Introducing . . . Free Shelley Jensen

Coming soon to the Binge is Free Shelley Jensen. Shelley Jensen is a successful veterinarian in Tampa, Florida, who recently sold the practice she built from scratch for millions of dollars. She and her husband and all of their pets are about to retire to their dream house in California. It seems the world is her oyster. Until Shelley has a mental health crisis that leaves her vulnerable. And that’s when the unthinkable happens: someone petitions a judge, arguing that Shelley can’t be trusted to make her own decisions. She’s 52 years old. Just months ago, she took for granted that she could choose where to live, how to spend her hard-won earnings, even when she saw her husband. Suddenly, all of that is gone, and Shelley is thrust into a new reality - a Kafka-eque nightmare where she has no say. Is she being protected, or broken? Who can she trust? Shelley and her husband are left to fight for her freedom - before she loses it forever. Binge all episodes of Free Shelley Jensen November 1st by subscribing to The Binge. Visit The Binge Show Page on Apple Podcasts and hit ‘subscribe’ or visit ⁠⁠⁠GetTheBinge.com⁠⁠⁠ to get access. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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  At 52, Shelley Jensen was on top of the world. She was about to retire early at a new house in California with her husband. She'd just sold her veterinary practice for millions. Then everything fell apart.

• 0:21Speaker 01

  I don't know what's going on with Shelley, but this is not right.

• 0:25Speaker 00

  Shelley started to act radically and spend wildly. And then one day, the cops handcuffed her and took her away.

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  All I know is that I got tackled as soon as I stepped out of the house.

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  She ended up in a psych ward she couldn't get out of.

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  But this story isn't really about Shelley's mental health. What happened to her is much more troubling.

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  Once that dotted line, you sign on it, there's no going back.

• 0:59Speaker 00

  Shelley and her husband end up in an impossible bind.

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  I just couldn't believe that she and I were in this situation, that we were living this hell.

• 1:12Speaker 00

  If the words "Free Britney" mean anything to you, you know Britney Spears spent nearly 14 years with her father controlling her every move just because a court said he could. You won't be any less outraged by the harrowing tale of Shelley Jensen. A moment of vulnerability became a way to take away her rights.

• 1:37Speaker 03

  If somebody told me this, I would sit down. That wouldn't happen. It does happen.

• 1:43Speaker 02

  Are you effing kidding me? Don't you see how destroyed I am as a person?

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  Her husband fought to get her out before it was too late, and Shelley lost her freedom forever.

• 1:56Speaker 03

  I was gonna fight it as hard as I could with everything that I had. This is a life or death matter. My wife's life is at stake.

• 2:06Speaker 00

  From Sony Music Entertainment and Novel, this is Free Shelley Jensen. I'm Larissa Campbell.

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  Coming November 1st, The Binge. Search for Free Shelley Jensen wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribers to The Binge can listen to all episodes all at once, ad-free.