Michelle Parker

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1:00Saturday, September 26th, two of combat sports' most dangerous strikers collide. Bear Knuckle! Liverpool's own down in the Gorilla Till goes to war with Cuban Powerhouse, LL Soldier of God Romero. Plus, the Bear Knuckle Midowage Championship of the world is on the line, when the rating champ Dave Veredneck Mundell defends against undefeated British challenger, Jack Demeek-Pleaver-Colin, BKFC 94, Till vs Romero. Watch it live only on the zone. Sign up now at TheZone.com! The moment a body is found, the clock starts ticking. 48 hours before the trail goes cold. From A&E and Crime House, this is the official podcast from the famous True Crime series, The First 48. I'm Carter Roy. Every Thursday, I revisit a landmark homicide investigation in depth, with long-form storytelling built for your ears. Listen to and follow The First 48 on Apple Podcasts,

2:02Spotify, Amazon Music, or Wherever You Listen to Podcasts. The First 48. The First 48. The First 48. The First 48. The First 48. Hello everyone and welcome, Depth. Episode 483 of The True Crime All the Time, Unsolved Podcast. I'm Mike Ferguson, and with me as always, is my partner in True Crime, Mike Gibson. Give me how are you? I'm doing good. Man, how about you? I'm doing great, man. Yeah. I'm living the dream. You are the dream. I like that. Yeah, I like that. Let's go ahead and give our Patron shout outs.

3:04We had Elizabeth Neal. What's up Neal? Leah Stebins? Oh the Stebons. Goose to Whitt. How's going on, Deigh Whitt? Alexander. She's a speaks Alexandra. Just because you say it with little accent, that's the twist on it. Absolutely. Joe Revans. What's happened in Revans? Wendy. Ah, Wendy. She's kind of blowing around, you know? Oh, yeah, I thought you were gonna make a windy... Peter Pan? No, windies, the burger chain. Oh, the burger chain. That's where I thought you was gonna go. Oh, yeah. Nicole Williamson. That's come on, Williamson. And last but not least, Whitney Goff jumped out of our highest level. Golf. So we appreciate the new support. And then if we go back into the ball. This week, we selected Brandon Leon. Leon, remember Leon from that one movie? Oh, Leon from that one movie? Yeah. The professional? Yes. That was actually a good show back then. Yeah. Yeah. A movie, you mean? Movie, yeah. You're all over the place. I, you know what I mean.

4:04You know what I'm at, dammit. I do. I do. And that's the strange part. Because how I can decipher it from the very little that you give me is beyond me. I don't even know how. I don't guess there's a lot of people that listen and knew exactly what I was talking about, too. Maybe. Maybe. But a brand new true crime all the time out right now. And it's on Paula Chin. Paula was a wealthy Tribeca woman who was reported missing in 2019. And then was later found dead in a trash can at her second home in New Jersey. Adorities quickly found a surprising killer with a personal mode. It's a fascinating case. It is. I don't understand how somebody could ever just throw a body in the trash. But we've seen them throw them other terrible places, too. Yeah, people do. All right, buddy. Are you ready to get into this episode of True Crime all the time, Unsolved? I'm ready. We're talking about Michelle Parker, 33 year old Michelle Parker went missing on November 17, 2011 after dropping off her twins at her ex fiancee's home over 10 years later.

5:11There's no sign of Michelle and no charges have ever been fouled in connection with her disappearance. Michelle Parker was a devoted mother of three children from the Orlando Florida area. She had an 11 year old son from her previous relationship and boy girl twins with her ex fiancee Dale Smith. It's been said that Dale and Michelle had a tumultuous relationship. They fell in love in 2006. They met at a bar where Michelle worked as a bartender. Dale is once divorced, once widowed. His friend Christine Evans Ariaga told the Orlando Sentinel that Dale often talked to her about his relationship issues with Michelle, but their arguments were normed. Well, most relationships have certain types of arguments. Yeah, I'm assuming when she uses the word norm, she's referring to the types of arguments that we all have.

6:12You're spending too much money. Why didn't you take the trash out? Maybe I'm hitting just on my life, but you know, other people, I'm sure have those same arguments. Why did you eat my ice cream? Exactly. Christine also said he likes women and he enjoys people looking at him. He's very gentlemanly. I saw him move Michelle, bought her expensive things or shoes she wanted. Okay. The enjoys people looking at him part, that's something I don't understand. That's kind of strange for me. I do not want people looking at me. No. Now, I don't spend two hours in the bathroom getting ready either. Nor do I. And maybe he was that type of guy. We all kind of know a guy like that. Yeah. Moose guy. Yeah. Hair Joe guy. Yeah. Iron is jeans before he goes out. Two years after Michelle and Dale met, their twins were born.

