#21: The Murder That Revealed a Daughter’s Secret Life

A life built on lies, a murder that shocked the world—uncover the truth behind one of the most disturbing family crimes in recent history.

A woman is found dead inside her home—stabbed multiple times, left in a pool of blood. Her daughter, who is believed to be severely disabled and dependent on a wheelchair, is missing. So is the chair. An alert is issued, and fears quickly grow: has she been abducted, or is she in danger herself?

When authorities finally locate her, the scene is not what anyone expected. She’s walking—unaided—and healthy. As investigators begin piecing together how that’s possible, a disturbing truth begins to surface.

What followed was the unraveling of a disturbing and complex story. One that raised unsettling questions about abuse, identity, and accountability.

And about what happens when a life has been so thoroughly manipulated, that the only path forward seems to be escape—at any cost.

LISTEN AD-FREE AND A DAY EARLY ON - https://patreon.com/NightwatchFiles

 www.nightwatchfiles.com

SUPPORT THE SHOW & LISTEN AD-FREE
Join our Patreon and unlock ad-free episodes directly in Apple Podcasts or Spotify after you connect your Patreon account.

Patreon: patreon.com/NightwatchFiles
Apple (after joining): bit.ly/4i7XcNW
Spotify (after joining): bit.ly/4oVVEsT

 www.nightwatchfiles.com

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Before we begin. Do you have a theory about this
case or a story of your own? Leave a message
on our socials. Our handles are all just night watch
Files without the space, or head over to night watchfiles
dot com to find them all in one place. Your
insights might be featured in a future episode. I'm Harper
Finley and this is night Watch Files. Content warning. This

(00:27):
episode includes references to child abuse, medical abuse, and graphic violence.
Some listeners may find the material distressing, especially for survivors
of abuse. Listener discretion is strongly advised. In the early
hours of June fourteenth, twenty fifteen, a series of disturbing
messages appeared on a shared Facebook account belonging to Claudine

(00:49):
d D Blanchard and her daughter Gipsy. The first post
was brief and jarring. It read that bitch is dead.
An hour later, another men message followed, longer, more graphic,
and deeply unsettling. Concerned by the posts and unable to
reach d D by phone, neighbors contacted the police. Officers

(01:10):
arrived at the Blanchard's small pink house in Springfield, Missouri,
and forced their way inside. D D was found in
her bedroom, lying face down on the mattress. Her body
was surrounded by blood. She had been stabbed multiple times.
There was no sign of Gypsy. To those who knew
the Blanchards, the situation was baffling. Gypsy was believed to

(01:32):
be gravely ill, with the mental capacity of a child.
She used a wheelchair, feeding tube, and oxygen. According to
her mother, she had suffered from leukemia, muscular dystrophy, epilepsy,
and a long list of other conditions since early childhood.
If Gypsy wasn't in the house, neighbors feared the worst.
An urgent nationwide search was launched. But when authorities located

(01:54):
Gypsy just a day later, alive and well and walking
without assistance, the case took a turn no one had anticipated.
What followed was the unraveling of a disturbing and complex story,
one that raised unsettling questions about abuse, identity, and accountability,
and about what happens when a life has been so
thoroughly manipulated that the only path forward seems to be

(02:17):
escape at any cost. Claudine Petrie was born on or

(02:55):
around July third, nineteen sixty seven, in the town of
Golden Meadow, Louisiana, a small Cajun community near the Gulf Coast.
It was the kind of place where families stayed for generations.
The Petries were among them French Cajun through and through. Claudine,
who would later become known as d D, was the
youngest of six children in the Petrie family. Names carried weight.

(03:17):
Three of the siblings were named in direct reference to
their father, Claude. There was Claude Junior, Claudia, and Claudine.
It was unusual and suggested something about how the father
saw himself and possibly how he wanted to be seen.
At home. Things weren't as simple as they appeared. D
D's mother, Emma, known to the family as Momsy. Emma,

(03:39):
often kept her daughter out of school, claiming she was
sick when she wasn't. The pattern was consistent. Friends and
neighbors may have thought d D was fragile, but the
truth was more complicated. There was no documented illness, just isolation.
There was also a silence around something darker. From a
young age, d D was molested by her father. The

(04:01):
abuse occurred during shared baths, sometimes while her mother moved
in and out of the bathroom. It wasn't acknowledged, It
wasn't spoken about. The trauma remained buried part of a
private and unresolved family history. As a child, d d
began drinking vinegar in the belief that it would make
her skin paler, whiter, more beautiful. By age twelve, she

(04:23):
had gained weight and reportedly tried to lose it by
wrapping her midsection in plastic wrap trying to sweat it off.
Her mother's comments didn't help. Emma regularly called her fat,
berating her over her appearance. The constant pressure led to
disordered eating, first anorexia, then bulimia. By the time DeeDee
reached her final year of high school, she had lost

(04:44):
nearly two hundred pounds, subsisting for a full year on
rice cakes alone. The timing of the weight loss coincided
with puberty. Whether intentional or not, it seemed like an
effort to erase something, an attempt to regain control over
a body that that had been violated. In nineteen eighty six,
during her senior year at South Laforcee High d d

(05:05):
was crowned rotc Queen. It became a defining moment in
her personal narrative for years after. She would claim the
title led her into a series of statewide pageants recounting
them as milestones in a glamorous past, but records show
the pageants were limited, an obligation tied only to the
ROTC title. Still, it was one of the few times

(05:27):
she had been recognized and praised. She clung to it.
Around this time, d D began to tell stories. She
claimed rock stars had fallen in love with her. She
said she'd inspired songs. At one point, she insisted she
had a romantic relationship with Jack Russell, the lead singer
of the band Great White. She framed a photo taken

(05:47):
with him and called it proof, but it was a
simple fan photo, nothing more. She sent herself flowers and
claimed they came from musicians. The lies weren't always grand,
but they built on each other, aping a version of
herself that was more interesting, more admired, more loved. There
was also a history of theft in the family. Dede's

(06:08):
grandmother had been arrested for shoplifting and banned from certain stores.
The behavior appeared to run in the bloodline. Despite a
stable middle class upbringing, d D also stole. According to
those who knew her later, it wasn't about need, it
was about the thrill. After graduating high school, she completed
two years of college, but never went on to nursing school,

(06:31):
as she'd once planned. By the late nineteen eighties, she
was in her early twenties and working in a hospital,
not as a nurse, just a general employee. She spoke
often about her dreams of being somebody, but by the
time she was twenty three, she was drifting. The past
hadn't been dealt with, The trauma had never been spoken aloud.

(06:53):
What remained was the aftermath, shaped by secrecy, performance, and control.
It would define the years to come. In nineteen ninety,
d d met a seventeen year old named Rod Blanchard
at a local bowling alley in Louisiana. Rod had recently
signed himself out of high school and taken up work
as a trawler, following in his father's footsteps. He was

(07:15):
young but independent, already working full time. D Dee introduced
herself and claimed she was twenty one. In reality, she
was two years older than that, but Rod had no
reason to doubt her. She had her own car, afford fiesta,
and could legally buy alcohol to a teenage boy. It
made her seem worldly and mature. Rod would later describe

(07:36):
himself as an easygoing kid. He was flattered by Dede's
attention and misread her interest as something straightforward. He thought
he'd gotten lucky with an older woman. They started dating.
She drove him to bars in Biloxi, took him to
see hair bands in New Orleans, and hung around clubs
where the music scene blurred with her past claims of

(07:57):
rock star infatuation. D D kept up the illusion of
her groupie lifestyle, insisting on the story she'd once had
a relationship with Jack Russell. Rod didn't ask many questions.
He believed what she told him. Early on, she claimed
she was a virgin. It was inconsistent with the rest
of her stories, but Rod accepted it. From the outside,

(08:19):
there were no signs of manipulation. Only later would those
pieces fall into place. Rod's mother, Sharon, worked at the
public library. One day, she found a book returned with
d D's name on the checkout card. The title was
How to Get Pregnant Fast. Sharon warned her son, suspecting
d d's intentions weren't entirely honest. When Rod confronted d D,

(08:41):
she didn't deny it. Instead, she became angry, Enraged that
Sharon had seen the record at all. D d attempted
to have her fired, claiming it was a violation of confidentiality.
The attempt failed, but the episode stayed with Rod. It
was the first time he saw what others would later
describe as d D's did taste for retaliation. A minor

(09:02):
slight could provoke a disproportionate response. Not long after De
Dee became pregnant. The child's conception wasn't accidental. Whether Rod
believed that at the time is unclear, but her intentions
in retrospect appeared deliberate. The baby was born on July
twenty seventh, nineteen ninety one. Her name was Gipsy Rose Blanchard.

