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Where's the victim? Who's shot? Who is shot? Where's the victim? On April 20th, 2022, my life changed forever. So we've got EMS coming right now. I was shot at point-blank range two times. Right here, right here. This is the victim, right here. First name Nikki, gunshot wound to the neck. All right. It's a miracle she's alive.
It's a miracle she wasn't killed. You breathing okay? Okay. All right. Someone wanted me dead. Honestly, it was a normal day. I had worked the night before. I worked the overnight shift. I am a forensic scientist for the Minneapolis Police Department. After getting my child to school, I slept. I picked him up from school, and then he had a visit with his father that night.
What would you do while he's visiting with his dad? So I typically would run errands, go grocery shopping, or do the things that were easier to do without my child. When it's time for her to pick up her son, she steps out of her car, she can start walking, like dozens of other times that she's done this. I'm halfway in between my vehicle and the door, and this person comes running up from behind me.
Shots were being fired. I fell to the ground and the shooter stands over me and continues to try to shoot. I felt my neck and then could see the blood. I was just driving home and I saw a person run up to another person and then I heard two bangs and that other person collapsed.
It maybe looked like a robbery or something that was so fast. That was the first thought. This must have been a robbery that was gone wrong. Was this a drive-by? Mistaken identity or... Was she mugged? Maybe something related to work. You do work for the police department. Did you think it might have something to do with work? You know, I know a lot of people ask me that. I knew that this could happen, but I didn't want to believe it would.
Whoever did that knows she was coming to pick up a kid. Did you recognize the assailant? I didn't. Could you tell the gender? Was it male or female? So I thought it was male. I was very sure it was a female shooter. What is going on? Who could have done this? Erin Moriarty reports. Who wanted Nikki Linway dead?
I was coming up and I saw the two people and then all of a sudden I heard bang, bang. As Emily Clancy later told police, she couldn't quite believe what she saw and heard on the evening of April 20th, 2022 as she drove home from having dinner with a friend. I
I stopped right here at this intersection. As soon as the light turned green, Emily sped through the intersection and pulled up next to the victim. I opened the door. I said, are you okay? And she said, no, I've been shot.
Nicole "Nikki" Lemway Ford was shot and bleeding in the parking lot of Family Wise, a parenting center. The 33-year-old was no stranger to violence. She worked as a forensic scientist for the Minneapolis Police Department.
And right after being shot, she called 911. 911, what is the address of the emergency? She's barely breathing, could barely say any words other than her name. And I said, get in the car. Emily took over the 911 call. I could see that there was blood coming out of her neck. And followed the dispatcher's instructions. They said, put a jacket or something around her neck. And I said, okay.
Yeah, I have one right here. Within minutes, first responders arrived. Were you the one that called? Where's the victim? The dramatic scene was captured on police body cameras. What's going on? She was scared, really scared. She was in a lot of pain. She was having a hard time breathing. I just looked her in the eyes and I said, "Nikki."
We've got this. We've got this. Just stay with me. I don't think we can ever recreate how powerful of a moment that was. I just wanted her to know that she wasn't alone in this. And if that was the only thing I could give to this poor girl, that would mean something to me. Okay. All right, dear. Can you walk? We're going to get outside. We're going to go into the ambulance. Bring you to the hospital, all right? One of the most...
surprising things about the video is that you had to walk to the ambulance. I couldn't believe it. Were you aware of how badly injured you were? I don't think so. I think I was in shock, maybe. I didn't realize how bad it was. Try not to move your head left or right, okay? Nicole was loaded into the ambulance and soon lost consciousness.
Breaking news tonight, a woman is in the hospital. The news spread quickly that a Minneapolis police employee had been shot. Nicole's then-boyfriend, MPD officer Donovan Ford, was at home. What is it like to get that phone call that the woman you love has just been shot? I had no words. I went flying down to the hospital. I was panicked.
When Donovan arrived at the Hennepin County Medical Center, he wasn't prepared for what he saw. She was basically unconscious. She had tubes down her throat and all that. When you did finally get to talk to a doctor, what did they tell you? She's in bad shape. We're going to do our best to, you know, save her life, essentially.