7:16Michelle moved the children out last then a month after the twins first birthday. Well, they didn't take long. That wasn't a long relationship. Court documents indicate Michelle and Dale went through a custody battle in 2009 over the twins. Michelle Fowder request for a domestic violence injunction against Dale that year and accused him of a violent tyrant in the presence of their children. She wrote that he cursed and threatened her on August 16, 2009 while holding one of the twins. He also broke the passenger window of her vehicle and through a pair of child car seats. Michelle told the court that Dale had previously been violent with her and even threatened to kidnap the children. If true, that's a problem. Yeah. But it's a big problem. Michelle's older son told investigators that he saw Dale attack his mother, Perthio

8:16Orlando sent. But Michelle's injunction was dismissed in September 2009 for unspecified reasons. And that's always a tough one, right? When the reporting, the sources, they don't know the reasons behind it. She left the wonder was there just not enough evidence that they not believe her older son? Temptation. We just don't know. The Orlando Sentinel reported on Dale's criminal record. He was arrested several times in the 90s. In 1990, he pleaded no contest to trespassing on school ground. On Memorial Day weekend, 1992, he was involved in a fight in downtown Orlando in which a man was killed. Dale's 16 year old friend was later convicted of fatally stabbing the 22 year old. That's a serious charge. Well, absolutely. I mean, it said Dale was involved, but obviously he didn't wield the knife.

9:20He didn't stab this, this other guy. But he pleaded no contest to attempted battery for kicking a man in the head during the fight. He spent a couple of days in jail and was given two years probation. You know, back then when I was growing up, I mean, some of those fights could be pretty bad to be kicked in the head or to kick somebody ahead. Wasn't that uncommon? No, it really wasn't. And it got me to thinking that I think if we did some of that stuff that we did back then today, a lot of us would catch a slew of charges for sure that just didn't happen back then. I think I've mentioned it before, but I saw one of my buddies get beat with a pool stick. And it was just an after school thing. I think it was over a girl. The two guys knew each other and once it was over, everybody walked away. But today, I don't think that would happen. No, somebody would be calling the police and somebody would get charged with something.

10:22I'm not saying the way that we did it was right. I'm just saying that's the way it was. Yeah, exactly. I think the era that you and I grew up in was a lot less about feelings and more about action. Yeah, that's that's the best way I think I can describe it. What a whole lot of feelings going on back. No, I wasn't a lot of people sitting around on carpets in a circle talking through their feeling. No, there was a lot of fist fighting after school. And that's seems like how things got worked out for better or for worse. Dale entered a pre-trial diversion in 1992 after being arrested on a charge of marijuana possession. Dale joined the Marines in June 1996. And maybe he might have been well suited for the Marines. He obviously had a little bit of a temper. It took a good place to work here in Crescianel. Some people come out of that with the discipline they need to live the rest of their life.

11:27Yeah, sometimes they learn ways to control tempers. In 1997, Dale pleaded guilty to battery. He got married that year but was divorced by 2000. And then 11 days after the divorce was finalized. He got married again. That's a quick turnover rate right there. It's very quick. But I do want to touch on his criminal record so far. It's lengthy. A lot of battery, a lot of fighting, you know, trespassing. I think these are things that if people were being honest with themselves, they would say, well, they could have gotten trouble for quite a bit of this stuff too. Yeah, I agree with you. I think he probably had some type of anger problem. It sounds like he might have. In February 2001, Dale was court martial on drug charges and a domestic battery charge. He was sentenced to 36 months in prison.

12:27That year his wife died of a brain injury after consuming ecstasy. Whoa. It's not something I've ever tried. I'm assuming it's something I never will try. Dale was dishonorably discharged from the military in 2003. And as we mentioned, he met Michelle a few years later. So by 2011, Michelle and Dale were separated. Michelle had a boyfriend and was working at a bar in Sanford. Michelle disappeared on November 17, 2011. Hours before she went missing an episode of the people's court there featuring a dispute between Dale and Michelle. Really? That's interesting. Fascinating. Now, I will be honest, when I was a kid, not by 2011, but when I was younger, I was younger because you know the people's court was on for a very long time. My grandparents used to watch it all the time. So when I was at their house, I watched it too. I was really into it.

13:28I liked it. What was that announcer's name? Doug Uellin. Something like that. Yeah. Doug Uellin. Yeah. Lou Wellin, Uellin. Yeah. Someone of those, but he had a good voice, interesting voice. This reminds me a little bit of, I don't know if you've ever seen it, we haven't covered it. I don't believe. No, I'm pretty sure we haven't. There was a murder that stemmed from an airing of an episode of the Jenny Jones show. Oh, we did do that. Did we do that one? Absolutely. Okay. I thought maybe we did, but then I couldn't remember. Yeah. You know, 500 and some episodes is hard to keep track of everything. It reminds me a little bit of that. I mean, I'm not saying that Dale had anything to do with Michelle's death, but you'd have to say, Gibbs, that how could he not be on police radar after everything that we've talked about? Yeah. I think he asked to be on the radar for her disappearance. Like you said, I think he had a pretty obvious temper or aggression, problem with aggression.

