Episode 171: Brandon Mitchener (Part 2 of 2)

WEBVTT

1
00:00:13.880 --> 00:00:18.600
Hello and welcome to the Catch My
Killer Podcast. Thank you for listening.

2
00:00:19.120 --> 00:00:24.440
My name is Mark. Since twenty
fifteen, I've written a weekly newspaper column

3
00:00:24.600 --> 00:00:29.839
about true crimes and unsolved Thomas Sides
for the Claremont Sun newspaper in Ohio.

4
00:00:31.600 --> 00:00:38.119
Brandon Mitchener twenty two was a young
man who dreamed of establishing his own business.

5
00:00:38.119 --> 00:00:42.280
His line of clothing that he designed
was called make It Your Mission to

6
00:00:42.439 --> 00:00:49.320
Do the Right Thing. He used
the acronym M I y AM. Brandon

7
00:00:49.399 --> 00:00:54.320
had also completed his associate's degree from
Lansing Community College, where he studied business.

8
00:00:55.039 --> 00:00:58.560
Life seemed bright for this kind hearted
young man who had so many friends

9
00:00:58.640 --> 00:01:03.920
and was loved by his parents and
siblings. Unfortunately, his dreams would come

10
00:01:03.960 --> 00:01:07.840
to an end in June of twenty
fourteen, when his body was pulled from

11
00:01:07.879 --> 00:01:12.400
the Grand River in Lansing, Michigan. Brandon was last seen with his business

12
00:01:12.439 --> 00:01:18.840
partner shortly before he was found dead. Law enforcement has ruled Brandon's death and

13
00:01:18.959 --> 00:01:23.920
accidental drowning, but his family believes
something more sinister led to Brandon's death.

14
00:01:25.760 --> 00:01:29.760
This is the conclusion of a two
part story. If you haven't heard the

15
00:01:29.799 --> 00:01:34.439
first part of Brandon's story. Please
go back and listen to that episode.

16
00:01:38.120 --> 00:01:42.239
Brandon Mitchener was a twenty two year
old man who lived in Lansing, Michigan

17
00:01:42.560 --> 00:01:48.280
with his parents. He had big
dreams. He had earned his associate's degree

18
00:01:48.480 --> 00:01:53.879
from Lansing Community College. It studied
business and wanted to use his education to

19
00:01:53.959 --> 00:01:59.719
start his own clothing line and call
it m i YM, meaning making your

20
00:02:00.359 --> 00:02:05.159
to do the right thing. According
to his mother's Shirley Mentioner, Brandon had

21
00:02:05.159 --> 00:02:08.639
always wanted to start his own business. He had plans which included selling his

22
00:02:08.719 --> 00:02:14.919
clothing line all over the world.
Unfortunately, he would never live to see

23
00:02:14.919 --> 00:02:19.560
his dreams become a reality because he
would be found dead in the Grand River

24
00:02:19.719 --> 00:02:23.719
in Lansing, Michigan. Law enforcement
rold Brandon's death as an accident, but

25
00:02:23.840 --> 00:02:30.919
his family and closest friends do not
believe this. They believe he was thrown

26
00:02:30.960 --> 00:02:35.680
into the river and left to drown. Shirley shared the final moments between her

27
00:02:35.719 --> 00:02:39.280
and her son with me. They
were sitting around the dinner table celebrating Brandon's

28
00:02:39.319 --> 00:02:44.879
father's birthday. June twenty years and
fourteen. Would be the last time that

29
00:02:45.039 --> 00:02:46.680
she would ever be able to give
her son a hug and a kiss.

30
00:02:47.240 --> 00:02:52.000
It would be the last time they
would ever speak to each other. Brandon

31
00:02:52.039 --> 00:02:54.400
had plans that evening he was going
to meet up with his business partner to

32
00:02:54.439 --> 00:03:00.800
celebrate another friend's twenty first birthday on
a party bus. Young men who planning

33
00:03:00.840 --> 00:03:04.919
to take the party bus to several
different bars and have some drinks and some

34
00:03:05.039 --> 00:03:08.560
fun. Meanwhile, Brandon's parents were
preparing to take a trip to Florida to

35
00:03:08.599 --> 00:03:15.159
celebrate their wedding anniversary. Before Brandon
left to join his friends, his mother

36
00:03:15.199 --> 00:03:19.120
told them to be careful. He
told his mother, I got this.

37
00:03:19.599 --> 00:03:23.439
You trained me right. Shirley said
she will never forget those parting words for

38
00:03:23.560 --> 00:03:29.439
her beloved son. The next day, after Brandon's parents arrived at the resort

39
00:03:29.520 --> 00:03:32.199
in Florida, they got a call
from their oldest daughter telling them that she

40
00:03:32.319 --> 00:03:38.560
was concerned because Brandon didn't return home. According to police reports, after the

41
00:03:38.599 --> 00:03:43.120
party bus returned from its round of
hitting the several local bars in downtown Lansing,

42
00:03:43.680 --> 00:03:46.879
Brandon began to feel sick from all
the alcohol that he had drank.

43
00:03:46.639 --> 00:03:52.080
According to security footage, Brandon was
seen walking down the road on June twenty

44
00:03:52.120 --> 00:03:58.120
nine with his business partner following him. According to law enforcement, Brandon stumbled

45
00:03:58.159 --> 00:04:01.800
down the end of South Street,
fell off with an embankment, and then

46
00:04:01.879 --> 00:04:06.719
too the river, and then drowned. Brandon's business partner told the police that

47
00:04:06.800 --> 00:04:11.840
he had lost sight of Brandon and
had just assumed that he had gotten home

48
00:04:11.919 --> 00:04:15.879
okay. He would then return to
his friends and continue socializing with them.

49
00:04:15.959 --> 00:04:19.959
He never bothered to call ninety one
one or any of Brandon's family members to

50
00:04:20.040 --> 00:04:25.600
let them know that something may have
happened to Brandon. After Brandon disappeared,

51
00:04:25.639 --> 00:04:30.040
his siblings and friends began searching for
him. One of his relatives found his

52
00:04:30.079 --> 00:04:34.079
shoe and a hat belonging to Brandon. Brandon's parents cut their trips short and

53
00:04:34.199 --> 00:04:39.560
left Florida to return home to search
for their missing son. They would come

54
00:04:39.600 --> 00:04:44.439
home to learn that the police had
pulled Brandon's body from the river. According

55
00:04:44.480 --> 00:04:48.639
to an interview on Dateline, Shirley
Mitchner said that there were theories about Brandon's

56
00:04:48.680 --> 00:04:53.439
debt. One is that he was
thrown into the river by the friends he

57
00:04:53.480 --> 00:04:57.560
had met up with on the party
bus. A second theory is that Brandon

58
00:04:57.639 --> 00:05:00.519
got into a fight and was pushed
into the river. The police theory is

59
00:05:00.560 --> 00:05:05.319
that he was intoxicated and fell into
the river. Shirley Mitchner had also told

60
00:05:05.399 --> 00:05:12.519
Dateline that Brandon's friends should have stayed
with him, but then once they realized

61
00:05:12.560 --> 00:05:15.800
he was gone, they should have
called nine one one immediately. She has

62
00:05:15.800 --> 00:05:20.240
spent the past eight years trying to
find out what she believes really happened to

63
00:05:20.279 --> 00:05:26.240
her son. She would also decide
to keep her son's dream alive by relaunching

64
00:05:26.360 --> 00:05:31.199
his clothing line. Law enforcement told
Dateline that Brandon's case has been thoroughly investigated

65
00:05:31.319 --> 00:05:35.560
and they feel that Brandon's business partner
has been opened and honest about this case.

