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Darkcast Diversion: ODFM: One Drew Carey From Murder
59 Plays4 months ago
Hey Cryptic Cuties, we missed you all! Sorry, we were supposed to be back with our regular episode, but some stuff delayed us. But don't worry, we have a treat for you featuring our Darkcast Network pals at ODFM. Each week they cover a true crime that's one "D" from murder, and this one is no exception, and we've never heard of it! Let's hear it from them, and their show description:
No, Drew didn’t kill anyone, maybe with laughter, but not intentionally. However, someone did rip out HIS heart and those of many others when they murdered the love of his life. This is the story of Amie Harwick.
Hosted by Jenna Swanson and Kelly DeVries
Produced and edited by Kelly DeVries
Theme music by Erik Swanson
Intro Music: Nasty by Oldways
https://linktr.ee/odfmpodcast
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Transcript
Introduction of Hosts
00:00:02
Speaker
Darkcast Network, indie pods with a dark side.
Teaser: Drew Carey and a Murder Mystery
00:00:08
Speaker
hi this is jenna and this is kelly and you're listening to o df m this episode is one drew carey for murder
00:00:33
Speaker
Oh, I did not see that coming. not saying Drew has anything to do with the murder, but he's definitely a part of the story. Ooh, okay, I love it. i These are the ones that I really like, because I want to know how how do we bring this full circle? Relate back to Drew, it's amazing. That's a really good story. Yeah, and you know how my son got to meet him, kind of.
00:01:01
Speaker
Uh, on stage at, uh, whose line is it anyway? ah Yes. Yeah. So he got to act in their little thing and then drew carries running after him to say thank you and give him a hug. And Gavin's just jumped off the stage and I'm like, Oh my God. Carrie tried to hug you. Oh well. I know. Anyway, so I'm a fan.
Who was Amy Harwick?
00:01:23
Speaker
Okay. So this is actually the story of Amy Harwick. Okay.
00:01:27
Speaker
So Amy grew up in Lansdale, Pennsylvania. It's a place that was just too small for her giant personality. So she's like one of those fiery, passionate, motivated people. I was waiting for you to say Columbus, Ohio, because isn't that where ah where she was the Drew Carey show was from? I just remember they ended the song with Ohio.
00:01:48
Speaker
Right. Cleveland. It was Cleveland. cleveland yeah iland It was Ohio, though. It was. It was Ohio. But we're in Pennsylvania. know You threw me. I know. You'll just have to see when he comes into this. Amy is super weird in all the great ways. Oh, okay. We like us. Yes. so She loves heavy heavy metal. She wore dark clothing and makeup, but she's not like this moody red clothes. She's vibrant and ridiculously gorgeous. I mean, gorgeous. Okay. Insane. So she's deciding she wants to make a big splash on the world and her friend in LA tells her, you got to come out to California. ah So she's like, absolutely freaking lately. Here I come. So she goes to LA.
00:02:27
Speaker
Immediately, Amy becomes a frequent face in the Hollywood scene. She's at parties. She's at events. I'm impressed. I know. She's like, I think part of it is she's so gorgeous that she's accepted in, but also she's outgoing and super friendly. So everyone's like, yeah, bring her.
00:02:45
Speaker
but Bring having in the hot chick. Bring bring the hottie. I'm having a party. Oh, can I come? Can you bring your hat friend? Yeah. I guess. And yes. Then let's do it. So Amy's like a go getter. She's not afraid to work to get the life she wants. And most people in LA are there hoping to become actors. Of course. Yes. But that is not Amy's goal at all. oh You'll never guess. But her dream is to become a family and marriage therapist.
00:03:12
Speaker
Totally not what... So it's not what I see people moving to LA for, but I feel like it's something that a lot of people in LA need. So maybe she was going because that's where the market is? Oh, absolutely. That's a huge niche. So that's smart. She was just being smart.
Amy's Journey to Becoming a Therapist
00:03:31
Speaker
She puts herself through school.
00:03:33
Speaker
She hustles at jobs like go-go dancing, modeling, but and she's even hired to work at the Playboy Mansion with her fire eating performances. I mean, this girl does everything. I want to start that. Have you ever thought about that? I always wondered about, you know the sword swallowers? Oh my God. yeah How many people thought that they could do that and failed miserably on the first try? How do you learn that you can do that? Right. I'm going to start with a butter knife. Exactly.
00:04:04
Speaker
Here's how I'm gonna try this, you know, this is why like I hesitate to let my kids watch things like on like America's Got Talent because I don't want them to see shit that I'm like, this is not a do this at home kind of situation. I'm gonna go hang by my nipples from this chain. That sounds so appealing. I walk into the room and Gavin's got like an arrow on fire and he's posed Ella in front of, oh no god you know, I don't need that shit. No, absolutely. And this is the shit this girl could do, because she's just everything. So she gets hired for higher you're eating. So she gets hired for all these events in Hollywood to do that. I don't even like spicy food. i mean And now my gullet is singed. She quickly, though, earned her master's degree in clinical psychology all through these gigs and stuff. Like she pays her way through. And she's working towards her doctorate, paying for it entirely in cash.