14:35And then they were going through this custody battle. And now we've got an episode of the People's Court airing right before she disappeared. And the episode features a dispute between the two of them. I don't know if I could ever go on that show. I wouldn't go on any of those shows. I guess you go on and maybe they pay your losses. I don't know why you go on that show unless there's a financial benefit to go on it. Well, that's like asking the question, why did people go on the Jerry Springer show? That's a really good question. Money. They were getting money. They were getting a flight. They were getting a hotel. They were getting something. Getting a trip out of it. But a lot of those people did not come out looking good. Oh, they did not. Whether those were their own beliefs or they were said to say that, you know, they were told to say those things. I don't know. Hey, honey, I've been, I need to tell you this.

15:36I've been sleeping with your sister. Did you think that was going to go over well in front of a bunch of people or not in front of a bunch of people? Either way, it was not going to go well. Now you just look like a bigger idiot in front of everybody. And now everybody at your work knows it's all over the place. So apparently this episode was filmed several months earlier on June 8th. And the dispute was over the loss of a $5,000 engagement ring. Michelle reportedly threw the ring over a balcony during an argument and it was lost. Dale sued Michelle on solo court in May 2011 about the time the episode was taped. That afternoon, Michelle visited her mother and sister at their family salon. She told her mom, according to Fox 35 Orlando, I'm going to pick up the babies, take them to their dads and I'm going home to take a nap because I'm tired and I have to work tonight. Michelle's sister Lauren recalled she made it right there and put her hand on the door.

16:39And I yelled out, what am I? Chopped liver. She turned around and she said, you know, I love you too. And that was it. And we talk about it often. But the last conversation that you have with someone who then later goes missing or is murdered, it's going to be seared in your brain forever. Absolutely. You're going to remember that. The tone, everything about that conversation. All the the words used. Yeah, every bit of it. Michelle picked up the twins and took them to Dale's house around 315 PM as verified by surveillance video from the area around Dale's condo. Michelle texted her brother around 430 PM indicating she was in the water fared lakes area after dropping her twins off. Michelle planned to run some errands before heading to her bartending shift, but she never showed up for work that evening. Michelle's oldest son called his grandmother asking where Michelle was.

17:43Michelle didn't answer anyone's call. Her family reported her missing and police began the search. And I mentioned it already, but you know, Dale has to be at the very least a person of interest, right? In the beginning of the investigation, based on all of the things we've talked about. But now you add in that multiple people knew that she was going to drop the kids off at Dale's house. And then she's never seen again. She's seen on surveillance at his condo, but doesn't show up for her work shift. Okay. That doesn't make him look good at all. No, it doesn't. The next day, Michelle's Hummer was found abandoned in the parking lot of the Walden Palms apartments in the 4700 block of Walden circle. The decals advertising her mobile tending business had been removed from the windows. Why is that? The only thing that I can think of is that if it was the person who did something to Michelle,

18:52maybe they would want to make the Hummer not stand out as being hers. I mean, obviously you could tell by the license plate, the Hummers aren't the most common vehicle anyway. Yeah. I mean, people are going to see it. But if it's got a decal or decals of her business, well, there's probably not another Hummer out there like that. So that's my only thing. That's true. That I can think of. Help disguise it a little bit. Maybe for a little bit longer. Folks, let me ask you a question. Do you have that certain someone in your life who is just almost impossible to buy for? Right? Their birthday is coming up and you just absolutely have no idea what to get. And you end up getting something generic that you're not even sure if they're going to like or not. Well, that's where Zazzle comes in. Zazzle is a custom marketplace where you can take basically any product, a mug, a toe bag, a card, even a fun case and make it mean something. You're not buying a gift. You're making browse millions of designs or start from scratch and build something completely

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21:01savings for paying in full. In fact, 99% of progressive auto customers earn at least one discount. See if you could save when you switch to progressive. Go feel good about making a savvy choice. Visit progressive.com and see if you can enjoy a little extra cashback. Progressive casualty insurance company and affiliates, national average 12 month savings of $946 by new customer surveyed who saved with progressive between June 2024 and May 2025. Potential savings will vary. Investigators inform the family that Michelle's cell phone powered down in the Bell aisle area. On 8 p.m. on November 17th, the phone powered off near the former Jesse Blacks Saloon, about seven miles from where she was last seen. Officers at that point had not yet located the fund. Michelle's brother Dustin told the Orlando Sentinel he didn't know of any reason why she would be in that area.