Nicole had a perforated lung, severe damage to her vocal cords, and a bullet lodged between two of her ribs. She was in critical condition. I'm in law enforcement, so when they say critical, that means essentially they're close to the end. And where she was shot, typically people don't survive. I was praying a lot.
As doctors rushed to save Nicole, outside the Family Wise Parenting Center, her colleagues at the police department got to work. Can you throw up some tape? We've got casings right over here. On the ground, they found three discharge bullet casings and blood.
They quickly learned that Nicole had been at Family Wise to pick up her son, who was on a scheduled visit with his father, her ex, Tim Omaker. Officers caught up with Tim as he was finishing up his visit with their five-year-old son, Callahan. He had been at the center for hours. And then you've been in the back with your son the whole time? Yes, he's been in the back the whole time.
In the community, Tim Omegar was well-liked and a respected local taekwondo instructor. Tim seemed worried about Nicole. Is she okay? Is she going to be fine? I mean, she's stable right now, but it's really serious. And he had an idea about what may have happened.
He thought it had something to do with a case she worked. She was afraid because she thought people were driving by her house. She changed her last name to her middle name. She shut down her social media. She had drive-bys of Minneapolis coming through her house all the time. She had me bring over my shotgun to her house. She was in fear. But police didn't find any obvious connections to Nicole's cases.
They searched Tim's Jeep and asked if he owned any other cars. This is your only car? No, no, I have a Dodge Challenger too. And then let him go. Police continued to look for evidence canvassing the building and surrounding area searching for security footage and discovered the cameras from Family Wise, a bank across the street and an elementary school around the corner had captured every second.
The first images are Nicole arriving to pick up her son, then someone dressed all in black running her down from behind. The moment the shots were fired, the shooter fleeing on foot and then driving off in a black Dodge Ram truck. But the truck had no license plates and police couldn't tell who was driving.
The next day, Nicole regained consciousness, and she told police that she was sure she knew who was responsible. I just knew it had something to do with Tim. I just knew. I didn't know how he was involved, but he was involved.
What would you do if you saw a stranger being shot on the street? Chat now with the 48 Hours team on X.
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The tenets of the Korean martial art include courtesy, self-control, integrity. The most skilled, like Tim Omaker, are called master. Nicole would come to believe that Tim was somehow involved in her shooting. But in the world of Tae Kwon Do... He was a very good instructor.
Pat and Claire Zellmer were part of Amaker's tight group of friends and also familiar with his World Taekwondo Academy. People would definitely refer to him as Master Amaker within his school, but they would also, if they were still students and they were friendly outside of the school, he was still Master Amaker.
People gravitated to Amaker, his physical skill, business savvy, easy confidence, a leader who seemed to have it all figured out. He's charismatic, driven, intense. He can draw people in and make them feel this connection with him.
And his reputation continued after dark. The mayor of nightlife here? I would say that's a fair assessment. Very much so. Very much so.
Charlie Detloff knew Tim well before he met Nicole and witnessed firsthand the power of Tim's personality. So I moved back here in about 2001. And was Tim Omaker already living next door? He was. He was living next door, but his mother owned the house. Tim was a helpful neighbor with a style and appeal you couldn't miss. He loved fashion, loved the right jeans and the right shirt and the right boot and everything.
Always had to be the best. Was he a good friend to you? Yeah, he was a great friend. And where was Tim living? Tim's bedroom was in the back corner here. And according to Charlie, there was a waiting list of women who wanted into Omaker's bedroom. Coming and going, yeah, they would pull up right here. The front light here was purple. And if that light was on, then the women knew that they could go in.
Are you serious? I'm not kidding. It was almost like the, you know, the red light district. Juggling a lot of women at once? Yes, of course. Because it seemed like there was a different girl every night. What did women see in him? I don't know because I didn't see it. But many other women seemed to see much in Tim Omaker. How did you meet Tim?
I met Tim by going to his gym. And when did you start dating? Shortly after. Nicole was responsible and grounded. Tim's close friends quickly understood the attraction. There was something special about her. She's smart. She's pretty. She's outgoing. She's got it all. At first, I actually really wasn't interested, but he was very persistent. You know, he just kind of wore me down, and I kind of...
