Bone Valley: Review And Discussion with Gilbert King and Kelsey Decker
An award-winning podcast that uncovers a wrongful conviction of Leo Schofield is an honest and compelling look at how the justice system has failed some - but focuses on hope
This should start with a warning: If you haven’t started listening to this series yet, it’s likely going to be one of those ones you can’t stop once you begin. At nine episodes, plus some important bonus eps, this is going to clock in somewhere north of eight hours.
What I’m really saying is, calendar it in if you press go. It’s worthy of a good binge.
Back in early January, a friend told me she had some solo driving to do and asked for a podcast series recommendation. Bone Valley was in my queue, but I hadn’t started listening yet.
Two days later, she started to send me all-caps texts:
CAN U BELIEVE IT?!
I’M HOOKED AND CAN’T PUT IT DOWN!!
Bone Valley uncovers the wrongful conviction of Leo Schofield, accused of murdering his young wife, who was just 18-years-old at the time of her death. Instead of taking the plea deal before trial—guilty of second-degree murder—which would have offered a reduced sentence, Leo chose to test his innocence with a trial.
Leo faced judge and jury, with a lawyer who was not up to the task, up against a prosecutor with an axe to grind. Despite thin evidence, and as we learn in this podcast, faulty and improper evidence, Leo was convicted of first-degree murder and given a life sentence. Thirty-four years later, he’s still there.
This series tests his innocence.
Of the three notable podcasts that explore a wrongful conviction, or wrongful incarceration: Adnan Sayed, Curtis Flowers, it’s hopeful that we can soon add Leo Schofield to the list of inmates who finally met justice after a podcast forced the legal system to re-examine their cases.
Aside from the podcast audience jury (now at over 6 million downloads just 4 months from its release) who seems ready to overturn his sentence, Leo is still in prison, and still considered guilty by the justice system of Florida.
The timing for what could happen next is hopeful has two reasons; The first is that on March 15, 2023, Leo received a visit in his prison from the Florida Commission for Offenders Review which could or could not have a significant impact on his case moving forward (you can listen to these details in the bonus episode).
At this meeting, Leo would have spoken about his wish to be considered for parole, which could lead to a new hearing date to be set, at which point a panel of three Commissioners would make a decision about his fate. From there (knock on wood) Leo hopes that he would be granted full parole. If this happens, it would mean that he served 35 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit, and had no part in.
The second reason to be hopeful is that the former Judge Scott Culp, the same one who passed the manilla envelope of the court transcript of Leo Schofield’s case to to Gilbert King to convince him to look into this case, has decided to leave the bench so that he could defend Leo Schofield again. This news became a New York Times headline when he announced it in January, which goes some distance to explain how much public interest there is in this case. Hear all of this in this bonus episode.
Although this fits into the wider True Crime umbrella, for the most part, this series skips the gory details and instead does a deep dive into the investigation. It picks apart the case, the evidence, the trial, the appeal in such detail, with such acuity, it paints a clear picture. It does this by humanizing the people accused of this murder…both the man who was wrongfully convicted, and the person who confessed to the actual murder. As a listener, you feel compassion, and even a connection, to these men.
The creators of the series, Gilbert King and Kelsy Decker, did their job so thoroughly that the most insane thing happened: through their detailed and dogged research, and also through connecting and gaining the trust of their interview subjects, they not only managed to uncover new evidence that pointed to the innocence of Leo Schofield; but they also managed to get a confession for not just one, but two murders, from a convicted murderer who is already incarcerated.
They were also able to discover why this man, Jeremy Scott, confessed but then recanted in 2016…which was not about his guilt, but rather about his compensation for offering up this new information.
The fact that the Florida justice system is deaf, dumb and blind to this case, is both infuriating, and appalling. But Gilbert and Kelsey manage to use this tension as grist to propell the series forward; but they manage to do this without turning this into a feel-sorry-for-them trope.
As you listen to the story of how this legal case was tried in the 1980s, you’re going to feel like you’re watching legal a soap opera of law…where the dirty cop faces the camera and slyly says something like: “Watch this…I can put this guy away for life, just cause I don’t like him.” And then all the rest of the actors play to the camera and exaggerate their emotions for the camera through seemingly implausible events.
And then there’s the Scooby Doo aspect to the story, where the intrepid investigators (Gilbert and Kelsey) uncover a mystery that begins to feel plainly obvious to the listener: Leo Schofield is innocent, by all accounts, without any doubt. Not in the Adnan Syed kind of way, where you still wonder why he stopped calling Hae Min Lee after her death, even after his conviction was overturned and set free.
Leo Schofield’s innocence is more Scooby Doo than soap opera: like when the skeleton fell out of the closet in front of Shaggy and he shrieks…ZOINKS…in a moment when he was convinced they were being chased by a ghost (which was actually someone covered in a sheet with the wind blowing).
It’s hard not to write this review with a bunch of spoilers…even though it’s tempting because there’s just so much drama imbedded in the facts of this story; its a podcast version of a page-turner.