22:02Volunteers gathered to search and pass out flyers in the area, surrounding the closed down saloon. Many members worried Michelle had been carjacked. In the early days after her disappearance, they didn't think Dale was involved. Michelle, sister Lauren told the Sentinel he's been completely cooperative. There's no one to focus. There's no tunnel vision. All information is welcome. I can't why they thought potentially a carjacking though. I mean, it's a hummer. Maybe some kids die. I mean, be nice to get that hummer. It's a cool car. Yeah, we'll drive it around for a little bit and just abandon it somewhere. Well, the other thing is how hard would it be for your mind to immediately jump to someone that at one point was kind of part of your family? I think that is tough for many people. Now, for us, not being involved on the outside looking in, Dale kind of looks like a good

23:06person of interest, right? Yeah. The custody battle, the court case, just everything we talked about to temper, the domestic violence claim. But as a family member, you're thinking he's the father of these two twins. Yeah, he would never do anything to their mother. Right. I think as a family member, that's where your mind wants to go. At least early on, on November 20th, over 100 people gathered to pray for Michelle in a candlelight visual. On November 21st, Michelle's mother, Yvonne, stirred made another plea for the return of her daughter, saying, she shouldn't be where she is right now. She's somewhere scared. Somebody has her. We forgive you. Please turn her loose. Yes, she's got three kids. They want their mom back. She's got a family who loves her. They want her back as well. But it is important, right? For the family to get in front of the media if they can, you're hoping to reach whoever

24:11has her. If she's still alive, you see it in movies all the time. It's kind of the hostage type playbook, right? You want to personalize the victim in the hopes that it will make the perpetrator less likely to hurt them. Yeah, they're feeling more guilty. They're saying, you know what? I'm just going to let her go. On November 22nd, Orlando chief Paul Rooney met with Michelle's family and told them bringing Michelle home safely was his agency's top priority. A task force, including agents from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, had also been created to investigate her disappearance. FDLE spokesman Sarge Jim Young said, police were hopeful. Michelle would be found alive and asked the public to remain vigilant. Dozens of volunteers continue searching for Michelle. And I think this is something else that's very important. You know, we always talk about how amazing it is that people volunteer, right?

25:15They volunteer to search. They volunteer to pass out flyers. But also getting this out to the public and asking the public to kind of not to lose sight of this, right? Keep looking for her and let us know if you see anything. I mean, at some point, that's your best option, right? I think it is because you only have so many agents and then versus how many people are out in the public. Yeah. That's a large pool. You need their eyes. Evan Stewart also appeared on the today's show on November 22nd to discuss the search and her theory that Michelle was being held captive. She said, I know in my heart of heart that she's been car jacked, that the people saw an expensive car and a girl who looks like she has money. And I know they've made a mistake. And I know that they want to fix this and I forgive them. It's Thanksgiving. She wants to come home to her babies. We want her home.

26:15That day, Michelle's boyfriend Nate Mitchell shared her last messages. She texted him around 315 PM on November 17th when a certain song came on the radio and made her think of him. He replied with a smiley face and a heart. Now to be fair, Nate is the current boyfriend, right? He has to be on police radar as well. He has to be ruled out. Yeah. So at this point, they have at least, you know, she was okay. At 315. If you believe she's in the text. Yeah. I believe it because this is about the same time that she was caught on surveillance video at Dale's condom. So more than likely, she probably did send the text. But my other thing about Nate is, yeah, he's got to be a person of interest because he's the current boyfriend. But as far as we know, he doesn't have all the motives or potential motives that

27:15Dale would have had. We'd listed them all. Maybe not the background. Possibly. At least not that we know. Michelle's family released her final voicemail on November 25th. She left a 9 second voicemail for her father. The day before she went missing, she said, hey, dad, it's about 840. This is Michelle on Wednesday morning. I know that you're at work, but call me when you have lunch or you have break or the end of your day. And as a father, that's, that's tough because you can put yourself in his shoes. Oh, absolutely. You told onto that message forever. And that would be all you have along with all the other memories, but that voicemail would be very precious. More than four dozen volunteers searched for Michelle on Thanksgiving. They combed the two mile radius from the tower that transmitted Michelle's last outgoing call. The rescuers didn't comment on the findings of the search, and it's unclear what sparked

28:17the search. I'm assuming that is other than the fact that that area contained the tower that transmitted her last outgoing call. Yeah. I mean, it makes sense to why they would do it there. But how amazing for volunteers to search on Thanksgiving. Oh, I think that's awesome. I just shows you how good people really are and how they, they come together. They want to help investigators had also turned their focus to Dale Smith. Police searched his condo after Michelle went missing and days later, a SWAT team searched his parents home on November 26, 11 days after Michelle went missing Orlando police chief Paul Rooney announced he is our primary suspect. There are no other suspects. And that's a bold statement that, you know, police don't often make, right, in a case like this. And that tells me Gibbs that he was pretty confident.