I started enjoying our time together. And he was older. Right. He had experienced more life than me, and it was exciting. They moved in together in early 2014, but friends say Tim still wasn't faithful. Did you try to warn her about Tim and his women? About his womanizing? Yes, absolutely. There were a lot of red flags. A lot of jealousy? Yes.
They fought. Constantly. It was almost like a perpetual argument verging on a fight. Did you ever see him violent or hurtful toward her? I did not, no. But Nicole would tell investigators Amaker was violent. I mean, one night he threw me up against the wall holding my neck. Why did you stay even as long as you did? I ask myself that all the time. I don't know.
I think I felt trapped. And, you know, he just got into my brain so badly. She says that on a trip to Las Vegas, an angry, alcohol-fueled Tim threw a lamp across the room. It was terrifying. I locked myself in the bathroom.
September 2015, Nicole, then 26 years old, had more than enough. But she says now that breaking away from Tim was anything but easy. I packed my bags and I started walking out. And he pulled me back into the house by my ponytail and dragged me into the bedroom. And after that, I was like, "I am done."
Nicole moved out and an 18-year-old student of Tim's moved in, renting out one of his rooms. Her name? Colleen Larson. Seemed absolutely lovely. Nice girl. I think she's very smart. Probably book smart, not street smart.
Colleen had begun studying with Omaker when she was barely a teenager. Tim's friends say she seemed infatuated with him. He's her instructor. He's her master, you know, for 10 plus years at this point. It just seemed like she was like this little puppy dog wanting to impress him. Like a child and an adult in that respect. Yes. They say Colleen seemed delighted to be living with a man she had idolized since she was young.
As for Nicole, she hoped to have no further contact with Tim. But very soon, they all got some unexpected news. I found out I was pregnant, and he wanted me to get rid of the baby. And I just told him I couldn't. And I was in a state of panic. 10-7, investigation.
- Are you Timothy? - Yeah. - Okay. Right now, I'm gonna ask you if I can search you for weapons real quick, okay? - For weapons? - Yeah. - Detectives needed to know all about Nicole's relationship with her son's father, Tim Omaker.
- The investigation would track a trail that led back to the fall of 2015, when Nicole first learned she was pregnant with a Taekwondo master she alleged had abused her. - It just got more and more volatile. - We were so excited for them to be having a baby. That's a momentous and a happy thing to normal people.
But the only thing normal was the irrepressible joy of a new mother. She named him Callahan. He was born on June 20th of 2016. He was a big boy and he was perfect. And then she gave him the last name Vomiker.
Nicole was the primary caregiver, but sometimes Cal stayed with his dad. Did you feel that co-parenting was working? I felt like it could. But he wasn't always reliable, says Nicole. When she needed him most, Tim was halfway around the world. Tim went to Thailand and totally bailed on Christmas and New Year's.
- Tim may not have been a hands-on dad, but someone else was ready to step in. Colleen Larson, his longtime Tae Kwon Do student who was renting that room in Tim's house. - She was very kind to Callahan. She was a good caregiver to him. - And with unpredictable hours with the Minneapolis Police Department, the arrangement seemed to work for Nicole. - My son really seemed to like her.
When the once young taekwondo student turned 18, her relationship with Tim Omaker quietly changed, according to Charlie. Did you get the sense he was in love with Colleen? No, not at all. I think she was very much in love with him. Charlie says Tim called the relationship easy. She would call him master, call him the house. Yep, Master Omaker. And ultimately kind of became...
you know, like a maid or a servant to him. Then in the summer of 2017, Nicole's life took a dramatic turn. Do you remember when you first met Nicole? Absolutely. It was the kind of love at first sight that only a cop on the beat could have. First time I ever saw her was on a burglary call. I definitely took notice at that point. Why? She's gorgeous.
And to Donovan Ford, intriguing. She processed the scene. So she was a member of the real CSI. Oh, yeah. He knew that I was a single mom, and he was divorced. When I just mentioned his name, you lit up. Why is that? He is truly the love of my life.
He has been the biggest blessing to myself and my son. And he's been through a lot with you, hasn't he? He has. Nicole's already difficult relationship with Tim only got worse when Tim discovered she was dating Donovan, who was fast becoming part of Callahan's life. Did the way he dealt with Cal change after you started dating Donovan? It did.
