MURDERED: Sierah Joughin

[00:00] This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. For some of us, summer means more juggling, which can lead to overwhelm and worry. BetterHelp makes it easy to get the support you need. Having served over 6 million people globally, BetterHelp is the world's largest online therapy platform. They'll match you with a quality licensed therapist, so you can focus on your therapy goals. You don't have to say yes to everything this summer. Find support in therapy. Sign up and get 10% off at betterhelp.com slash crimejunkie. That's betterhelp.com slash crimejunkie. [00:29] Hi, Crime Junkies. It's Britt, and I have big news. One of my favorite seasonal shows, CounterClock, is back with a brand new season, and it is wild. Host Delia D'Ambra is digging into the 2008 Lane Bryant murders. I mean, this isn't just a recap. It is a reinvestigation. She's talking to law enforcement, people from the community, even sources who have never spoken publicly until now. And you know I love a show that asks all the questions. Listen to CounterClock [00:59] Hi, Crime Junkies. I'm your host, Ashley Flowers. And I'm Britt. And today, I want to tell you about a beautiful young woman whose brutal murder at the height of summertime shattered her community's sense of safety forever. And in the process, set police's sights on a monster hiding right in their very midst. This is the story of Sierra Joggins. [01:23] Music

[01:54] On the evening of July 19th, 2016, in Fulton County, Ohio, about 40 minutes away from Toledo, a young man named Josh Kolosinski is taking advantage of the warm summer night and going for a ride out in the country with his girlfriend, Sierra Joggin. Now, they're riding side by side down a country road in the middle of like farmlands, like kind of the middle of nowhere feel that you can only get in the Midwest when you're surrounded by cornfields on all sides. [02:24] And Sierra's on her purple bike while Josh rides slow on his motorcycle. It's one of those perfect summer nights here in the Midwest where the sky's clear, the heat's starting to dip, cutting through that humidity. Oh, I can just picture it. There's a nice little breeze. No bugs except for maybe some fireflies in the field. Exactly. So it's a great night to be out getting some fresh air and having some quality time, especially for a couple like Josh and Sierra who've been dating since middle school. [02:54] Some about getting married, but they're both still so young. Like Sierra's only 20, so they're not in any kind of hurry to take the next step. They're more focused on enjoying one another, going to school, living their best lives as partners, and then they'll just take the next step when they're ready. [03:09] Now, ignoring the awkward selfie angle, Josh actually snaps a photo of them together, his arm in the frame and Sierra riding behind him. You can see that they're smiling. They're having a good time. He uploads it to Snapchat because he wants to remember this moment before college starts back up and their lives get busy again. Eventually, on this ride, Sierra tells Josh that she's ready to ride home and call it a night. Now, they're near the Evergreen High School, which is out on County Road 6 near the town of Metamora.

[03:39] But this is still like in the middle of nowhere. [03:42] So being the good boyfriend that he is, Josh rides back towards home with Sierra until she's like, listen, like, you go home. Like, you don't need to go all the way, like, take me home and then ride home. Like, I can get the rest of the way on my own. It's no big deal. Like, she's done this ride a hundred times before. Now, Josh isn't thrilled about leaving her alone, but Sierra insists she's going to be fine. And besides, it's still light outside. And literally everyone in the area knows everybody else. [04:12] comfortable thinking that there's just nothing to worry about. Yeah. [04:15] So according to Rachel Trost reporting for NBC News, Josh leaves Sierra at around 6.45 p.m. near the high school. He kisses her goodbye, promises he'll reach out to her later, and rides his motorcycle back home. True to his word, Josh texts Sierra a few times over the course of that evening. But when he tries to call her at around 10 p.m., the call goes to voicemail. [04:41] Right away, this feels unusual to Josh because Sierra is usually great about answering her phone. And so he keeps calling only to have every single one of his calls keep going to voicemail. Had she been answering his texts earlier? I'm actually not 100 percent certain if she is or not. Police records describe it as they were, quote, exchanging text messages. But it doesn't say like what time. So I can't tell you for sure either way.

