Breaking crime news as it happens throughout the day! Follow "Crime Alert Hourly Update" now on your favorite podcast app: https://link.chtbl.com/Crime_Alert

Here's three of our top stories this week:

A woman in Texas faces charges for allegedly locking a 7-year-old girl in a dog cage under the Christmas tree for hours.

Multiple people have been arrested for their part in an online drug operation linked to Rutger University. According to police records, an online platform was made for alumnus to "buy" from a "menu" of drugs offered by various dealers.

A California man is behind bars accused of a gruesome crime, the beheading of his 1-year-old son, after a fight with his wife & mother-in-law.

Stay informed, stay safe, and stay ahead with "Crime Alert Hourly Update.”

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Carly Gregg is a good student but has had trouble at school. She briefly attends an alternative school after being caught with a knife. Her parents revoke her phone privileges after she breaks their social media rules. Friends grow concerned when they discover Carly has a burner phone and catch her smoking marijuana.

One friend distracts Carly while another informs her mother. Ashley Smylie confronts Carly after school, warning her that her room will be searched when they get home.

Ashley heads to Carly’s room while Carly takes the dogs out. Almost immediately, Ashley finds a box of THC vape pens. She takes the box to her bedroom before returning to continue the search. Carly comes back inside, checks on her mother’s location, and quietly heads to her parents' room. She lifts the mattress and retrieves her mother’s .357 Magnum pistol.

Immediately after the shooting, Carly uses her mother’s phone to text Heath Smylie, “You almost home honey?” Smylie replies that he’ll be home in about an hour. Carly then texts six friends, saying she has an emergency and needs someone to come over. One friend offers to call 911, but Carly declines.

Eventually, a friend agrees to come. When Carly answers the door, she asks the girl, “Are you squeamish around dead bodies?” and then leads her to her mother’s body in the bedroom.

Attorney's for the teen convicted for her mother's death, filed a motions based on evidence revealed by her biological father in an interview to news station WLBT. Kevin Gregg said his daughter suffered auditory hallucinations as a child and was enrolled in equine therapy. The Mississippi judge denied the motion saying the information would not have changed the outcome.

Joining Nancy Grace today:

• Kathryn White Newman - Rankin County Assistant District Attorney; IG: www.instagram.com/bramlett_da/ FB: www.facebook.com/kathryn.white.718
• Kevin Camp - Criminal Defense Attorney and Lead Attorney at Camp Law Firm; Attorney for Carly Gregg, Retired JAG Officer from the Mississippi National Guard (with a distinguished military and legal career);FB: https://www.facebook.com/kevin.camp.39
• Caryn Stark - Psychologist, renowned TV and Radio Trauma Expert and Consultant; Instagram: carynpsych, FB: Caryn Stark Private Practice
• Dr. William Morrone - Medical Examiner, Toxicologist, Pathologist, and Opioid Treatment Expert; Author: “American Narcan: Naloxone & Heroin-Fentanyl Associated Mortality”
• Lauren Conlin - Co-Host of Primetime Crime on YouTube; X: @Conlin_Lauren, Instagram- @LaurenEmilyConlin, YouTube: @PopCrimeTV

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Jody LeCornu and her boyfriend have an argument which leads to a suggested separation. Her boyfriend asks Jody to not come home that night. After work, the 23-year-old decides to go out with friends to a favorite hangouts, the Mt. Washington Tavern. At closing, LeCornu drives a tavern employee home, then drives to an ATM to withdraw money.

In the early morning hours of Caldor on York Road in Baltimore. A white BMW pulls up close to Jody's car and a man gets out of the BMW. Jody rolls down her window and a brief exchange takes place. It is 3:40 am when the man fires a .38 caliber handgun through the back, left passenger window of Jody LeCornu's car. The bullet enters Jody's back, severing her spine

As Jody LeCornu flees for her life, the gunman follows close behind in a white BMW. Eyewitnesses at the Giant Supermarket and another person making a delivery to Boston Market hear the gunshot and see Jody driving across York Road and into the Giant Parking lot. She circles the parking lot and coasts to a stop after hitting a curb between the Boston Market and Firestone Tire and service center.

The shooter waits patiently for Jody LeCornu's car to come to a complete stop in the parking lot, then pulls his directly behind hers. Witnesses describe the shooter, who gets out of his car, as a black male, 5' 10' to 6' 1", around 220 pounds wearing a green, fatigue style coat. The suspect reaches into LeCornu's car and puts it in park. He reaches across her body and takes her purse and cell phone, then leaves the scene in his white BMW. The time is 3:41 am, and witnesses call 911.

Investigators have eyewitnesses to the person who approached Jody LeCornu's Honda in the Giant Food Store parking lot and got items out of her car before leaving the scene. The eyewitnesses describe the man getting back into his white BMW and driving away. There is also surveillance videos and fingerprints. But no arrest has been made.

Joining Nancy Grace today:

• Jennifer “Jenny” Carrieri -Twin sister of Jody LeCornu
• Dr. Joni Johnston - Forensic psychologist and private investigator, Author: “Serial Killers: 101 Questions True Crime Fans Ask” ; "CONTROLLING ANXIETY (The Complete Idiot's Guide)" ; "FIGHT YOUR FRIGHT: A Holistic Approach to Understanding & Overcoming Anxiety" ; "APPEARANCE OBSESSION Learning to Love the Way You Look," Drjonijohnston.com
• Sheryl McCollum - Cold Case Investigative Research Institute Founder, ColdCaseCrimes.org, Host: Zone 7, Twitter: @ColdCaseTips\
• Dr. Michelle DuPre - Forensic Pathologist, Medical Examiner and Detective: Lexington County Sheriff's Department, Author: “Money, Mischief, and Murder: The Murdaugh Dynasty...the Rest of the Story" ; "Homicide Investigation Field Guide" & "Child Abuse Investigation Field Guide", Forensic Consultant DMichelleDupreMD.com
• Jeff Abell - Reporter/Anchor for WBFF - Fox 45 Baltimore, Maryland

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