Playing with Fire (PODCAST EXCLUSIVE EPISODE)

In this episode, MrBallen recounts two true stories of misperceived dangers and desperate actions. The first involves a woman framing her abusive partner for murder to escape him, leading to unintended prison time for both. The second details a rural California woman's fatal encounter with what she believed was a human stalker, revealed as a wildlife intruder.

Laverne's Suspicions and Police Tip

On February 5, 1990, in Wilsonville, Oregon, 57-year-old Laverne Pavlinok read a newspaper article about the murder of 20-something Tanya Bennett, whose body was found beaten, strangled with rope, and dumped near a scenic overlook by the Columbia River Gorge. Recognizing details from boasts she overheard her violent, alcoholic boyfriend John Sosnowsky make at a bar—about picking up a woman at a truck stop, killing her, and dumping her body there—Laverne called police despite fearing retaliation. Detective John Ingram, stumped on leads with no witnesses, forensics, or suspects, interviewed her a week later. Laverne repeated John's alleged confession and showering upon returning home late that night. Fearing for her safety after a decade of abuse following her husband's death, she had stayed silent until the article's photo stirred her conscience.