66
00:05:36.040 --> 00:05:41.839
They do not consider him a suspect
in Brandon's death. Brandon's mother has

67
00:05:41.879 --> 00:05:46.240
said that he was a glue that
kept the family together. She's told me

68
00:05:46.240 --> 00:05:48.959
that she will keep digging and looking
until she finds out what she thinks really

69
00:05:49.000 --> 00:05:54.720
happened to her son. For this
story, I spoke to Shirley Mitchner about

70
00:05:54.720 --> 00:05:59.079
a relationship with her son, how
she continues to grieve for him over eight

71
00:05:59.160 --> 00:06:04.959
years later and now on with the
story of Friandon Mitchner is told by his

72
00:06:05.079 --> 00:06:11.040
mother, Shirley So based on everything
that you've told me, it doesn't sound

73
00:06:11.079 --> 00:06:16.439
like law enforcement really took this case
too seriously. Nope, because you know

74
00:06:16.480 --> 00:06:20.120
what, and I'm sorry to say
this, but I told one of the

75
00:06:20.160 --> 00:06:27.879
police officers, you all saw a
young black boy drinking and said he accidentally

76
00:06:27.879 --> 00:06:30.879
fell in the river, and that's
the end of the story. Go didn't

77
00:06:30.920 --> 00:06:35.399
go any further than that, any
further. Brandon was the only African American.

78
00:06:35.920 --> 00:06:43.120
The business partner is Caucasian blast Mexican, and all the other boys are

79
00:06:43.160 --> 00:06:48.519
Caucasian. But you didn't even think
anything else. And then how dare the

80
00:06:48.639 --> 00:06:55.920
police officer tell me that he believed
their story. See, the boys all

81
00:06:56.000 --> 00:06:59.680
had a day or so to get
their lives together, and they all told

82
00:06:59.720 --> 00:07:04.480
the story because they all were together. So they all lied. And I

83
00:07:04.560 --> 00:07:11.279
have the interview from the business partner, and needless to say, we made

84
00:07:11.279 --> 00:07:15.000
it back to Michigan with the bad
news. You know, some of this

85
00:07:15.199 --> 00:07:19.560
is blurred to me. At the
airport, I must have been in the

86
00:07:19.639 --> 00:07:24.480
days or something, because I like
to walk around the airport and go to

87
00:07:24.560 --> 00:07:30.680
little shops there, and my husband
was sitting there and somebody texted him and

88
00:07:30.759 --> 00:07:34.920
said, I'm so sorry about your
son. So Stephen already knew, but

89
00:07:35.079 --> 00:07:41.160
I didn't know. But my husband
knew. So your husband knew that he

90
00:07:41.319 --> 00:07:45.560
was missing. Or are you saying
that your husband knew he was deceased.

91
00:07:46.120 --> 00:07:49.560
I don't know. I never asked
him which one did he know? I

92
00:07:49.600 --> 00:07:53.639
don't know, but he didn't tell
me. Then. I didn't learn this

93
00:07:53.759 --> 00:07:58.920
till later. So my nephews came
picked us up and brought us to Lansing

94
00:08:00.120 --> 00:08:05.959
from Detroit. And there were some
cars in the driveway or they were on

95
00:08:05.000 --> 00:08:11.160
the street, and I read the
doorbell or something. And my brother,

96
00:08:11.319 --> 00:08:15.759
he lives in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and he was here in Lansing,

97
00:08:16.879 --> 00:08:22.600
and he met me at the door
and he said he's gone, and I'm

98
00:08:22.720 --> 00:08:30.839
reading hollering, and Steve already knew. But he was so good because even

99
00:08:30.879 --> 00:08:33.240
in the car, I asked my
nephews, I said, hey, you

100
00:08:33.320 --> 00:08:39.840
sound Brandon. Everything's okay, And
they never did answer me. So I

101
00:08:39.919 --> 00:08:46.399
didn't know. I didn't know till
I made it home. And there was

102
00:08:46.759 --> 00:08:50.679
one of the pastors for my church
was here, a deacon was here.

103
00:08:50.519 --> 00:08:56.320
Everybody knew about this but me,
my friends. Everybody knew and everyone kept

104
00:08:56.320 --> 00:09:01.799
it from me until I made it
home and my brothers were here. I'm

105
00:09:01.840 --> 00:09:05.320
the only one that lives here in
Land, saying all my family is in

106
00:09:05.360 --> 00:09:11.799
Detroit, and they were here to
tell me. And I still don't know

107
00:09:11.960 --> 00:09:16.679
things. My daughter, she lives
in Atlanta, and she was here and

108
00:09:18.559 --> 00:09:22.120
he knows a lot more than what
I know. Her and her husband who

109
00:09:22.200 --> 00:09:28.759
found him? How was he found? My daughter had called the police and

110
00:09:28.039 --> 00:09:35.840
somehow the police got in touch with
the business partner and he showed them a

111
00:09:35.919 --> 00:09:41.440
spot and it was the wrong spot. So the police went back to get

112
00:09:41.519 --> 00:09:46.159
him and told him, all right, stopped lying. You know where you

113
00:09:46.240 --> 00:09:50.320
left him at, So where is
it? So then they were walking some

114
00:09:50.480 --> 00:09:56.720
more at the river, and my
daughter thought her brother's hat and shoe,

115
00:09:56.159 --> 00:10:03.039
so the business partner lied again where
they found Brandon. So they had the

116
00:10:03.120 --> 00:10:07.200
divers out that night. From what
I understand, it was too dark and

117
00:10:07.320 --> 00:10:11.200
they had to leave and go back
because the water was muddy. So the

118
00:10:11.200 --> 00:10:16.759
next day they found Brandon's body further
down the street. And I now know,

119
00:10:16.879 --> 00:10:20.039
and I just found this out a
month or so ago, that if

120
00:10:20.039 --> 00:10:24.279
it hadn't have been that his body
got caught in a tree or something,

121
00:10:24.679 --> 00:10:30.480
they might have never found them.
And I believe the business partner didn't want

122
00:10:30.519 --> 00:10:35.039
him to be found because he never
told nobody. He wasn't going to tell

123
00:10:35.080 --> 00:10:37.600
anybody. Well, he knew that
your son was in the river, and

124
00:10:37.759 --> 00:10:43.200
yet he didn't call nine one one
or say anything to anyone. No,

125
00:10:43.360 --> 00:10:50.120
he didn't call nine one one,
didn't call anybody. So when they pulled

126
00:10:50.120 --> 00:10:56.000
Brandon's body from the river and he
was in the body bag, the business

127
00:10:56.039 --> 00:11:01.039
partner said, can I go to
work now now that you found him?

128
00:11:01.039 --> 00:11:05.639
Cannot go to work? And he
went to work. So can you believe

129
00:11:05.639 --> 00:11:11.360
it? But he wasn't Brandon's friends
anyway. They never were friends. They

130
00:11:11.399 --> 00:11:15.919
were business partners and that was it. Never were friends. Now what was

131
00:11:15.960 --> 00:11:20.559
the official cause of death? I've
read that it was accidental drowning? Is

132
00:11:20.559 --> 00:11:26.600
that correct? Accidental drowning? And
the coroner said to me recently, based

133
00:11:26.600 --> 00:11:33.720
on the information that I've given them, that the police should contact them and

134
00:11:33.840 --> 00:11:41.519
say suspicious death. Something else can
change, and then they would change.

135
00:11:41.720 --> 00:11:45.480
They have to tell them why and
there's more to the story until based on

136
00:11:45.600 --> 00:11:50.440
other things, the police should ask
them to change the death certificate. But

137
00:11:50.600 --> 00:11:56.440
I believe there's a conspiracy a month
Brandon's death because the business, the father,

138
00:11:56.799 --> 00:12:03.919
and the birthday boy never were interviewed
because the moment they said that there

139
00:12:03.840 --> 00:12:09.799
is the Aboots now here in Michigan, the Aboots are very popular attorneys,

140
00:12:09.879 --> 00:12:16.279
and you never even questioned the birthday
boy and his father. That don't sound

141
00:12:16.360 --> 00:12:22.039
right, not at all. There's
other things that have happened that I don't

142
00:12:22.039 --> 00:12:28.600
know the just coincidence or what.
But every time a door opens, the

143
00:12:28.679 --> 00:12:35.000
door closes. I cannot get the
well, okay, there's so much more.