[05:11] answering anything. So with Josh's anxiety at an all-time high, he decides to take matters into his own hands. And he calls Sierra's mom at around 1030. But instead of telling him, like, good news, like, she's home, everything's fine, it's all, you know, a big misunderstanding, she tells him something that makes his heart sink. She hasn't seen Sierra either. In fact, Sierra never came home after their bike ride. Right away, Josh and Sierra's family start [05:41] They're worried that maybe she's been hit by a car. I mean, she could be lying hurt somewhere with no way to contact them. Like all of those worst case scenarios start like flooding their mind. Finally, sometime between 11 and 1130 that very night, Sierra's mom calls the police to report her missing. [05:59] According to Michelle Liu's piece in the Toledo Blade, the Fulton County Sheriff's Department hop on the investigation immediately. And they are out there in the fields on County Road 6 that very same night searching for a sign to tell them where Sierra might be. [06:14] Since Josh is the last person who saw her, he's able to tell them where to start looking. And he's even able to pass over that Snapchat photo that he took, which shows exactly what Sierra is wearing right down to the fitness tracker on her wrist. So police are clearly thinking that Sierra is in some sort of danger. Yeah, I mean, from what I can tell, I mean, I know in a lot of cases we see people like, oh, you know, maybe they just need some time. From everything I've seen, there is no talk of her just potentially taking off on her own.

[06:44] to everyone who's involved. [06:47] According to Investigation Discovery's Living a Nightmare episode about this called The Long Way Home, around midnight on July 20th, so this is just over five hours after Josh and Sierra parted ways and within an hour of her being reported missing, a deputy sheriff is driving when he sees something strange. Some corn has been... [07:08] like knocked over in one of the fields. And when he pulls over to check it out with his spotlight, the scene gets even odder because with every breath he takes, he's hit with the smell of gasoline. And on the ground, he sees some fuses. [07:26] The hairs on the back of his neck start to stand up. The deputy backs out. He keeps looking around this darkened field, [07:35] And sure enough, there's more. He spots two pair of sunglasses on the ground, like little breadcrumbs inviting him to go deeper. And as he shines his spotlight further down into the corn, the light suddenly hits something shiny. What is it? A closer look shows it's a reflector. [07:57] attached to a purple bicycle that matches the one Sierra was riding. The interesting thing is the bike isn't [08:06] laying down like it's been abandoned, though. It is standing up with its front tires facing out, almost like it was backed into the field, about three or four rows back in the corn.

[08:19] All around the bike, more corn's been trampled. And worst of all, police find blood on the handlebars and on the bike seat. [08:29] In addition to the fuses and sunglasses from earlier, law enforcement find motorcycle tracks going north, a green sock and a bloody screwdriver, along with more blood on the corn. [08:44] Now, there's not enough blood here to make police think that someone necessarily died here, but they are certain that someone fought here, struggled here, and there's no telling where they are now. [08:57] Between the bike being hidden like this with the tire tracks and all of the blood at the scene, law enforcement take it as confirmation of their worst fears that Sierra's been abducted. And this was only a half mile away from her house. Oh, my God. So she had almost made it home. She got so close that it breaks my heart. And it's one of those things where it had to have literally been like, [09:25] When you think about it, the last thing in the world she was expecting. Everything in the field, from the fuses to the sunglasses, gets sent straight back to the lab for processing. Since it's pitch black outside, law enforcement has a challenge on their hands in these crucial first hours. But they're not totally hamstrung. [09:46] The road gets blocked off right away, and that same Toledo blade piece that I mentioned earlier reported that an infrared-equipped helicopter actually goes out in the sky to scan the area that very night.

[09:58] Additionally, Fulton County sheriffs reach out to the Ohio State Police almost immediately to help join their search and the investigation. And by the next day, the FBI is involved. That seems really quick. I mean, I feel like we usually don't hear FBI getting involved until much later in an investigation or when they know that the crime has crossed state lines or something. [10:28] actually pinged up near the Michigan border, which is actually just a few miles away from where her bike was discovered. And as a result, law enforcement has to reach out across state lines. So I would imagine that having the FBI there to coordinate with all these different agencies is like imperative and probably why they got brought in so early. [10:48] Now, it's later that same day on the afternoon of July 20th that officers who are out processing the cornfield suddenly get their first big break. [11:02] For decades, some cold cases have been reduced to files in a cabinet, but not anymore. I'm Ashley Flowers, and me and my team on the deck have been traveling across the country to report on these forgotten cases. And in some instances, it's resulted in these cases being solved after decades. [11:21] Join me every Wednesday as we revive these stories one card at a time. Listen to the deck now. [11:28] wherever you get your podcasts.