(09:23):
Rod wasn't present. He was at the Tarpenrodeo, a four
day fishing tournament on Grand Isle. According to his own account,
he was intoxicated and high, unaware that the birth was
under way. From the beginning, d de claimed complete possession
over her child. She would often say it was us
against the world. She told Rod that the baby had

(09:43):
sleep apnea. That was the first in a long string
of medical claims. Rod took it seriously. He moved back
in hoping to make things work. They rented a house
together and tried to build a life, but the relationship
was strained. Rod was gone for weeks at a time
working off shore. When he returned, nothing had changed. The
marriage didn't last. In nineteen ninety two, they divorced. D

(10:07):
D retained custody and Rod saw the child occasionally, but
the visits were limited. Over time, d D's claims about
the baby's health grew more frequent and more serious. She
said the infant required a se pat machine, but years
later no medical records could confirm a diagnosis. There were
no prescriptions, no doctor visits, and no paperwork that would

(10:29):
explain where the machine had come from. It may have
been bought, second hand or stolen. The early pattern was clear.
Medical problems gave d D an explanation for her circumstances.
They allowed her to demand attention, to control information, and
to justify her stalled career. Doctors often took her at
her word, especially when symptoms couldn't be measured. Her experience

(10:52):
working in a hospital may have helped. She knew how
to sound credible. Her tone was confident, and she rarely
allowed herself to be contradicted. The lies had begun and
they would only escalate from there. In the early years
of Gypsy's life, she lived in what was known as
the Blue House. This weathered structure sat in Golden Meadow, Louisiana,

(11:14):
home to her maternal grandparents, Claude and Emma Petrie. It
was here, during approximately five years of her childhood, that
the foundation of trauma would be laid. The circumstances that
brought Gypsy to this house were themselves telling of the
instability that would define her early years. Her mother had
recently married Rod Blanchard, only to separate from him shortly after.

(11:37):
With nowhere else to turn, d D returned to her
childhood home, bringing young Gypsy with her. Within the walls
of the Blue House, a disturbing pattern emerged. What should
have been a place of safety and protection became something
far more sinister. The abuse centered around what appeared to
be an established ritual bath time in the old claw

(11:58):
foot tub that sat in the family bathroom. The routine
was methodical. Gypsy, around five years old, would be positioned
on the toilet seat as an observer to what unfolded Next.
Her mother d D and her grandfather Claude, would undress
and enter the tub. Together. D D would wash Claud's back,
and when it came time for him to turn around,

(12:20):
she would call out those chilling words, it's your turn.
At this point, d D would exit the tub, undress
her young daughter, and place her in the water with
claud What happened next was nothing short of child sexual abuse,
disguised under the pretense of bathing. Claude would touch Gypsy inappropriately,
referring to his actions as washing her pekan, a euphemism

(12:44):
that would haunt Gipsy's memories for years to come. Perhaps
most disturbing was d D's role in these encounters. Rather
than protecting her daughter, she would facilitate the abuse, sometimes
leaving the bathroom entirely, checking on them only intermittently. Her complicity,
whether through wilful ignorance or active participation, represents a profound

(13:05):
betrayal of the most fundamental duty of a parent to
protect their child. For Gipsy, trapped in the innocence of childhood,
these experiences were processed through the limited understanding of a
five year old mind. She had no framework to recognize
the inappropriateness of what was happening to her. In her
young perception, this was simply how families behaved, she believed

(13:30):
that daddies take bath time with their daughters, viewing Claude's
lingering touches as expressions of familial love rather than the
predatory behavior they actually were. This normalization of abuse would
have profound implications for Gipsy's development and her ability to
recognize appropriate boundaries in relationships. The very people who should

(13:52):
have been her protectors had instead become her abusers, creating
a distorted foundation of what love and care looked like.
The abuse in the Blue House represents a pattern of
intergenerational trauma and dysfunction that would continue to shape Gypsy's
life in devastating ways. The failure of the adults in
her life to protect her during these formative years would

(14:14):
contribute to the complex psychological landscape that permeated most of
Gypsy's life. Quick break ads keep the show running, but

(14:39):
if you want to skip them the ad free versions
on Patreon for just three bucks a month. Links in
the show notes and we're back. Thanks for sticking through that.
Let's get back to it. In nineteen ninety nine, Gypsy
had been riding on the back of her grandfather Claw

(15:00):
Odds Harley Davidson when a car abruptly cut them off.
He swerved to avoid a collision, and they sideswiped off
the road. She came away from the crash with scrapes
and bruises, road rash, nothing more. Her mother rushed her
to the hospital, where doctors cleared her no broken bones,
no internal injuries. But when they returned home, d D

(15:21):
treated the incident like a trauma far more serious. She
began nursing her daughter as if she'd suffered a life
altering injury. First came a walker, then physical therapy, and
finally a wheelchair. From that point on, d D insisted
her daughter remained seated at all times, not just in public,
but in the privacy of their home as well. There

(15:43):
was no medical reason for the wheelchair. D D simply
brought it home one day and expected it to be used.
Her daughter was never allowed to move independently again. As
the girl grew older, d D maintained strict control. If
she so much as twitched her legs would notice gipsy,
I see you moving your legs, she would say, sometimes

(16:05):
wrapping her knee to make the point stop moving them.
The chair was a daily reinforcement of control, a habit
that had to be maintained in the early years, d
D told people that the wheelchair was necessary because of
the motorcycle crash, but over time her stories changed. When
they moved to a new town or met new doctors,
the explanation shifted. At one point, d D claimed seizures

(16:28):
had caused brain damage. By twenty twelve, a cardiologist's record
stated that the girl was a quadriplegic from birth. That
meant she was supposedly paralyzed from the neck down, and
yet nobody questioned it. Some family members did challenge d D.
They didn't believe the child needed a wheelchair, but that
only caused d D to pack up and leave, removing

(16:51):
her daughter from anyone who might intervene. It was a
familiar pattern. When people started asking questions, d D disappeared.
A KAID funded power wheelchair was eventually approved a Jazzy HD,
but d D stopped using it. Instead, she chose a
standard foldable wheelchair, one that had to be pushed, one

(17:11):
that gave her full control. She could dictate when and
where her daughter moved. The chair became another tool of dependency. Later,
her daughter would call it a mirage, an unnecessary prop
that fooled everyone around them. The wheelchair was only part
of the control. Soon after the crash, when Gipsy was
around nine years old, d D arranged for a feeding

(17:33):
tube to be surgically inserted into her abdomen. There was
no legitimate medical reason, but d D offered plenty of
false ones, a fear of eating, swallowing problems, food allergies, cancer.
She told different people different things. The goal was control.
The tube wasn't used for real meals. It was strictly
for water, nutritional supplements like PediaSure and medication for taste.

(17:58):
Gypsy was allowed to use a baby a preference. D
D continued to justify into her daughter's twenties by claiming
she was very mentally slow. It was one of the
only ways she was permitted to eat. By the time
she was twenty four, she weighed just ninety two pounds.
Gipsy described the feeding tube as an umbilical cord between them.

(18:18):
D D could turn the supply on and off at will,
a human spigot. There was no autonomy, not even over hunger.
She hated the feeding tube. She remembered being terrified when
doctors told her they would have to cut into her
abdomen to insert it, but she had no choice. Like
the wheelchair, it became another symbol of d d's total
control over her body in life. D D. Blanchard's deception

(18:54):
went far beyond a single lie. Over many years, she
wove an intricate web of falsehoods, convincing charities, government agencies,
and medical professionals that her daughter was chronically and severely ill.
This was a carefully crafted performance designed to secure aid
sympathy and material benefits. D D was a natural story teller.