00:04:59
Speaker
from all her side gigs. And no, she is not a prostitute. She pays for it. Okay. Could you see her going up to the yeah the registrar's office? Yeah, exactly. Here, hold on. Let me count my ones. one but and How much time you got? Right. Exactly. Oh wow. ah Amazing. So she is obviously very smart that she's becoming a doctor. Soon she is a full fledged doctor of psychology and her life just keeps getting better.
00:05:25
Speaker
she becomes a marriage therapist, though her relationship history isn't the rosiest of love stories, which, you know, it kind of seems to be the thing with marriage therapists. Okay, you know, yeah I do know quite a few people who are therapists and and you know it's yeah they're very good at helping other people but sometimes you're not the best at helping yourself right absolutely yeah so that's just been my experience and it doesn't mean that they're bad people oh no then they also don't feel like they need to seek out help from other people again this is just in my experience because they're like well i know this stuff right and i shouldn't be able to apply it to myself right exactly but you know whatever i wonder if a lot of them go to school because they're like i want to learn how to deal
00:06:11
Speaker
with my issues. So I'm going to become a therapist so that I can deal with my own and then help other people. Right. ah So she dates around the Hollywood scene. She dated people like k Crispin Glover for a bit. You know, he was Back to the Future. Oh, yeah. He was the dad in Back to the Future. He was like the creepy guy and like the um Charlie's Angels movie. He's weird. He's a weird dude. Well, I don't know if he's a weird dude or he just really likes to take weird parts. It could be both because it totally cool because she also dates Marilyn Manson and Dave Navarro.
00:06:45
Speaker
Okay, when you said that she dressed like dark colors, was very pretty, I was thinking of like, but my my mind went to Marilyn Manson and when he was dating what Rachel Evan would and um Well, Rose McGowan, like they all had that dark, goth, but very gorgeous face. Yep. And she's along these lines too. And she's like the type that loves weird taxidermy and the macabre. Like I kind of love, I don't love taxidermy, but I love like cemeteries and stuff. And she was the same. So yeah. Okay. So I see that she could have did. Okay. I see that. Totally. But that's what I pictured in my mind when you described her. Perfect. You pictured her correctly.
00:07:30
Speaker
So these were sometimes contentious relationships, as many in the spotlight are. And and we've kind of heard about Marilyn Manson and how he is. Yeah, we've heard not great things. look so He's been in the news lately. Yeah, he's done some things. Or is allegedly done some things. Allegedly has been accused of things.
Toxic Relationship with Gareth
00:07:51
Speaker
So one guy she dated is not a famous dude, but he is the more top toxic of all of her relationships. oh damn it Yeah, his name is Gareth Pursehouse and he too is this gorgeous dude, you know, like model material. okay He's a photographer and he meets Amy while photography, not photographer-ing but photographing
00:08:16
Speaker
Same thing. Same difference. He's photographying. He's photographing her for a modeling job because she's also a model. Okay. Gareth is one of those guys who he thinks he's like the funniest dude in the room. Okay. But he's actually the only one that thinks he's funny. Oh, I hate that man. They're just annoying. Yeah, his big dream is to become a stand up comedian. But he's at it Like ok the show I was watching they showed a little bit of a gig of his and it was just you just like are cringing embarrassed for the dude like oh oh like get off the stage man nobody oh so not only is he not very funny but he's a terribly jealous boyfriend of Amy's these are all adding up to be bad really bad red flags if the pair would go to a party together and he thought guys are looking at her too much he would step in front of them and start making out with her
00:09:11
Speaker
to basically claim her, I guess. Look, she's mine. I'm making out with her. Well, she's pee on her. I know. Marking my territory. Geez. Gross. So of course that's off-putting to her and they date for a couple of years. They even live together for a little bit. Wow. But eventually Amy decides she's done with it and she breaks things off.
00:09:35
Speaker
But Gareth's not the type to go quietly, so he'd ask, I know they never are. They never are. They're so annoying. So he'd ask friends to send her messages or links to sappy songs. Oh God. Yeah. Oh God. His friends are just begging him like, dude, give up. Let it go. You're a great looking move on. Yeah.
00:09:55
Speaker
Yeah, but he's so obsessed with getting her back, he can't think of anything else. After continuous harassment and constantly showing up where he wasn't wanted, Amy files a restraining order against him. So she thinks, okay, if I take legal measures, Garris will get the message. He's going to leave me alone for good, but we know how that works. In case I'm not saying it clear enough, I am getting the police involved. Right. We're done.
