The Orange Tree Podcast, a production of The Drag Audio Production House at The University of Texas at Austin.
Episode Seven: Fifteen Years Tinu Thomas: Laura Hall told us that all of Colton’s appeals that go after her are false, and she doesn’t know what happened to Jennifer. In a Facebook conversation, she wrote: Haley Butler: “I paid my debt for being a young, vulnerable and easy target for abuse. I was convicted for…
Read MoreEpisode 6: Wild Card Haley Butler: It’s Sept. 16, 2005. One month after Jennifer Cave’s death in a jail just outside Austin, prisoners are in a therapy session. Travis County sheriff’s office employee Carrie Hoffman leads the therapy session and takes some notes for the record. One of the inmates tells counselor Hoffman that another…
Read MoreEpisode 5: Obsession Haley Butler: It’s August 26, 2005. Laura hasn’t had her green Cadillac since returning from Mexico. It was impounded after she and Colton Pitonyak were detained, but Austin Police call her to tell her she can come pick up her keys. Laura walks into the Austin Police Department just two days before…
Read MoreEpisode 4: Whodunit Haley Butler: Hi, I’m Haley Butler Tinu Thomas: And I’m Tinu Thomas Haley: What you’re about to hear contains strong language, drug and alcohol abuse and descriptions of physical violence that are gruesome in nature. Some listeners might find this distressing. If that’s you, please take caution as we navigate the story…
Read MoreEpisode 3: Vacation Haley Butler: Yellow police tape wraps around a street-facing corner of The Orange Tree condos. Neighbors watch as police officers and detectives stream in and out of the complex that’s a few blocks from the University of Texas at Austin. Tinu Thomas: News vans line West Campus and reporters set up their…
Read MoreEpisode Two: Jennifer’s Story Haley Butler: Hi, I’m Haley Butler… Tinu Thomas: and I’m Tinu Thomas. Haley: For over a year, we’ve kept sensitivity in mind when working on this story. However, what you’re about to hear contains strong language, drug and alcohol abuse and descriptions of physical violence that are gruesome in nature. Some…
Read MoreEpisode One: The Orange Door What you’re about to hear contains strong language, drug and alcohol abuse and descriptions of physical violence that are gruesome in nature. Some listeners might find this distressing. If that’s you, please take caution as we navigate the story about the life and death of Jennifer Cave. Haley Butler: It’s…
Read More
The Drag would not be what it is today without Haley Butler and Tinu Thomas. In January 2019, they became The Drag’s first-ever podcasters at the start of their last semester in college. Between classes, the pair began crafting a podcast called “The Orange Tree.” It was to be a longform true-crime podcast about the…
Read MoreIt’s no secret that true crime is a popular genre. It’s evident from the countless documentaries, podcasts and crime specials on TV that many people are fascinated by true-crime stories. “If you watch an old “2020” or “48 Hours” documentary, there might be some really cheesy graphics like artificial prison doors closing,” said Haley Butler…
Read More
Laura Hall seeks to move on after her release from prison … and she has a lot to say. Colton Pitonyak remains in a West Texas prison as his parents hold onto hope that he’ll someday return to Arkansas. Sharon and Jim continue to fight on Jennifer Cave’s behalf, and they also fight for strangers…
Read More