(19:16):
She knew how to pick her words to ensnare the listener,
creating elaborate, evolving narratives about Gypsy's health. Each time they
moved to a new town, the stories grew more complex.
She claimed Gypsy had a low IQ, citing imaginary seizures
or a chromosomal abnormality she had found and exploited as proof.
Her fabrications were layered, detailed, and convincing. When Hurricane Katrina

(19:41):
struck in two thousand five, d D seized the opportunity
to deepen her deception. She told agencies that all their
medical records had been lost in the storm, painting themselves
as refugees and victims with dead relatives and lost possessions.
This narrative helped secure housing through Habitat for Humanity in Missouri,
where they moved and were welcomed with open arms. D

(20:04):
D studied the system closely, learning how to live off
the system by applying for multiple benefits. She acquired several
government issued phones, each tied to different programs. She manipulated
charity schemes designed to reimburse travel costs for medical visits.
Even when they flew free via angel flight, she still
collected gas money, pocketing funds without actually driving anywhere. Her

(20:28):
control extended to manipulating information itself. D D provided inconsistent
details about Gypsy's birth date and personal data, sometimes changing
her age to appear younger after Gypsy began menstruating. This
was done to prevent doctor's catastrophic reactions on official documents.
Gypsy's last name was spelled in varying ways, sometimes with

(20:50):
a hyphen, other times with an extra e at the
end Blanchard, possibly to avoid detection or create distance from
her father. D D even fake medical symptoms. She pricked
her own finger to add blood to a urine sample,
simulating kidney problems. She reported severe allergic reactions to kidney dye,
though doctors never witnessed any These claims became accepted facts

(21:13):
recorded with a mere pen stroke. Food allergies were another
fabricated element, including an allergy to sugar. Despite allowing Gipsy
to eat fruit freely in public and private, d D
controlled every word Gypsy spoke. She scripted phone calls, spoke
over her, and hovered to keep the narrative intact. Gypsy
was stripped of her voice, unable to express herself without

(21:36):
her mother's interference. D D isolated her from family and
school officials, claiming she was homeschooled. Another lie. The benefits
flowed in food stamps, disability checks, medical insurance covering custom
power wheelchairs. D De basted in the attention, the sympathy,
and the media spotlight. The fabricated illnesses gave her a

(21:57):
kind of martyrdom, a public persona she craved. Gypsy later
described her mother's Munchausen by proxy as a backstage passed
to an internal cinematic show only d DE controlled. As
Gypsy grew, older cracks began to show. She realized the
wheelchair was a prop, the feeding tube a symbol of
her mother's absolute control. Slowly, awareness grew, setting the stage

(22:20):
for a desperate fight for freedom. D D. Blanchard's deception

(22:46):
extended beyond fabricated illnesses to include criminal behavior, notably teaching
Gypsy Rose to shoplift from a very young age. This
was part of a pattern of manipulation and control that
made the deeper layers of their troubled relationship. Gypsy later
learned that kleptomania ran in Dde's family. Her grandmother, Emma,

(23:06):
had a history of stealing and was banned from food
and clothing stores multiple times. Despite growing up in a comfortable,
middle class home. Emma's thefts were thought to be driven
by the thrill rather than necessity, a tendency that seemed
to have passed down to d D. Gypsy believed that
sometimes they stole because they simply couldn't afford certain items,

(23:29):
but just as often d D seemed to enjoy the
satisfaction of getting away with it. She taught Gypsy the
art of shoplifting, turning Gypsy's wheelchair into a tool for concealment.
D D would knock items into Gypsy's lap or hide
goods beneath the tool of her princess dresses for items
that couldn't be easily hidden. D D showed Gypsy how

(23:50):
to swap barcodes, removing a cheaper price tag and placing
it on a more expensive item before using the self
checkout lane. They targeted places like Sam's Club, where no
metal detectors allowed Gypsy to hide a dozen or more
CDs on her person. Hobby Lobby was another frequent target,
with arts and craft supplies making up much of the

(24:11):
stolen merchandise, materials Gypsy would later use in her own
drawings and paintings. One day at Hobby Lobby, the alarm
was triggered. A manager and employee confronted them outside the store,
the manager demanding a search of Gypsy, specifically where the
stolen crafts were hidden under her dress. D D feigned

(24:31):
outrage with a staged victim's voice, but the search uncovered
the sticky, glittery contraband they were taken to the back
office and police were called. Charges were pressed. The result,
d D and Gypsy were banned from all Hobby Lobby
stores nationwide. D D was furious about the incident, frustrated
at having to hire an attorney, yet the band did

(24:53):
not stop her from stealing elsewhere. Gypsy later realized many
stolen items were never even used. They were trophies of deception.
D D had a criminal passed in Louisiana with several charges,
but these never followed her after they moved states, allowing
her to evade consequences. De Deee's control was also evident
in how she managed Gipsy's emerging womanhood. When Gipsy got

(25:17):
her first period at thirteen, d D responded not with comfort,
but with coldness. Gipsy thought the blood was barbecue sauce
and cried out. Frightened, DeeDee told her, you're bleeding, baby.
You're going to bleed like that for a good part
of your life, but offered no explanation about menstruation or
what it meant. Instead of pads or tampons, d D

(25:39):
gave Gipsy a clean pull up diaper. This lack of
nurture left Gipsy feeling ashamed and confused. D D lied
to doctors for years afterward, insisting Gipsy had never started menstruating.
This caused concern and led to repeated tests, including invasive
catheter insertions and examinations of her pituitary gland. After Gipsy's

(26:01):
period began, d D started to manipulate her age on
official documents, knocking back years to avoid medical scrutiny. D
d's suppression of Gypsy's womanhood extended beyond menstruation. She discouraged
toys that revealed female anatomy, preferring clean baby dolls. She
insisted breasts were sinful and had to be covered, and

(26:21):
that pubic hair was dirty and must be shaved. Gipsy
suspected this was a form of brainwashing designed to keep
her childlike, matching the fabricated medical narrative d D had created.
Even Gipsy's appearance was controlled, d D kept her hair short,
fearing that longer hair made her look like her father,
whom d D despised. Gipsy Rose Blanchard's struggle with addiction

(26:51):
was closely tied to the controlling and manipulative behavior of
her mother. Gipsy began abusing d d's prescription painkillers, seeking
relief from the isolation and oppression she endured daily. Though
Gipsy occasionally received pain medication for dental work or minor surgeries,
d D had frequent prescriptions for vicodin and oxycodone, prescribed

(27:12):
for chronic kidney stones and persistent leg pain. As Gipsy
grew into her teenage years and started pushing back against
Dede's restrictions, their arguments intensified After one particularly harsh, yelling match,
Gypsy turned to the pain killers, not for physical pain,
but to find calm. What started as occasional use quickly

(27:33):
became dependency. The pills were a thrilling turbulence, a friend
to depend on, numbing her emotional pain and loneliness. Dedie
was aware of Gypsy's use but said nothing, possibly preferring it.
When her direct control failed, as the drugs effectively shut
her up, the addiction escalated. One pill wasn't enough. Gipsy

(27:55):
began doubling doses, eventually crushing pills to inject them through
her feeding tube for an instant high. This state lowered
her inhibitions, giving her the courage to express herself in
chat rooms, posting selfies in whigs showing cleavage, something unthinkable
under d d's strict supervision. D d's anger surfaced only
when her own supply ran low. On one occasion, when

(28:17):
a pharmacy refused an early refill, d D dragged Gipsy
to the police station and concocted a story. They claimed
they'd been robbed in a wal Mart parking lot and
that thugs had stolen d d's pain medication bottle. This
police report allowed d D to secure an early refill,
maintaining the flow of drugs for both of them. D

(28:38):
d's manipulation extended into self harm and emotional blackmail. Gipsy
recalls noticing raised red marks carved into d D's arm,
spelling the word pain. D D said the marks helped
relieve the pain and use the act to reinforce their
codependent relationship. I help you, you help me, she told Gipsy,
binding her to a cycle of caretaking and control. Suicide

(29:01):
threats were a frequent tactic. D D would say things like,
you know, Gipsy, I might look big like a rhino,
but I don't have the skin of one, or simply
I just want to die. Initially, Gypsy feared losing the
fragile family unit they had. Over time, she recognized these
threats as calculated attempts to guilt her wielded whenever Gipsy

(29:22):
challenged d D or asserted herself. This emotional blackmail was
designed to isolate Gypsy and prevent her from building relationships
or seeking independence. In two thousand and nine, the Department
of Family Services visited after concerns raised by a hospital.
A doctor had reported that symptoms supporting d d's claims
about Gypsy were lacking. There were also inconsistencies around Gypsy's