He wanted him all the time. And Tim didn't want Donovan around his son. He accused Donovan of saying negative things about Colleen. Then Tim called Donovan and left this angry message. Man up for once in your life and quit hiding behind your badge. And then I started getting text messages. Like this one, where Tim claimed Donovan was destroying his family.
It ignited what can only be called a war that would grow treacherous, and it wouldn't be a short one. How would you describe the last six years? It has been chaos. Nicole claims Tim tried to destroy her. Like, I'm going to take everything from you. Did you believe him? I did. The Black Belt's new weapon of choice was the legal system. It was the relentless...
number of motions before the court. He reported Nicole to Child Protection Services multiple times, accusing her and Donovan of physical and sexual abuse. Children's Services, show up at your house. Yes.
I had them in and out of my home for three years. Tim filed for custody of Cal, and Nicole filed for an order of protection from Tim. Not a single one of the allegations against Nicole or Donovan was found to have substance. Did you see anything that concerned you or made you think that Cal had been abused? No, nothing. No, he was a well-loved child.
But Tim didn't stop there. He also filed complaints to the police department about Donovan. You were investigated then?
And what was the finding? Nothing happened. It continued? Yep. Allegation after allegation. And then in May of 2018, Omaker alleged Nicole ran over his foot with her car. I was charged with domestic assault. The proud crime scene investigator was now a humiliated defendant. I never thought I would be at the defense table.
How long was the jury out on that? Less than 15 minutes. I was found not guilty. But the battle for Callahan raged on, and the child got caught in the middle. You could tell he was very conflicted. Callahan was a pawn. It wasn't about Callahan or Callahan's well-being. It was about inflicting the maximum amount of damage on Nikki.
In the fall of 2020, the trial for custody of Callahan began. When it was over, the judge awarded Nicole sole legal and physical custody. Tim was allowed just one supervised visit a week.
Tim Omegert, once a champion, was now boxed into a corner. He was allowed no contact alone with his son. And cops thought that might be a motive for him wanting Nicole dead. I've been here the whole time. I don't know what happened out there. Police would hone in on the crime scene. Remember that black Dodge Ram truck that the shooter drove off in?
Turns out Tim had lied to the cops. He owned a truck just like it.
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A good homicide detective will tell you it's just good to know what vehicles anybody owns, whether they're a witness, whether they're a suspect, whether they're a victim, because people use their vehicles and that's how you can figure out things. That's how you can pursue leads. On the night of Nicole's shooting, Assistant Hennepin County Attorneys Patrick Lofton and Jacob Fishman say that police were determined to find out who was driving that black Dodge truck.
A black Dodge Ram is a very, very common car. And authorities had asked him what he owned. What do you mean? This is your only car? No, no, I have a Dodge Challenger, too. A Dodge Challenger sedan and this Jeep.
But it turned out that Tim did have another vehicle, a black Dodge Ram truck that looked a lot like the one seen leaving the area after the shooting. That raised the alarm bells for the Minneapolis Police Department. This is a picture right here. Police called Tim in for a second interview. That's not my truck. They showed him stills of the truck from that video.
seemingly unruffled, he insisted that it wasn't his. Those pictures were not pictures of my truck. Tim claimed his truck, unlike the one in the video, had a license plate and Superman decal stickers near both front doors. Where is the Superman logo? Case closed. Superman logo's not on the truck.
What's more, he had an alibi. He was inside the Family Wise Center when Nicole was shot. So even if it was his truck, he couldn't be the driver. Who else has access to the truck? Colleen has access to it.
Colleen Larson, Tim's former Taekwondo student. To police, the pieces of the puzzle were coming together. Nicole had said she thought the shooter was a woman.
Tim insisted Colleen was incapable of violence. And Colleen, who was also brought in for questioning, insisted she was nowhere near family-wise that night. She said that she came home from work as usual, went inside, took a shower, and was there until Tim got home.
But police didn't believe either one of them and turned to FBI Special Agent Richard Fenner, a technology specialist. He discovered that Tim's truck had Wi-Fi and, like a cell phone, creates a digital trail. We could track it much like we could a cell phone. Fenner wanted to know everywhere Tim and Colleen went the day of the shooting.
