Who am I, and how did I end up investigating death for a living? Originally released as Episode One, I’m bringing this episode back for new listeners who want to know the story behind the voice of Pushing Up Lilies. This is my story, from my path into nursing to becoming a Forensic Nurse Death Investigator. I’ll talk about what drew me to this unique profession, what it’s really like to investigate deaths, and why I felt called to create this podcast. Over the years, I’ve responded to countless death scenes, worked alongside law enforcement, medical examiners, and families experiencing unimaginable loss. Those experiences have taught me that every death has a story, and understanding that story requires compassion, science, careful investigation, and sometimes asking difficult questions. Pushing Up Lilies was created to give listeners an honest look behind the scenes of death investigation. Whether you’re fascinated by forensic science, curious about how cases are solved, or simply interested in the realities of this profession, I hope this podcast helps educate, inspire, and answer questions you’ve always wondered about. If you’re new here, welcome. This episode is the perfect place to begin. If you’ve been listening for a while, thank you for being part of this journey. I’m so glad you’re here. Join me as I share the story behind the microphone, and the path that led me to Pushing Up Lilies. EPISODE TRANSCRIPT: 00:06 Welcome to Pushing Up Lilies. I’m your host, Julie Mattson. Pushing Up Lilies is a weekly true crime podcast with spine-tingling, unusual, and terrifyingly true stories from my perspective as a forensic death investigator and a sexual assault nurse examiner. 00:24 Do I have some stories for you? Are you ready? So, my journey as a forensic nurse began quite some time ago. I got out of nursing school, and at that time, there was no such thing as forensic nursing. 00:43 I was a charge nurse in the local emergency room, and my unit director came up and asked me to train to be a sexual assault nurse examiner. At the time, of course, I didn’t know much about what it was, but I did know that when we had a patient come into the emergency room that had been sexually assaulted, we would struggle to do the exam correctly because we would do the rape kit on that patient. 01:14 And it would take probably about four hours because the directions were so detailed. We didn’t want to mess anything up. It would take us away from all of our other patients. We would have to give them to another nurse and struggle to do the rape kit correctly. 01:31 It was just really a long, drawn-out process. They had decided, well, we’re going to train nurses to do this. They would do this all the time. They would be experienced. They would know what they’re doing. 01:44 They would be able to testify in court and know what trauma looked like from a sexual assault aspect. My boss asked me to do that and I did reluctantly. I wasn’t super excited about it. I really didn’t really know what I was getting into. 02:04 But over the years, and of course I’ve done that for 21 years, over the years of testifying in court and actually helping get those perpetrators sentenced, many of them or most of them, life in prison, was so invigorating to have that power to be able to help get justice for the victims. 02:31 So, over the years, I wanted to know more about forensics. I wanted to know what I could do to help in the forensics field. Keep in mind, this is before CSI and before forensic files. None of that stuff was really on TV yet, right? 02:48 So forensic nursing was just becoming a thing. So, I called my local medical examiner’s office and asked them how I could learn to be a death investigator. They told me to just get the training anywhere I could, save all my certificates, and keep my CV updated, which is what I did. 03:08 I sent myself to the University of St. Louis, to the medical school, and I took the training course. I could not get certified because I was not working in the field of death investigation, but I at least took the course and came home with that knowledge so that I could start looking for a job in death investigation. 03:30 I found one in Harris County. I moved to Houston and I worked there for years and got so much experience working with the best of the best. Houston is such a melting pot of people. There were all sorts of different things going on there, which they go on everywhere. 03:48 We just don’t hear about them. But I got the best experience ever. So, then I moved back to this area, worked briefly as deputy chief for Dallas County, then got the job working for Denton County as a forensic death investigator, which is where I’m at now. 04:10 And it’s kind of strange because when I was a child, I was scared to death of death. I would go to sleep at night, afraid I would wake up. I thought that the last thing I said to my parents before I went to bed was the last thing they were ever going to hear from me. 04:28 So, to find myself working in this field now is a little strange to me. People always ask me, how do you do it? How do you do it and still be happy? Do you not take that stuff home with you? Don’t you have dreams? 04:42 And I don’t. And I think what makes it easier for me is in the hospital, when you’re taking care of patients, you get to know them, you get to know their family, you almost feel like you’re a part of their family. 04:55 And
A Case That Still Hurts: Revisiting Aubreigh Wyatt’s Story