(29:46):
birth date and medical history. DFS aimed to see if
Gipsy was a missing juvenile and to confirm d d's
relationship to her. At the time, Gipsy was not drugged
and still trusted her mother. She was even excited to
have visitors. Two women from DFS and a deputy sheriff arrived.
D D spoke with them first, then Gipsy was interviewed. Inside,

(30:08):
they examined her arms and legs for bruises. Gypsy honestly
said there were none, yet her bedroom was a pink
and magical princess themed space. D D explained their multiple
names and locations as a way to evade Gypsy's father.
When confronted about conflicting birth dates, d D gave contradictory answers,

(30:28):
claiming she didn't know why they were wrong. The investigators
seemed to miss these glaring inconsistencies. They left without further
action and never returned. Following the visit, d D's paranoia grew.
She disconnected their doorbell and covered every window with black
trash bags. When Gypsy confronted d D about her Medicaid

(30:49):
card that revealed her real birth year as nineteen ninety one,
she called it a typo. She was living a life
believing she was four years younger. This discovery didn't immediately
shaft at her Gypsy's trust, but planted a seed of doubt.
It was a warning siren, prompting her to observe more closely,
aware that her mother's stories didn't add up. This knowledge

(31:11):
would later give her a sense of legal adulthood she
hoped to use for freedom. In twenty twelve, at age twenty,
a doctor ordered a chromosome test after struggling to explain
Gypsy's supposed illnesses. The test revealed a microdeletion on chromosome
one called one Q twenty one point one, a small
piece of chromosome one missing in each cell. Gypsy researched

(31:33):
this condition and learned it could be associated with developmental delays,
intellectual disability, physical abnormalities, and psychiatric issues. DD's list of
fabricated illnesses neatly fit under these categories. However, Gypsy emphatically
states she never exhibited any of those symptoms. Her medical
records consistently showed no abnormalities. She was not intellectually disabled,

(31:58):
despite dede's claims she had had the mind of a
seven year old. This raised questions about d d's motives.
Did she know about the micro deletion before the test
and use it as a blueprint for her lies, or
was this coincidental a rare case where a claim disorder
turned out to be real but without symptoms. Gipsy remains unsettled,

(32:19):
wondering if d D feared what the future might hold
or even shared the same genetic anomaly herself. Before this test,
d d's stories were already wildly inconsistent. She told some
people Gypsy was wheelchair bound due to a car accident.
Others heard muscular dystrophy. These fabrications long predated the microdeletion discovery,
showing d d's pattern of deception. In March twenty eleven,

(32:47):
Gypsy Rose Blanchard met Dan online through Facebook after adding
people she met at a pop culture convention. Dan was
in his thirties and initially believed Gipsy was just fifteen.
Over several months, they spoke secret exploring who Gypsy might
be beyond her mother's control. They talked about simple things, hair color,
favorite restaurants, music, and even kissing. Most importantly, Dan became

(33:11):
the first person Gypsy ever told she could walk. She
confided how d D spun false stories, scolded her for
moving her legs, and how doctors were beginning to question her.
Often high. During these conversations, Gipsy dreamed of escaping with Dan.
It was during this time that Gypsy discovered her true
birth year, nineteen ninety one on her Medicaid card. This

(33:34):
revelation meant she was actually nineteen, not fifteen, as d
D claimed. Dan told her, if this is true, you
don't have to stay with her. You can start a
new life. Gipsy later reflected this was a natural urge
to separate from her mother, fueled by growing up in
hormones pushing her toward rebellion. That rebellion was met with violence.

(33:55):
One day in April twenty eleven, d D caught Gypsy
on the phone with Dan. Gipsy dropped to the floor,
covering her head as d D grabbed the phone and
hung up. Calm but Furious Dede ordered her into her
wheelchair and into the van. There, d D called her
a goddamn whore. Before pulling into a Kansas City alley,

(34:16):
she punched Gipsy's legs with closed fists, hitting every healthy
muscle in her thighs, causing redness and blood blisters. D
D screamed questions, what did you tell him? Where did
you meet him? Who is he? How much did you
tell him? Each one followed by a blow. She dug
her nails into Gipsy's face and said, I hate you.

(34:36):
Gipsy felt d D was trying to assert total control.
The bruises on her legs were the true colors of
her soul, black and blue. After the attack, d D
called Dan and threatened him, warning, you know she's only fifteen.
If you contact her again, I'll call the cops. Gipsy's
first escape attempt came shortly after. On Good Friday, April

(34:57):
twenty second, she packed a bag with clothes, allilo and stitch,
movie her baby bottle, stole an oxy cotone, and left
a note explaining she was really nineteen and wanted independence.
She walked to a neighbor's house and asked for a
ride to the hospital where Dan was recovering from a beating,
but d D tracked her down with the help of
friends from the convention. When d D confronted Gypsy at

(35:19):
Dan's friend's house early the next morning, she bargained promising,
if you come back with me, I will let you
see him. Gipsy believed her and returned. Once home, DeeDee
found Lingerie in Gipsy's bag, forced her to take a
pregnancy test, and smashed her laptop and phone. Deede then
performed a gree Gree ritual, burying a mason jar in

(35:41):
the back yard near the shed containing a photo of
Gypsy and Dan, a cow's tongue to silence her, and
some of Gypsy's period blood. Dee Dee chanted by God.
Gypsy Rose will never find true love. Gypsy Rose will
never find happiness. Gipsy interpreted it as a curse that
Gypsy will never be free To keep control. D D

(36:01):
handcuffed Gipsy to a dog leash and attached it to
herself or the bedpost. For two weeks, Gypsy was at
d D's mercy for everything, bathroom breaks, food, even movement.
D D often starved her, feeding only broth every other day.
A knife sat by Ddee's bedside, a threat if Gypsy
tried to escape. Gipsy felt trapped close to her mother's skin,

(36:23):
but thousands of miles apart, like a simulation. By twenty twelve,
the control tightened further. After the trauma of being chained
and punished, Gypsy's desperation grew. D D restricted her more,
no longer allowing use of the custom power wheelchair and
forcing her into a foldable one she had to push.
D D became more erratic, more desperate. Gypsy hid a

(36:46):
backpack behind the couch, preparing for another escape. When d
D launched a violent search, Gypsy tried to block her
from finding it. Frustrated and cornered, Gypsy grabbed a twenty
two caliber BB gun and an old Chinese dagger from
the kitchen table. She shot ten b B pellets at
d D, cutting her flesh. Deede yelled, you shot me

(37:06):
and retreated to the bathroom. Gypsy followed, demanding her bag
and freedom. She asked, why can't I be like other kids?
Why do you shave my head? Why can't I be
like Alia? Why is my life this way? She unleashed
years of resentment over Dan, the chaining, the curse, the loneliness,
the diapers, the pills, and the surgeries. D D responded

(37:28):
with twisted affection. I love you. You are my heart and
I can't live without my heart because I need you,
Gypsy cried. D D tended to her wounds, but never
hit or tied Gypsy again. Gypsy felt a shift. They
were now equals in a strange, uneasy truce, though still
confined to a wheelchair. Their relationship spoke different languages. Quick

(38:00):
break ads keep the show running, but if you want
to skip them, the ad free versions on Patreon for
just three bucks a month, links in the show notes
and we're back. Thanks for sticking through that. Let's get
back to it. On October twelfth, twenty twelve, Gypsy Rose

(38:22):
Blanchard met Nick Gottijohn online through a Christian dating site.
By then, she was nineteen and driven by what she
described as a cliche need for a man in her life.
Gypsy Rose created a profile that allowed her to craft
a real persona. She wore a brown wig what her
hair would have looked like if Deedie hadn't shaved it off,

(38:44):
and don De a prom dress bought on clearance. For
the first time, she felt beautiful in her own body,
appreciating her breasts and hips. Her profile portrayed her as
a happy, bubbly girl interested in sci fi and fantasy,
a virgin waiting for her husband, and some one who
loved animals in the outdoors despite her sheltered life. Nick

(39:04):
winked at her profile, and Gipsy felt a surge of pride.
Someone wanted me for me, she recalled. She craved love
and attention that wasn't rooted in pity. Their relationship quickly
took a dark turn. Nick demanded sexually explicit videos of
Gypsy performing acts like sucking on a dildo. He praised
her when she did well, but threatened to withdraw his