Their cell phones and the black Dodge truck left plenty of digital breadcrumbs. With phones, with cars, whatever you have, they're going to tell you the truth. Their records always tell you the truth. On the afternoon of the shooting, Tim and Colleen were both at the Taekwondo studio. Around 4 p.m., Tim left to go to Family Wise for the visit with his son. He was driving the Jeep.
Later, Colleen left the studio in the black truck to go home. How can you tell that? That's from the cell phone records. So not only the truck, but her cell phone. Correct. Just after 7 p.m., Fennern says, the black truck left the couple's residence and headed straight to Family Wise. Now we see that person who is walking around
Right here? That is Colleen Larson. Colleen Larson did leave her house, and detectives placed her directly at the scene. She appears to be walking around essentially scoping out the area. I believe that she is planning her next steps.
A raid of the couple's house yielded more evidence, bullet casings matching the ones found at the crime scene. On April 28, 2022, Colleen Larson was arrested. She was charged with attempted first-degree premeditated murder. But was Tim involved?
Agent Fennerd suspected that Tim had deliberately altered his truck's appearance to throw cops off his path. He discovered that several hours before the shooting, Tim had driven the black truck to a drive-thru at a local Kentucky Fried Chicken. When we pull surveillance video, there's that same truck without the decal, without the license plate.
For police, it was enough. Tim Omaker was arrested and charged with attempted first-degree premeditated murder and aiding an accomplice after the fact. When you do something to significantly further or assist in a crime, you are just as culpable as the person that actually pulls the trigger.
Nicole was not surprised to hear that Tim had been arrested, but she was shocked to find out about Colleen. Why would she shoot you? I don't know. This time, when Colleen was questioned by police, she broke down and confessed to shooting Nicole. I took the drug.
And she says Tim was behind it. Whose idea was it to shoot Nicole? Tim's? So he asked you if you felt comfortable, would you shoot Nicole for me?
Yes. She said she believed Tim's story that Nicole was abusing Callahan. He was doing bad things to the child, and I wanted to help the little man. After the shooting, she told police, Tim disposed of the gun. He just said he would take care of it. He just said he would take care of it. So you have no idea what he did with the gun? Not exactly, no.
Still, Tim continued to deny any involvement. Timothy Omaker and Colleen Larson are charged with attempted murder. On November 3rd, 2022, Tim Omaker's trial began. There were no cameras in the courtroom.
Prosecutors knew that they had to show the jury that Nicole wasn't abusing her son and that it was Tim who had been victimizing her for a long time. What happened behind the scenes wasn't just this
couple seconds of horror that Nicole had to suffer at FamilyWise. It was 10 years of hell that he put her through. Tim and his lawyers refused our request for an interview, but 48 Hours consultant and defense attorney Matthew Troiano reviewed their case for us.
There's obviously no direct evidence of Tim's guilt. Zero. He has a rock-solid alibi about where he was at the time that this happened. According to Troiano, prosecutors needed to build their case by focusing on Tim's lies.
and his past treatment of Nicole because there was no smoking gun that directly tied Tim to the shooting. - There is circumstantial evidence, the truck, the lies. Those are all kind of circumstantial pieces that tie back to him. But there is no direct evidence of him specifically buying or doing or having something that led to this act.
The defense called no witnesses to the stand. Troiano thinks they were betting the prosecution just hadn't made its case. Where's the proof? Where's the evidence? As the jury went out to deliberate, prosecutors were concerned. Of course, we were very worried. There's a chance this guy is going to walk. Absolutely.
How nervous were you? Really nervous. Do you believe Colleen Larson acted on her own? See more evidence from the case at 48hours.com.
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Those sacred tenets of Tae Kwon Do. Self-control, integrity. Could the master win this battle? The jury took an hour to decide. He was found guilty. Guilty on all counts. Tim Omaker, guilty of premeditated attempted murder and aiding his accomplice, Colleen Larson.
And how did you both feel about that? Relieved. Joyous. And justice for Nikki. I almost didn't believe it. Finally, we had some type of closure.
At sentencing, Nicole wanted Judge Shireen Escalani to hear all she endured. To protect her, the judge kept most of Nicole's statement off camera. -Prison okay? -Okay. But the memories of that point-blank moment will clearly never be forgotten. -I can still feel the burning sensation and the utter fear of not being able to speak or to help myself. I truly thought I was dying that day.