29:21Sounds like it. That Dale had something to do with this. And if I was Dale at that moment, I would have been really worried. But we set it up front, right? Nobody has ever been charged. No. So that means Dale has not been charged. We'll get into, you know, the wise, but chief Rooney said during the news conference that Dale simply refused to take a polygraph when it was offered it. But is that a bad thing? No, not to you and I. I can see a few scenarios where I probably would take a polygraph. I can think of quite a few where I would not want to. I would just be too afraid that somehow that test would show me as being deceptive, even though I had nothing to do with whatever they were asking about. Or would come back in conclusive.

30:21And then people would think I was lying anyway. That's the worst, I think. When they say it's inconclusive. Might as well say he failed it. Yes. I think that's the way a lot of people look at it. Yes. So I'm the same way. I would not take one because I just would not feel comfortable with who's performing it. Rooney explained we had to look at every aspect of the case before we could come out publicly and state that Mr. Smith is our primary focus. He is our primary suspect. There are no other suspects than I'm aware of as Orlando Police Chief. I mean, when you read through that statement, he's clearly saying is this what we feel like did it? Right? I mean, that's what I take from it. No, I think that's what he said. Yeah. I don't think you have to read into it. He literally said, Mr. Smith is our primary focus. He is our primary suspect. I don't know why you're reading between the lines. He's being pretty clear about it.

31:22It's the mention of me. He's noted that Dale was the last person to see Michelle live. Michelle's mother Yvonne Stewart spoke at the news conference saying, if you could have avoided this Dale, if you had cooperated with the police and took a polygraph test when they asked you, you could have avoided a lot of stress. So unfortunately, you brought this on yourself. We're not going to stop until we find out who did this. Yvonne also said, Dale, honestly, if you're out there, honey, and you're listening to me, I've always said from day one, it's okay. If couples fight, if you made a mistake, if it was just a second of, oh, I lost my head or whatever, and you didn't know what to do, our family needs to have Michelle home. We need to heal. She's really trying to give them one olive branch there. Yeah. Kind of almost give him an out. Yeah. It was an accident.

32:22Now, the police aren't going to buy it, even if he came out and said that, but I think it does kind of show you her mindset, which is we'd love for her to be a lot. But if she's not, we want to know and we want to know where she is because we need to bring her home. Yeah. And unfortunately, so many families not only don't find out what happened to their loved ones for sure. They never find their loved ones so they never actually have remains to bear it. And as we've heard many times, for a lot of people, the not knowing is the worst thing that can happen. Keep them up at night. The day after Dale was named a suspect, his attorney, Mark Najami held the news conference to deny the Dale had anything to do with Michelle's disappearance or death. If that is the case, investigators had not indicated they thought Michelle was dead and

33:26would not comment on Najami's suggested suggestion that she might be. And I didn't really take it that way. I mean, he said if that is the case, more of a just in case anybody out there is thinking that or if that if she happens to be dead. Yeah. He had nothing to do with it. He had no disappearance or her death if she is dead. Yeah. I don't read anything into it other than that. He said is quoted by the Orlando sent him. Statistics sadly suggest that when somebody has been missing for 12 days, that there has been a homicide. One never wants to give up hope. But after 12 days, when there's no signs or indications, it suggests that someone is no longer with us. And I'll be honest with you Gibbs, I often feel that way. I think it's a fairly accurate statement. I mean, I don't know the exact number of days. In this case, it's 12 when he's talking.

34:26But I always think at a certain point, as the days go by, it is just not going to be good. No, 12 days is a long period of time to think that somebody still could be alive. Well, there's no communication. From your loved one, but there's also been no ransom demand. There's been no communication, which doesn't suggest that the person is being held hostage. Unless it would not be for ransom, it would be for something, you know, some other nefarious act, which does happen as well. Najami said that Dale was the last person to see Michelle when she left their twins at his home around 313 pm. Dale immediately took the twins to his parents home and arrived at 430 on November 29. The Department of Children and Families removed the twins from Dale's custody.