(39:26):
love if she faltered or forgot to call him master.
This pattern of conditional affection mirrored the carrot and stick
game she had long known from her mother's manipulation. Nick
introduced her to BDSM, though Gipsy later said he didn't
really understand it and made it up as we went along.
The BDSM elements left her feeling cringed and demoralized. She

(39:48):
was uncomfortable playing his submissive, yet Nick balanced this with
an intricate fantasy world of good versus evil, filled with
mystical beasts, spells, and poison potions. It was an upside
down version of her reality that appealed to her love
of sci fi stories. Within this fantasy, she was his queen,
but with a duty to fulfill. Gipsy adopted four personas

(40:11):
in this world, Demona a half werewolf, half human kitty,
her childlike side, Candy her slutty self, and Ruby the
evil one. Through their laptop cameras, they played these roles
with Gipsy rose dressing in costume and addressing Nick as Master.
Nick was the only adult who knew the truth. She
could walk, didn't struggle to breathe at night, wasn't mentally disabled,

(40:34):
and had scars from an unnecessary surgery. Yet she felt
she was simply swapping one mask for another, telling truths
that flew right into the mud. She believed if she
was a good girl, Nick would protect her. Having a
boyfriend meant becoming a real teenager part of a culture
club filled with peers. While her mother had defeminized her, Nick,

(40:56):
in his warped way, promised she'd become a woman if
he quote carved me up with a knife. To bring
Nick into her real life, Gypsy devised a meet cute plan.
They would accidentally meet at the movie theater she frequented
with d D. Nick would appear in the lobby and
they'd pretend to meet for the first time. Gypsy believed

(41:17):
this would make d D feel involved rather than threatened.
Nick declared, I will take your virginity at the movie
theater and you will be mine forever. I will own you.
Gypsy agreed, desperate to get that part over with and
see Nick in person. They planned to meet in the
bathroom during the film. On March twelfth, twenty fifteen, Gypsy

(41:39):
dressed in a Cinderella costume in Tiara to accompany d
D to the live action Cinderella movie. She double dosed
on oxy cotone for cramps, her diaper sticky beneath the
polyester dress, but eager for her Prince Charming to appear.
Nick showed up awkward and a terrible actor. D D
didn't buy it. She found Nick creepy and demanded Gypsy

(42:01):
stay close. Gipsy convinced d D to let her go
to the bathroom alone. There in the men's restroom, Nick
followed into the wheelchair accessible stall. They kissed awkwardly, but
when Nick's hands slipped beneath her dress and encountered her
diaper and blood, he went limp. Unable to penetrate, he
pressed himself against her, claiming they were married nonetheless. Afterward,

(42:23):
d D found Gipsy staring blankly with Nick. Dede walked out,
leaving Gypsy rose nervous. Nick promised to call when he
got on the bus back to Wisconsin. Back in the
parking lot, d D ignored Gipsy, who climbed into the
passenger seat. D D flung Gypsy's wheelchair inside the van
in anger and confronted her, what were you thinking? Are

(42:45):
you trying to kill me? You know I'm not well, Gypsy.
I swear if I die, it will be you who
killed me. You already tried to shoot me once. Gipsy
thought only of getting high. At home, d D took
Gypsy's wheelchair handles and pushed her through the house to
the backyard. Gipsy pleaded, but d D called her a
liar and whore, Forcing her past the spot where the

(43:06):
cursed mason jar was buried. D D led her to
the shed. Once a childhood playhouse now a prison. As
dusk fell, d D said, you can't be trusted. Get in.
Gypsy obeyed, leaving her wheelchair behind and sitting on the
dirt among stolen clothes. Her sobs failed to reach d
d's wall of hatred and jealousy. D D slammed and

(43:28):
padlocked the shed door behind her. Gipsy was left hungry, thirsty, freezing,
and alone without her pills. She feared spiders, sent telepathic
pleas to d D, and clung to thoughts of nick.
After finding warm clothes, she finally slept, dreaming of her
real family and a police station, where she learned d
D was not your real mother and her life was

(43:49):
a lie. Morning brought numbness and despair. D D returned
around noon, triumphant, and wheeled her back inside for an
E and T appointment. At the opointment, a pulmonologist suggested
exploratory surgery on Gypsy's larynx to fix her high pitched voice.
For Gipsy, this was a threat to her literal voice
and expression. She saw it as d d's final attempt

(44:12):
to muzzle her. Gypsy pleaded hysterically, but d D refused
to discuss it. The threat to her voice, the confinement
in the shed, the failure of outsiders to recognize what
was happening, even after a visit from DFS that found
nothing wrong, all compounded into a sense of hopelessness. Gypsy
saw no way out of her life. It pushed her

(44:33):
to a breaking point. The choice to her was clear,
it's me or her. Afterwards, Gipsy double dosed on oxy
cotone and messaged Nick asking if he would still protect her,
even from her mother. He said yes. Their conversations shifted

(44:58):
toward how Nick could protect Gypsy Rose by removing ded
from her life. Gipsy described the discussions as gradual, woven
into an elaborate fantasy world Nick had created, rather than
a sudden, concrete plan. Nick's dark fantasies began to merge
with their plot. He spoke openly about violent acts, including
murdering and then raping his ex girlfriend, revealing a disturbing mindset. Together,

(45:22):
they brainstorm methods to eliminate DEDI. Gypsy's first idea was
for Nick to visit, have sex with her and get
her pregnant, believing d D would be forced to accept
him as the father. Gipsy even shoplifted prenatal vitamins and
a pregnancy test, posting about it on Facebook, a move
that alerted Nick's mother, who was far from pleased. The

(45:44):
plan failed, as Dede had previously threatened to force an
abortion if Gipsy became pregnant. Nick suggested arson burning down
the house by knocking over a candle, but Gipsy rejected
the idea, worried about too many unpredictable variables. They considered
pois discussing round up or arsenic. Gypsy insisted on a
quick and painless death. Finding poisoned too brutal, Nick proposed

(46:08):
shooting Dedi, but Gipsy realized she couldn't obtain a gun
without a state issued ID. The plan grew darker. Nick
sent photos of a large filette knife resembling a machete.
He expressed desires to strangle Deedi, stab her, and feed
her body to pigs. He demanded triple locking handcuffs, a ballgag,
and a taser to quote torture her a little. Gipsy

(46:31):
pushed back, wanting the death to be painless. Nick then
told her to get duct tape instead. Finally, the plans settled.
Gypsy would steal a large kitchen knife from Walmart for
Nick to use. After the attack, he would rape her,
then leave Dede's body in her bed. Nick later added
a gruesome demand load Deede's corpse into a van, rape

(46:52):
her with a condom, then forced Gipsy to suck his
seamen from her mother's body before dumping it at a
pig farm. Gipsy refused, sighting her ninety five pound frame
and Dede's two hundred pound weight, the plan reverted to
leaving the body where it was. On the morning of
June ninth, twenty fifteen, Gypsy Rose reflected on her mother

(47:14):
as an obstacle, something she wanted to disappear forever. She
consciously slowed the evening, staying present, taking in her mother
in a way she never had before. She smelled d
Dede's baby pillow, imprinting her scent in memory, whispering in apology.
Then she wiped her tears, got into her wheelchair, and
found d D in the kitchen preparing dinner. Gipsy wheeled

(47:36):
up behind her and hugged her waist. When Dede turned,
she saw Gypsy's eyes were wet. Gypsy said, I love you.
D D replied, baby, I love you too, but I'm
not dead yet. Gypsy had told Nick she would leave
surgical gloves outside and text him when d D was
asleep so he could come inside and she could hand
him the knife. After dinner, they ran an errand at Walmart,

(47:58):
watched Merlin. The painted each other's nails liquid cotton candy pink.
Gypsy painted her nails for Nick, as promised. At one
thirty a m Gypsy texted Nick, she's asleep. Her focus
wasn't on the murder, but on the aftermath, on freedom.
Nick replied, okay, getting a cab now. Gipsy took three vicodin,

(48:20):
wheeled to the door, and let him in. She did
not dare walk, fearing her mother might wake. Nick, dressed
in dark sweatpants, a black graphic T shirt and hoodie,
immediately asked, ok where's the knife. Gipsy pulled the large
kitchen knife from under the couch cushion. Nick ordered, get
your ass to the bathroom. Gipsy went to the bathroom,

(48:42):
sat on the floor, and covered her ears. Despite this,
she heard everything. Nick entered Dede's room silently. The bedroom
door had been removed. D D must have woken from
his presence not noise. Gipsy heard her voice muffled, asking
who are you. Nick later said he told d d
I am death. You will die now. But Gypsy did

(49:02):
not hear this, only screaming. Gipsy lay curled, hands pressed
hard over her ears, still hearing Dede say stop enough, enough,
please enough. There was a pause, then a gargled voice
saying Gypsy, Gypsy. She didn't respond, stayed still. She heard
one sharp help me. Nick had cut the back of
Dede's neck so deeply she was almost decapitated. When Dee

(49:26):
Dee resisted, Nick kept stabbing, saying death is calling to you.
Stop fighting. Gipsy hadn't asked for that brutality. After the silence,
Nick did not approach her. Instead, he wiped the knife
in the kitchen and removed his gloves. Gipsy was stripped
naked in the bathtub, running water, shaving legs and vagina,
wiping herself clean. Nick scratched on the bathroom door, the

(49:47):
agreed signal. Naked Gipsy opened it. Nick stood with the
knife wrapped in a paper towel, walked in, set the
knife on the counter, and stretched out his arms for
a hug. She hugged him. Nick ordered say thank you.
Gipsy repeated thank you, sir, shivering and wondering when relief
would come. Nick's finger was cut and bleeding. He told

(50:08):
Gipsy to clean him up. She obeyed, wiping his finger
with an alcohol swab, just as she had tended Dede's
wounds after the b B gun incident. She dabbed blood
on his shoe and wiped a red handprint from his arm.
They sat holding each other. Nick's steadiness calmed her. Then
he told her to go to her bedroom. With head bowed,
Gipsy walked naked to her room, never using her wheelchair again.

(50:33):
She felt exposed, her bald head gummy mouth. Since Nick
forbade wig and dentures. Passing Dedee's room, she glimpsed blankets
and clothes piled high, d d buried in chaos. Nick followed,
ordering her to remove stuffed animals from her pink princess bed.
She complied, lying supine, as he took off his pants,
straddled her and pinned her legs. He wrapped his arms

(50:55):
around her neck, choking her. She tried to scream for
her mother, but had no air. This was not what
she agreed to She begged him to stop, but he
continued holding her wrists, biting, strangling, trying to force himself
inside her as he had in the movie theater bathroom.
He complained, I don't hear you saying thank you, my submissive.

(51:15):
She managed to say it, but he showed no arousal.
She feared non compliance would lead him to rape her
mother's corpse. To Gipsy, this was rape. She said no
and cried for her dead mother. The assault ended without
clear closure. Gipsy's memory blurred. The next thing she recalled
was Nick packing clothes into a suit case, the zipper

(51:36):
sealing finality. While waiting for a taxi, Nick ordered her
to clean blood trails from de Dee's room to the kitchen.
She used baby wipes, not thinking about their origin. She
grabbed her mother's money pouch with four thousand dollars along
with vicodin and oxy cotone. Nick ordered her to say
thank you, sir, which she repeated. Gipsy removed pictures from walls,

(52:00):
bagged them, and took them to the curb. She reasoned
that without photos, no one would know she lived there,
and police would assume d d was a single woman
living alone. In many ways she had been. In the
early hours of June tenth, twenty fifteen, as dawn broke

(52:21):
over Springfield, Missouri, two figures checked into a room at
the Day's Inn hotel. Gipsy Rose Blanchard and Nicholas Godejohn
had just committed murder, leaving behind the body of d
d Blanchard in her home. What followed was a five
day period that would see their carefully laid plans unravel
in spectacular fashion. The pair had initially intended to catch

(52:44):
a bus to Wisconsin that same day, where they planned
to start their new life together at Nick's family home. However,
reality quickly intruded on their fantasy. Bus tickets to Wisconsin
wouldn't be available until June twelfth, two days away. They
were trapped in Springfield, forced to extend their stay in
the hotel room while Dede's body lay undiscovered. During these

(53:07):
surreal days of hiding, a routine emerged. Pizza was ordered daily.
Gipsy consumed painkillers, regularly describing herself as being high as
a kite and living in lalla land. The oxy cotone
that had once been prescribed for her fabricated medical conditions
now served as an escape from the reality of what

(53:27):
they had done. She would later admit to being high
all the way through a fog of drugs and shock
that would define these crucial early hours. But as the
hours passed, the euphoria began to wear thin, replaced by
a growing anxiety that would ultimately seal their fate. Gipsy's
drug addled mind began to fixate on something they hadn't

(53:47):
properly planned for. What would happen to her mother's body.
The thought tormented her. Didi's corpse was lying in that house,
and with each passing hour, decomposition would set in Even worse.
She remembered their cats and the horrifying possibility that the
hungry animals might feast on her mother's remains. Despite everything

(54:09):
d D had put her through, Gipsy found herself consumed
by her mother's final wishes. She recalled d D specific
instructions about death, quote, don't you dare cremate me? You
stick me in the ground. This mounting panic about honoring
her abuser's burial wishes would drive Gipsy to make the
decision that would bring their brief freedom to an end.

(54:31):
From her hotel room, Gipsy accessed the Facebook account she
shared with her mother, an account that had been central
to maintaining the elaborate fiction of their lives. What she
posted next would shock every one who knew them and
set in motion the investigation that would ensue throughout the
following days. The first message was brief but devastating, that

(54:53):
bitch is dead. The response was immediate. People who saw
the post assumed the account had been had a Messages
poured in from concerned friends and neighbors asking if everything
was okay. Some wondered if they were simply watching a movie,
unable to believe that such a stark announcement could be real.
But Gipsy interpreted this reaction as indifference. People weren't concerned enough,

(55:18):
weren't taking it seriously. In her altered state, she felt
compelled to elaborate to make them understand the gravity of
what had happened. What she posted next was far more disturbing.
I fucking slashed that fat pig and raped her sweet
innocent daughter. Her scream was so fucking' loud. The graphic

(55:39):
nature of this second post left no room for doubt.
This wasn't a hack or a movie reference. Something terrible
had happened, and the police were called immediately. What Gypsy
and Nick didn't realize trapped in their hotel room cocoon
of pizza and painkillers was that the media had seized
upon their story. The case of the missing disabled girl
and her murdered mother had captured public attention, and the

(56:02):
investigation was moving with startling speed. A crucial break came
from an unexpected source. Aliyah, their neighbor, had been one
of the few people aware of Gypsy's secret online relationship.
When police interviewed her, she provided them with vital information
about Nick. This single piece of intelligence allowed investigators to

(56:22):
trace Gypsy's laptop ip address directly back to Nick's family
home in Wisconsin. Five days after the murder. On June fifteenth,
twenty fifteen, the net finally closed around them. Armored police
vehicles surrounded the Gottajohn family home. What appeared to be
a swat team took positions around the property. The operation

(56:43):
was being treated as a kidnapping case. Authorities still believed
Gipsy was a victim rather than a perpetrator. Nick's family,
including his eight year old brother, were evacuated from their
home as loud speakers crackled to life, Nick Gottijohn, come
out with your hands above your head. Inside the house,
Gypsy and Nick were naked when they heard the announcement

(57:06):
as they quietly dressed. Gipsy would later describe the surreal
quality of hearing Nick's name called out like he was
a known fugitive. The fantasy they had been living was
about to end. In those final moments of freedom, Nick
gave Gipsy their cover story. They would claim that Deed
had kicked her out and he had simply picked her

(57:26):
up from the streets. It was a desperate lie, hastily
constructed in the face of overwhelming evidence. They sealed this
pact with a kiss, perhaps their last moment of intimacy
before the full weight of the justice system came down
upon them. Nick allowed Gipsy to go down the stairs
first to face whatever waited beyond that front door. What

(57:49):
she encountered was a scene from a nightmare. A sea
of bulletproof vests and helmets and guns with laser sights
trained directly on her. The young woman who had spent
her entire life as a prisoner in her own home,
controlled and manipulated by her mother, now found herself facing
a different kind of captivity. The brief taste of freedom

(58:09):
she had experienced those five days of pizza, drugs, and
the illusion of escape was over. The investigation that followed
would reveal the full extent of the deception that had
defined Gypsy's life and the desperate act of violence that
had finally ended it. Quick break ads keep the show running,

(58:48):
but if you want to skip them, the ad free
versions on Patreon for just three bucks a month. Links
in the show notes and we're back. Thanks for sticking
through that. Let's get back to it. On June fifteenth,
twenty fifteen, after being arrested at Nick Gottijohn's home in Wisconsin,

(59:10):
Gipsy Rose Blanchard and Nick were transported in separate police
vehicles to a local precinct. There, they waited for detectives
from Missouri. Each was placed in a different room. Stan
Hancock questioned Gipsy Angelama Holy spoke with Nick. They both
initially stuck to the same false account that d D
had kicked Gypsy out of the house and Nick had

(59:31):
picked her up from the street, but that story quickly
fell apart. Detectives used a familiar tactic. They told Nick
that Gipsy had already turned on him. The bluff worked,
the couple turned on each other. Nick said Gipsy was
the master mind, that he was trying to save her
from years of abuse. According to him, she had bought

(59:52):
the knife, handed him gloves, and collected duct tape for
the murder. Gipsy told a different story. She described Nick
as the monster. She said her mother was her best friend.
She told police that Nick had a dark side, that
he once said he wanted to feed her mother's body
to pigs and rape Gypsy beside her corpse. She described
Nick as sick. Nick countered by telling officers d D

(01:00:16):
had convinced everyone Gipsy was the sick one. Despite feeling
betrayed by what she saw in Nick's taped confession, Gipsy
still worried about him. She later admitted that seeing him
blame her had hurt deeply, but some part of her
still cared. Roughly a week after being extradited to Green
County Jail in Missouri, Gipsy received her first visit. Her father, Rod,

(01:00:38):
stepmother Christie, grandmother Sharon, and aunt Celeste had traveled from
New Orleans to see her. During the visit, Gipsy grew emotional.
She asked them directly, what happened to mamma? Did she
have a funeral? Did you go? Christy gave her the
answer there was no money for a funeral. Baby d
D was cremated. The news devastated jips Psy. She remembered

(01:01:01):
DDI's words, don't you dare cremate me? You stick me
in the ground. Gipsy blamed herself. She thought, I hated me.
I had taken life from my mother, and now I
had taken her wish for death. Later, she would say
that moment nearly pushed her over the edge. She thought
about using her smock to end her life. By late
twenty fifteen, Gypsy had been in Green County jail for

(01:01:23):
several months. Around Halloween, she was cleared to join the
general population. Though authorities had at first assumed she was
gravely ill, her health was improving. She had already gained
ten pounds, but withdrawal from oxy cotone was severe. Gipsy
described it as debilitating coming off painkillers. Cold turkey caused
stomach cramps, flu like symptoms, uncontrollable vomiting, and cold sweats.

(01:01:48):
She felt abandoned. No one explained what was happening to her.
Despite the suffering, Gipsy later said the experience had value.
Withdrawal was brutal, but it marked the beginning of her freedom.
Around this time, Gypsy also began repairing her relationship with
her father and stepmother. Her trust in them had been
clouded by years of Deedee's manipulation. D D had convinced

(01:02:12):
her that Rod and Christie were dangerous, absent, or uninterested,
but Gipsy's attorney, Mike Stanfield, revealed the truth. Rod had
been sending her money in gifts for years. He sent
letters and cards, even a laptop. He'd called often left messages.
He hadn't given up on her. When Christie explained how
d D had prevented them from seeing Gypsy or planning visits,

(01:02:35):
it became clear just how much had been stolen from them.
Gypsy said it was painful to process, but it also
brought healing. Her real family had loved her all along.
In October twenty fifteen, shortly after being removed from suicide Watch,
Gypsy had her feeding tube taken out. A surgeon described
as disinterested and robotic, removed it quickly and without ceremony.

(01:02:58):
Gypsy had spent years, believing she would die without that tube.
Her mother had told her that she'd said the feeding
tube was necessary for survival, but Gipsy survived and gained weight.
The hole where the tube had been began to close.
It became a symbol of something else, her mother's control
and her escape from it. In July twenty sixteen, one

(01:03:20):
year after d D's death, Prosecutor Dan Patterson announced he
would not seek the death penalty for Gipsy or Nick.
He called the case extraordinary and unusual and considered Gypsy's
history of abuse and her physical condition at the time
of arrest. As part of a plea deal, Gipsy pleaded
guilty to second degree murder. The court sentenced her to

(01:03:42):
ten years in prison with eligibility for parole. In December
twenty twenty three, she would not face trial. Shortly after sentencing,
Gypsy was transferred from Green County to the Chillicothe Correctional Center.
Compared to jail, it felt like a relief. The facility
was clean, it wasn't overcrowded. She shared a dormitory with

(01:04:02):
other women and had access to outdoor time. For the
first time in her life. Gypsy felt free between twenty
sixteen and twenty twenty three. She used her time in
prison to educate herself. She earned her ged and enrolled
in several courses, including Impact of Crime on Victims and
Pathways to Change. The ICVC course was mandatory, but for

(01:04:25):
Gypsy it became personal. She began to see that her
mother wasn't the only victim. Nick had lost his freedom too.
She wrote a letter to Dedi during that course and
poured her grief into it. She described it as a
moment of peace that no holy water ever could provide.
She was eventually trained to help facilitate the same courses.

(01:04:45):
Therapy was not available to her. She didn't qualify, but
she read extensively. Books helped her understand trauma, codependency, PTSD,
and addiction. A course on codependency had a deep impact.
It helped her realize how the relationship with her mother
had shaped every part of her identity. Gypsy also experimented
with her identity. She took jobs, made friends, lived in

(01:05:09):
a group environment. She explored her sexuality and later said
that trauma had caused a kind of mental block around intimacy.
She relapsed once in twenty eighteen, taking suboxone. The experience
ended with her lying to Christy for drug money, but
she forgave her so Gipsy went cold turkey again. She
said that moment of earning forgiveness taught her she was

(01:05:30):
worthy of love. Her relationship with Rod and Christie deepened.
They visited regularly, shared family stories, brought food. They helped
her reconstruct the truth of her early life. D D
had lied about nearly everything. It was painful but grounding.
In September twenty twenty one, Gypsy was unexpectedly taken to

(01:05:51):
segregated confinement the whole. Officers told her she was under
investigation for an escape plan. She denied the accusation. The
entire experience was disorienting, no clock, no quiet, just the
constant noise of yelling, banging, and chaos. She only found
out later that the investigation had been triggered by a
stranger's post on social media. Someone she didn't know had

(01:06:14):
joked about busting her out. On December ninth, twenty twenty one,
Gypsy had her hearing and Christie spoke for her. Gypsy
explained what she'd been through, her upbringing, her crime, and
the programs she'd completed in prison. Deputy Warden Amy Parkhurst
acknowledged her trauma and recommended therapy. The parole board didn't
take long. By Monday, Gypsy had an answer. Her release

(01:06:38):
was granted and the date was set December twenty eighth,
twenty twenty three. The family tried to keep it quiet.
They knew how rumors could spread, but eventually the news leaked.
An acquaintance had told in Touch weekly. Even so, the
date held, and after nearly eight years, Gypsy was going home.

(01:07:02):
In May of twenty seventeen, the HBO documentary Mommy Dead
and Dearest aired, bringing Gypsy Rose Blanchard into the public spotlight.
Letters began arriving from across the country, messages of support, questions, condolences.
Some of them blurred together, but one stood out. The
letter came from a man named Ken. His voice, Gypsy

(01:07:23):
would later say, leaped off the page. She thought it
was ironic. Her mother had always hated Barbie's Ken. That
alone made her laugh. She decided to write him back.
Their correspondence deepened, and soon letters turned into phone calls.
They learned they had things in common, family dynamics, a
shared sense of humor. Ken came from a large family

(01:07:44):
with many siblings. Gypsy had grown up alone. His stories
of crowded dinners and loud holidays felt like glimpses of
a life she'd never had. When Ken visited her in prison,
she was swept off her feet. She found him handsome,
thirty sive. Seven minutes into the visit, Ken leaned over
and kissed her, a full, passionate kiss. It was a

(01:08:05):
clear violation of prison rules, so Ken was immediately escorted out.
Gipsy considered herself lucky not to be thrown into solitary
confinement for it. She later said it was one hundred
percent worth it. His words, I love you felt like
the strongest drug she'd ever known. After about a year
of back and forth, Gipsy asked Ken over the phone,