00:10:20
Speaker
But somehow that makes it even worse. His obsession gets even worse. Like, oh, I've got to have you now. You don't want me. I'm going to show you. You do. Gareth happens to also be very good with computers to the point that he knew how to hack or infiltrate information on the internet, which is also not cool. Shit sucks.
00:10:39
Speaker
He's that type of psycho. So in 2012, Amy applied to work in a prison as a therapist. like She wanted to help people. Oh, that seems like ah not a great place for an attractive woman to go. um Exactly. so But they're doing her background check and nude photos of Amy start to arrive to the prison.
00:11:01
Speaker
Oh, see, no, that's not going to help. No, that doesn't help. she Any career that's not going to help. But again, I feel like this is, oh, a bad. Bad. So she had modeled for Playboy some years prior. I mean, all of this was to get her degrees. She was like, you know, and it was coming back to haunt her now. So she lost that job opportunity. And she actually felt that her career as a marriage and family therapist was like totally over now because he would never stop and he would sabotage every job she tried for.
00:11:30
Speaker
Well, you don't want to be in a therapy session with somebody and you're trying to get them to talk about their feelings and you can feel them undressing you with their eyes. I know, it's a little eyes up here. We're trying to talk about your problems. I think I know why your wife left you. like but thats You can't concentrate on her, right?
00:11:51
Speaker
Yeah, so she feels like her reputation is totally sullied and it she's devastated I mean think all the years she's put in. Oh my god, right all the time all the money on the money Yeah, so much. So her goal is totally shattered and so is her dream But one of her friends comes out and she's like, you know what joking she's joking But she's like you should totally be a sex therapist Okay right Yeah, and that's what the friend was like, ha ha. But Amy's like... Does no one care that she's got naked pictures? Exactly. And Amy's like, light bulb moment. Yeah. That's what I'm going to do. Okay. I mean... I mean,
Career Shift to Sex Therapy
00:12:27
Speaker
yeah. All right. What else did it? That's a choice. It's a choice. But she's also a very uncontained type of personality. And she's like, heck yeah. So it's her... Okay. I'll help people. So she goes back to school again. This time she gets a degree in human sexuality.
00:12:45
Speaker
The move ends up being an even greater career path for her. Oh, which actually is a great thing. Being in L.A. as a sex therapist was phenomenal. Like you think of, say you're in Kansas, probably you're not going to. There's probably not a lot of not a whole lot, but L.A.'s like fringe and everybody's wanting to know there's going to be a good, I don't want to say audience base. Yeah. nice Yeah, totally. And it gets she gets so popular. She even authors a book, The New Sex Bible for Women.
00:13:17
Speaker
as opposed to the old one? i guess hold So the old testament and the new testament? Is that what we're saying? This one has new creatures. Oh god. It makes me think of what was that old lady that always had the sex books and she would have people on it. Dr. Ruth! Dr. Ruth!
00:13:34
Speaker
Yes, she's the new Dr. Ruth. ah She is a rising star. She's featured on TV shows and in magazines. Oh, so this is working out pretty good. It's doing great for her. So Amy isn't even close to average looking as we've talked about. Yeah.
00:13:48
Speaker
So she does run into some problems with clients who are more interested in her than in getting the therapy that she's providing. That's not the kind of therapy. It's not a euphemism. No, it's not like I'm going to have sex with you. I'm teaching you how to have better sex. This is not like going to a quote unquote massage parlor. No, I did not get this degree for that. After Gareth, Amy is dating Marilyn Manson and her birthday rolls around and Marilyn was supposed to take her to dinner.
00:14:17
Speaker
But he was notorious for having his reversed sleeping schedule where he wasn't up earlier than around 10 p.m. So... Oh! Yeah, dinner service is over. arms So friends are like, yeah, Amy, I don't think he's going to show up, you know? But even it's her birthday and he should. Right! And he said... Oh my God. Okay. I have to set an alarm so I can take her to dinner.
00:14:41
Speaker
Get up. It's so bizarre. So she had warned him, though, that, you know what? You don't meet me for dinner on my birthday. I'm going to go and party without you. Yeah, as well she should. Yes. So to no one's surprise, Marilyn doesn't show up. OK. And Amy goes to party anyway. At that party, she meets Drew Carey.
00:15:02
Speaker
This is where Drew comes in. Amy tells Drew, she's like, yeah, my boyfriend stood me up. And Drew being the sweet person he is, he's like, Yeah, maybe you
Engagement with Drew Carey
00:15:11
Speaker
should hang out with people that aren't going to stand you up on your birthday. Right. Let me take you out next week. ah Oh, wow. And she's like, yeah, let's do it. So he takes her out. He takes her to Disneyland. Kick ass dates.
00:15:26
Speaker
And she comes back and she tells friends, she's never laughed so hard or had so much fun with a dude before. Like, you know, girlfriends, yeah, it's all fun, but guys usually aren't. That's a very strange, um like, you know, like when you go from a boyfriend to another boyfriend and they're opposites, I mean, this totally this is... This is how absolutely opposite. The two, Drew and Amy, become a couple quickly. They move in together.