[11:31] About 12 hours after Sierra was first reported missing, the farmer who owns the cornfield that police are searching in actually approaches them and he hands over a bloody motorcycle helmet. [11:46] According to the Law and Crime Network, this farmer tells police that he was out driving with his son last night, headed south along the road where Sierra's bike was found when he spotted a motorcycle helmet on the side of the road. So instead of just like driving on by, the farmer tells police that he had his son get out and toss the helmet into the bed of his truck. [12:07] Now, he knows that motorcyclists loved like those paved country roads. So finding one of their helmets didn't really seem important to him at the time. But then he heard about Sierra's disappearance. And now with law enforcement literally like looking on his land, the helmet has taken on this whole new meaning to him. [12:26] I'm sorry, but how do you find a bloody helmet and not have your mind instantly jump to like something terrible has happened here, even if it's just like someone's been in an accident or something? I mean, you know, first thought is they're probably not crime junkies, I guess. But the other thing I was thinking about is the motorcycle helmet itself is actually black. And my research doesn't specify exactly what time the farmer found it. So I'm thinking that if it was already dark, maybe they just didn't even notice the blood. [12:56] then heard about the story, seen that they're searching his land, then gone to like the bed of his truck and taken a good look at it in the light of day. Which that's totally fair. In my own experience living in the country, those county roads don't usually have any streetlights. So it would be super, super dark. Right. Well, whatever the reason, as soon as police get a look at this thing, they know that this is a huge break.

[13:26] partial palm print embedded into the stains. [13:30] The helmet gets sent off for testing, but with this huge piece of evidence now in the mix, along with the tracks found near Sierra's bike, police are now confident that whoever snatched her probably rides a motorcycle. And so following along that theory, police turn to look at a person who they saw. [13:49] no rides a motorcycle and who, by all accounts, was very, very close to Sierra. And that's her boyfriend, Josh. [13:58] Even though Josh seems to be totally distraught and just like wracked with guilt about not riding home with Sierra all the way back to her house, according to People magazine, Josh is adamant that they parted on good terms and he has no idea what could have happened to her. Josh agrees to let police search his house and his vehicles. And when they look at the motorcycle, it looks totally fine. Like it's not damaged. There's no sign of blood, no sign of hair, nothing like that. [14:28] search Josh's pickup truck, law enforcement comes across a set of dirty coveralls. And we're not talking like some little splatters or whatever, but like this big reddish brown stain on them that looks like it could be blood. And if it is blood, it is a lot of blood. And according to Living a Nightmare, when police do some initial tests on it, their theory is confirmed. So they

[14:58] And he's like, listen, it is blood, but it's just deer blood from hunting. OK, and considering this is such a rural area, I feel like that could be a real possibility. Right. I mean, it's a total possibility, which is why they have to check this out right away. And it is actually a super easy test to do. You're not talking like a full DNA sequence and profile. So they get this done within the first like 24 hours. And the results do show that the blood isn't from a human. [15:24] So after interviewing Josh pretty thoroughly, police conclude that he is telling the truth and he's eliminated as a person of interest. Meanwhile, as news of Sierra's abduction spreads like wildfire through all of the small communities in the area, police are inundated with hundreds of volunteers coming out to help in the search efforts. [15:46] Now, to put this in perspective, the town of Lyons, Ohio, where Fulton County is and where Sierra grew up, it has like a population of like under 600. Oh, wow. And so for that many people to turn out, we're talking like half the town's worth of people is out there looking for her. And an unnamed donor even puts up $25,000 of their own money as a reward. I mean, I grew up in a small town, so this doesn't surprise me at all. [16:16] Right.