(01:08:26):
will you be my husband? One day? He replied, of course.
During a visit in October the following year, Ken proposed formally.
There was no ring, no kneeling, just a quiet moment
in a prison visiting room. He took her hands and said, Gipsy,
I know you through and through, and I love you
for who you are to day, for the heart I've

(01:08:47):
come to know. Will you marry me? She said yes.
Rings weren't allowed, so Gipsy found a way around it.
She bought a silver band on the prison black market
from an inmate who was getting a divorce. They kept
the engagement mostly private, telling only close family. In twenty nineteen,
The Act premiered on Hulu, a fictionalized drama based on

(01:09:09):
Gipsy's case. It turned her into a pseudo celebrity overnight.
Her personal life was suddenly public property. Strangers dissected her
every move, and Ken struggled with it. He was a
private person, so the constant attention took a toll. Not
long after the show aired, Gipsy received a letter from
Nick Gottijohn. In it, he accused her of adultery, claiming

(01:09:31):
he'd taken her virginity and that by God's law meant
they were already married. For Gipsy, the letter was an
attempt to humiliate her to control her. It reminded her
of how he'd manipulated her during their online relationship. The
contrast was jarring Nick's dominance versus Ken's gentleness. For the
first time, she saw her relationship with Nick for what

(01:09:53):
it had really been. She wrote a letter back, meant
as closure. She told him plainly that she had moved
on and and that her testimony at his trial had
not come from love, it had come from duty. Despite
that strength, the end of her relationship with Ken hit hard.
At first, Gipsy believed the growing media attention had driven
him away, but later Ken reached out with a different explanation.

(01:10:17):
He said others, people he trusted, had told him it
wasn't the right time to marry her. Some were therapists,
some were family. The message he heard most often, if
you love her set her free. Ken told Gipsy he
believed he was doing the right thing, that leaving was
an act of love for her. Gipsy experienced the loss alone.

(01:10:38):
Her first heartbreak came behind bars, with no friend to
hug her, no one to take her out for coffee,
no mother to talk to. She said it was a
moment that should have been shared between a mother and daughter,
but never would be. She thought about turning to drugs,
about hurting herself. Instead, she cut off all her hair
and fell into depression. She cried to Christie. She turned

(01:11:01):
to God. In time, another letter arrived, this one from
Ryan Anderson. At first Gipsy ignored it, her heart was
still hardened, but Ryan was persistent His voice was deep,
southern and familiar. He was from Louisiana like her. It
felt like home. They started talking about football. Ryan liked
the Saints, Gipsy preferred the Chiefs. They joked, they prayed,

(01:11:23):
They talked about the future. She opened up slowly. Ryan
made her laugh. He shared his fears. She shared her past,
the ugliest parts. There was no shame, just honesty. They
spoke daily, multiple times a day, hours before bed. When
Ryan once called her my heart, she froze. It was
something Deedie used to say. But Ryan listened, He adjusted.

(01:11:46):
Their arguments felt different. They didn't scare her. They made
her feel closer. By the time her family found out
the relationship was already serious. Her father Rod and stepmother
Christie were wary. They encouraged her to wait. They sensed
that her heart stilled. Bill hadn't fully let go of Ken,
But Gipsy was determined. She wanted a family, stability, a

(01:12:06):
Southern husband, a chance at normal. In October twenty twenty two,
Gypsy and Ryan got married inside the Chillicothy Correctional Center.
It was a quiet ceremony, no gown, no guests, just
two people promising to build something together. Four months later,
the pressure set in. She began to question everything. Being

(01:12:26):
someone's wife, living up to expectations, the responsibility, the fear
of losing her identity. Ryan was a teacher. His demeanor
was calm, authoritative, and at times it reminded her of
her past, of deedy, of Nick and their control. She panicked.
She considered an annulment and even wrote to friends, I
am thinking about going forward with an annulment. She hoped

(01:12:49):
they'd talk her out of it, but they didn't, so
Ryan stayed. He scouted apartments, made plans for her release.
They patched things up, The dreams came back. Future. There
were still questions, still doubts, but for now they were together,
and Gypsy had found something that had always been missing,
a choice of her own. Quick break ads keep the

(01:13:19):
show running, but if you want to skip them the
ad free versions on Patreon for just three bucks a month.
Links in the show notes and we're back. Thanks for
sticking through that. Let's get back to it. There's no denying.

(01:13:43):
Gypsy Rose was a victim. Years of abuse at the
hands of her mother left her isolated, infantilized, and physically
and psychologically stunted. She was confined to a wheelchair she
didn't need, subjected to countless unnecessary medical procedures, deprived of
formal education, and kept on under near constant surveillance. Her
reality was carefully controlled, distorted, and shaped by a parent

(01:14:06):
who presented herself as a selfless caretaker while inflicting unrelenting harm.
But that reality ended in a murder. What happened in
June twenty fifteen was not an act of spontaneous desperation.
It was a planned killing. Conversations with Nicholas Godajohn saved
in text messages revealed not just intent but details. Gipsy

(01:14:27):
was not the one to wield the knife, but she
opened the door, gave the weapon, and waited in the
bathroom while her mother was stabbed to death in her sleep,
and then they ran. Days passed before anyone discovered what
had happened. Some argue that growing up in such a
warped environment alters a person's sense of right and wrong
so deeply that it can't be held to the same standard.

(01:14:50):
That Gypsy's world, limited by lies, medical manipulation, and emotional control,
left her incapable of seeing another way out that she
tried in her own limited way to survive. Others point
out that she had access to help. Her father and stepmother,
though not part of her daily life, had offered support.
She had internet access, She was capable of reaching out,

(01:15:12):
and eventually did, but only after the crime. Can someone
be both a victim and complicit? Can murder be both
understandable and unforgivable? The answers aren't easy. What's clear is
that this case doesn't fit neatly into any single category.
Its tragedy layered on tragedy. The justice system imposed punishment.

(01:15:33):
Gipsy served her time, but the emotional reckoning public, personal,
and societal continues. It's a case that forces questions about control,
about culpability, about what happens when no one sees what's
going on behind closed doors, and about what someone becomes
when their whole life has been a lie. In early

(01:16:14):
December twenty twenty three, Gypsy Rose Blanchard's life changed forever.
On December twenty eighth, prison gates opened. She stepped into
the freezing pre dawn air and was handed to her
husband Ryan, waiting in the warmth of his car. No
tearful greeting, no crowds, just the clarity of freedom. The iPhone.

(01:16:35):
Ryan gave her felt moments deeper than an alien device,
like proof she'd walked out of a cage and into
a life she could finally start crafting for herself. Her
release came two years before her original parole date, granted
in December twenty twenty one, but it wasn't simple. Intense
media scrutiny, a reality TV crew, reporters lurking Chillicothie authorities

(01:16:56):
braced for chaos when Ryan received the call to thirty
am pick up in forty five minutes, they knew everything
could go sideways at any moment. The following day, waking
in a hotel, no welcome zoo, just distant flashing lights,
her new status caught up. Though her parole permitted her
to live in Louisiana, Missouri's jurisdiction still held her. Jackson

(01:17:19):
County deputies declared her a security risk and demanded she
leave Missouri by three pm that same day. Freedom was
an illusion, she later reflected, panic rising as if she'd
been caged once more. After negotiations, she gained until noon
the following day, but only to begin her life barred
from stepping outside except to meet her parole officer, still.

(01:17:42):
Her first New Year's Eve unfolded quietly and beautifully in Louisiana.
Her father and stepmother flew in. They cooked, watched the
Saints game, laughed and danced. When her dad spun her
across the kitchen floor to my little girl, Gipsy felt
what normal felt like. A memory of her dole in
childhood no longer beyond reach, but life, once free, resumed

(01:18:04):
its unpredictability. On the ninth anniversary of her mother's death
June tenth, twenty twenty four, Gypsy revealed the next chapter.
She was expecting her first child. In January twenty twenty five.
She had filed for divorce from Ryan, and life has
come full circle. Her first fiancee, Ken, has moved to
New Orleans and they're raising a child together. The same

(01:18:26):
date that once marked grief, horror, shame now marks rebirth.
Gypsy sees it as something more than coincidence. She heard
from her obgyn that her sonogram was scheduled for Monday,
June tenth. To her, it's no accident. She believes her
mother is sending a message it's time to move forward,
for both of them, at last, to be free in