00:15:51
Speaker
All right. Drew whisked Amy off to Paris and he proposed to her. Wow. He happily agreed. Yes. I mean, they had probably dated about a year by then or so. Thanks, Marilyn, for stanning her up. Thanks, Marilyn. Good work. You did her a favor. Total favor. After their engagement.
00:16:08
Speaker
the two try to keep it quiet, you know, but you know how that goes. So Amy is by this point being cyber stocked by an old friend. I mean, these people are ruthless. It's like once you get popular, somehow they want to take you down, you know, so this whole friend is posting lies all over the internet about her, making mad shit up about her. Jealous. ah Yeah. Horrible.
00:16:32
Speaker
and wants to take her down. So soon, the National Enquirer comes knocking. Oh, God. They catch wind of all this stuff. And so they're like, well, Amy, we're going to run an article with all the lies unless you and Drew give us an exclusive scoop about your engagement. Oh, God. And that's them. They're like, oh, that's gross. Of all the places we don't want to do that. Right. Yeah. Here's where we're going to announce our engagement in the Enquirer.
00:17:01
Speaker
ah lovely I know. And that's exactly how I felt. But to save her reputation and to get rid of all these stupid lies, they do give the scoop to the National Enquirer. And then on Valentine's Day, they announced their engagement on the prizes. Right.
00:17:18
Speaker
And it's okay. That's so much better. That's so so much better than the inquirer. That's not where you want to totally and that's why they did it. They were like, well, we'll give them the scoop, but we're going to one up it with a great yeah announcement on the price advice. And it's so cute. There's like a whole video about it. Adorable. Now that their relationship is truly public, Amy's even more in the public eye and her lack of privacy puts her on guard, especially because she has so many stalkerish admirers. Yeah, damn.
00:17:48
Speaker
That sucks. it's I know what it's like. It's, you know, right? ah We know. We know. We get so many admirers. You know, tens of. Of halves of um one of. In my mind.
00:18:06
Speaker
We're just bombarded. There was that one guy that was just trying to return the thing that fell out of my pocket. You know, he was totally stalking me. He kept following me and I'm like, dude, let me all the way to my car. He's like, you dropped your keys. you die um Exactly. So we all know the miserable judgments the public likes to make against anyone in the spotlight.
00:18:27
Speaker
it's and Got to pick you apart, right? And Amy and Drew's relationship is no exception. So at the time, Drew's 59 and Amy's 36. He is not that old. Yeah. Can you believe it? He's over 60 now. I wouldn't have thought so either. I wouldn't have thought so either. 59 and she was 35. 36, yep. That's not that much. You know, if she was 21 or something, I would think... Oh yeah, then that would be totally gross. But... No, she's a grown woman. Yeah, and with a great career. But she's tagged as a gold digger because of this.
00:19:00
Speaker
Even though she has this driving career, and she wasn't a didn't need anybody. Yeah, she was doing wonderful. So Amy's accomplishments were often ignored in the public realm while people preferred to focus on her relationship with Drew. Right. And Drew, it kudos to him because he was super annoyed by it. And he was telling people, I wish I wasn't famous so people could see how amazing thing she is because if they could see her without me there. That's sweet. He was such a good guy. Even though they were so in love,
00:19:30
Speaker
the relationship becomes strained with the public pressure. Ah, because of all that. You guys are ruining it. This is why we can't have nice things. This was a great love story, you bitches. People suck. People suck. So Amy became too uncomfortable with the negative attention and feeling that no one saw her for anything other than Drew's woman of the moment. So she- Even though they were engaged? Even though they were engaged, they should neither one could handle it. It just became too strained and it sucks. Messed up the relationship.
00:20:10
Speaker
So in November of 2018, Amy calls the police to their shared home. This was while they were still together. So they're still together and still and they're still living together and are still. Sorry. Yeah, I kind of wrote this afterwards. But so she saw someone creeping around the property and she was by herself and panicked when she got side of a lurker. I mean, fuck. Yeah. She had gotten continuous threats and all from online and as well as from her creepy ex. Remember that Gareth dude? Oh yeah. So that was part of the reason she decided to split with Drew. It became too much and she hoped it would stop the craftsmen if she left the limelight somewhat. Gotcha. She's just going to go into hiding. Yeah. So that was in 2018. Two years later
00:20:56
Speaker
on Valentine's Day of 2020, 16 months later, Amy still isn't over Drew, obviously, because he was such a good guy and he had been such a huge source of love and happiness in her life that she decides she's going to reach out to him again.
Tragic Death of Amy Harwick
00:21:09
Speaker
Okay.