35:28He had been caring for them with his parents after Michelle's disappearance. And that doesn't surprise me, you know, if the chief of police comes out and says, he is our one and only suspect. I think pretty tough for the Department of Children and Families to allow him to have custody of the kids at that point. I think that they have to do their due diligence, you know? Well, you know, you can make the argument. He's not been charged with anything. What's strong words from the chief of police, is it better to err on the side of caution? And obviously they must have thought, yeah, that's what we need to do. Sometimes flavors need a pinch of salt to unleash their full potential, and life works the same way. Sometimes you just need to get a little salty to keep life interesting and deliciously sweet. Fuel your salty sweet cravings with Kachafa's new salted caramel all in one nutrition shake. For more scoops, provide the complete nutrition your body craves with protein, fiber, greens

36:29and more. Embrace your salty side. Go to kachafa.com and use code fitness for 15% off your first order. That's KACHVA.com code fitness. Saturday, September 26th, two of combat sports' most dangerous strikers collide. Bear Knuckle! Liverpool's own down in the Gorilla Tilt goes to war with Cuban Powerhouse, Yoel Soldier of Duh Romero. Plus, the Bear Knuckle Middleweight Championship of the world is on the line when the rating champ Dave Veredneck Mundell defends against undefeated British challenger, Jack Demeek Cleaver-Colin, BKFC 94, Tilt vs. Romero. Watch it live only on his own. Sign up now at Duzone.com. Police interviewed Michelle's children several times. On November 30th, a judge ruled that Dale could keep custody of the twins. Less than 24 hours after they were taken out of his custody. The judge said there was no probable cause to grant the petition to have them removed.

37:30Investigators from DCF said they thought the children were an imminent danger of being harmed by Dale due to his history of violence with women. But how much of that was proven and how much of that was alleged? And that might have been a big factor with the judge. I'm thinking it had to be. Right. It's just like the police chief saying he's our primary suspect. What does that mean in the eyes of a judge? Not much. Because you haven't proven anything. You just are thinking that this guy might be good for it. It's all speculation on their side. Yeah. The judge listened to the DCF. Detail Dale's run-ins with the law. His past addiction to a hallucinogenic drug. His dishonorable discharge from the military. The completion of a prison sentence after drug and domestic violence convictions and allegations from Michelle's oldest child. The Dale attacked Michelle in front of all three children.

38:32Now a lot of that stuff happened in the past, past, past. Yeah. Now I'm not saying you shouldn't take it into account. To me, Michelle's oldest child, making a statement saying. That Dale attacked Michelle in front of all three children, you would think would carry some weight. I think that's the most relevant. Yeah. The most relevant. A lot of the stuff is in the past. I'm not saying the past domestic violence convictions shouldn't be factored in. But we also know that her petition was dismissed. Michelle's. Yeah. So I don't know. I don't know how that factors into it. Dale's attorney said his client didn't pose a danger to his children and questioned DCF's tactics. On December 6, 2011, Dale's mother, Tamara Smith, was subpoenaed to answer questions about the case at the Orange, Ossiola State attorney's office.

39:32Her lawyer, Richard Hornes, said she was cooperative and answered truthfully. Orlando police said she was one of several people issued investigative subpoenas. So no doubt they're all in, right on Dale. Well, sounds like they're talking to some people trying to build a case. On December 7, 2011, Michelle's phone was found at the bottom of Lake Conway in Belle Al, Florida under Nila Bridge, where Lake Conway's Habs connect. The phone pinged less than a mile from where it was found, which was about halfway between Dale's condo and his parents home as reported by the Orlando send. Well, we know Dale left his condo and took the kids to his parents place, which would make a lot of people kind of jump to the conclusion that he might have thrown it, you know, as he was driving there.

40:33Yeah. And then he went away back or on his way back after the phone was found. Michelle's mother, you've admitted publicly that she feared Michelle may no longer be a lot. The Florida Department of Children and Families concluded its work in January, 2012 and determined that Michelle's children witnessed violence committed by their father, but they didn't have enough evidence to remove it. In March 2013, Michelle's family filed a wrongful desu against Dale. Family attorney John Dill told people the family doesn't want money. They just want to find out what happened. They want and deserve answers about what happened to Michelle. And you see this quite a bit. Yeah, you do. You know, especially if either prosecutors can't find the evidence to actually charge and bring someone to trial or you know, if the person gets off, the family may still file

41:35a wrongful desu. It's kind of like the second best thing you can hope for if you win. Yeah. Obviously you'd love a conviction. That would be the first one. Smith's attorney, Martin is Jamie also told people after a very thorough investigation by us and the police. There's been no evidence that ties Dale Smith to Parker's death. Obviously, the family of Michelle Parker has suffered a tragic loss and our hearts go out to them. But the sue Dale will bring them no closer to discovering what happened to Michelle. Well, that could be true. It could not be true. It depends on what comes out of trial. Well, that's true. In November 2013, the Orlando Police Department released a red light camera video showing what they believed to be Michelle's Hummer at 8.55 pm on November 17, less than a mile from where her vehicle was found. The video was withheld from the public for evidentiary purposes. The Hummer is not following anyone and no one is following her vehicle.