[16:38] But hour after agonizing hour goes by without any trace of Sierra. [16:44] It's 24 hours and then 36 hours. Each is more painful for her family than the last. And while this is going on, the crime labs are working overtime to get results back. And according to the police records, one of the first things to come back are results from both pairs of sunglasses picked up at the cornfield. [17:14] One pair was hers, but the other pair shows DNA belonging to an unknown male who's not in their system. [17:23] As the case makes national headlines in places like, I mean, it was on People magazine and Dateline, police decide to try something a little different. And they broaden their search to all of Fulton County, specifically to sex offenders and violent felons. Now, as they're going through the offender list, one name in particular jumps out to law enforcement right away. [17:48] This man named James Dean Worley. According to CBS News, James is 57 years old. He's a convicted felon. And he lives just a few miles away from where police discovered Sierra's bite. And as police look closer at James's past, that's when they come across the details about what crime he had committed to get on this list of violent offenders in the first place.

[18:18] And... [18:19] It's that that really makes him stand out because the crime has some eerie parallels to Sierra's disappearance. Yeah. [18:28] This crime that first put him in the system goes back to July 4th, 1990, in another small town just outside of Toledo. [18:37] That's when a 26-year-old woman named Robin Gardner decides to go out for a bike ride. [18:43] She leaves her suburban neighborhood and bikes out into the farmland, heading west towards a nearby park. And before long, she hears this car coming up. Now... [18:54] This is in the days before bike lanes, not even that like rural country roads even have bike lanes still. So Robin doesn't think too much of it. And she doesn't even turn around to check and see, you know, who's coming or how fast they're going. None of it. Not until it's too late. And suddenly this truck hits her, knocking her clean off her bike and into the ditch immediately. [19:16] Through her confusion and panic, Robin hears a man get out of the truck and ask if she's all right. And even though she's pretty shaken up by what just happened, she says, yeah, like, I'm fine. You're probably assuming like it was some kind of terrible accident. But as Faith Karimi and Steve Visser reported for CNN, the man who hit her from behind shoves a screwdriver to her throat. And in a voice that will haunt her forever, he says, quote, [19:45] Do what I say or I'll kill you. I'm serious. I'll kill you. Oh my God.

[19:51] Robin's survival instincts kick into overdrive. And even though she does what he says and gets into his truck, she keeps... [20:00] fighting. This guy has handcuffs, and in that moment, Robin knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that she is fighting for her very life. The cold metal slaps around one wrist, and she's so scared she almost blacks out. But then, in the distance, Robin sees a motorcyclist coming down the road. So screaming and struggling with all of the strength that she has left, Robin gets the [20:30] truck and runs to the person on the motorcycle, pleading hysterically for help. [20:36] That driver ends up taking her home where Robin's mother immediately calls the police. [20:42] When police go out to the field where Robin was attacked, incredibly, the guy in the truck is still there. [20:50] What? According to Vanessa McRae's article in the Toledo Blade, he tells police, hey, you know what? That lady actually ran into me and I only handcuffed her so she wouldn't flee the scene before you guys got here. Flee the scene of a bike running into a truck? What? You got it. Yeah, police can smell the BS from a mile away. So they arrest him and charge him with kidnapping. [21:20] via the journal news james took an alfred plea in that case which our crime junkies will know means that he's not admitting guilt but he was admitting that prosecutors had enough evidence to get a conviction he was sentenced to four to ten years in prison for abduction but got out for good behavior in 1993 after only serving three years

[21:43] Okay, so knowing all of this, police have to go talk to him right away about Sierra. Oh, yeah, they totally do because they're thinking the exact same thing that you and I are. All of this sounds way too familiar. So a group of four officers goes out to talk to James on July 21st. This is about 40 hours or so after Sierra was reported missing. [22:13] He starts setting off alarm bells in all of the officers. Now, James is pretty clearly irritated that they're even there. And just looking at him, police can see he's had a rough time recently. I mean, his legs are all bruised up and he's got marks on his arms that look pretty fresh. Like what kind of marks? Like scrapes, scratches, like bug bites? I don't know. The police records just say marks. Marks. [22:41] But... [22:42] That's not even the most interesting part, because it's what James says that makes police side-eye him way, way more. [22:55] Thank you. [22:56] You guys, we are finally rolling into summer, and I am ditching the sweaters, packing away the coats, but I am still wearing quince. Because quince is quality I wear all year round, in the field, on stage, at the office, quince, quince, quince. Their clothing and accessories are timeless and long-lasting because they focus on high-quality, beautiful everyday essentials, like 100% European linen pants, dresses, and tops with styles starting at $32.