00:21:10
Speaker
So she texts him and asks if she can see him soon. And Drew is thrilled. He is so happy. And he tells her, Oh my God, I'm so happy you reached out to me. I still love you. Oh, so cute. He's looking forward to reconnecting. And that night, so it's Valentine's Eve, Valentine's night, I guess you would say she decides to go out to celebrate Galentine's with all her girlfriends. Oh, yeah. Right. Instead of dates or anything.
00:21:35
Speaker
totally they go to a show they have a blast i think i saw the show was like a burlesque thing and have you seen there's a new burlesque that's uh the empire strips back
00:21:47
Speaker
A friend of mine went and said, she said it was awesome. And I'm like, are they dressed as stormtroopers? think there were, I think there was like, obviously Princess Leia in the slave costume, I'm sure. Totally, you have to, I mean, yeah. But yeah, you said burlesque and that's where I was like, oh yeah, the empire strips back. Strips back. That is amazing. Okay, anyways, maybe she saw that, who knows? Maybe, sounds amazing. She goes home after that.
00:22:15
Speaker
The next morning, a friend gets a text from Amy's roommate saying that Amy had been assaulted. Please come down to the police station. Oh God. Amy's friends, they they call each other. They all gather at the police station because the police were like, yeah, we need to talk to all you guys. We have some questions. And they're told horrible news that Amy was dead. She had been found on the ground 20 feet below the balcony at her residence. Oh my God. She had fallen from the balcony, but her injuries showed she had suffered much worse than the long fall. So she had brutal head wounds and her hands showed severe self-defense trauma.
00:22:54
Speaker
investigators searched the home. They find rosary beads scattered through the place. She had she'd been wearing them that night. Oh my God. Okay. And they led out to the balcony.
00:23:04
Speaker
like it had been ripped off of her. So she was attacked at home, in her home. in her And she had a roommate. Yes, he lived on the floor beneath her. It's kind of like they had separate residences in a jar in the house. okay okay The most ominous thing they came across though was a syringe filled with some fluid.
00:23:22
Speaker
oh a Yeah, freaky. So when they test the fluid in the syringe It comes back as nicotine. Bizarre. That comes in liquid. I didn't know it's liquid. Yeah. I know I've seen where people will fill their vapes and stuff with a liquid. Oh, okay. I don't know much about it. Dr. Neil Benowitz, he's an expert on nicotine. He says, if you take it orally by mouth or by skin, then it takes much longer because absorption takes a while. But if you have it intravenously, then you can die within minutes.
00:23:55
Speaker
Oh my God. Yeah. I didn't know nicotine was deadly intravenously. Oh. Bizarre, right? Okay. Amy had not been injected with it, but it would have been a a fatal dose had she gotten a jab of it. And it was likely the killer planned to use that as the murder weapon. Oh my God. But the room showed obvious signs of a struggle. Amy likely fought hard enough that her assailant couldn't inject her. like There was broken glass. The balcony door shutters were ripped off.
00:24:24
Speaker
and blood was on the floor. So there was no question at this point that Amy's death is intentional. It's not an accident. Like like she just didn't fall from the balcony. Right. Exactly. So the autopsy shows bones in her neck had been broken, like the highway bone, and that she had died from strangulation and injuries consistent with the fall from a considerable height. Investigators felt that because of the strangulation and the planning that the assailant was very angry with Amy and obviously knew her.
00:24:52
Speaker
personal kind of thing, not an impersonal kind of thing. So they're personal. Was she sexually assaulted, did they say? They didn't say in this report. That would have been a... Yeah. I was just curious. I know. From the violence of the attack, it makes you wonder though. Yeah. Amy's roommate, like I said, he lived a floor beneath her. He told the cops that he thought he heard a plate smashing on the floor above him while he was sleeping. That was like at one-ish AM.
00:25:19
Speaker
Okay. And now, you know, he kind of went back to sleep. It was like, oops, she dropped something. Right. Yeah. But investigators now think that's when the intruder broke through the glass of the French door into her home. a Oh, but then the roommates jolted awake because he hears Amy screaming and he heard sounds of like bodies falling on the floor and more muffled screams, like someone's holding her mouth. So in a frenzy to help Amy, like he's searching around for his phone and he can't find it. So he,
00:25:49
Speaker
starts yelling and he's trying to scare away the assailant like I'm here I'm here you know Amy oh my god so he runs outside to run for help but he must have run out the back door because he's trapped inside the courtyard to their place oh you know and he's like frantic he's trying to hurry so he oh my god i this is totally something I would do I'd be like totally running out the wrong door and be like what do I do he has to scale a tall metal fence he gets all cut up but he makes it across to the other side oh my god I know he knocks on his neighbor door repeatedly gets no response which I'm like
00:26:23
Speaker
You answered fucking no. Oh my god, go to the next house. Let's go. Yep. So he runs across the street to another neighbor's house. Same thing. They wouldn't answer. He sees someone walking down the street. He runs after him. Luckily, that person has a phone and calls 911. I didn't run screaming from him as well. Right. He calls 911. Someone else is chasing me. Tell him to come. Yeah. So all that time took like I was trying to hurry but then ah the the police get there in the ambulance they make it there really fast but by then Amy is lying
00:27:02
Speaker
unresponsive in the courtyard under her balcony. That port roommate, I can't even imagine. Why didn't he just go to her house, her door? I'm not sure. I wonder if they had separate entrances and stuff. Oh, maybe he did. Oh, yeah. And maybe he was scared shitless, I would be. I just figured the best thing to do was to call 911. Yeah, to go get help first. Not thinking it was going to take so long to call 911. And can't find your phone. Oh, that's totally... This is why I always have my phone next to me while I go to sleep because... Right. It's right there.