42:39Investigator Michael Moreshi also said he believed Michelle's disappearance was a two-person crime. The problem with that statement gives is there just wasn't anything in the research to give an idea of why he thought that. Right. And make assumptions, right, is it easier for two people to pull this off? Yeah, it would be. Sure. Someone to, well, two people to help kidnap somebody and then somebody to drive the getaway car. Weissweils drives the Hummer somewhere in Parks. Yeah. In October 2014, a judge ruled that the family's lawsuit could move forward. In November 2016, a ninth judicial circuit judge ordered Dale to answer questions about his life leading up to Michelle's disappearance. Family attorney Belvin Perry had recently deposed Dale. During that deposition, Dale refused to answer more than 100 of the 491 questions asked.

43:44The deposition had not yet been made public record. That's a lot of, no, I will not answer that. It is, but it does mean he answered like almost 400 of them. And I think you and I have talked about it before, but depositions are not easy. We did not enjoy those. They are very nerve-wracking. There's always a camera in your face. You got a bunch of lawyers who are certainly smarter than you, at least when it comes to the law. And then you got one or two people on your side telling you whether to say something or not to say something. I like before the person from the court says we're going to start now. Up until that point, they're all acting like they're just catching up game the other day. Yeah, they're best friends and then all of a sudden it's like the set. The movie is rolling. Attorney Perry said during the hearing, Smith talks about things that he wants to talk about. Then if he halfway feels it will lead to discoverable evidence, then he claims up.

44:47Okay, well, it's not a bad tactic to be fair. Sure, the attorney's like, that's my guy right there. Good job. You can answer these 100 benign questions or you can answer these 400 benign questions. These 100 possibly explosive questions, don't answer those. Many of the questions focused on Dale's history of violence in alleged domestic disputes with his first wife, who's now dead. Others focused on Michelle and whether Dale was aware of her whereabouts leading up to her disappearance. Dale Smith's attorney Steve Calvaca explained, I'm more concerned with how even innocent statements can be manipulated. I'll be honest with you, I would be concerned with that too. Yeah, I mean, obviously that can happen. It's kind of the same theory as the lie detector test. Calvaca said the civil case couldn't be a witch hunt. It's like he's damned if he does, he's damned if he don't. And you know, kind of the strange thing about this bird is there's really at least not

45:54that we could find been any updates on the outcome of the lawsuit. No, you know, we don't know. Maybe they had some type of settlement agreement and most sides agreed to not talk about it. Yeah, I couldn't disclose it. I have no idea. In an episode of real life nightmare on HLN, which aired in 2019, Dale's former attorney Martin and Jamie denied that they'll had anything to do with Michelle's disappearance. He acknowledged that it was all that Michelle vanished on the day, the people's court episode aired. He said, those are the serendipitous things that happen in life. So it was wholly appropriate that law enforcement would have should have did fully completely investigate him from top to bottom, but they came up with nothing. Was it like he was going to say his former client did it? No, I don't think that. But I think he's being kind of truthful here when he when he says, yeah, it was, it was

46:55appropriate for them to look at him, but they didn't come up with anything. And we know they didn't come up with anything that led to them charging him. Now if they came up with something, they haven't disclosed it. And it wasn't enough to lead them to charge him on August 16, 2023. Police searched the backyard of Dale's father's property in Orange County. The search focused on a concrete slab in the backyard, but uncovered nothing. There's a lot of concrete slabs that are going to be X-rayed or broken up over many years going forward. Yeah, because unfortunately, a lot of killers have buried their bodies and then poured concrete slabs over top. Yeah. So now every concrete slab is suspect when there's a disappearance, a murder, Michelle's mother, Yvonne told Fox 35 Orlando that Dale Smith senior poured the concrete slab without a permit in

47:582012. She also told my news 13 at the time, I was like, please let her be there. They found other people under concrete before Orlando police had reason to believe there wasn't unturned stuff. And she's right. Right. I found that way before Fox 35 reported that as of 2023, detective said the only suspect is Dale Smith. The family said he refused to cooperate with the investigation of Fox 35 crew went to Dale Smith senior's home during the search and asked what detectives were searching for Smith senior replied a dinosaur and then implied he was also searching for Michelle saying, I've been looking for when asked why he responded. He said, because I want to, it is a weird response, right, a dinosaur. But also he's probably not real happy at that point that the police are out busting up

49:00his concrete slab when he knows there's nothing buried under there. Yeah. Which is why I guess he's saying you're looking for a dinosaur. You're not going to find anything here. Yeah, maybe Yvonne Stewart said that's the first time I've ever heard that in 12 years. First time they'd never ever reached out to any of us. That's total. You know what? And I think she's referring to him saying that he's been looking for her and all of that. In 2024, Michelle's stepmother, Gale Parker told W. ESH 13 years ago, she was alive and well. She had hopes, dreams and plans in one flash of a moment she was gone. And it's unbelievable how that kind of thing can happen. I do what I can to find her and I will follow through with it. She also said that for the first time Michelle's case has been taken over by Orlando Police Chief Eric Smith over the years they worked with numerous detectives. And you know, her statement is kind of spot all right.