Even though I feel like the truth is starting to come to light, I still live in fear. Amaker, who'd refused to testify at his trial, now decided to speak. The court allowed his plea for leniency to be heard and filmed. It is no secret how broken this system is. The main message that I felt called here to say goes as this: For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. But with me,
It is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. How would you describe his statement? Erratic. Blaming everybody else. He was the victim and this happened to him. Did he show any kind of remorse? No.
Judge Ascalani had no patience for Amaker and his claims that Nicole had been abusive. It appears that you have been promoting this false narrative about Ms. Ford for so long that you may actually believe it at this time. Then she sentenced him to 18 years in prison. Just four days later, Colleen Larson pleaded guilty.
At her sentencing hearing, rather than speak for herself, Colleen had her attorney read a statement. She took full responsibility for all that had happened. Your Honor, I stand before you with the utmost respect for the decision to come.
I accept all the consequences for my actions. I understand and want to atone for what I have done. A simple apology cannot cover the long-term damages that I have caused. Anything additional from you at this time? No, Your Honor. Colleen's got a killer in her. She did it. There's no question that she had the capacity.
Colleen was sentenced to 16 and a half years for doing what prosecutors say was Omaker's bidding. I think she wanted his approval and his love so badly that she would do anything. And she was in this delusional fantasy land where she thinks, you know, if I wasn't around, that they could run off into the sunset with Callahan and be a happy little family.
But how does somebody convince another person who's never committed a crime to shoot someone? It's wild. I love the answers to that because that's where we're stuck to. Attorney Matt Triano wonders if Omegur has been controlling Colleen for years. Why would she do this?
It's the fact that she had known this person since she's 12 years old. They had been in this kind of dominant, subservient relationship where he's the master, she's the student. He is the boss. This woman who once dated Amaker doesn't want to be named or have her face shown. But she says she knows firsthand the hold Amaker can have on the women in his life.
Yes, it was a high when I was around him. And that you wanted to do whatever you could to hang on to that high? Yes. She says she was once under Amaker's spell, but is certain she would never kill for him. Still, she sees some of herself in Colleen Larson. And I feel like that was me. Yeah, I definitely feel like I was willing to do whatever I could to make him approve of me and want to be with me.
With good behavior, Tim Omaker could be out of prison by 2034. Do you think you'll ever feel truly safe again? No. You'll always have to be looking over your shoulder. I think so. It all still haunts Donovan. The shots fired. The woman he loves fighting for her life. Do you still see that in your head? Absolutely. Oh, yeah. Still fear that you could lose her? Yeah. Mm-hmm.
All the time. Yet alongside the destruction, there are miracles in this story. Hello. Good to see you again. Good to see you too. Thanks. Almost exactly a year. I know, and you look so well. Thank you. We asked for this one-of-a-kind reunion. Emily Clancy, who raced to help a stranger, saving Nicole's life. We are expecting a
- Congratulations. - Thank you. - I'm so happy for you. - Thank you. - Donovan and Nicole, now husband and wife, had just gotten the good news. - And I was like, "Are you serious?" And she's like, "Yep." And then we're just hugging and happy. - As for the child Nicole had with Tim Omaker. - How old is Callahan now? - He's six. - Does he know that his dad
tried to kill you? He does now. And how did he take that? Better than I thought he would. He's come out amazing. That's a miracle too. Just him being able to deal with all the stuff he's been through and still be the kid he is. Thank you, Mom. Thank you.
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The Hargan women seemed to have it all. We were blessed. My mom was amazing. But detectives would soon discover... Inside the house, there were the bodies of two women. A story of betrayal you would struggle to believe if it wasn't true. I am just praying to God this is a sick joke. From 48 Hours, this is Blood is Thicker, the Hargan family killings. Listen to Blood is Thicker, the Hargan family killings, wherever you get your podcasts.
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As far as I'm concerned, there wasn't. Guilty by Design dives into the wild story of Alexander and Frank, interior designers who in the 80s landed the jackpot of all clients. We went to bed one night and the next morning we woke up as one of the most wanted people in the United States. What are they guilty of? You can listen to Guilty by Design exclusively and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.