As you listen, it will be difficult to forget that we are neither judge nor jury in this case. It is tempting to want to play that role (or shout at your iPhone, or swear off Florida on principle) because thanks to the deep and detailed reporting of this series, the facts of innocence present themselves.
You will likely feel the same way I did: that Leo’s case was much more successfully re-tried through the diligent and thorough efforts of these journalists than it was back in 1980s, and also on his appeal in 2011. And this makes me ponder the role that podcasts have begun to play in the faulty judicial system that we rest our trust in.
In the bonus episode, Leo speaks about what it’s like now to become a quasi-celebrity while still in prison…he points out that mostly prisoners don’t talk openly about why they are incarcerated. But now with the reach of this story, word is making its way through the system by way of prison guards and visiting family members, that suddenly the story of his innocence is becoming is known. Podcasts like this one have become part of the cultural fabric of our society.
This story work for me because of its tone of honesty
Gilbert King did not enter this story as an audio producer looking to find a story that would rip headlines. He’s an investigative journalist and a author who won a Pulitzer Prize in 2013 for his book Devil In The Grove, about four young black men who were wrongfully accused of rape, in this same area of Florida, as it turns out.
Gilbert doesn’t hide that fact that he’s new to audio, nor does he dwell on it. Instead, we sort of listen to the upside of his learning curve as he gets more comfortable in front of the microphone. He transparently stumbles in small ways. He doesn’t come off sounding like an amateur, but he also doesn’t have a slick and polished approach of, say Rachel Matlow or Anderson Cooper….people who have spent a lot of time in front of the microphone. For me, what that amounts to, is a sort of fresh approach, told in a way that maintains a raw indie appeal.
And then there’s Kelsey, initially just as the research assistant, but then became a full collaborator and producer of this series. Kelsey’s role in the story seemed to grow along with the series. They must have scripted and managed what each of their roles would be, and how much air time each got…and by the end she’s an equal collaborator.
This fact, speaking as a woman who has played the role of the young-capable-woman in my own life, is significant. It’s not lost on me that Gilbert made room for her, allowed her an equitable seat at the table, gave her a producer credit…it speaks volumes about what kind of a person he is.
Gilbert King is decades older, and with his formitable publishing history, I’m guessing that most other men of his stature might have instead comandeered control of the microphone, and left someone like Kelsey as an important, but off-mic, contributor. Instead, he made her a full producer and co-presenter. For me, this feels honest and honoring of the actual work done on this series - which is frankly a breath of fresh air.
There are so many series that I’ve listened to that feel unweighted in this category…where the voice does not equal the story…or the quiet producing choices did not match the final scripted outcome. Or the host feels more like a character slapped into the story, instead of the investigator and integral connection to the actual characters, whose lives atually depend on how this story is heard.
Bone Valley feels as honest and transparent as the story itself.
My only advice is if you begin to listen, stay through the bonus episodes, because this story really does feel like it’s tracking in real-time.
Bone Valley is coming off of an impressive week: it won two awards at The Ambies last week, Best Documentary podcast, AND Best Reporting.
But I’m guessing, what would matter much more to Gilbert and Kelsey, if if you lent your signature to the Change.org petition, which hopes to transfer Leo’s case to an Integrity Commission for and Independent Review.
Listen here for raw tape format, before it gets made into a major motion picture. But more importantly, get to know this case so that you can understand the importance of the moment when it actually happens; the moment when Leo becomes a free man.
The following is an email interview between Gilbert King and Kelsey Decker, with Samantha Hodder.
[Samantha Hodder]: Did making this story make you lose hope in the justice system (maybe in Florida at least?)
[Gilbert King]: No, I never lose hope. As daunting as the post-conviction process can be, I’ve been encouraged by the people in Florida who recognize injustice and want to do something about it. That’s what still gives me hope.
[SH]: Thinking of people who might want to follow an ambitious story like you did (sadly, the concept of wrongful conviction is not rare, so there are manyfold stories to uncover with wrongful conviction-type narratives). At what point in this project did you realize this was a big one, and a good one, to follow through on? I say that because I know the massive amount of time that goes into the learning curve of making a narrative podcast.
[GK]: Unfortunately, wrongful convictions are not as uncommon as they should be. I think what makes Leo Schofield’s case unique is that there’s another man, Jeremy Scott, whose fingerprints were discovered, years later, at the crime scene—a man who has now confessed to killing Leo Schofield’s wife, Michelle. Once we started investigating the world of Jeremy Scott, this story became much more unique and compelling to us.
[SH]: When did Lava For Good become involved in this project? What was their role in this project, alongside you and Kelsey?
[GK]: Kelsey and I had been investigating this case for a while, and once we were comfortable with our story, we brought it to Jason Flom and Lava For Good. Jason had been doing a lot of work in this space, and I knew how committed he is to men and women who have been wrongfully convicted. Lava For Good was excited by Leo’s case, and they put together an incredible team to support this storytelling effort as a narrative documentary.
[SH]: Tell me about the learning curve tip over between your written journalism to your audio journalism? How and where did the crash course in field production and recording come?! What did you need to unlearn and re-train with to get to the finished script?