144
00:12:35.879 --> 00:12:41.399
So after the corner told you that
your son had drowned and that it

145
00:12:41.480 --> 00:12:46.080
was an accident, what did you
think, I mean, did you think

146
00:12:46.120 --> 00:12:50.840
that he was just intoxicated and fell
in and drowned. I'm sure that that

147
00:12:50.000 --> 00:12:54.759
opinion probably hasn't gone over well with
your family. No, and you know,

148
00:12:56.080 --> 00:13:00.399
when we made it here to Lansing, the police knew when we were

149
00:13:00.399 --> 00:13:05.159
coming into town because my daughter told
them, and the police never reached out

150
00:13:05.159 --> 00:13:09.600
to us. They never came to
talk to us about it or at anything.

151
00:13:09.320 --> 00:13:16.320
So my husband had to contact them. And basically whatever they said to

152
00:13:16.360 --> 00:13:20.759
Steve, I believe they just said
that we're so sorry about your son of

153
00:13:20.879 --> 00:13:26.240
drowning. Because I have a husband, never spoke to them again. I

154
00:13:26.279 --> 00:13:33.480
went to the police station and met
with the first police officer tells me,

155
00:13:33.279 --> 00:13:39.080
and you believe that back in the
day, I was young and foolish,

156
00:13:39.120 --> 00:13:46.919
and I drank, and I can't
believe that I'm still here now. Backtrack

157
00:13:46.960 --> 00:13:54.200
a minute. The moment my daughter
said that our son was missing, I

158
00:13:54.279 --> 00:14:00.240
screamed and yelled and said, what
did the business partner do? And I

159
00:14:00.360 --> 00:14:07.600
said that because I knew Brandon was
going to tell him that he wanted out

160
00:14:07.639 --> 00:14:11.840
of business with him. And I'm
not the only one that knew that.

161
00:14:13.759 --> 00:14:18.759
The girlfriend and Brandon's best friend knew
that as well, because the business partner

162
00:14:18.919 --> 00:14:24.240
wasn't doing anything with the business,
and he even told Brandon he wanted to

163
00:14:24.279 --> 00:14:28.399
have nothing to do with it because
he got a job and a girlfriend.

164
00:14:28.960 --> 00:14:37.159
But something in my mind, in
my heart when they finally told me it

165
00:14:37.240 --> 00:14:43.480
was accidental drowning. But when I
was in Florida, I thought that the

166
00:14:43.519 --> 00:14:48.200
business partner did something to him anyway, because I felt that Brandon told him

167
00:14:48.000 --> 00:14:54.039
and he did something to him.
And I just didn't think that my son

168
00:14:54.240 --> 00:15:00.320
would be in the ruler. How
he was at nowhere near the river.

169
00:15:00.799 --> 00:15:05.360
Brendon's car was downtown Lansing. He
wasn't buy no river, It wasn't so

170
00:15:05.519 --> 00:15:11.440
how could he have drowned? I
don't believe y'all. And I basically was

171
00:15:11.480 --> 00:15:13.639
telling them that you got to give
me an investigation, you gotta do more.

172
00:15:15.320 --> 00:15:20.480
And that's when I met with the
police officer to tell me exactly what

173
00:15:20.600 --> 00:15:26.159
happened, because I had met with
the business partner before I met with the

174
00:15:26.200 --> 00:15:31.519
police, because the police were taking
too long to tell me what was going

175
00:15:31.600 --> 00:15:39.759
on. What happened. So I
met with the business partner at Appleby's Restaurant

176
00:15:39.399 --> 00:15:43.120
in August, and the first thing
out of his mouth I'll never forget.

177
00:15:43.919 --> 00:15:50.559
He said, missus Mitchener, why
nobody wants to be my friend? And

178
00:15:50.639 --> 00:15:52.960
I said, are you serious?
He said, yeah, I'm serious.

179
00:15:54.000 --> 00:15:56.679
Nobody wants to talk to me,
nobody wants to be my friend. I

180
00:15:56.679 --> 00:16:02.679
said, you left him in the
river. He said, that's in the

181
00:16:02.799 --> 00:16:06.320
past. I got to move on
with my wife. I said what He

182
00:16:06.399 --> 00:16:08.720
said, Yeah, that's in the
past. I'm moving on with my life

183
00:16:08.759 --> 00:16:14.720
now. I'm trying to go back
to school and join a church. And

184
00:16:15.360 --> 00:16:18.399
I'm like, what Yeah, that's
what he said to me. And I

185
00:16:18.519 --> 00:16:23.720
tell you it was all God,
because sitting at that restaurant, I could

186
00:16:23.759 --> 00:16:30.639
have easily picked up a fork and
stabbed him in the throat, or letting

187
00:16:30.759 --> 00:16:37.440
my son be in the river easily. But I prayed for him, Yes

188
00:16:37.480 --> 00:16:41.679
I did. I said, let
me pray for you that you have a

189
00:16:41.720 --> 00:16:47.080
good, successful life. You have
a good life, and you take care

190
00:16:47.080 --> 00:16:51.399
of yourself. And I gave him
a hug. He never told me he

191
00:16:51.519 --> 00:16:56.440
was sorry. None of the boys, not that you're saying you did anything,

192
00:16:56.279 --> 00:17:03.559
but none of them even sent a
card, even a message. Because

193
00:17:03.680 --> 00:17:10.400
I later found out from the police
that the boys all were going to hire

194
00:17:10.440 --> 00:17:15.359
your attorneys because they thought I was
going to sue them. You know what,

195
00:17:15.720 --> 00:17:18.720
How what am I sue them for? I don't even know nothing yet.

196
00:17:19.279 --> 00:17:22.759
How can I sue them when I
don't know nothing. I didn't know

197
00:17:22.880 --> 00:17:30.559
nothing, And so I'm telling you
it had to be all died in my

198
00:17:30.680 --> 00:17:36.480
head to say, surely Brandon did
not do this. It's gotta be more

199
00:17:37.440 --> 00:17:41.519
so. And then when the police
officer assist in front of me and tells

200
00:17:41.599 --> 00:17:47.559
me he believed the boys store stories
because they all gave the same stories,

201
00:17:48.440 --> 00:17:52.880
don't get the same line. To
this day, Shureley doesn't know what happened

202
00:17:52.920 --> 00:17:56.000
to her son, and neither does
the family. They just don't believe that

203
00:17:56.079 --> 00:18:00.440
Brandon accidentally fell into the river and
drowned. We'll take a small break and

204
00:18:00.559 --> 00:18:06.279
when we return, we'll listen to
surely get more details about what she believes

205
00:18:06.319 --> 00:18:22.119
happened to her son after he was
dropped off by the party bus. Now,

206
00:18:22.160 --> 00:18:26.279
how many people were with Brandon at
the river? Was it just the

207
00:18:26.319 --> 00:18:32.799
business partner? Have you ever figured
out just how many people were actually there?

208
00:18:33.440 --> 00:18:38.519
The only thing I know the video
shows is just Brandon and Carlos.

209
00:18:40.079 --> 00:18:45.039
That's all I know. But I
know that in the police report, I

210
00:18:45.119 --> 00:18:51.119
think there's five or six names,
and I know the business partner. No,

211
00:18:51.599 --> 00:18:56.240
I know the birthday boy and the
father never were interviewed, so I

212
00:18:56.279 --> 00:18:59.880
don't even think their names. Yeah, the only thing they're na the name

213
00:19:00.039 --> 00:19:02.720
are in there is just because it
was their party, that was it.