00:27:31
Speaker
Of course, the first people that the the police look at are all the men in her life. Right, right. So since Drew and Amy had just exchanged texts the day before, and because their prior breakup, he's questioned. I mean, what timing, you know, like, Oh, God, he must have been absolutely crushed. It's so sad. Oh, my God. You can tell he's still like not over it in the stuff I was watching.
00:27:54
Speaker
But he's quickly cleared with alibis and without any violent past or anything. Friends come forward and they are like, you need to check out Gareth Pursehouse, this former guy.
00:28:06
Speaker
that she had been dating. So please dig up the restraining orders that Amy had put on him years before. I mean, years before. Yeah, it's been a while now. Yeah. But Amy's report, she wrote, quote, Gareth Pursehouse forced me to the ground, covered my mouth to prevent my yelling and kicked me.
00:28:26
Speaker
and she said there were multiple arguments in which Gareth Pursehouse choked me, suffocated me, pushed me against walls, kicked me, dropped me to the ground with force, restrained me, slammed my head to the ground, and punched me with a closed fist. So this wasn't like he was just yeah A little violent. This dude was violent. He was violent and he wasn't just like not taking no for an answer. He was attacked her multiple times. Oh my. And the sad thing more was like her friends didn't really realize how bad it was. She kept it so much to herself that they knew some of it and they were telling her, you need to drop this dude. But right right they had no idea the extent of it.
00:29:07
Speaker
Which also I think is therapists too. They're like, I can deal with my own stuff. I'm not going to put it on anyone else. Exactly. Oh wow. A friend shared with police that once when Gareth and Amy were arguing is in his car, Amy asked him to stop to let her out. He refused and bashed her head against the headrest. Oh my God. And apparently this would happen a lot where they would fight in the car and he would push her out of the car and leave her stranded in random places. Great guy. It was bad enough that Amy's friends were scared to speak out around about Gareth's because he's so vindict. Oh my God. Like years he will take people down around him. Doesn't matter how. oh Because of his computer skills, he's great at pushing all these rumors out to everybody and possibly even
Continued Harassment by Gareth
00:29:56
Speaker
hacking. One time when Amy was teaching a sex class in China,
00:30:00
Speaker
Which Wow China Wow, she was all the way in China. Yeah, I mean, yeah, she was hired here and he's still got to her Yeah, so when she was gone she gets home and she realizes someone's broken into her house But it's not like they take electronics or valuable things all her photo albums are gone.
00:30:20
Speaker
do fucking creepy and some of her photos were turned upside down in their frames and stuff like oh my god creepy yeah and then she goes to open her computer and it won't start up it's not working it had been completely wiped so weird so she's sure it's got to be Gareth yeah creepy so the next day Gareth shows up he's trying to do that romantic deal of playing music outside her house and right after doing that Dude, you are the worst person at flirting ever. He's delusional. Right. Yeah. You know, they did that music outside of the house and say anything. Yes. I've seen that movie many times. At no point did he break into her house and take all her pictures. So not romantic. That's just way creepy. Way creepy. I don't know what movies you're watching, man, but... But wrong ones. Wrong ones.
00:31:13
Speaker
Yeah. So after that for a long time, after they broke up, like years, he would randomly show up wherever she was. god And she couldn't figure out how he's constantly finding her. It's not like LA is a small place, you know? And she was sure he was tracking her phone and her computer and monitoring her somehow. oh And not only was he following around, she was also being harassed constantly online. And though she couldn't prove it, she's sure it's him.
00:31:41
Speaker
you know, it was just every online article about her, you know, in the comment sections below, he'd be somebody would be spouting lies about her. Yeah, saying things like, Oh, she's got an online degree or something and all that, even though she had worked so frickin hard. So the month before Amy's murder, Amy was on the red carpet for the XBiz Awards. It's I had to look it up.
00:32:03
Speaker
It's a sex awards type. Sex awards? Yeah. I mean, I had guys tell me like I'm an award winning, you know, but I didn't know that there was actually an award. Well, you should maybe get nominated. So, yeah, so the Expins Awards, she's on the red carpet getting her picture taken. And who happened to be one of the photographers at the event? Get them.