[23:26] 80% less than similar brands. No lie, I have a silk skirt from a big department store and I have a silk skirt from Quince. And dead serious, my Quince one has held up way better and was way cheaper and machine washable because ain't nobody got time or money for dry cleaning, but I want to look like I do. So elevate your summer wardrobe. Go to Quince.com slash crimejunkie for free shipping [23:56] Crime Junkie for free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince.com slash Crime Junkie. [24:03] So when law enforcement tell him that they're there searching for a missing woman, James actually tells them, and this is a direct quote, [24:13] I'm not out here killing chicks. Um, no one has said anything about murder yet. Exactly. So police get his consent to search the house, which James is sharing with his elderly mom. And when they get to his bedroom, James does it again. Except this time, not only is he repeating that he hasn't killed anyone or has never killed anyone, he's also saying that he never raped anyone either. [24:43] dude like nobody mentioned anything about rape we're here looking for a missing girl these are all super weird things to just like drop into a conversation with law enforcement yeah [24:53] So as you can imagine, all of the alarm bells in these officers' minds are like screaming at this point. Like they know in their gut that there's something seriously off about this guy.

[25:04] As they keep moving through the house, James [25:07] puts himself there... [25:09] at the scene of Sierra's abduction. According to police records, yes, according to police records, James claims that he was riding in the area when apparently his motorcycle broke down. And he's like, oh, like mentions that he happened to have seen like two bicycles there in the cornfield instead of just the one. But police never found anything to indicate evidence of like a second bike, right? No, I think he's trying to like put someone else with her who was never with her. [25:39] Bye. [25:40] That's not even all he has to say, because he informs police that they're probably going to find his fingerprints online. [25:47] on her purple bike. He's basically like, oh, yeah, I mean, I... [25:52] touched it. And then he keeps talking. Like, this is total word vomit at this point. So, remember all of that stuff police found [26:00] With Sierra's bike. Yeah, there was like a screwdriver, the bloody helmet from the farmer, some fuses and sunglasses, right? Right. So James is like, by the way, should let you know, I also lost some stuff in the cornfield. Specifically, I lost all of those things. Cool, cool. Right. What's interesting is like police never released any of this to the public. [26:30] who was there and abducted her. Because all that they told the media at this point is that they found signs of a struggle in the cornfield, but nothing about the things recovered and definitely nothing about a bloody helmet. Or even if anything had been recovered, just a struggle. Exactly. Exactly.

[26:44] There is only one way James could know any of this information. Right. He had to have been there himself. Right. Which, like, yes, he's admitting to. But I don't think there's a person out there who'd buy that this guy who has been convicted of kidnapping just happened upon a similar abduction scene while he was, like, mind you, holding a bunch of fuses and screwdrivers and stuff, like, dangling out of his pockets as he's touching a bloody crime scene. Like, absolutely. [27:12] No. [27:13] But… [27:13] As if this isn't wild enough. According to Sean Hegarty's reporting for ABC 13 News, this guy has the audacity to demand police give him money. [27:25] the motorcycle helmet back. Oh my God. Yeah, even though they feel confident with every instinct they've got that this is the man who snatched Sierra Joggin, police don't let on that they know. And they keep moving through the property. Now, James's workshop doesn't set off any alarm bells. But as soon as they get to the barn on his property, James immediately gets agitated. [27:55] The barn's got dirt on the floor and the dirt's been freshly raked as if someone might have been trying to hide something. [28:02] As police start moving bales of hay around, they find a green box wrapped in chicken wire. [28:10] At first glance, it looks like the kind of thing that you'd expect in a barn, like just a wooden crate for transporting animals, different things around, whatever.

[28:20] Any thoughts of this being a legit piece of farm equipment vanish. According to David J. Kors' piece in the Fulton County Expositor, police find bondage restraints... [28:31] adult diapers, [28:32] white tube socks, sex toys, latex gloves, lingerie, zip ties, duct tape, and several pairs of women's underwear. Like, it's already concerning to find this stuff in such an unusual spot. But beyond that, one of the pairs of underwear is white. [28:52] Oh my God. With dread for Sierra's safety growing in their minds, police ask James about the stuff in the box. And his answer chills police to the bone because he calls it, quote, murder. [29:08] girlfriend stuff. And he denies having any underwear and starts [29:14] And this is the point where he starts, like, going off and shutting down the consented search, almost trying to, like, say that the officers are trying to kink shame him and, you know, they're just judging him for things. And he's like, you've seen enough at this point. Now, they know. [29:29] this is their guy. So [29:31] They, you know, consented search is over. They can't do anymore, but they're definitely not going to leave James alone. They take him down to the station for questioning, promising that they're going to come back to the barn and finish what they started, this time with a warrant. I mean, at this point, are they thinking that Sierra could still be alive? I mean, I think they're trying to find that balance between...