214
00:19:03.400 --> 00:19:07.119
But nothing else about them is in
a police report, and that's online.

215
00:19:07.920 --> 00:19:11.119
I also have it, but it's
out there. Everything's out there. I

216
00:19:11.119 --> 00:19:17.720
didn't even realize that even when I
do messages online about him, it's out

217
00:19:17.720 --> 00:19:22.400
there undescribed or something. It's really
weird. Now. Is there a Facebook

218
00:19:22.440 --> 00:19:29.920
page dedicated to your song's story?
You know? I have a Facebook page

219
00:19:29.920 --> 00:19:33.359
that says justice for Brandon out there. But I haven't done what I should

220
00:19:33.440 --> 00:19:37.559
do, which is tell the story. The only thing I think, Yeah,

221
00:19:37.680 --> 00:19:41.480
I haven't told the story, even
though it's been eight years. I

222
00:19:41.480 --> 00:19:45.119
can't even write the story, which
is something I need to do. I

223
00:19:45.200 --> 00:19:48.079
keep telling myself, You've got to
do it because it's going to come a

224
00:19:48.119 --> 00:19:52.200
time when I need to write down
what I know, because the police don't

225
00:19:52.240 --> 00:19:57.519
have the same information that I have, meaning that I've told them stuff.

226
00:19:59.119 --> 00:20:03.359
But they didn't even go to the
apartment to talk to the boy who I

227
00:20:03.400 --> 00:20:07.279
said whose apartment it was, And
then the boys that was at the apartment,

228
00:20:07.359 --> 00:20:11.400
they didn't even talk to them.
And the car, the person who

229
00:20:11.480 --> 00:20:15.880
drove the car, I know who
drove the car. I told them all

230
00:20:15.960 --> 00:20:25.680
this. I even told them that
where is the phone records to show that

231
00:20:26.480 --> 00:20:32.319
the business partner who he was talking
to at that time? Who then the

232
00:20:32.319 --> 00:20:38.400
business partner's ex girlfriend sent me a
text message saying that night that he text

233
00:20:38.480 --> 00:20:44.960
her and said that Brandon and him
have been fighting. But I can't get

234
00:20:45.000 --> 00:20:49.279
her phone records and she can't either
because after so many years, you have

235
00:20:49.400 --> 00:20:55.200
to subpoena the record, which is
another thing. Where's Brandon's phone records at?

236
00:20:56.000 --> 00:21:00.480
There's nothing in the police report about
Brandon's phone records or the business partner's

237
00:21:00.519 --> 00:21:06.279
phone records. Nothing. Now,
with all those informations, I've met with

238
00:21:06.319 --> 00:21:11.720
the mayor three different chief of police, because there's been three I met with

239
00:21:11.799 --> 00:21:17.000
them. I've asked the Attorney General
to take my case to investigate. And

240
00:21:17.079 --> 00:21:21.400
she says there's no new information.
Well, everything that I've told you is

241
00:21:21.480 --> 00:21:26.440
new and she doesn't know. But
I told her I have information. You

242
00:21:26.559 --> 00:21:30.599
need to talk to me because what
the police report is not. It's just

243
00:21:30.680 --> 00:21:36.319
the beginning. I know the middle
and the end because I've had to do.

244
00:21:36.599 --> 00:21:40.200
I even hired a private investigator.
Do you know what he did?

245
00:21:40.319 --> 00:21:45.160
Took my money because he lied to
me. He didn't do anything. Now

246
00:21:45.240 --> 00:21:51.680
I did go to mediums, I'll
admit it. I've visited three and I

247
00:21:51.720 --> 00:21:56.359
did not say who I was.
And now this is weird. I know

248
00:21:56.440 --> 00:22:00.599
you may not believe in and I
don't either. Well, this is weird.

249
00:22:00.119 --> 00:22:06.640
This one girl, I know her
grandfather and this one young lady reached

250
00:22:06.640 --> 00:22:11.079
out to me and says she needed
to talk to me. And what had

251
00:22:11.079 --> 00:22:15.640
happened was she was going to learn
about her gifts. And so the medium

252
00:22:15.799 --> 00:22:21.680
at the meeting, this little boy
kept popping up, young man, he

253
00:22:21.799 --> 00:22:27.200
kept popping up, interrupting this medium's
meetings even with other people. And so

254
00:22:27.240 --> 00:22:30.319
she said, you got a friend
out who this boy is? And I

255
00:22:30.359 --> 00:22:34.920
think she gave the last name.
And so the young lady was talking to

256
00:22:36.000 --> 00:22:40.279
her aunt, and her aunt said, that's her grandfather's best friend, my

257
00:22:40.400 --> 00:22:45.359
husband. So the young lady reached
out to me and she came over here

258
00:22:45.279 --> 00:22:49.319
and I tell you no, lie. As they were leaving, our lights

259
00:22:49.359 --> 00:22:53.720
went out in the kitchen. Now
there is nothing wrong with our power in

260
00:22:53.759 --> 00:22:57.720
this house, but our lives were
going out and they came back on.

261
00:23:00.640 --> 00:23:06.400
Even before that, he said,
Brandon wants to see me. Brandon kept

262
00:23:06.440 --> 00:23:11.599
interrupting and he wanted to see me. So I did call the medium and

263
00:23:11.720 --> 00:23:15.920
I met but women before that,
I was at work on a Saturday,

264
00:23:15.119 --> 00:23:18.880
and I called the number. So
I worked for the State of Michigan,

265
00:23:18.480 --> 00:23:22.559
and so I called the number from
the state job and by calling the number,

266
00:23:23.119 --> 00:23:26.359
you don't see you don't know who
that person is. They don't know

267
00:23:26.400 --> 00:23:30.960
it's me. So when the lady
entered the phone, she said, I

268
00:23:32.160 --> 00:23:36.519
surely I've been waiting for your call. Now. She would never have known

269
00:23:37.240 --> 00:23:41.599
that was me on that phone because
it's a state phone and it doesn't give

270
00:23:41.599 --> 00:23:45.720
out a phone number. And on
her call, she said, Brandon,

271
00:23:45.839 --> 00:23:49.200
stop, stop. I'm telling her. I'm telling her that I'm gonna meet

272
00:23:49.200 --> 00:23:52.440
her. I'm gonna meet her.
And I met her, and then there

273
00:23:52.519 --> 00:23:57.319
was two other people and they all
said that there was two other boys at

274
00:23:57.319 --> 00:24:03.400
the river with Brandon and he was
thrown in. Okay. They told me

275
00:24:03.480 --> 00:24:07.680
this three different ones, and as
a matter of fact, in February,

276
00:24:07.920 --> 00:24:17.559
one of them is writing or doing
a podcast about the perspective from a medium

277
00:24:18.319 --> 00:24:22.960
and Brandon. So that's gonna be
interesting. Yes, she said, let

278
00:24:22.000 --> 00:24:26.839
me know when it hits okay.
So with that being said about them saying

279
00:24:27.000 --> 00:24:30.880
it was two other people that was
with Brandon who threw him in there,

280
00:24:32.519 --> 00:24:37.480
which, like I said, that's
weird, but I think it was June

281
00:24:37.519 --> 00:24:42.440
of twenty eighteen, a young man
called me about ten o'clock at night and

282
00:24:42.519 --> 00:24:47.559
he said, missus Mitchner. You
don't know me, but I need to

283
00:24:47.559 --> 00:24:52.440
meet with you. While my son
and my sister in law were here,

284
00:24:52.359 --> 00:25:00.200
and so they went with me the
Croaker's parking lot and this young and you

285
00:25:00.240 --> 00:25:03.799
know, I had my son's search
him and everything, because you know,

286
00:25:03.880 --> 00:25:08.519
I don't know who you are or
what exactly. So he proceeded to tell

287
00:25:10.039 --> 00:25:15.440
and my son videotaped it what happened. Now I can't tell you what he

288
00:25:15.559 --> 00:25:19.920
said because once again got stepped in
and he closed my ears. But it's

289
00:25:19.960 --> 00:25:26.960
on video. But so then we
shared that video with the police. Okay,

290
00:25:26.000 --> 00:25:30.880
So then the young man called the
police station and I have the interview.