Hey y’all, it’s Julie Mattson… and today we’re revisiting a case that still sits heavy on my heart. In this episode of Pushing Up Lilies, I’m talking about thirteen-year-old Aubreigh Wyatt, a young girl whose life ended far too soon after enduring relentless bullying. We’re going to walk through her story together, not just to understand what happened, but to really look at the deeper impact bullying can have on someone’s life… especially at such a vulnerable age. I’ll share some of the signs that often go unnoticed, why open communication matters so much, and what we can all do to help protect the people around us, especially our kids. This one’s tough, y’all… but it’s important. Because sometimes the hardest conversations are the ones that can make the biggest difference. So if you’re listening today, I’m really glad you’re here. Let’s talk about it. * Listener discretion is advised. EPISODE TRANSCRIPT: 0:06 Welcome to Pushing Up Lilies. 0:08 I’m your host, Julie Mattson. 0:10 Pushing Up Lilies is a weekly True Crime podcast with spine tingling, unusual and terrifyingly true stories from my perspective as a forensic death investigator and a sexual assault nurse examiner. 0:24 Do I have some stories for you? 0:26 Are you ready? 0:31 Hey, y’all, I hope everybody is having a great week. 0:34 Our weather in Texas has been amazing. 0:38 It hasn’t been as hot as it was earlier in the month, which kind of surprises me, but we’ll be going to North Dakota soon at the end of the month. 0:47 I’m looking forward to the weather there. 0:49 I think it’s normally like in the seventies, we’re going to go to South Dakota and North Dakota. 0:55 But first I have a death investigation conference. 0:59 It’s the International Association of Coroners and Medical Examiners. 1:05 They have a training symposium every year and it’s in Vegas. 1:11 We go, well, we alternate in our office. 1:14 The investigators kind of take turns going because we have to get continuing education just like you have to in a lot of different career fields. 1:25 And it’s interesting, we hear a lot of really cool stories from a lot of investigators and pathologists all over the US or all over the world actually, to hear stories about deaths that occur in ways that we don’t really get to experience in our county. 1:44 For example, we had someone from Louisiana talking about alligator deaths after Katrina. 1:54 You know, we don’t have, well, I’m not going to say we don’t have alligators in Texas. 1:58 There have been a lot of pictures of huge alligators seen in Texas and seen in Texas Lakes. 2:06 But, as of yet, we in our county have not had an alligator related death, but to hear like deaths related to shark attacks, which, you know, we don’t have any oceans in Denton. 2:20 And so we have not experienced that. 2:23 And so it’s just interesting because certain parts of the country have deaths that we’ll probably never see here. 2:31 It’s interesting to see how they handle them. 2:34 And we get to see the photos too which I know may seem morbid, but I don’t know, I just, we really learn a lot. 2:43 It’s great to network and to get to know people. 2:48 I met some women at the conference in Atlanta when I went to the Child death investigation training that are going to be in Vegas. 2:55 I’m looking forward to seeing them again. 2:58 It’s fun. 2:59 It’s definitely a community kind of like, you know, firefighters and police officers, we are our own community, and we are filled with different people. 3:11 I absolutely love it. 3:12 I am looking forward to that conference as well and that is coming up. 3:17 We’ll be gone next week, and they have a lot of events for us. 3:21 A lot of fun things. 3:23 And I also occasionally I think the last time I went, I got to see a couple of doctors I used to work with in Houston. 3:30 It’s kind of like a reunion of sorts. 3:32 That’ll be a lot of fun. 3:35 I was at work yesterday and I wanted to kind of tell you all about part of my day. 3:42 It’s humbling to say the least. 3:44 But this is what I dislike. 3:48 I think the most about this career field. 3:52 And I think a lot of people will agree having to notify family of a death. 4:00 It’s always been the hardest part for me. 4:03 I know that I just always kind of imagine myself on the other end of the conversation. 4:09 And I’m sure that, you know, a lot of people when we have to do this question, whether or not we are, who we say we are. 4:19 A lot of people initially think that it’s a joke or that we’re kidding or it’s not possible, but I do not like calling people to tell them that their loved one has passed away. 4:33 We don’t like to do that. 4:35 We will typically go to the residence and tell them with an officer, but in this case, it was out of county, and I wasn’t able to or in these two cases, and I didn’t have addresses. 4:47 I didn’t know where to go. 4:50 Sometimes the urgency is of course, letting the family know as soon as possible. 4:56 In one of the cases, the gentleman was transported there from a public facility. 5:05 And so his wife did not know. If it happens to someone at home, obviously, you know, normally their family is going to find him. 5:13 But in this particular case, he was at a public venue and was found unresponsive and was transported to the hospital. 5:21 She did not know I did not have a
Roadside Horror Revisited: Joe “The Cannibal” Metheny
In this bone-chilling episode, we delve into the horrifying tale of Serial Killer, Joe Metheny. Brace yourself as we uncover the dark and disturbing story of a seemingly ordinary food vendor who harbored a deadly secret. Join us as we navigate the twisted mind of Joe Metheny, exploring the shocking details of his crimes, his methods of luring unsuspecting victims, the unimaginable horrors he committed, and the customers that unknowingly consumed human flesh from his roadside food truck.