[29:51] being hopeful and being realistic, right? Because, I mean, this guy's clearly a scumbag with a history. But without finding Sierra on his property, alive or dead, I mean, they're just holding out hope that she can still be rescued at this point. [30:06] So that same night, armed with the full powers of a warrant, law enforcement returns to James's barn. And what they find next shakes even the most hardened officers right down to their very core. [30:19] Hidden behind some more hay bales in James' barn, police come across... [30:25] A secret, [30:26] realm. [30:27] Even though it's a warm July night, every single person in there feels chills run down their spine as they take in what they're seeing. There are restraints hanging from the walls. All of the windows have been spray painted black from the inside so that no one can see in and no one can see out. [30:51] According to reporting by Lauren Lindstrom in the Toledo Blade, a strange piece of plywood with holes drilled through it lies on the floor. And when police lift it up to see what's underneath, they find a freezer that has been dug right there into the ground, secured shut with a ratchet strap. [31:14] Hearts pounding, police get the freezer out of the ground. They open it up. [31:21] and it is empty.

[31:23] And there had to have been this like mix of relief and fear and that thank God she's not there. But still, where is she? And the sight of this freezer is terrifying in and of itself because the freezer— [31:37] The dug into the ground freezer is lined with carpet and smells like bleach. So it's been cleaned. Yeah. [31:46] Yes, but even the stinging reek of bleach isn't enough to hide another scent all too familiar to crime scene technicians. And that's decomposition. Decomposition. [31:57] When they test the freezer, sure enough, it tests positive for blood. [32:03] The Fulton County sheriffs request James' cell phone records while they and other members of law enforcement turn his property upside down. Every single extra bit of evidence they turn up becomes another piece in this grisly puzzle. Like the blood they find on his motorcycle, the air mattress they find in his barn. [32:24] And more adult diapers in his house, along with recording devices, guns, ammo, nanny cams, journals, and maps. Out in his green pickup truck, police find even more zip ties and a trash bag stuffed with used paper towels. In another truck, though, this one's a red one, which just so happens to be freshly washed, they find a hunting kit. [32:49] You see, according to WTOL News, James had been driving around with even more zip ties, duct tape, a ski mask and mace. I mean, the police have to be thinking that this guy could be a serial killer, right? Like everything you've told me so far.

[33:05] He's checking like all the boxes. Oh, 100 percent. Multiple pairs of women's underwear? I mean, I just don't think there's any way he just went dormant between getting out of jail in 93 and 2016. And these investigators are no dummies either. So they are more determined than ever to scour every single inch of his property for anything that they can learn about potentially other victims, again, while they're still looking for Sierra. [33:35] Everything that they find, including the air mattress, all of it gets sent back to their lab for analysis. [33:42] James Worley is arrested on July 22nd, three days after Sierra's disappearance, and he's charged with one count of abduction. [33:51] But later that very same day, [33:54] Sierra. [33:55] is found. [33:58] you [33:59] You guys, we are finally rolling into summer, and I am ditching the sweaters, packing away the coats, but I am still wearing quince. Because quince is quality I wear all year round, in the field, on stage, at the office, quince, quince, quince. Their clothing and accessories are timeless and long-lasting because they focus on high-quality, beautiful everyday essentials, like 100% European linen pants, dresses, and tops with styles starting at $32. [34:29] 80% less than similar brands. No lie, I have a silk skirt from a big department store and I have a silk skirt from Quince. And dead serious, my Quince one has held up way better and was way cheaper and machine washable because ain't nobody got time or money for dry cleaning, but I want to look like I do. So elevate your summer wardrobe. Go to Quince.com slash crimejunkie for free shipping on