291
00:25:32.559 --> 00:25:37.160
I have it the phone interview,
and he told them that it was

292
00:25:37.160 --> 00:25:42.559
a setup, that Carlos was jealous
of Brandon, and because everybody liked Brandon,

293
00:25:44.160 --> 00:25:49.200
he basically wanted to see if Brandon
could swim, so they took him

294
00:25:49.240 --> 00:25:55.039
to the river. It was a
setup. And how did this guy know

295
00:25:55.160 --> 00:25:59.640
about this information? Was he there? This is where it's a little twisted,

296
00:26:00.039 --> 00:26:03.480
because he told me he wasn't there, right, ok A lot and

297
00:26:03.960 --> 00:26:08.480
the business partners interviewed with the police. He named him. I called that

298
00:26:08.720 --> 00:26:15.759
recently that the business partner said that
he was there, but the boy said

299
00:26:15.799 --> 00:26:18.839
he wasn't there. And the person
who told him is another young man.

300
00:26:19.359 --> 00:26:23.920
So this other young man, the
police tried to get in touch with him.

301
00:26:25.000 --> 00:26:26.880
They went to his house several times, they called them several times,

302
00:26:27.359 --> 00:26:32.599
and he was never home. So
finally he called the police like four or

303
00:26:32.599 --> 00:26:37.599
five in the morning one morning and
said I'm on my way and I'm gonna

304
00:26:37.599 --> 00:26:41.599
tell you everything. And he never
showed up. He's still alive. But

305
00:26:41.960 --> 00:26:45.599
so the police went to his house
again several times, and finally he told

306
00:26:45.640 --> 00:26:51.359
them get off of my property.
I have nothing to say now based on

307
00:26:51.599 --> 00:26:57.319
that alone. And we've seen people
arrested and put in prison for nobody and

308
00:26:57.480 --> 00:27:04.759
not even having a body. So
based on everything between the corner and people

309
00:27:04.839 --> 00:27:11.319
coming forward and even gave the names
of the boys, he named them all.

310
00:27:11.640 --> 00:27:15.319
And you're gonna tell me that's not
evidence. You're gonna tell me that

311
00:27:15.799 --> 00:27:18.599
you're not going to take this to
the grand jury and let the grand jury

312
00:27:18.680 --> 00:27:25.000
decide if there's a case or not. I've asked that to the chief prosecutor.

313
00:27:25.400 --> 00:27:29.759
He is now retired as a December. I I don't know what more.

314
00:27:29.839 --> 00:27:32.720
You all want for me. I
just don't know. Have you ever

315
00:27:32.759 --> 00:27:36.920
reached out to the FBI or the
Michigan State Police for help in this case?

316
00:27:37.440 --> 00:27:41.559
Yes, In facted the FBI a
while ago, and they said only

317
00:27:41.599 --> 00:27:45.079
the Attorney General can have them come
in. I can't. Yep, the

318
00:27:45.319 --> 00:27:52.119
Michigan State Police. The one of
the chief of police had contacted a friend

319
00:27:52.240 --> 00:27:57.799
at the Michigan State Police and asked
him to review the files. Now you

320
00:27:57.839 --> 00:28:02.440
know, goodness, well, what's
in a report is only what you put

321
00:28:02.480 --> 00:28:07.920
in it. So what's in that
report is nothing? Nothing, So why

322
00:28:07.960 --> 00:28:12.559
don't you interview me? You need
to talk to me the mother. So

323
00:28:14.240 --> 00:28:18.279
he reviewed the report and he said, I nope, the police did everything

324
00:28:18.359 --> 00:28:22.359
right. There's nothing else to do
here. So to the police, nope,

325
00:28:22.400 --> 00:28:25.759
you don't need to do any further
investigation. Case close. Now.

326
00:28:26.559 --> 00:28:30.240
One of the chief of police and
the chief prosecutor I met with them together

327
00:28:30.640 --> 00:28:34.960
and they both told me they believed
there was foul play, but they just

328
00:28:36.039 --> 00:28:38.519
need proof. And then when I
give them proof, they don't even go

329
00:28:38.599 --> 00:28:44.200
and investigate. Bring in the birthday
boy with his attorney. Who cares?

330
00:28:44.640 --> 00:28:48.240
Who cares? Make him tell all
the stuff, Make him tell you who

331
00:28:48.359 --> 00:28:52.200
all were on the bus, who
all were at the bars? Make him

332
00:28:52.240 --> 00:28:56.160
tell y'all where was he at?
I asked him, where were you at

333
00:28:56.160 --> 00:28:59.240
in all this? I was too
drunk, Missus Missioner, I don't remember,

334
00:28:59.720 --> 00:29:03.119
oh head, you cannot. You
know when something bad happens, you

335
00:29:03.200 --> 00:29:07.160
remember everything. You remember, You
know more than what you say. You

336
00:29:07.279 --> 00:29:11.720
just aren't talking well, missus,
miss nor, I don't remember. I

337
00:29:11.799 --> 00:29:17.839
was intoxicated that night, fullpucky.
You made it home safe. Every single

338
00:29:18.079 --> 00:29:22.559
one of them either made it to
their house or to another party, and

339
00:29:22.680 --> 00:29:26.359
Brandon was the only one who didn't, and he trusted the wrong people.

340
00:29:26.960 --> 00:29:33.119
And because he trusted people, he's
at Chapel Hill Cemetery and they're out.

341
00:29:33.680 --> 00:29:37.559
Everybody else is living a good life. And from what I know, none

342
00:29:37.559 --> 00:29:42.359
of them are talking to each other
on social media. So if they're talking,

343
00:29:42.960 --> 00:29:47.920
it's by phone or something or meeting
up, but they're no longer on

344
00:29:47.960 --> 00:29:52.440
each other's social media page. And
of course I'm blocked, so I'd have

345
00:29:52.559 --> 00:29:56.480
other people do that kind of work
for me. But it sounds to me

346
00:29:56.720 --> 00:30:00.880
like there is something going on with
your son's death. There's something just not

347
00:30:00.960 --> 00:30:03.880
right about this story, and I
think that You're going to have to find

348
00:30:03.920 --> 00:30:10.559
them right law enforcement agency or detective
to take a look at this, someone

349
00:30:10.640 --> 00:30:17.119
who's willing to look pass what the
coroner has ruled. Since Brandon's death,

350
00:30:17.359 --> 00:30:22.680
Sureley has spoken to different law enforcement
agencies and requests at help getting her son's

351
00:30:22.720 --> 00:30:27.279
case reopened. She also reached out
to former prosecutor Kelly Sigler for assistance and

352
00:30:27.400 --> 00:30:32.359
looking into her son's case. We'll
take a final break and be right back.