00:32:29
Speaker
Frick out, come on. Gareth, Gareth. He immediately jumps onto the carpet and he begins screaming at her. Like in front of, I mean, there's crowds of people, you know, watching these people walk the red carpet. He's yelling her at her about how she had ruined his life. She's such a slut, such a bitch. Who ruined whose life, what? Yeah, that Amy ruined his life, what? At this point though, the two had been broken up for 10 years.
00:32:56
Speaker
Oh my God, dude. Still hasn't moved on. oh He was so over the top emotional that he fell to the ground bawling and goes into the fetal position on the red carpet. Wow. Also very attractive. Also not. No, God. You're right. Nevermind. Let me take you back. Yeah. Let me help you. Amy is like so horrified and embarrassed. She tries to reason with them and goes into therapist mode, you know, she's trying to calm him down. She thinks she's got him calmed down. She leaves the event afterwards. She was supposed to go to like the after parties and stuff, but she's like, who wants to do that now? Right. And she's scared to death. She's like this guy at 10 years and he won't get off his get off of me.
00:33:39
Speaker
yeah So get off of me. So she was scared enough that she told friends that she's afraid for a life. If anything happens to me, look at Gareth. Oh, such a red flag. I've never had anyone tell me if anything ever happens to me. But like that's like it's an every crime show. I mean, yeah, in an email. And this is that night that she saw him on the red carpet. She wrote, quote, It terrifies me that he's been obsessed with me for nine years.
00:34:05
Speaker
so I guess it was Dyson. He's malicious, highly intelligent, and focused on harming me. Yikes. When questioned, so the police go, they're like, okay, we're gonna go talk to this guy. Gareth says, oh yeah, I was home the whole night of Valentine's night. I couldn't have been the one to kill Amy. Right, I was at home, the end. But they look at him and he's got all these injuries on him. Whoops, what's that on you? I got into a fight with a bush.
00:34:36
Speaker
again. I mean, it happens all the time. They see the injuries on him and they get a search warrant on his home. Good. Had enough. enough evidence from everyone, all of her friends saying, look at this guy. There at his home, they find bloody clothes and syringes filled with the same substance as the one found in Amy's
Legal Proceedings Against Gareth
00:34:54
Speaker
house. Hey, what a kawinky ding. Weird. Why do you have all these? Uh-huh. Yeah. So they take them into custody. And when the tissue under Amy's nails are tested, it's Gareth's 100%. I am so not surprised. So not surprised.
00:35:09
Speaker
wow So Gareth is held on a $2 million bail or bond, whatever, while the investigation continues and he waits trial. He posts bail, which I didn't know this, but it only needs to be 10% of the total cost.
00:35:25
Speaker
At least there. I know. I was like, what? 10%? No wonder he could make it. And now Amy's friends, they're like, oh shit, he's out. And we told him, we told the police his name. We told the police his name and he's a vindictive dick. So God, he's going to come after us. One of the terms of the bond though, was that he wasn't to cross borders or try to leave.
00:35:48
Speaker
But he's seen near LAX. So police are called and he's taken back into custody and his bond is revoked. Thank God. Because ah yeah, they're pretty sure he was going to run. Police believe that Gareth Pursehouse broke into Amy's home on Valentine's night and waited for her.
00:36:05
Speaker
They think his intention was to inject her with the nicotine while she was sleeping and make it look like an overdose. But the Amy fought back hard and he wasn't able to carry out the plans he had. August 30th of 2022, two years after Amy's death at the preliminary hearing, Gareth, please, not guilty. By reason of. I don't know. Oh, I'm just. No, it wasn't me. I'm just not guilty. I just also happen to have syringes with nicotine. It's a very common thing to have. because of COVID, there was a delay in him going to trial, but his trial date is set for February 28th of this year, like in a week, basically. from Oh my gosh. Yes. So now the jury will have to decide. I don't know why they have to decide this because I think it's very obvious, but they'll have to decide between first or second degree murder. Okay. and Sounds pretty premeditated to me. And I think they have to decide that because he could be up for the death penalty, al but he's in California. But second degree
00:37:02
Speaker
Yeah, I don't see how it was. I mean, it was definitely passionate, but it wasn't. Right. He planned everything. He wasn't invited in. Right. And he had the syringe. I mean, that to me shows. Right. I don't. OK. He planned this ship. Right. Hmm. Oh, my gosh. I know. So Amy's friend, one of her really good friends, and they're so cute because all of them are like rockabilly style, very cute women. She flies out to Pennsylvania to do Amy's hair and makeup for the funeral. Oh.
00:37:33
Speaker
She said she wasn't prepared for how badly beaten up baby was. Like she didn't realize, you know, she's like, I knew it was going to be bad, but I didn't know how bad. Like she could even see the finger marks in her neck to the point where she's like, I could see fingerprints. Oh my God. Pressed into her skin. Holy cow.
Drew Carey's Reflections
00:37:53
Speaker
So since her death, Drew Carey has revealed that he cannot celebrate Valentine's day. Oh God. Never again. No. There's not a day he doesn't think about her. Um, he has a Sirius XM show, which I didn't even realize or he used to. Oh, I didn't know that's didn't know that it was called drew carries Friday night freak out. and love So drew talked about her, their relationship on there. And he said back in September, 2018, I was in a beautiful, great, best relationship of my life with a woman named Amy Harwick. She was a sex therapist and mental health advocate. She had a PhD and a master's degree and she was a beautiful and fun and cared deeply about people and improving their lives and was just a joy to be around. I was so in love with her. And he continues to say, even after we broke up, we still loved each other very much. Even though we broke up the engagement, I was still so in love with her and she left me back. It was freaking so heartbreaking because I remember watching something and and um he was like, she was just so beautiful that I would be so embarrassed taking off my clothes in front of her.
00:38:58
Speaker
Oh my God. I know. But he said she was so like into him, you know, in his personality that she she was like, i you are so sexy to me. And he was like, nobody ever treated me the way she did. Oh my God. Heartbreaking. So a couple of things that was profound to me was this quote from a guy friend of hers. His name was Rudy Torres. When he spoke about domestic violence, I thought this was crazy. He said,
00:39:22
Speaker
A lot of this is a problem because men need to hold other men accountable. And I thought that was really profound. Like, you're right. Do you guys notice these things when the guys are treating girls like this? And why don't they need to start saying, hey, that's not okay. You need to treat her better. Yeah, you know, that's not how we do things. That's not, you're not being a man. So yeah. So I thought that was kind of profound. I was like, I never thought about it that way. Men need to step up.
00:39:48
Speaker
But Drew Carey says he hopes Amy's death and the attention it has received will help bring more awareness to intimate partner violence and the very real dangers of stalking.
Awareness on Intimate Partner Violence
00:39:58
Speaker
He said, quote, You can't be a person in this country and not know a woman who hasn't been a victim of domestic violence. You just can't. And that's really a problem that not enough people acknowledge.
00:40:10
Speaker
I know. So sorry to bring it on. Oh my but gosh. Yes. Some deep shit. Wow. I know. I didn't even know that about Drew Carey. Oh my gosh. And one of those relationships that you just don't see, but Oh my god, I know. So man, I can't wait to see what happens with we're definitely going to be doing like follow ups and updates and stuff as we find out. Wait till you see photos of her. She's just blow you away gorgeous and intelligent. Such a cool person. But wow, that was a great story. like you
00:40:45
Speaker
I had no idea that Drew Carey was tied to a murder. Not that he was involved in any patient. No, not at all. But me. Wow. Neither. And so when I saw this, I was like, oh my god, Drew Carey? What, Drew Carey? I hope he doesn't take it like that we mean he's...
00:41:00
Speaker
not I mean, not like Hillary. No, we're bringing attention to his yes true love's crime. Oh, I know. Dang. Would you like to hear my sources? I would love to hear your sources. OK. So this is a great show I found. Trying to think what's on Netflix, I think. Death by Fame, season one, episode one. So she is the first story on there. Yeah, it's really good. Yeah. Other was republicworld dot.com, people dot.com, cnn dot.com, cbsnews dot.com.
00:41:30
Speaker
And just that episode. No, no inquirer, no national inquirer. You know, I did not feel it appropriate to include their. To find the dish on their engagement. Gross. I know. At least they, I hope they never printed all the fake lies and stuff. And who knows if that was Gareth doing all that or it was this old friend of hers that was going after her. but That was a great story. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you, everyone, for listening. but Hey, Audis. Thanks for listening to another episode of ODFM. If you're a longtime listener, hey, we cannot thank you enough for your continued support. And if you're a new listener, thanks for giving us a try. If you like us, please drop us a like, subscribe, or rate us so we can share our stories with more people around the world.
00:42:21
Speaker
And if you'd like more information like links to our podcast and socials along with our Patreon fan page, those links are all on Linktree under ODFMPodcast. That's L-I-N-K-T-R dot E-E slash ODFMPodcast. Side note, you guys were obsessed with fan art and we love making things with it like stickers for our fans.
00:42:44
Speaker
So if you'd like us to use your designs, send it to us at odfnpodcastatgmail.com. And if we use your design, we'll be sure to send you a sticker. Thanks for listening to another episode of ODFM, hosted by Kelly DeVries and Jenna Swanson. Production and editing by Kelly DeVries. Theme music by Eric Swanson. ODFM is a satirical true crime podcast for entertainment purposes only. The stories you hear are serious and true. The comments and opinions are not. We apologize if any of our content is harmful or disrespectful.