Revisiting the Holiday Murder of Rhonda Hinson
In this episode, we’re taking a closer look at the heartbreaking 1981 murder of 19-year-old Rhonda Hinson, a North Carolina teen whose life was brutally cut short just two days before Christmas.
Revisiting Horrifying Halloween Homicides
Hey y’all, it’s Julie Mattson, your host of Pushing Up Lilies, and today, we’re revisiting one of my favorite episodes to creep back into the Halloween spirit. We all know October is a magical time full of costumes, candy, and carved pumpkins… but for some families, Halloween brings tragedy, not treats. This episode kicks off a chilling series I’m doing all month long, focusing on real murders that happened on or around Halloween night. In today’s story, we take a dark look at what happens when family ties snap in the most unthinkable way, fathers killing sons… and sons killing fathers. So grab your pumpkin spice, turn down the lights, and let’s dive into the twisted true crime tales behind the masks. * Listener discretion is advised. EPISODE TRANSCRIPT:02:12 I can remember waiting out by the road and my sister walking up this long sidewalk, of course, they had the outside decorated, didn’t look too scary, so we weren’t really initially too terrified. But they pulled her into the house and then made her screen before they gave her candy. I was completely freaked out, I’m like, Oh no, forget it, I’m not going in there. I took off running home, I don’t care if they’re giving me a whole snickers bar, I’m not going in, so I ran home. That’s one way to save money on candy because all the kids are going to run away, and you might get one or two that aren’t afraid, that are going to actually go inside and scream. I mean, now I’ll look at it and laugh, but that would never fly these days, because if someone pulled your kid into their house… The SWAT team would be there. 04:59 So dad reached in, pulled out a Pixie stick and actually loosened the powder by rubbing it around in his hands and poured it into Timothy’s mouth, and then gave him a drink of Kool-Aide. So Timothy immediately started vomiting and actually died on the way to the hospital, at this time he was eight years old. So the story was that Ronald, the dad, was actually about $100,000 in debt, so prior to this, he had taken out life insurance policies on both of the kids, $20,000 life insurance policies. Literally, like Timothy dies on October 31st and on November 1, the very next morning 9am, Ronald’s on the phone with a life insurance company trying to collect on the policy. Come to find out he had also gone to a friend who worked at a chemical plant and asked a lot of questions about potassium cyanide and how much of it is needed to actually kill a human and different things like that. But the story of what happened is, the kids had all knocked on the door at a house and no one answered, they weren’t home. So the kids ran next door to another house while Ronald had four giant pixies in his pocket that he had laced with potassium cyanide, and he actually folded the end over and stapled them shut. He caught up with the kids and he’s like, Hey, you all have some rich neighbors, and he put a giant Pixie stick in each of the four kids bags. 08:26 So William Jr, who went by BJ, was the son of William Liske, and William married a lady named Sue who had two sons, Devin and Derek. Susan and William got married back in 01, and it’s always hard when you try to merge two families, especially when there are young children, it’s just very, very challenging. And so this case is no different, the father kind of found himself torn and struggling between his relationship with his wife and his relationship with his son. So Susan’s son Devin was older, and he came home one day after church and he had spent the night with his dad. He went to play some video games when he got home, and then he started realizing the house was really quiet, it was Halloween, and he thought that everybody would be up and getting ready to go trick or treating or just getting ready for the excitement of Halloween. But it was really quiet. So he made his way to his parents room, they were both covered in a quilt, and he started speaking to them and they didn’t speak. So he went over to his mother’s side of the bed and shook her, she didn’t respond. When he pulled the blanket off of her and William, he saw blood. 13:34 So that’s another murder that happened on Halloween. I found those two very interesting, one where dad killed his son and one where the son killed the dad, as well as the rest of the family. Of course, not to say that only bad things like this happened on Halloween, because we all know that that’s not true. But I thought just concentrating on these murders that occurred in October, specifically on Halloween Day, would be very interesting for this series. I know that a lot of these are cases that we don’t hear of every day, or cases that haven’t been on the news, and so I like to touch on stories that you don’t hear so much about, and stories that are new news, instead of going over stories that we all know, and things that we’ve all heard before. Again, two very interesting cases, I’m looking forward to doing research on more Halloween deaths. I know that we’ve all seen the movie Halloween and all of the sequels, I think there’s 11 now and then there’s a new one coming out on… I think October 14th of this year, 2022. But we all love the story of Michael Myers, who was committed to a sanitarium as a child because he murdered his sister Judith, and then 15 years later, he escapes and stalks and kills people in this fictional town in
Revisiting Joe ‘The Cannibal’ Metheny: A Killer’s Deadly Menu
This week on Pushing Up Lilies, we’re revisiting one of the most disturbing cases we’ve ever covered – Joe ‘The Cannibal’ Metheny. This bone-chilling episode takes a deep dive into the twisted world of a serial killer who didn’t just take lives… he served them up.