353
00:30:33.000 --> 00:30:37.799
When we return, we'll listen to
Shirley share her thoughts about Kelly Sigler

354
00:30:37.480 --> 00:30:42.839
and other law enforcement agencies and the
quest to find out what truly happened to

355
00:30:42.960 --> 00:30:56.759
her son. Now what the police
department is handling this case. So if

356
00:30:56.799 --> 00:31:00.000
someone wanted to report a tip,
who would they need to contact? The

357
00:31:00.200 --> 00:31:06.799
Lancing Police Department. Chief of Police
Ellerie saught the b okay, So listen

358
00:31:06.839 --> 00:31:12.680
to this. Kelly Siegler from Criminal
Justice on TV. She reached out to

359
00:31:12.720 --> 00:31:18.200
me and said she wanted my story
Kelly Siegler to give us peace because there's

360
00:31:18.240 --> 00:31:23.200
no such thing as closure. So
she tells me that she needs the chief

361
00:31:23.240 --> 00:31:27.599
of police and the chief prosecutor to
say that it's okay for her to come

362
00:31:27.640 --> 00:31:33.279
to Lansing to investigate. So the
Chief of police does an email and sec

363
00:31:33.480 --> 00:31:37.039
means on it, and he gives
her his permission for her to come.

364
00:31:37.599 --> 00:31:44.359
The chief prosecutor says, we've investigated
hundreds and hundreds of hours on this case

365
00:31:44.400 --> 00:31:48.160
and we don't think there's anything else. So a couple of days later,

366
00:31:48.759 --> 00:31:52.920
Miss Kelly Siegler sends me an email
and says, we're really sit about that

367
00:31:52.119 --> 00:31:56.359
to be your son, but we
don't think we can take your story.

368
00:31:56.240 --> 00:32:00.519
She lives in Dallas, Texas.
She's an attorney. I've called her,

369
00:32:01.000 --> 00:32:07.200
I've emailed her asking her, can
you please tell me why you've changed your

370
00:32:07.200 --> 00:32:12.480
mind? You will not respond to
me. I've spoken to other people that

371
00:32:12.599 --> 00:32:16.720
have reached out to her and asked
for help, and it sounds like they've

372
00:32:16.720 --> 00:32:22.079
gone through the same thing as you, where she's possibly interested in looking into

373
00:32:22.119 --> 00:32:28.759
the story, but then she reaches
out to law enforcement or the prosecutor.

374
00:32:28.839 --> 00:32:32.279
Then all of a sudden, she's
no longer interested in the story, and

375
00:32:32.319 --> 00:32:37.440
then everything just goes away and the
person who made the request is left in

376
00:32:37.440 --> 00:32:45.000
the dark without any reason as to
why, really why. So here's the

377
00:32:45.079 --> 00:32:51.680
thing with Kelly Siegler. She's a
former prosecutor, and she will not investigate

378
00:32:51.720 --> 00:32:59.279
a case unless she has full cooperation
from law enforcement in the prosecutor's office because

379
00:32:59.759 --> 00:33:04.160
she needs their help, and for
her to do this, it has to

380
00:33:04.160 --> 00:33:08.279
be a team effort. So if
it's not a team effort, she's not

381
00:33:08.279 --> 00:33:14.000
going to be able to have any
success on finding out what truly happened because

382
00:33:14.680 --> 00:33:17.680
she needs law enforcements help, She
needs the prosecutor's help. She really can't

383
00:33:17.720 --> 00:33:22.400
do it without them opening up their
files and telling her what's going on.

384
00:33:23.599 --> 00:33:30.640
And here's the thing. I don't
think all law enforcement agencies and all prosecutors

385
00:33:30.960 --> 00:33:38.640
are willing to help her because think
about this. How bad would it look

386
00:33:39.759 --> 00:33:45.279
if she really got into research in
your son's case and she found out that

387
00:33:46.440 --> 00:33:52.920
there was foul playing involved and she
was actually able to get your son's case

388
00:33:52.960 --> 00:33:55.839
in front of a grand jury.
Think about this. When I just said

389
00:33:57.759 --> 00:34:01.480
law enforcement has had this case for
eight years and nothing has happened, they

390
00:34:01.519 --> 00:34:07.640
say there's nothing. How would it
look Kelly Sigler were to just come in

391
00:34:07.680 --> 00:34:12.599
eight years later and find something.
It wouldn't look very good for that police

392
00:34:12.639 --> 00:34:15.800
department. I mean, think about
that. It would almost make them look

393
00:34:15.800 --> 00:34:22.320
incompetent. People would start asking questions
like you've had these cases for all these

394
00:34:22.400 --> 00:34:27.079
years and you've never found anything,
And Kelly Sigler comes in and she's able

395
00:34:27.119 --> 00:34:30.800
to find something. So that has
a lot to do with it. Yeah,

396
00:34:31.360 --> 00:34:37.400
But even though Carol Simon, the
chief prosecutor, said we've investigated,

397
00:34:37.400 --> 00:34:40.960
we've investigated, but she still told
her what, you can come, but

398
00:34:42.119 --> 00:34:45.760
we don't think there's anything else here. But she still told her she could

399
00:34:45.760 --> 00:34:51.840
come. So why didn't she still
come? Well, just because the prosecutor

400
00:34:51.960 --> 00:34:58.199
said that she could come, that
doesn't mean that the prosecutor's office or law

401
00:34:58.280 --> 00:35:04.519
enforcement is going to act assist with
anything. Saying that you can come to

402
00:35:04.559 --> 00:35:07.800
look into this case and then saying
that we're going to open up our office

403
00:35:07.840 --> 00:35:15.280
and our files for you to look
through. Those are two completely different things.

404
00:35:15.280 --> 00:35:19.800
True, I don't know, because
she won't respond to me. As

405
00:35:19.800 --> 00:35:23.119
for her not responding to you,
I'm sure that she gets hundreds, if

406
00:35:23.159 --> 00:35:30.280
not thousands of requests every week from
people requesting her assistance. So I'm guessing

407
00:35:30.320 --> 00:35:32.719
that once she decides she's not going
to take a case, and then she

408
00:35:32.880 --> 00:35:36.760
just moves on from it, and
that she's already told you we're not going

409
00:35:36.800 --> 00:35:39.519
to look into it. That's it. They probably don't really have time to

410
00:35:39.559 --> 00:35:46.840
respond to every single person that they
reject because they're so many. And regarding

411
00:35:46.920 --> 00:35:52.559
law enforcement, I think with a
lot of departments, and it's been proven

412
00:35:52.599 --> 00:35:57.440
true that a lot of the different
departments, they don't communicate with each other,

413
00:35:58.119 --> 00:36:04.800
and some of them won't invite the
FBI to help because they're very territorial,

414
00:36:05.079 --> 00:36:08.559
some of these agencies, and they
don't want anybody in their backyard.

415
00:36:09.559 --> 00:36:15.320
And this is going to sound harsh, but there are law enforcement agencies,

416
00:36:15.559 --> 00:36:21.280
not all of them, that would
rather see a case go unsolved than have

417
00:36:21.440 --> 00:36:25.840
someone else step in and solve their
case for them. And that's just how

418
00:36:25.880 --> 00:36:30.400
it is. Yes, because here's
another story. Okay, So Michigan State

419
00:36:30.480 --> 00:36:38.920
University and Western Michigan University both have
class A department that's called Criminal Justice.