[34:59] Crime Junkie for free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince.com slash Crime Junkie. [35:06] A farmer calls police after spotting an unusual mound of dirt in a field out on County Road 7, just a few miles away from James' house. [35:17] Below a hastily dug shallow grave, they discover what they've spent the past three days so frantically searching for. But they were too late to save her. [35:27] I mean, everything about this, it... [35:30] It goes beyond just that one-time chill down my spine. It makes me want to look over my shoulder, [35:36] Again and again. Honestly, for the rest of my life to make sure... [35:41] The monster who did this isn't hiding right behind me, you know, almost in plain sight. I mean, it's kind of one of those things that you just think doesn't happen in real life. [35:50] I mean, like, surely there were signs, right? Like, we should have been able to stop this before it got to a carpeted freezer dug into the ground. And we should have, because after James is arrested, it comes out that he told his freaking therapist that he's going to be a man. [36:07] He... [36:07] learned [36:09] from his first conviction. And he said that he was going to bury the next one. Oh, so like not I learned what I did was bad and I'm going to do better now. But like- Oh yeah, or I learned why I do it and I'm coping with whatever. No. But when he said I learned to do better, I mean learn to do crime better. Yeah, I learned to like not let the victim survive. So I don't know. This is what I don't know. Obviously like not a trained therapist over here, but I thought like if they're making comments like this,

[36:39] if you're making comments that are a threat to yourself or to other people, that it has to get reported. And I don't know. I also wonder, like, if the therapy was, like, court ordered because of his conviction, if that would then, like, require even more reporting. I mean. I don't know. And I get it, like, because you want people to be completely honest with your therapist. And I don't know if they're only allowed to say things if you make, like, specific threats against specific people. [37:09] - Next time I get-- - Yeah. [37:11] Surely there was something else that could have been done here, right? To like raise a red flag and get this guy on someone's radar before something this bad happened, before there was a freezer in the ground? I mean, I hope so, but this whole thing just terrifies me. Because it is terrifying. Now, Sierra's body is taken for autopsy. And over the next couple of weeks, while they wait for the coroner's report, police continue searching James's property for evidence of other victims. [37:41] one-off thing. I mean, he proved that he tried it before and many, many years have passed. Again, you don't dig a freezer into the ground overnight. And while they don't find any human remains out there, they are able to continue building their case against him for now Sierra's murder. And they are able to... [38:01] upgrade the charges to aggravated murder and not just abduction. Now, he's already admitted to being out in the field where Sierra was abducted, but his cell phone records show that he stayed there for almost two hours that night. And the records also put him right near where Sierra's body was eventually found.

[38:22] Interestingly, when they search James' computer, it shows him looking for things like... [38:28] hog-tied teen, [38:30] "Gag, rape, and helpless." All fantasies of total control. [38:37] Most damning of all, Sierra's DNA shows up all over James's stuff, like on some duct tape, the air mattress, one of the pairs of underwear that he had, the motorcycle helmet, and on a handcuff key from James's key ring. [38:56] When the autopsy results finally come back around the middle of August, they show that Sierra suffered blunt force trauma consistent with being hit by a motorcycle helmet and that she actually died of asphyxiation from something being shoved in her mouth. [39:11] So do you think he meant to kill her that way or do you think it was an accident? Like, obviously, I think he planned to kill her all along, but I mean... No, I know what you mean. And I wondered that too, because interestingly, the autopsy also doesn't show any signs of sexual assault, which... [39:28] kind of really took me by surprise because literally everything else about this case seems so hypersexual to me. Yeah. But ultimately, he's not saying, right? Like, he won't tell police what he meant to do, what he didn't mean to do. And due to decomposition and the impact of the warm weather, it's impossible for the authorities, for the medical examiner to estimate, like, the exact time of death.