[GK]: The learning curve was enormous. Neither Kelsey nor I had any experience in audio journalism. We started out with the idea that I would write a longform piece about Leo’s case, but quickly into our investigation, we found that we were meeting some really interesting people with emotional and determined voices. So we pivoted to the idea of doing a narrative podcast instead of a print piece. We picked up some audio equipment and Kelsey basically taught herself how to be a sound recordist.
I had to learn how to shut up and just listen in interviews, which wasn’t easy for me. But my background in writing narrative nonfiction was very helpful, and I had strong ideas about how I wanted Bone Valley to feel as a story.
[SH]: I was incredibly struck by the fact that’s revealed in your bonus episode - that Leo has not heard this podcast. It just didn’t occur to me that he wouldn’t have that capability in prison…how has that affected your experience of working on this project?
[GK]: I talk to Leo on the phone a lot, and he was always curious where our investigation was taking us. So he was aware of some of what we uncovered. For him, not being able to hear the podcast is frustrating. I think family members have played parts to him over the phone. But in truth, this story is a painful one, and for Leo, it’s exponentially so, because he has to live with this injustice every day.
[SH]: Is it a bit crazy that you’ve also solved (possibly two other) murders…presented new evidence and recorded a confession from a killer…and yet Leo Schofield is still behind bars. I have a hard time making sense of this, but you live with this. How?
[GK]: There is no doubt that Jeremy Scott is also responsible for killing a taxicab driver, Joseph Lavair, a few weeks after he killed Michelle Schofield. He’s confessed to us in extraordinary detail, and we’ve been able to corroborate so much of his confession. This is a 35-year-old cold case murder. It’s maddening that we brought credible evidence and Jeremy’s confession to the Sheriff’s Office, and they’ve blown us off.
But we are not giving up. That story isn’t over yet, either.
[SH]: Will you also publish this story as a book? Or will it be a stand-alone podcast?
[GK]: I haven’t really decided if this will become a book. As of now, we are still reporting on Leo’s case as his parole hearing approaches. So for now, Bone Valley will remain a podcast.
[SH]: Do you feel any hope from the growing Change.org petition…
[GK]: petition calling for Leo’s case to be turned over for an independent review is approaching 25,000 signatures. We are all encouraged by the number of people who support Leo’s innocence, and I’m sure the number of signatures is going to grow and grow.
[SH]: I was very struck by the conversation that you had with Maggie Freleng [in the first bonus episode] where you told her that you still correspond with Jeremy, and feel a sense of responsibility to do this because he’s alone and has no one. How are you able to stay in touch with him knowing all that you know? What lessons about humanity can we all learn from this story?
[GK]: Jeremy Scott has been receiving letters from listeners who have empathy for him, too, despite his violent past. I think he’s had decades to contemplate all the terrible things he’s done in his past, and he sincerely believes that he can be redeemed by admitting to these crimes in the hope that Michelle Schofield’s family will know the truth, and that Leo Schofield will no longer be held responsible for a murder that he committed.
We really followed Leo’s lead when he told us he had to learn how to forgive Jeremy, otherwise the bitterness of his wrongful conviction was going to destroy him. It’s just painful to consider that Leo’s only justice in this case has come through Jeremy’s confession, because the State of Florida refuses to believe either man.
QUESTIONS FOR KELSEY
[Samantha Hodder]: This was clearly a giant experience for you…at what point did you realize what you had signed up for? And where will you take these new skills moving forward?
[Kelsey Decker]: This has absolutely been a giant experience for me! I knew things were shifting once we decided to pursue this as an audio story. That decision came on the drive from Hardee Correctional after Gilbert and I met and spoke with Leo Schofield for the first time.
As that process went on and we continued to collect tape and craft the episodes with the Lava for Good team, I knew we had something special but I had no clue whether we’d find the audience to support it. I think once ABC 20/20 became involved, we figured this couldn’t just fly under the radar anymore. That really pushed the story to a bigger audience and from that point, things started to change in a really exciting way.
[SH]: After going through this experience that had what I’m guessing was a million surprise layers, I’m curious which direction you feel pulled for your next job or experience: the law; detective work; investigative journalism; podcast production; judicial rights?
[KD]: I’m primarily focused on staying in the podcast production space for now! It’s tough to know right now what directions the industry will go in, but I’m very committed to continuing to focus on storytelling, criminal justice, and any stories that honor the diversity of human experience.
I continue to care deeply about shedding light on wrongful convictions and the various ways our system has defined “justice” punitively, in ways that only further trauma and harm. I hope to put my energy towards stories that meaningfully contribute to our understanding of the real consequences of the American criminal justice system — and the potential for alternative approaches.
I’m excited that, up next, I get to really dive into these issues by contributing to an audio documentary about the place I now call home — Durham, NC — and the efforts there to implement restorative justice into the legal system.
Otherwise, Gilbert and I are still on Leo Schofield’s case, and beginning to ponder ideas for a Bone Valley season 2!