420
00:36:39.599 --> 00:36:45.840
So the one at Michigan State University, they have a young lady who is

421
00:36:45.840 --> 00:36:51.400
an assistant. He is a professor, and she was going to have her

422
00:36:51.440 --> 00:36:57.239
students take my case. So they
take the case and they dissect it and

423
00:36:57.400 --> 00:37:00.519
come up with what they think or
whatever or even and saw it. Sure,

424
00:37:01.360 --> 00:37:07.960
I interviewed a high school teacher that
does the same thing. He has

425
00:37:07.000 --> 00:37:15.159
a class that does research on unsolved
homicides in our local area. Oh okay,

426
00:37:15.280 --> 00:37:19.639
So this lady tells me that she
wanted my story. She was going

427
00:37:19.719 --> 00:37:24.280
to reach out to the Michigan State
Police Department because they're over this cold case

428
00:37:24.400 --> 00:37:31.159
unit and they assigned cases to the
universities. Okay, so she reached out

429
00:37:31.199 --> 00:37:35.639
to them, and I don't know
what they told her or not. But

430
00:37:35.679 --> 00:37:38.639
then the summer went by, and
then I kept emailing her. She never

431
00:37:38.679 --> 00:37:43.719
responded. Finally, in October,
she responds to me and says, I

432
00:37:43.760 --> 00:37:47.599
am so sorry, but I can't
do that. You must get approval from

433
00:37:47.599 --> 00:37:52.960
the Michigan State Police. So I
reach out to the Michigan State Police,

434
00:37:52.639 --> 00:37:57.719
and maybe a couple of days or
a week later, the Michigan State Police

435
00:37:57.760 --> 00:38:02.119
sends me an email and says,
me and my boss have thoroughly feel that

436
00:38:02.239 --> 00:38:08.119
this case has been investigated and investigated
and there is nothing else to be done.

437
00:38:08.639 --> 00:38:15.800
So we're not giving the story too
from Michigan State University. Why not?

438
00:38:16.320 --> 00:38:22.119
Why I'm not asking you are to
investigate anymore because you won't, So

439
00:38:22.280 --> 00:38:25.360
give it to this lady and her
students and let them do it. But

440
00:38:25.440 --> 00:38:30.000
they won't give it to her,
not at all. Another thing, the

441
00:38:30.079 --> 00:38:35.519
first chief of police, Chief Yankowski, and I met with him, and

442
00:38:35.559 --> 00:38:38.760
I met with the chief prosecutor together, and they both felt that it was

443
00:38:38.800 --> 00:38:43.800
foul play, but they needed more
proof. So I told him, well,

444
00:38:43.800 --> 00:38:47.400
how do you know that the coroner
did a thorough autopsy on Brandon?

445
00:38:47.920 --> 00:38:52.360
And so he said, well,
if you don't think that they did one,

446
00:38:52.440 --> 00:38:55.079
you can hire your own and you
can dig your son's body up and

447
00:38:55.199 --> 00:38:59.800
let them investigate. I said,
okay, let me tell you the story.

448
00:39:00.280 --> 00:39:05.239
There was a story in Flint,
Michigan, and the mother her son

449
00:39:05.360 --> 00:39:08.280
died. They said it was accidental
drowning. And the boy was like six

450
00:39:08.400 --> 00:39:12.920
or seven years old, and he
went to spend the summer with his father

451
00:39:13.440 --> 00:39:17.360
because they were divorced, and then
the boy ended up in the river.

452
00:39:19.119 --> 00:39:24.039
And so the stepmother said that he
must have got up early the next morning

453
00:39:24.400 --> 00:39:29.440
and took his fishing pole down to
the river. And the mother just saying

454
00:39:29.559 --> 00:39:31.920
no, this don't sound right,
told my child, don't go by the

455
00:39:31.920 --> 00:39:35.880
water. Don't go by the water. I told my child, I just

456
00:39:35.920 --> 00:39:40.480
don't believe it, and she finally
got somebody to hear her, and they

457
00:39:40.559 --> 00:39:45.760
did have the son's body pulled back
up and it was full of alcohol.

458
00:39:45.440 --> 00:39:52.039
The stepmother and her brother killed that
baby, gave him cool, laid full

459
00:39:52.039 --> 00:39:58.599
of alcohol. I'm actually familiar with
that story. I did see it profiled

460
00:39:58.840 --> 00:40:02.599
on a true crime a few years
ago. Very disturbing and very sad.

461
00:40:04.320 --> 00:40:07.199
Yes, yes, I did too. Yeah, And that's why I say

462
00:40:07.280 --> 00:40:12.880
with the coroner, y'all sure everything
was checked. And Bench even tells me

463
00:40:13.320 --> 00:40:16.079
that if the police say, yes, we want you to change the death

464
00:40:16.079 --> 00:40:21.239
certificate, that they're going to go
back and look at the body again because

465
00:40:21.480 --> 00:40:25.119
it should have been named unknown or
suspicious. But the chief of police won't

466
00:40:25.159 --> 00:40:30.000
do it. Why Why won't he
answer me when I asked him to do

467
00:40:30.039 --> 00:40:36.880
that? Why? I asked the
chief prosecutor to do an investigatory subpoena and

468
00:40:37.039 --> 00:40:40.079
I googled it to make sure who
was responsible of doing that, and it's

469
00:40:40.119 --> 00:40:45.880
the prosecutor's office. How come they
won't do it. They won't respond to

470
00:40:45.920 --> 00:40:49.800
me. I said to one of
the prosecutor, okay, women, the

471
00:40:49.840 --> 00:40:52.960
prosecutor. I met with one of
them and he wanted my story. I

472
00:40:53.000 --> 00:40:59.760
mean he wanted my case because one
of the detectives felt that he had enough

473
00:40:59.800 --> 00:41:02.800
information for it to go to the
prosecutor. So he gave my case to

474
00:41:02.840 --> 00:41:07.760
the prosecutor. The prosecutor gave it
back to him. Okay, that detective

475
00:41:07.840 --> 00:41:12.880
is no longer there, The first
police officer is no longer there. All

476
00:41:12.920 --> 00:41:15.559
the chief of police have left and
gone somewhere else, except for the new

477
00:41:15.599 --> 00:41:20.920
one. Maybe that's just coincidence.
I don't know. So one of the

478
00:41:20.920 --> 00:41:23.519
prosecutors called me in we meet and
he says, so, missus missioner,

479
00:41:23.599 --> 00:41:28.000
tell me, why do you think
we should take your case? Tell me

480
00:41:28.039 --> 00:41:35.119
why? I said, okay,
because if a person drowns falls in the

481
00:41:35.239 --> 00:41:38.800
river and he had no marks or
anything on him, did he fall or

482
00:41:38.920 --> 00:41:43.760
was he thrown? And I said, agally, how come his death certificate

483
00:41:43.880 --> 00:41:46.559
sess accidental drown He says, I
just want to hear that from you.

484
00:41:47.320 --> 00:41:53.719
And he says, Missus Missioner,
I am going to do a subpoena everybody.

485
00:41:54.119 --> 00:41:58.599
I'm going to get all everybody to
talk, and then I'm going to

486
00:41:58.639 --> 00:42:02.360
take the case to the Grand Jewel. He says, because I know your

487
00:42:02.360 --> 00:42:07.599
son was murdered. Maybe it was
an accident or whatever, but I know

488
00:42:07.480 --> 00:42:10.920
something happened to your son that night. Next thing, A couple of weeks

489
00:42:12.000 --> 00:42:15.559
later, I get this letter saying, missus Missioner, I can't do any

490
00:42:15.559 --> 00:42:20.599
of this stuff. I am like, are you serious? And so now

491
00:42:21.480 --> 00:42:25.039
I still see see him and send
him stuff. And one time I said

492
00:42:25.079 --> 00:42:30.199
to the Chief prosecutor and to him, I said, just answer this question

493
00:42:30.280 --> 00:42:34.679
for me. If Brandon had it
in Caucasion and all the other boys had

494
00:42:34.840 --> 00:42:37.320
been black, would the story be
different. He told him I was calling

495
00:42:37.360 --> 00:42:40.239
him a racist, so he didn't
want to have nothing else to do with

496
00:42:40.280 --> 00:42:45.599
me. I didn't call him nothing. I just asked the question. That's

497
00:42:45.639 --> 00:42:52.039
it. And now since the chief
Prosecutor is no longer there and some and

498
00:42:52.239 --> 00:42:55.480
he has taken over, not as
the project prosecutor, but he has another

499
00:42:55.559 --> 00:42:59.679
role. He's moved up. I
said, well, now will you talk

500
00:42:59.679 --> 00:43:02.480
to me? And he wants find
to me. Why can't I do?

