Breakdown

For decades, the Georgia Guidestones were nothing more than kitschy roadside Americana…a curiosity people visited for fun, intrigue…and the occasional pagan ritual. But something changed in 2022. The Guidestones became a flashpoint. How did a kitschy southern oddity become the site of an act of domestic terrorism? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Looking back on seasons past with Bill Rankin and what's next for Albert and Ashley. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ashley and Albert's attorneys have fought all the way to the Georgia Supreme Court. The stakes couldn't be higher. Ultimately, the justices find fault with what happened at the couple's trial and vacate their sentences. But they aren't free hanging over their heads is the chance the district attorney will try them again. But an unexpected turn once again changes the couple's lives forever. And they each must adapt to a new life, one haunted by loss. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Wisconsin Innocence Project attorney Carrie Sperling has a specialty: freeing people wrongly convicted of child abuse. When she receives a letter from Ashley Debelbot and reads the case file, she decides to take the case. A team of skilled Georgia attorneys and medical experts join her to find out what really happened to baby McKenzy. What they discover lands them in court, arguing their clients' innocence. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A jailhouse snitch says Albert told him a shocking story. Ashley and Albert take the stand in their own defense but they're no match for a hard-charging prosecutor. They're convicted and sentenced to life in prison. But the couple makes a vow: they will fight. They will prove their innocence. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Charged with murder, Ashley and Albert find themselves with few resources. Ashley's lower-middle class family hires a local attorney while Albert gets a public defender. The couple maintains their innocence, but they're up against tough odds: their attorneys are at loggerheads and the judge in the case has a concerning past. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a matter of a few days, Ashley and Albert have gone from excited new parents to a couple utterly devastated. Their infant has died. And as the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and local police close in on them, the couple makes a critical decision to remain united. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In their 20s and in love, Georgia military couple Ashley and Albert Debelbot are overjoyed to welcome their baby girl, McKenzy. After a 15-hour labor, she arrives. The couple take her home and settle in for the night only to be awakened by a disturbing sound. Ashley and Albert then make a startling discovery…kicking off a series of events that will turn into a living nightmare. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jury selection isn’t fast, but it is fascinating. Prospective jurors in the Harris case speak of magical powers, preconceived notions and their favorite TV shows. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Neither the prosecution nor the defense is ready. The prosecution asks for a continuance, saying it would be unfair to proceed because the defense is unprepared. The defense calls the move "transparently disingenuous," saying it's really the prosecution that wants more time. Meanwhile, prosecutors get slammed for continuing to search for a motive long after they indicted Tex McIver for murder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After a long winter’s delay, the murder trial of The State v. Claud “Tex” McIver is to begin on March 5. Tex says his wife Diane’s death was a tragic accident; the district attorney says he intentionally shot her in the back. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Bill Rankin returns to bring you Season 5 of the newspaper’s Breakdown podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The state opens the Claud "Tex" McIver murder trial by detonating some new bombshells. McIver, the prosecution says, provided six different versions of what happened to his wife on the night she was shot. Or did he? Among the first prosecution witnesses was Emory University Hospital ER physician Suzanne Hardy, who treated Diane McIver the night she died. Yes, Hardy testified, Diane told her the shooting was an accident. And no, Hardy testified, Diane did not want to see her husband before she was intubated and rendered unable to speak. Diane McIver died shortly afterward. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices