Amy's a Badass - Christopher Rezos

Suzanne: Warning. This episode may contain graphic and disturbing content. Listener discretion is advised

June: Hi y'all, and welcome to Crime With My Coffee. I'm your fabulous hostess with the mostess, June.

S: And I'm Suzanne. We're gonna tell you some stories you've heard 

J: Some you haven't 

S: And some you'll wish you hadn't 

J: All with a Texas twang. So I guess we can start off by apologizing because we're using a new recording system for this. Hopefully it'll turn out good.

S: Yeah, so if it sounds really bad, don't blame me. 

J: Or me. 

S: Blame - yeah, blame, we'll blame the dog. 

J: Okay, yeah, eh, or Bob. 

S: No, 

J: Bob takes a lot of heat. He takes a lot of flack.

S: Well, I was gonna say we can we can we can blame Kratos. He's in here sleeping behind me. So The One With the Razors did it if it sounds like crap. 

J: Okay, sounds good to me. Sounds good to me. So. 

S: Okay, but yes, welcome back. Welcome back.

J: Yeah. So what's your, what's your brew for the day?

S: So I'm feeling a little bit under the weather. We got some crazy weather going on here. We were cool yesterday and then hot today. And then like, we have a cold front coming in tonight, so I'm feeling kind of cruddy. So I was sipping on some chicken broth earlier, but I'm drinking some coffee now, but more water than coffee. It's very, very weak. Just regular Folgers coffee. I actually didn't even add any sugar or creamer to it this time either.

J: Oh, wow. Yeah, you must be feeling bad. So. 

S: Yeah, I told you I didn't feel good. 

J: Yeah, I got some coffee that was given to me at one time from someone I know. It's from Common Grounds. It's Pinewood Roasters from the Eighth Street Blend. It's, it's pretty good. It's, it's noted to have notes of strawberries, citrus, chocolate and creamy. And it is pretty good. I put a little French Vanilla creamer in it as usual, because I don't venture very far there. But it smells delicious. And it tastes it tastes really good. It does taste fruity. It's more, for me, I'm thinking more of a summer coffee than a, than a winter coffee, if that makes sense to people.

S: I don't know about people, but it makes sense to me. And that sounds pretty good actually.

J: Yeah. Yeah, it's not it's not bad. It's not bad at all. So I had to get me a sip.

S: Well, no, yeah. No, no, I feel ya. I'll be sipping on mine quite a bit on today's case. But before we get started on to get - today's case, just just a little note. It does deal with some domestic violence. 

J: Hmm.

S: I chose it because October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and this lady's story is - it has a happy ending.

J: Yay. I love happy endings.

S: Yes. So this lady's story is one of the craziest I have ever heard of and was like No, this this is the one I want to highlight for Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

J: Good, good. I can't, can't wait to hear it.

S: So, well, it takes place in a place called Liberty Township, Ohio. 

J: Okay.

S: It’s an affluent suburb of Cincinnati, located in Butler County. And it is one of the fastest growing areas in southwest Ohio. According to the census in 1990, it had a population of 9,249. And then 10 years later in 2000, the Census reported them as having a population of 22,819.

J: Wow, that's a lot of rich people.

S: And then 10 years later, in 2010, the census reported that their population was 37,259.

J: Wow. Yeah, a lot of rich people there.

S: Yeah. So in 20 years, the population grew by almost 30,000 people. 

J: Wow. 

S: That is three of the towns that I live in.

J: Wow, that's crazy. 

S: That’s, it, it's, it's insane. So I did learn that it was actually named for Liberty, Pennsylvania at the suggestion of a resident named John Morrow. He happened to be the brother of the then Ohio Governor Jeremiah Morrow. So, you know, they kind of went ahead and named it Liberty Township because he had that in with the higher ups there and they named it after their hometown in Pennsylvania. 

J: Hmm. 

S: I’m not exactly sure how townships and such work, even though I lived in a township for two years, when I lived in Pennsylvania, I still don't understand. But evidently, Liberty Township in Ohio in Butler County, is only one of 25 Liberty Townships in the entire state of Ohio.

J: Wow, I wonder if townships are more like, small little towns inside a big city? Maybe, not sure? 

S: I don't know. I know, the township that that we lived in in Pennsylvania was not in a town. It was, I, we lived in the middle of a corn and hay field.

J: That is true. 

S: So. So I don't, I don't, I don't know. And even if it was a city, or a little town inside of a city or whatever, like I know, we have some of those in you know, the bigger areas like Dallas and stuff like that. How are there 25 of them in one state with the same name?

J: I guess they didn't get very adventurous. I don't know. They like the name. So they just kept it everywhere. I don't know.

S: I don't know either. So you know, I don't I don't really know how townships work. But I thought it was crazy that was one of 25 in the state of Ohio. So I just wanted to slip that in because I thought that was crazy and weird. And like I said, I don't know how townships work. So there's that. So but on to the story. It is the story of Amy Jones and Christopher Rezos, Rezos, Rezos, Rezos, Rezos? 

J: Nailed it. Rezos

S: Yes. I love it when I nail it. I'm gonna go with Rezos. So.

J: Yeah, yeah, sounds good. 

S: Anyway, um, yeah. So they started dating in high school in the late 1980s. Um, because of the events coming up, I was able to kind of trace it back a little bit and came up with around 1987 is when they started dating. 

J: Okay. 

S: Um, so that they were highschool sweethearts. He was a little controlling when they started dating, but it wasn't anything, you know, that she was too concerned about, or anybody was really too concerned about. Um, they got engaged after several years, and he became a little bit more controlling, like, you know, from my understanding, when when there's a wedding being planned, it's generally left up to the woman to plan the wedding. 

J: True. 

S: Um, but he, that's my understanding. I got married at the courthouse. So you know, 

J: Yeah, me, too.

S: I mean, I didn't have this big fancy wedding.

J: Me, too.

S: Yeah, high five. Yeah. 

J: Yeah.

S: Anyway, but he started co- he wanted to have the final say on everything that had to do with their wedding. So you know, that's a little -

J: That’s a little odd, especially for a guy, that's a little odd.

S: I thought it - I thought so too. So they got married in I'm guessing about 1994 or so. And then he became even more controlling. He controlled everything from the way that she wore her hair, what she drove, the routes that she drove to and from work, he started calling her stupid, telling her that she couldn't ever make it on her own without him, she was nothing without him. Very, very verbally abusive at this point. She says that he never physically hurt her or hit her. But she was tired of the abuse, because abuse does come in all sorts of forms.

J: Absolutely. 

S: So after 17 years of his controlling behavior, and his verbal abuse, verbal abuse, she asked him for a divorce. And he's, Oh, go ahead. 

J: I was just gonna say, I mean, they're together for a long time. Do they have kids and are the kids witnessing this or do they not have children? 

S: I don't know - they, they do have children. 

J: Oh. Okay. 

S: They had two young boys. They had two young boys. They were young at this time. 

J: Okay. 

S: And I don't I don't know how much they did or did not witness and there wasn't a whole lot that I could find on their family life, really, or anything prior to the events that we're leading up to. And I think that's because of the events that we're leading up to, but they did have two young boys. I don't know their ages. And I don't know how much they were witnessing this.

J: Well, I'm just assuming. Yeah, yeah, I'm just assuming, no matter how old the children are, especially if they're young, they're there in the home all the time. So they do witness this. I'm just saying, you know, very seldom does any kind of abuse go without the kids seeing.

S: Even if you don't think the kids see it, they see and hear more than you think. 

J: Oh, absolutely. 

S: So you know, I'm sure they know, kind of what's going on. I'm, like I said, I'm not sure how young they were. So they might not have known exactly what it was they were seeing or anything. But they, they had to witness some of it, 

J: Right. 

S: You know, but she did say that, you know, he had never hit her, he had never become physically violent with her or anything like that prior to this. 

J: Good. 

S: So you know, it was just, it was just the verbal abuse and the controlling behavior that she'd had enough of, and she was like, Look, I want a divorce. And he took it really, really well. He was really calm about it.

J: Wow.

S: They decided, while they worked out the details of their divorce, that they would take turns spending the night in a local motel. That way each parent would have a night at home with the children. So they're, they're alternating nights, you know, between home and the motel. And Amy, it was her night to stay in the motel. And she gets a call from Chris. And he's like, you know, Hey, can you know can I come to your room so we can sit and talk and work out some more of these details tonight? You know, I called your mom. She said she's gonna come watch the boys, you know, so I can come and we can talk about this and, and, and get this moving on down the road, you know, so that we can both move on with our lives. And she was like, okay. He was, he was being pretty reasonable about it.

J: Yeah. It sounds like everything is going civilly so far. 

S: Yes. So sounds like you know, they're, he's, they're both looking out for the best interest of the kids, you know, not wanting to completely disrupt their lives or anything. So on July 2 of 2004, Chris went to the motel where Amy was staying, knocked on the door, she let him in, they're sitting on the bed, and they're talking about the divorce. And when it came when the discussion turned to the custody of the kids, he went ballistic. 

J: Mm. 

S: He hit her over the head with a Maglite, 

J: Oh.

S: which, if you don't know is a great big, huge, giant, heavy, heavy duty flashlight. Ugh. I dropped one on my toe once, and I thought my toe fell off. 

J: Oh, yeah, they they are heavy and hurt. Yes.

S: Yes. So he hit her over the head with this Maglite. And it knocked her down onto the bed and she rolled off into the floor. And then he was on top of her with a pillow off of the bed trying to suffocate her. 

J: Oh my God. 

S: So, yeah, so she is in this fight for her life, and she somehow got out from underneath him and the pillow. And he hit her over the head with the Maglite again, and she was knocked out.

J: Oh my goodness. 

S: After that, after after he knocked her out, we're not exactly sure the events that took place or the order of events that took place. But we know that he did fill the bathtub up with water. 

J: Up… 

S: He did drag her to the bathroom. 

J: Wait. 

S: And he did try to drown her.

J: Oh, I thought you said this had a happy ending. What? Oh, my gosh. 

S: Oh, it. I know. I know. It's crazy. So hold on, hold on.

J: Okay.

S: We’ll get to the happy ending. 

J: Okay.

S: I promise. There's a happy ending here.

J: Okay. This guy died. 

S: There. Well, it's not that happy. 

J: Oh, okay. All right. I'll wait, then. I'll wait.

S: Okay. Okay. So, but the neighbor of the adjoining room heard screaming and banging around. So they call the cops and the cops show up. And they're knocking on the door to the room that that Amy and Chris are in. And Chris answers the door and he's wet and he's kind of covered in blood. And so the cop steps in and pulls his gun and tells Chris to sit down on the bed. He's like, dude, you know what, what the hell's going on here? And he sees Amy laying kind of halfway in the bathroom but halfway out of the bathroom, but because he doesn't know what's going on, and he's the only cop there. He's waiting on backup to arrive. He can't go check on her. 

J: Right. 

S: Because he can't turn his back on this guy. 

J: Right, 'cause you don't know who this guy is.

S: Exactly. So he's asking him you know, Hey, what is going on here? And Chris tells the cop, you know, well, my wife and I were here and, and this big black guy came busting in and he started beating the crap out of us, he pushed me. And I hit my head on this table over here and was like, knocked out. And then when I came to, he was gone, my wife was over here, almost in the bathroom, you know, looks like she's dead, and then you know, all of our stuff is gone. And you're banging on the door, you know? And the cop is like, what? And so cops like, this doesn't really feel right, because he didn't see any bumps or scrapes or bruises or cuts on this guy. 

J: Right. 

S: He’s like, I'm, I'm not really buying this. So backup finally arrives. And he's like, Hey, get this guy. You know, I got to go check on this lady. So he runs over there. And she's still alive. 

J: Oh, thank goodness. Yay!

S: So, she is. Yes, yay. She is however, laying in a pool of water and blood and the cop kind of turns her over onto her side and drains water out of her mouth and nose. She's still conscious. And but she's gasping for air. She, she can't really get any air in. And she can't talk you know, but she is conscious and aware of what's going on. So the cop is like, you know, hey, I'm gonna ask you a couple of questions. I want you to blink once for Yes, and twice for No. Although I did read in a couple of different places that it was twice forr no, or twice for Yes, and once for No. I'm gonna go with once for yes and twice for no. 

J: Okay. 

S: So he was like, you know, did your husband do this to you? And she blinked her eyes once.

J: Ope. Oh. 

S: And he said, and he said, Is your husband in this room? And she blinked her eyes once.

J: Oh, my goodness. She knows. He knows now.

S: Yes. Yes. Yes. So she, the ambulance finally shows up and she's rushed to the emergency room. Chris was placed under arrest. Once she gets to the ER, she is listed as being in critical condition. She had four skull fractures, which required 30 staples. 

J: Oh my God. 

S: She had, she had fractured neck vertebrae, and she was suffering from massive, massive blood loss. 

J: Wow. 

S: Back to the motel room. Once Chris was arrested, you know, they search him, empty his pockets, and all of that. They find her wallet, her jewelry. Um, they found a pair of gloves in his pockets. And some post it notes that had written, that he had written on how to commit a robbery. You know how to make it look like a robbery had occurred. Um, 

J: Wow. 

S: And at the bottom of this list, it said, you know, to drown her in the tub. 

J: Oh my God. 

S: And the cops are like, Dude, this looks really, really bad for you. And he said, Oh, no, I didn't do that. The guy that broke in here and beat us up and robbed us shoved all of that in my pockets before he left.

J: And how would you know because you were knocked out. But you know? 

S: Yeah. Yeah. Number one, how would you know if you were knocked out? But also number two. Really? Somebody's going to do that? Really? 

J: Who goes to rob somebody and say, Oh, well wait, I made this plan. Let me stick it in your pocket. So you know, people will know that I, somebody else, I, was robbing you and you not doing it yourself. Dude, make up a better lie.

S: Well, and not only the plan, not only the the notes that had the plan on it, but he also had Amy's jewelry and her wallet in his pockets, too.

J: Wow. Wow.

S: So the guy came in and robbed them. And just, everything that he robbed plus his handwritten notes on how to do it, he just shoved in this guy's pockets? 

J: Yeah, some people's kids just really don't know how to lie.

S: Yeah, I'm totally not buying this. Personally.

J: Me, neither. 

S: So, yeah, so he's arrested and he's taken to jail. Oh, the next morning, Amy's family was informed that he had been released on a $2,000 bond.

J: Two - $2,000. What?

S: Yes. $2,000. When the judge set his bond at $2,000, he had no idea the severity of Amy's injuries. He had no idea that this had been a planned attack. All he knew was he this guy and his wife had gotten into a fight and he was arrested. 

J: Wow. 

S: So he was like $2,000 and you know, you can go home. So he posted bond and he left. Amy did survive this attack. She was beaten to within an inch of her life though, like how she survived is just beyond a miracle. 

J: Yes. 

S: They weren't 100% sure that she was gonna make it, in fact, but she did. Well, a few days later, he was arraigned for, Chris was, arraigned for attempted murder. And his bail was raised to $100,000.

J: Good. Good.

S: He posted bail.

J: Ugh. I want, how did he get all this money out? Oh my God.

S: Well, I don't really know. But we are living in a rich neighborhood. 

J: That’s - 

S: a rich town outside of Cincinnati. So 

J: That’s true. They are affluent, so... 

S: Maybe, yes. So maybe, you know, he had all this awesome major money, or I don't maybe his parents did. I don't I don't know where it came from. But he had the money and he stayed out of jail.

J: Do we know what kind of job this guy had? Do we know?

S: I, I read in one thing, that he was an engineer of some sort. But that's all I know. 

J: Okay. Most engineers -

S: And I only found that on...

J: Go ahead.

S: Oh, I was gonna say and I only found that on a single source. So I don't know how accurate that is. But I can't say that it's inaccurate either.

J: No, no, I I would tend to believe it. Because any kind of technical in any kind of engineer technically makes really good bank. So I believe it. I believe it.

S: So well. Once she was released from the hospital, she did require 24 hour care. She had all the locks on her home changed. She was granted a protective order by a judge.

J: Good. 

S: And then one night, and she did have friends coming and staying with her and friend and family coming and staying with her, you know, so that she was not home alone, with these with her children by herself with her crazy friggin soon to be ex husband out on the loose...

J: Right. 

S: who had already tried to kill her. 

J: Yeah. 

S: Well, one night, one night, her friend was saying and she went to go to bed, and Amy realized that the gun that had been in her bedroom for years and years was missing.

J: Hmmmm. 

S: So she called and reported it to the cops. And the cops were like, well, there's not really a whole lot we can do because we can't prove that Chris has this gun. 

J: Right.

S: You know?

J: Right. And she probably didn't -

S: Just kind of kind of watch your back. 

J: Right. And she probably didn't know exactly when it came up missing.

S: Correct. She did- she didn't know how long it had been gone. Once the staples were removed, she was allowed to drive again. 

J: Mm, hmm. 

S: And she was excited to be going back to work and could - because she's trying to keep her son's lives as normal as she can. 

J: Right. 

S: So she's, she's looking forward to going back to work. And she has to call her in laws and, and ask them hey, can you watch the kids? What when I go back to work? And of course his grandparents are like, yes, we would love to.

J: Yeah, I would be kind of reluctant because I'm sure they're standing behind their child because who wouldn't? But yet at the same time, it's like this guy's a nutcase.

S: Yeah. So when he, after he was released from jail, he was staying with his parents. So she, and they weren't her fir- first choice to call and keep her kids. But it they kind of were her only choice at this point in time. So she called them you know, they they had never done anything to her or the kids or anything like that. So she's like, you know, just Can, can just you two come and watch the boys while I go to work? And they're like, yes, we would love to. So on July 26, 23 days after the initial attack, they come down to watch the boys so that she can go to work. 

J: Okay. 

S: She, she tells the kids bye and she goes to go out and get into her minivan, and she realizes that the garage door is open. And she's like, well I think that was closed before. Well, but maybe not. You know, it's my first day back at work. I did have this crazy head injury. You know, I totally could have left it open. I could have opened it earlier and forgot to close it whatever. 

J: Right. Right. 

S: So she gets in her van and she leaves and she's driving to work. She goes down to the end of her street and she takes a right. And she's driving down the road. And all of a sudden her husband pops up from the backseat and tells her to go right.

J: Oh, God.

S: Well, of course, he scared her so she slams on the brakes really hard, you know? 

J: Hehehehe. Yay. 

S: And then she's like, you know, 

J: Sorry. 

S: Yeah. 

J: I’m sorry because I'm thinking if this guy is popping up back, you slam on the brakes, he's going forward. I'm just saying. 

S: Yeah. So yeah. So she slams on the brakes real quick. And then she hears a couple of loud pops and she like, puts her foot on the accelerator and she accelerates like super hard. And there's this concrete culvert over in the ditch. And it kind of goes under the driveways, you know, to kind of help water flow through it 

J: Right. 

S: you know, in the ditches. 

J: Yes.

S: And she just full force head on crashes into this culvert.

J: Hehehe. I'm just assuming this guy is not wearing his seatbelt and too bad for him. Hahaha.

S: Haha. I'm gonna go with he was not wearing his seatbelt. 

J: Good.

S: So now, this is only a block away from her house is where this is taking place at.

J: Wow. I'm just assuming this guy must've rode over with his parents.

S: Oh, we'll get to that.

J: Oh, okay. Oh, okay. I'm sorry. 

S: Okay. Yeah, yeah, no, no, no, no, you're good. You're good. We'll it to that, we'll get to that. 

J: Oh, I'm so anxious.

S: So, the ambulance. And so the ambulance and the fire trucks and the cops all show up, you know, and of course, and when they get there, Chris is not inside the van. He is actually outside of the van on the driver side. And they're like, what is this guy doing over here if he was the passenger, because she's still buckled into the driver's seat. So she was obviously driving. 

J: Right. 

S: They’re like, What is this guy doing over here, especially with his injuries? It turned out that he had a broken pelvis.

J: Hehehe. Sorry.

S: And from all everything that I read, I could only get that he had a substantial leg injury. I don't know if that means he had an open fracture, or if his leg was like, completely mangled, or ya know, I don't know.

J: Either way it's not hurting my feelings.

S: Mine neither. So and so they start working on him and they start working on her and they're looking at her and they're like, God, there she is just covered in blood, you know, where, where's all this blood coming from? So they can't really figure it out. So she is airlifted to a level one trauma center. And while while she's being airlifted, um Chris starts giving his story to the cops, and he says, you know, hey, we were driving down the road, and she pulls this gun on me and she shoots me in the arm. He does have a gunshot in his left arm. And she shot me. And then we started fighting over the gun. And she ended up getting shot, too. And then we wrecked. And so they radioed this in to the hospital. And they're like, yeah, she's been shot, twice, in the head.

J: Wow. 

S: Yeah. So the the bullet, one of the bullets actually went through from the back of her head all the way through her brain and was lodged behind her eye socket, on the opposite side of her head. 

J: Oh my goodness. So I'm thinking if they could tell this shot came from behind, I doubt they were fighting over the gun.

S: Well, they also. So cops also found gloves in the van again. And they also found a potato. 

J: Oh, I know what that could be used for.

S: You do? What? 

J: Well, they say, I've never done it, but they say you can use a potato for a silencer.

S: Well, he must have read the same book you did because they found the muzzle impressions in this potato and it had been shot through.

J: Oh.

S: Yes.

J: Wow. 

S: Straight through the potato. 

J: Wow.

S: So, of course he was you know, taken to the hospital and treated for his injuries. Um, but at the hospital, Amy, of course had evidently been shot twice in the head. But she also had some broken vertebrae and a punctured lung. But she was still conscious and talking and very aware of what was going on around her. 

J: Wow, her body was probably in so much shock that she you know, I don't, I don't, I could not imagine, could not imagine.

S: I could- I couldn't either. So of course the detectives rushed up to the hospital to try and get a statement from her because the doctors like you know, dude, we don't think she's gonna make it. So they're talking to her and she's she's very coherent. Um, I did watch an episode on this of On the Case with Paula Zahn, and they had actual recording of the police talking to her after she had been shot before she went into surgery. And she sounded like, you know, not quite like you and me are talking here. But she was talking coherently in full sentences, answering questions, and she was telling them look, he broke into my car, and he friggin shot me people. Like, ugh.

J: Wow.

S: It was, it was insane. I was like, oh, I wish I could get a copy of that recording. But you know, I couldn't find it. I scoured the internet for two days and could not find any recordings of this. Um, anyway. So the gun that she had been shot with was the missing .32 Smith and Wesson revolver from her home. 

J: Ah, well, now we know where it went.

S: Now we know where it went. Um, so she is in the hospital. Of course, they don't expect her to make it. The doctors are telling the family and the cops, you know, we don't think she's gonna make it. In fact, when her family showed up to the hospital after getting the call, they showed up to the hospital, and they were greeted by the clergy.

J: Oh, wow. Not a good sign.

S: Yeah, definitely not a good sign. So, but she lived. 

J: Oh, this is one bad bitch, man. You don't mess with Amy. Oh my God. Don't mess with Amy.

S: I’m telling you. Oh. For sure. Amy is not playing. 

J: No she ain't.

S: She is not going down today, sir.

J: No, sir. Wow.

S: Yeah, so she's - Spoiler Alert. She lives. 

J: Yay. 

S: I told you it had a happy ending.

J: Yay, I'm so happy.

S: So well, of course, you know, so he's being treated at the hospital. Right before he was released from the hospital. So he's starting to get all his discharge papers and everything. He's arrested. 

J: Good, 

S: Again, for attempted murder, and, you know, kidnapping and all this stuff. So he was immediately arrested. So he went from the hospital, to the county jail.

J: Good, where he deserves to be. 

S: When he was arraigned, the judge told him Okay. Yeah, got it. I know what you've been up to. You want out? It's gonna have to be a million dollars cash bond. If you don't have the million dollars, you don't get out.

J: Yay.

S: So he went back to the county jail. And the prosecutors petitioned to the court and they're like, Hey, can you just like revoke this completely? Because he's already tried to kill this lady twice. In less than a month. You know, and he's almost succeeded twice

J: Yeah.

S: in less than a month. 

J: But she bad. 

S: You know, and the judge is like, and the judge is like, you know what? You're right. Yeah. No bond for you. You're just like stuck in jail 'til you go to trial.

J: Good. Good for him.

S: Yes. So, you know, Amy is now you know, breathing a sigh of relief. You know, he's locked up. He can't get to her. You know, she's healing. She's getting better. And and the cops started investigating how he got in her van.

J: Okay. Ready for this.

S: He told the cops that he walked from his parents' house 11 miles away, broke into the garage, broke into her van, and hid there waiting for her. Cops are like that's 11 miles dude, bro. I don't quite buy that. 

J: Exactly. If you're, if you were staying with your parents and your parents were coming over to watch the children. Yeah, I don't - no. No.

S: So Amy thinks that he hid in the back of their pickup truck and rode in the back of their truck to her house. And then when she was in the house with them and the kids, that's when he got into the garage and got in her van. That's why she thinks the garage door was open. 

J: Yeah. 

S: You know, because he opened it is what she thinks.

J: Yeah, this definitely sounds more believable than I walked 11 miles.

S: Yes. So this I can totally get behind this theory. 100%. Well, the cops couldn't prove anything one way or the other. So officially, the parents have been cleared from helping him attack Amy a second time. 

J: Well, I mean, clear they might not have even known he was back there.

S: That is true. That is true. They might not you know, but so so they were officially cleared of helping him. Six months later, so December, January, February of 2005, Amy gets a call from the cops and they say, hey, you need to start taking different routes to work. You need to start changing up your routine. You need to watch your back. And she was like, what? 

J: Huh?

S: They had gotten a tip from a jailhouse informant that Chris was looking to hire somebody to kill her, her mother, and her brother. 

J: Man, this guy is determined. 

S: Yeah, he will not quit. Oh my gosh, it's just, it's insane. 

J: Well, he should, he should have learned by now though. Amy is not going down without a fight. And I don't think he's the man that's gonna be able to take her down.

S: Yeah, so this jailhouse informant. The way it happened was he went to the cops. And he was like, Hey, you know, Chris Rezos in here? And they're like, yeah, we put them there. And he's like, well, he's trying to kill his wife. And they're like, we know, why do you think he's in there with you? And he goes, No, no, you don't understand. And he pulls this letter out of his pocket. And it is handwritten, in Chris's handwriting, how he wants Amy and her brother and her mother killed. And he's looking to hire somebody from inside the county jail to do this. 

J: Wow. Wow. 

S: So yeah, so the cops are like, okay, dude. So, go back in there, you know, kind of work with us a little bit here, go back in there, you know, lead him on, tell him you know, you're gonna put him in touch with this guy. This is his name, you know, his contact information. And, and, and we'll try and get him for conspiracy to commit murder, too you know, and the guy that guy goes, Okay, cool. So he goes back to Chris. And he's like, Okay, so I've got this guy. Um, he's, you know, he's a veteran. He can, he says he can do it for $10,000. And Chris is like, Okay, cool. And he draws out detailed maps of the neighborhood that Amy lived in, detailed maps of her home, the front yard, the backyard. Um. He even wrote down the order that he wanted the three of them killed in, how he wanted them killed. And he's like, you know, do it. And the guy, the informant, tells Chris and he was like, Okay, well, I have all of this, you know, in this letter from you, once I mail this, I can't take it back. And Chris replies, mail it. They have him on video of saying this. 

J: Oh, my goodness. 

S: you know, he just mail it.

J: Wow. 

S: Yeah. So of course, all of this mail is going to the police department. 

J: Right. 

S: And so they're so they're reading through it. And there was a phone number in this letter to the hitman. So they the cops do their thing. And they Google this phone number or whatever. I'm sure what their special Cop Google that we don't have access to. 

J: Right. 

S: And the number traces back to Chris's mom.

J: Oh, no. Ah.

S: Yeah. So they have another cop pose as the hitman. And he calls this number. And he, and Chris's mom answers and he tells her, you know, hey, I, you know, we need to meet up. I need to get this money from you for this thing that Chris, you know, for that your son said, he told me to contact you, and you would know what I'm talking about. And you would have the money for me. And so they set up a meeting at a in a parking lot. And the day of the meeting comes and it's just covered with undercover cops, you know, posing as workers and, you know, people going in and out of this store. 

J: Right.

S: And the mom, the mom never shows up.

J: Hmm.

S: But all of this and her agreeing to meet up with the hitman and everything. That was enough for them to get a search warrant for the house of his parents.

J: Yes.

S: So they go and they searched the house. They didn't find any evidence of them being involved in this conspiracy to kill Amy again. Or you know anything else like that. The only thing they found was a letter from Chris to his mom, that said, you know, he needed the money to, "take care of some matters." The mom said, Oh, that? No. That had nothing to do with a hitman or anything. That is so that he can hire a private investigator.

J: Maybe that's what she really thought. Because I mean, it didn't say specifically say, to take care of persons it, you know, take care of matters.

S: Right. Yeah. So,

J: I don't know it's a little fishy still, but

S: Yeah. In the end, the parents were officially cleared of conspiracy charges. So, you know, it's it's all fallen on Mr. Chris Rezos here. 

J: Mm hmm.

S: So he did eventually plead guilty to all 10 felony charges against him. 

J: Good. 

S: There were charges for attempted murder, kidnapping, felonious assault, aggravated burglary, and conspirit- conspiracy to commit murder. 

J: Wow. 

S: Instead of going to trial he, he instead of going to trial where the prosecutors had said, you know, there they were going to push for the maximum 99 year sentence. He said, I'll plead guilty if you make it 30 years. And they were like, 

J: No… 

S: You know what? Okay. 

J: What? No. 

S: We’ll give you 30 years. We'll give you 30 years, but you can not be considered for early release or parole at any point. So he's guaranteed the 30 years.

J: Still, he's young enough. 30 years is I don't feel long enough.

S: Yeah. He he would be, according to my math, around his mid to late 60s when he gets out.

J: Yeah, still, well and good enough, I feel. Ugh.

S: Yeah. So but, but he did plead guilty. He is in prison. And he is not getting out for many, many years. 

J: Good. He needs to be there. But I feel he might need to be there a little bit longer. I can't believe they agreed to that. 30 years, but 

S: I know. I I know. 

J: Why not making at least 50? I mean, 50 is better than life. And he 

S: Yeah, yeah. Yeah. 

J: But I'm not the courts. So...

S: Well, Amy, after, you know, his sentencing and all of that, she lobbied for House Bill 29, in Ohio, which is known more commonly as Amy's Law. 

J: Mmm. 

S: And what it did is it toughened requirements for granting bail or bond to persons accused of domestic assault in Ohio. So now, because it did pass unanimously, it passed the House and the Senate and was signed into Ohio law, Ohio law by the governor on May 25 of 2005. 

J: Wow. 

S: So now it is, man- Yes. So, you know, it went quick, you know, but it was unanimous. There were no votes against it at all in either the House or the Senate. It is now mandatory for cops to fill out a 20 question danger assessment questionnaire in any case involving an arrest or investigation of a domestic violence incident. It also requires all violent offenders to appear before a judge before being released on bail or bond. The judges are provided with this threat assessment to help aid them in an informed decision. It provides them info on the severity of the offense, the mental health of the offender, and if the suspect is a threat to any other person, and, you know, other risk factors.

J: Now, is this this just in Ohio, or is that stuff covered down in all 50 states? Do we know for sure? 

S: From, from what I saw, I saw that it was a law in a couple of different states. Not all 50. 

J: Okay. 

S: But I didn't really dig too far into that so much. 

J: Okay. 

S: Um, but before this was passed, Ohio only required judges to determine whether a suspect that was charged with domestic violence had either A, violated a protection order or B, had a prior conviction for domestic violence before they could be held over 

J: Wow. Well, I believe this guy had both of them to begin with.

S: Well, no. When he was arrested after her first attack, and he was given that $2,000 bond that was then raised to $100,000. 

J: Yeah. 

S: He had, there was no protection order against him. He had no charges or arrests or anything for domestic violence. He had never been physically violent with her before that day. 

J: Oh, oh. Okay. Which is really surprising to go from zero to 60 the way he did with nothing in between there other than, you know, the verbal situation that that they had going on. That's really, that's really - Okay. I, you know.

S: Yeah, yeah. So, you know, but yeah, so that is why he was not held over. And that's why he was allowed on bail in the first place. And that's why he was able to attack her a second time. 

J: Wow. 

S: So Amy is now a very big advocate for domestic violence. She travels the state of Ohio speaking to women's shelters and high schools about domestic violence. And she has remarried and is raising her two kids as normal as possible, you know, so she did get her happy ending. 

J: Yay. 

S: She does, however, think that once he gets out of prison, she'll he'll come back after her. But for now, she doesn't have to worry about that, because he is locked up and can't get to her. So she said she is going to live her life without fear between now and then.

J: Well, good for her. But yet at the same time, this guy tried to hire a hitman from inside. So I don't know, maybe she does need to be a little cautious. But if she's traveling around and speaking, she's very, a very public figure. So maybe he would think twice about that. Because, you know, somebody's gonna notice if something happens.

S: When it comes to her being a public figure, I'm not sure how public she is. I couldn't really find anything on her though. 

J: Oh. Okay. 

S: So that and that's why I think there's not really a whole lot of information to be found on her is because she is worried about that. So I couldn't really find anything other than the news stories on the internet, related to this, and it was one of those news stories that I read that she does talk to high schools now. And she does talk to women's shelters now. And she is remarried and raising her children. But that's, that's all I could find, really. 

J: Wow. That's because Amy's a bad bitch. I'm just saying.

S: So yeah, I told you it had a happy ending. 

J: Well, I'm so glad it did. So glad because I normal people, I don't think would would be able to survive all that, but she is like a superhero.

S: Yeah, I definitely wouldn't want to meet her in a dark alley, unless she's on my side. 

J: Yeah, true. Very true. 

S: I’m just saying. 

J: Yeah. Hey, I agree with you. 

S: So. But yeah, that's, that's this case. That's the case that I wanted to cover for domestic violence, you know, for for Domestic Violence Awareness Month. It does happen. And it happens. It can happen in the blink of an eye. It can go from zero to 100 in no time.

J: Yes. 

S: You know. But you can survive it. Obviously. She did. She was like, No, this guy is not gonna win. This is me, my life, back off.

J: Yeah. That's great. That That is great. And there, there are a lot of places that that take people in, in a abuse situations. Probably I'm just assuming all over the United States.

S: Yes. And if if you are in a an abusive relationship, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline here in America. Um, that number is 1-800-799-SAFE, or 7233. And there is also a website, and I'll be sure to link it in the show notes. The website is thehotline.org and that is the the national abuse or National Domestic Violence Hotline website. And if you're going to this website, because I went to this website to look at it. When you first go, it tells you, you know, hey, this can be tracked, you know, it can be found in your browsing history, make sure you clear your browsing history, make sure you do this, make sure you do that when you're done with our website, if you're afraid of being found out. But this website also, in in looking around it, it has in the right hand corner, an X, a red X that is on every single page, and all you have to do is click that X and it takes you to Google.

J: Wow.

S: It completely shuts the website down and takes you to Google. So there there's that, too. There, there are ways to get help get help. Don't stay, get help. Be like Amy. 

J: Exactly. Be like Amy. 

S: So but yeah, crazy. Crazy. Crazy. But that's my case today.

J: Wow, that's whew, had me so anxious. I was, man. Whoowee Oh, but I'm glad it had a happy ending. That's, that's great. I'm, I'm, I'm glad glad for Amy.

S: So I think too many of them don't have happy endings. But this one did. And this one was, I felt not only did it show that there can be a happy ending for the victim. But it also highlights the extremes that it can be and how quickly it can change from one extreme to the next.

J: You know, and I do remember reading or hearing somewhere that when people are in a abusive relationship that once the abuser sees that the relationship is going to be terminated. That that is when the abuse usually escalates very highly. I read that somewhere heard that somewhere. Something that's that's what that's what it usually is. That's when it usually turns I guess the most violent is when the relationship when that when that they see that it's going to be ended, you know.

S: When they're no longer going to be in control. 

J: Exactly, exactly. I wish I could find -

S: And that's another thing I want to that's another thing I want to highlight on on this website at thehotline.org. And they have there's there's different places to go. And you can they will work with you and they will talk with you. And they, oh goodness now I have the hiccups. And they will chat with you. And they will help you make an exit plan. So in order to keep you as safe as possible, they have options, you know, for if you're pregnant, if you have pets, if you have children, if you're alone, if you have no one around you, you know they have options, you know, and they have people trained to help you through every step of the process to help keep you as safe as possible.

J: That’s good. That's good. Because there's there's so many unfortunately, people and I'm not just going to say women but people that are in relationships - 

S: No, because men are abused too. I totally get behind you on that one.

J: Yeah, you know, but but there's no reason to be in a relationship like that. None.

S: So, but that's my case. Amy is a badass. 

J: Yes, she is. Wow. 

S: And fuck her ex husband. He can rot in prison forever. 

J: Yeah, hopefully, body- somebody shanks him before he gets out and he never gets out. But that's my opinion. And I'm entitled to it. 

S: That is true. 

J: So good case. That was so awesome. Good case. Good case.

S: I told you it was a doozy.

J: Yes, Yes, it was. 

S: Until next week. 

J: Yeah. See y'all then. 

S: Thanks for listening today. Be sure to tune in next week for another episode of Crime With My Coffee.

J: And don't forget to subscribe to wherever you get your podcasts so we will automatically download. And if you get us on Apple, go ahead and give us a rating and a review.

S: And look us up on social media to stay up to date on everything Crime With My Coffee. You can find us on Instagram and Twitter, @cwmcpod 

J: Check us out on Facebook at Crime With My Coffee.

S: Check out our website at www.crimewithmycoffee.com. You can read full transcripts of our episodes there, and you can even give us case suggestions there.  And please think about giving us support on Patreon at www.patreon.com/crimewithmycoffee. 

J: And if you'd like to send us an email or suggestion, you can send it to crimewithmycoffee@gmail.com.  And don't forget, all hate mail goes to crimewithmycoffee@gmail.com Attention, Trevor. 

S: And remember, if you don't need two hands to hold your mug, it ain't big enough.