50:00You think about the number of unsolved cases we've done. And these victims, they're talked about in such glowing terms, right? They're living their life. They got their whole life ahead of them. And it's like in a flash of a moment, they're gone. The Orlando Police Department and Michelle's family continue to search for her nearly 15 years later. Michelle would have celebrated her 47th birthday on January 20th, 2026. Speaking with Spectrum News 13 that month, Yvonne described how she made a memorial outside her home to honor Michelle. She said, if there's something I can't control, I have to let it go and move beyond it. But deep inside one day, I'm really hoping for some justice for her. The person that's responsible for this, there's a special place in hell for them. The emergence of new technology and AI gives Yvonne hope.

51:01She still checks in regularly with the Orlando PD for updates. And I think if you had a child that was missing, I don't think you'd ever stop calling and communicating with the police for updates. Yeah, you hope that day you call, they would say, oh, we were just getting ready to call you. We found out whatever. Yeah. Or at worst, you want to hear that they're still working on. Yeah, that is not even being touched is not what you want to hear. Michelle Parker also hopes that new technology can lead to answers to their questions, such as how did this happen? What happened to her? What was she going through? What did she feel like? Was she scared the death? Was it something that happened quick? Gail also believes the answers could ultimately lie with someone who knows something. We just need the real truth. Somebody who actually knows something to speak up. The spectrum news reached out to the Orlando PD with questions, including whether police

52:02are circling back to evidence in the case using new technology, OPD responded by saying that because it's an active investigation, there is no new information available. And unfortunately, that's a pretty Pat answer, right, that you get from police. They're not going to disclose a whole lot. No. In an active investigation. Michelle Smith has never been charged in connection with Michelle Parker's disappearance. Anyone with information on Michelle's disappearance can report tips to the Orlando police department at 407 246 2979 or crime line at 1 800 423. Tips. So Gibbs as we wrapped this one up, unlike a lot of the unsolved cases that we do, I think police are pretty sure they know who did something to Michelle. Yeah, they seem to be fairly confident. But they obviously haven't been able to put anything together to date to move forward,

53:08right, with either charging him, ultimately taking this guy to trial. So as is always the case, you are innocent until proven guilty. Right. I'm sure this guy has to live with a pretty big cloud over his head because there are a large number of people who think he most likely had something to do with her disappearance. And that's got to be brought. If you didn't do it, it's even more rough, right? It is. It is because you get to think, man, I didn't even do it. And you guys are acting like I did it. And he's got the two twins with him, which I mean, at this point, probably on their own, you know, how old they be now. And how do they deal with that? Knowing that the family and even the police have come out and said they believe that their dad had something to do with their mom's disappearance. But if they grew up with their dad all this time, they probably say, look, my dad said he didn't do it. We believe.

54:09Yeah. Yeah, you're probably right about that. But that's it for our episode on Michelle Parker. We got a voice mail. You want to check that out? Let's hear it. All right. This is Richie. I actually live in Ohio with you guys. I tell you what, man, I really enjoy your guys' podcast. I also have an unsolved and, if you're fine all the time, I really enjoy all your episodes and I enjoy the banter that you guys have together. I think Gibby, let's get a little more slack than he deserves. I think all together, I think Gibby's got it all going on. But nonetheless, like I said, I really enjoy the time and truth crime all the time. I listen every week. Again, this is Richie from Miami's Bird. So yeah, just keep your own time ticking and we'll continue to listen to the podcast and continue to support local high winds.

55:09And like I said, man, love the podcast and whatever you guys are doing. I'm listening and we're hanging in there. All right. Yep. Thank you. And I hope this gets on the podcast and I hope to listen to it the next time I'm listening. So again, thank you guys very much. Goodbye. All right. Richie, thanks for the voicemail. Appreciate it, brother. Yeah. I too think that Gibby gets a lot more slack than he deserves. We shared that sentiment. All I'm going to say is he says he's living in Ohio with us because we also live in Ohio. I think that noise we keep here. You think that's Richie? Might be Richie back in that one room. Well, Richie's all he's actually really close to us. I know. I'm thinking really close to the studio. And he's like, yeah, you know, I hear everything you guys are saying. Everything. So how do we appreciate the voicemail?

56:10Yeah, we do. Richie. All right, buddy, that is it for another episode of True Crime all the time on Solves. So for Mike and Gibby, stay safe and keep your own time ticking. Hello, and welcome to Pluto foe. If you know the name of the movie you'd like to see, just stream it for free on Pluto TV. We're all your bloodbusters favorites are landing all summer long. Catch anchor man, the legend of Ron Burgundy. Fantastic.

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