501
00:43:04.400 --> 00:43:08.440
I just want I'm just so tired
of reliving it, reliving it. I

502
00:43:08.559 --> 00:43:13.960
need with people I tell the story. I just want to know. Yeah,

503
00:43:14.000 --> 00:43:19.360
And it's like you just need to
have the right person hear it.

504
00:43:19.559 --> 00:43:22.119
If you have a million people hear
your son's story. You only need one

505
00:43:22.199 --> 00:43:27.280
or two of them and actually know
what happened to your son to step forward.

506
00:43:27.960 --> 00:43:34.400
It's just finding those people and reaching
through to them, hopefully pealing to

507
00:43:34.440 --> 00:43:39.000
any sort of compassion that they may
have for you. And sometimes it doesn't

508
00:43:39.000 --> 00:43:43.000
happen right away. You know,
people grow up, they mature, and

509
00:43:43.039 --> 00:43:46.360
then later on in life they decide
to do what's right. So tell me

510
00:43:46.440 --> 00:43:52.519
about the reward. There's a reward
for any information about this case. I

511
00:43:52.559 --> 00:43:57.639
think you've got it up to forty
thousand dollars. Is that correct? Yes,

512
00:43:58.360 --> 00:44:05.599
I have a reward forty thousand dollars
forty thousand for anybody who comes for

513
00:44:05.760 --> 00:44:10.239
it with information that would lead to
arrest. I am even willing to take

514
00:44:10.280 --> 00:44:17.679
it to fifty thousand dollars for anyone
to give us the chief of Police,

515
00:44:19.320 --> 00:44:27.079
Ellerie Sausaby and Lansing, Michigan,
information that would lead to arrest. And

516
00:44:27.199 --> 00:44:31.559
started off with five, then ten, and I keep going up because I

517
00:44:31.840 --> 00:44:37.800
know, based on speaking to one
of the young men, I know,

518
00:44:38.039 --> 00:44:45.519
based on another man who's hiding,
young man who's hiding and knows the information,

519
00:44:45.400 --> 00:44:51.920
and I believe also because there was
more than one person at the river.

520
00:44:52.679 --> 00:44:55.880
They don't want to give names because
you know, it's the things like,

521
00:44:57.079 --> 00:45:00.960
don't say nothing else about it.
Because also one of them contacted me

522
00:45:01.320 --> 00:45:05.920
and told me to leave the case
alone, and the police told me I

523
00:45:06.119 --> 00:45:09.280
need to watch my back because I'm
too much out there in the public and

524
00:45:09.440 --> 00:45:14.320
something could happen. Well, you
know how I feel. Something happened to

525
00:45:14.400 --> 00:45:17.840
Brandon already, y'all didn't do anything
about that. You're not investigating that.

526
00:45:19.639 --> 00:45:24.119
So I'm even trying to get CNN. They won't answer my cause they want

527
00:45:24.159 --> 00:45:29.559
answer my messages. They won't do
anything. I need it to go public.

528
00:45:29.639 --> 00:45:35.599
I need the world to hear about
the death of Brandon Mitchemer. So

529
00:45:35.800 --> 00:45:39.599
my final question that I would have
for you is, run anyone out there

530
00:45:39.719 --> 00:45:45.360
that's listening to this podcast episode,
if they know anything about what happened to

531
00:45:45.519 --> 00:45:51.199
Brandon, what would you say to
that person or person's well, would I

532
00:45:51.239 --> 00:45:54.559
say to them? I would say
to them, put yourself in my shoes.

533
00:45:55.320 --> 00:46:00.119
If you had a child, and
in your heart, your whole heart,

534
00:46:01.079 --> 00:46:07.920
you know that your son did not
accidental drown in the river. You

535
00:46:08.159 --> 00:46:16.000
know that it may have been an
accident or intentional murder. Wouldn't you want

536
00:46:16.039 --> 00:46:23.039
to know what happened. Wouldn't you
want other people to be held accountable because

537
00:46:23.840 --> 00:46:30.079
your loved one is being held accountable
because they're no longer here on earth.

538
00:46:30.880 --> 00:46:37.400
Why put the family through the torture, the pain, the suffering, the

539
00:46:37.559 --> 00:46:42.320
no more hugs, the more kisses, the no more I love you,

540
00:46:42.440 --> 00:46:47.880
Mom. Wouldn't you want to know
if somebody did something to you? I

541
00:46:49.000 --> 00:46:54.760
just ask, please give the family, give us peace. We can't bring

542
00:46:54.800 --> 00:47:01.880
Brandon back. Finally had to realize
that took four years for me to even

543
00:47:01.920 --> 00:47:07.440
go on Brandon's bedroom. I kept
the door closed, and every now and

544
00:47:07.519 --> 00:47:12.440
then when I would get mad at
him just for trusting, I closed the

545
00:47:12.480 --> 00:47:16.840
door like I'm setting him up in
his room again. The pain will never

546
00:47:16.920 --> 00:47:22.679
go away, the love will never
go away. It will always be there.

547
00:47:22.239 --> 00:47:29.440
But someone can give the family peace. There is no such thing as

548
00:47:29.519 --> 00:47:34.840
closure. Closure means you're closing the
door. I'm not closing the door on

549
00:47:35.000 --> 00:47:39.840
Brandon. It will always be with
me in my heart. But Brandon's family

550
00:47:39.960 --> 00:47:47.079
and friends deserve to hear it in
the court of law on what happened to

551
00:47:47.199 --> 00:47:51.519
their loved one. I just asked
you to put yourself in my shoes.

552
00:47:52.039 --> 00:47:57.119
Wouldn't you want to know? I
would? And that concludes the tragic story

553
00:47:57.400 --> 00:48:01.079
of Brandon Mitchener. You know what
happened to him back in June of twenty

554
00:48:01.320 --> 00:48:06.760
fourteen when he ended up in a
river. Did he actually fall in and

555
00:48:06.920 --> 00:48:12.079
drowned? Or was his death part
of something more sinister? Law enforcement has

556
00:48:12.159 --> 00:48:17.039
ruled that Brandon's death was an accident. However, his family disagrees. They

557
00:48:17.119 --> 00:48:22.119
can't understand how he could have been
out with a group of friends and then

558
00:48:22.239 --> 00:48:27.000
somehow he ended up separated from them, and then moments later he's in a

559
00:48:27.119 --> 00:48:32.280
river drowning even stranger, no one
called nine one one or reached out to

560
00:48:32.320 --> 00:48:37.760
the family to let him know that
something had happened to Brandon. If you

561
00:48:37.840 --> 00:48:40.559
know anything about this case, you
can provide your tips to the Lansing to

562
00:48:40.559 --> 00:48:46.920
Police Department at five one seven or
eight three or six zero zero. And

563
00:48:46.960 --> 00:48:52.760
for additional information about this case,
please visit the Justice for Brandon mitche your

564
00:48:52.800 --> 00:48:57.760
Facebook page and if you'd like to
purchase anything from Brandon's clothing line, there's

565
00:48:57.800 --> 00:49:00.599
also a link to the shop on
that page age as well. The family

566
00:49:00.599 --> 00:49:05.480
has also offered a reward for any
information that could lead to a break in

567
00:49:05.519 --> 00:49:08.719
this case. I'll be sure to
provide this information in the case story news

568
00:49:09.519 --> 00:49:14.880
and if you are a parent,
law enforcement official, friend, or relative

569
00:49:14.920 --> 00:49:19.760
seek injustice for an unsolved pomicide case, please visit my website and complete the

570
00:49:19.800 --> 00:50:42.159
contact form. You could also contact
me your Facebook. Thank you for listening.