Hi, crime junkies. I'm your host Ashley Flowers and I'm Brett and today's

episode is one that is really important to us here at AudioChut because April

is child abuse prevention month here in the United States and for the past

a few months we've been working with an organization called Darkness to

Light which is doing really difficult but really important work to address

childhood sexual abuse. I know this is a hard thing to think about. It's

even harder to talk about but that is why we need to be talking about it and if

you have children of your own or plan to someday or even if they're just

children in your life that you want to love and want to help protect then please

stay tuned until the end of this episode because we've also included some

really helpful information from our partners at Darkness to Light about what

you should look for in terms of spotting childhood sexual abuse, what to do if

you suspect it's happening and how to protect the kids you love. But first I

want to tell you a story. A story about a mother of three who walked out her front

door into the New York morning and never came home leaving a mess of heartbreak

suspicion and unanswered questions in her way. It took almost 15 years for

investigators to finally untangle the horrifying truth about what happened and

why. This is the story of Peggy Realm.

It's a cold night in February in 1990 in Syracuse, New York and 14-year-old

Jerry Lynn Realm can't stop thinking about her mom Peggy. Peggy who is 31

years old was a no-show at Jerry Lynn's 14th birthday party a few days ago and

while Jerry Lynn and her brothers Scott and Bill live with their dad whose name

...