, oh, yeah, I just said that so I wouldn't get the death penalty. She literally didn't know about the murder at all.

• 53:09Garrett Moreland?

  Okay.

• 53:09Payton Moreland?

  He said instead, he acted alone. He went to bed that night with plans to confront Thad about the affair the next morning. But when he approached Thad outside the warehouse, he asked him what he was doing there, and Scott replied, I want what you got. He then pulled out the knife and stabbed Thad without even thinking. He said he just did it over and over nineteen times, and then left Thad there to bleed out on his office floor.

• 53:32Garrett Moreland?

  Oh my, I mean, it's horrible. Like, screw the guy.

• 53:34Payton Moreland?

  But also, here's the thing.

• 53:35Garrett Moreland?

  He deserves to rot in prison.

• 53:37Payton Moreland?

  If you were going there not planning to kill him, why did you buy the murder weapon four days before?

• 53:42Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah, I know, I agree.

• 53:43Payton Moreland?

  You bought it. It's not like you just brought it. You bought it and brought it.

• 53:48Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 53:49Payton Moreland?

  That feels premeditated.

• 53:51Garrett Moreland?

  A double B, man.

• 53:53Payton Moreland?

  So anyways, he says, he does this, his employees find him later, and Scott said, he didn't think it over. He says he just fled the scene in a panic, went to the ER to patch up his hands, since Thad did fight back. And then he called Michelle and told her what he had done. But unlike Michelle and Thad's relationship, Scott won't be getting any second chances, not at all. And not with Michelle. She's since written him off, and chances are, the two will never rekindle the romance that literally cost someone's life.

• 54:27Garrett Moreland?

  Yeah.

• 54:28Payton Moreland?

  And that is the murder of Thad Reynolds. And isn't that always something we see in these cases where when they do murder for love and then they get to trial? They don't even end up together anyways. They don't even end up.

• 54:40Garrett Moreland?

  Just crazy. Could you imagine just throwing away your entire life, your freedoms, everything? Just gone. It's gone. He's gonna sit, he's gonna sit in prison for the rest of his life.

• 54:50Payton Moreland?

  And what about Paige? His wife?

• 54:53Garrett Moreland?

  I know.

• 54:54Payton Moreland?

  Who's like, huh? Not only was my husband having an affair, but he murdered? He murdered a good friend of ours who also went to church with us?

• 55:03Garrett Moreland?

  It's insane.

• 55:03Payton Moreland?

  Like, the amount of people, the kids that this affected.

• 55:07Garrett Moreland?

  No, it's crazy. It's, it's crazy.

• 55:09Payton Moreland?

  Anyways, you guys, that was our story for today. Thank you for listening or watching to another one of our episodes, and we will see you next time. I love it.

• 55:19Garrett Moreland?

  I hate it.

• 55:20Payton Moreland?

  Goodbye.