[39:54] James stays in prison until the case finally makes it to trial in March of 2018. [40:01] He's charged with 17 counts altogether, including two counts of aggravated murder, which, if convicted, could get him the death penalty. [40:11] According to Toy Creel's piece on the NBC News 24 website, one of the people who testifies against James at his trial is none other person. [40:20] than Robin Gardner, the woman who escaped his clutches back in 1990. Wow. [40:26] So on March 28th of 2018, after deliberating for less than six hours, the jury finds James Worley guilty of murdering Sierra Joggin. [40:37] He's sentenced to death, and while he's granted a temporary stay of execution later that same year, he remains on death row while his appeals are pending. [40:47] Investigations into his potential other crimes are also pending. [40:52] A reporter for WTOL News named Emily Nelson did some research into other unsolved crimes within a few miles radius of James' property. And she came up with a list of six murders and one disappearance going all the way back to 1980s. [41:07] The victims are all women, ranging from teenagers to women in their 30s, including 14-year-old Lori Ann Hill, whose body was found in 1985, not too far away from where Sierra was found. She was just a little girl. So have police done anything with DNA comparisons or anything? Not that I know it, but that doesn't mean it's not happening.

[41:37] again. [41:38] The blood in the barn, the freezer, all of it. Police are still looking at the very real possibility that this man spent, what, almost 40 years using this area as his hunting ground, preying on innocent women and girls when the corn was high enough to conceal his terrible deeds? [41:56] In August of 2020, the Fulton County sheriffs and the FBI excavated some of James' old property, but nothing seems to have been disclosed yet about what they did or did not find on his property. [42:09] In the midst of their grief, Sierra's family has taken it upon themselves to try and prevent another innocent person from meeting the same fate. Bolstered by Sierra's memory, they advocate for the state of Ohio to create a violent offender database, which they believe would have led police to James sooner and maybe even have brought Sierra back alive. Wait, wait. I thought you said that police found his name because he was a convicted felon. They did. So this was a new thing that I learned. [42:39] that they searched immediately, like the night that they searched for Sierra because he's not a registered sex offender. Like we have a list to show you all of those people right away. [42:49] But he wasn't a sex offender because the case before this was just kidnapping. So I think they had to start pulling all of the names of people in the area who were committing violent crimes or had like one by one by one, which is a really long process. Single. Yeah. Single pulls. Yeah. Not like one compiled list. Right. So her family is saying if this violent offender list existed at the time, it could have been searched right away.

[43:19] crime and potentially saved her. Yeah, yeah, that makes that makes sense. [43:24] After several years of lobbying, their efforts pay off. Senate Bill 231, known as Sierra's Law, was signed into law in December of 2018, and it came into effect in March of 2019. It was a very good thing. [43:39] Since then, Sierra's family has continued their activism with the nonprofit they founded in her name, which is called Justice for Sierra. The nonprofit includes a program to introduce self-defense into school curriculums so youth of all genders can be more empowered and better equipped in case the worst happens. [44:01] We have actually made a contribution to their organization. And we do this. Thank you to you guys. We do this with funds from advertising, from our fan club. [44:11] They actually do. So they have a couple of events every year. There's a run that you guys can look at. Just go to justiceforsierra.org. But they also have something that they do every year, Sierra's birthday soiree. And that's what we are going to be sponsoring. There isn't a date yet. So all this is a little bit TBD. But Britt, we're hoping that you and I can go, that we can actually fill our table with some of our Toledo-based fan club members. [44:41] a date, you might get a surprise reach out from us to go with us. But I encourage you guys to just take a moment, go to justiceforsierra.org. You spent 40 minutes listening to this episode. You can spend another five to 10 minutes to visit the organization, see how you can be a part of real change and prevention in this true crime space. We will link directly to the organization

[45:11] podcast.com. [45:13] don't forget to check out justice for sierra.org that's linked out in our show notes and you can find all of the source material for this episode on our website crimejunkiepodcast.com and be sure to follow us on instagram at crimejunkie podcast we'll be back next week with a brand new episode [46:05] So [46:08] you [46:09] you [46:10] . [46:12] Crime Junkie is an AudioChuck production. [46:16] So? [46:17] What do you think, Chuck? [46:18] Do you approve? [46:22] Okay, crime junkies, you know I absolutely love a twist and a turn, especially when it comes to people who turn out to be someone they're not. That's why I have been obsessed with the podcast Chameleon. Every Thursday, host Josh Dean deep dives into a scam so bizarre, it will leave you wondering, how did they get away with that? [46:41] It is truly one of my favorite podcasts right now and I've been listening for years.

[46:44] I think you'll love it too. [46:46] Listen to Chameleon wherever you get your podcasts.