EP. 229 - WISCONSIN - The Baraboo Bone Breaker

You know those pieces in your closet that you reach for time and time again? The permanent staples in your closet that last you season to season? I have a number of these staples, and all of them are from Quince. We love Quince at Murder in America because they make elevated everyday essentials using premium materials like Mongolian cashmere, organic cotton, and premium stretch denim. Now that the weather is getting colder, I recently ordered some down jackets and some cozy cashmere scarves and gloves. Not only are they going to look incredible, but I also know that they are going to last me for years and years to come because Quince's quality is just that good. As you know, everything at Quince is priced 50-80% less than similar brands. And they're able to do that because they work directly with ethical factories and cut out the middlemen. So you're paying for the quality, not the brand markup. As y'all know by now, it is our go-to for both men and women's apparel. And if you haven't tried it yet, I highly recommend you do. Find the fall pieces you'll reach for the most at Quince. Download the Quince app for app-exclusive offers. Or go to quince.com. Get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada and the UK too. And when Quince asks where you heard about them, let them know it was murder in America. It's the best way to support the show. At ZocDoc, we know you care about your health. You wouldn't do that early morning cardio if you didn't. So the fact that your annual physical is overdue just shows how hard it can be to get seen by a doctor. Sorry, that doctor's not in network. Press 1 for more options. You've reached us outside normal business hours. The next availability is in three months. But ZocDoc makes finding the right doctor easy. Download the app and search by specialty, insurance, and availability. Read real patient reviews, then book instantly. ZocDoc, ready to be seen? The crispy chicken crunchwrap slider that you love is back at Taco Bell. And it's back with attitude. Because now you can enjoy the all-white meat chicken nuggets inside a slider-sized crunchwrap with Hidden Valley Diablo Ranch. What do you love most? The crispy chicken nuggets, the crunchwrap slider, or maybe the Hidden Valley Diablo Ranch? Yes, the answer is yes. The crispy chicken crunchwrap slider. A brand new classic is back, only at Taco Bell. Warning, the following podcast is not suitable for all audiences. We go into great detail with every case that we cover and do our best to bring viewers even deeper into the stories by utilizing disturbing audio and sound effects. Trigger warnings from the stories we cover may include violence, rape, murder, and offenses against children. This podcast is not for everyone. You have been warned. At first, police in Baraboo, Wisconsin, thought the 911 call was a, I'm going to call this kid. He's kidnapped. He's in a house on Highway U. Both his legs are broken and his ankle. Yeah, better not be a joke. I'm sorry I got that. No, no, it's just getting out of here as soon as you can. But when they entered the home, where a 13-year-old boy claimed to have been held captive and tortured, they realized they had an unprecedented crime on their hands. Busting down the door to the home, they were immediately overwhelmed with the stench of rotting food, sweat, and mold. The air was cold. The air was simmering with the humidity of a Wisconsin summer night, so thick and unbearable that the officers found themselves choking on it. They were surrounded by mounds of trash, dirty dishes, and laundry. And they weren't sure exactly what they were going to find in it. But nothing, not even the 911 call itself, could have prepared them for the boy lying on the kitchen floor. 13-year-old dad Phillips looked like a broken doll in the dim light. He laid on the floor unmoving, except for his eyes. They didn't have to get close to see that his legs were all out of place. His hips had swollen to the size of basketballs, and his legs, marred by bruises, were bent in different directions, completely black and purple. And then there were his feet, twisted completely backwards, his toes facing the floor, even as he laid on his back. This is the shocking story of 17-year-old Joe Clark, a monster hiding in plain sight who would soon be known as the Baraboo Bonebreaker. I'm Courtney Browen. And I'm Colin Browen. And you're listening to Murder in America. I'm Courtney Browen. I'm Courtney Browen. 1884. As the years passed and the circus grew into the famous Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey, the greatest show on earth, the town took pride in its history and decided to carry that magic with them year-round. Amongst the charming brick buildings in the city's downtown, you'll find Circus World Baraboo, a museum filled with historic circus artifacts, antiques, and memorabilia. Each year, thousands of tourists visit Baraboo to experience the charm of a bygone era. But for the locals, that charm is found in everyday life. The historic buildings remain. Large swaths of the city are walkable. And for the most part, everyone knows everyone. It's a city that provides a cozy life, nestled between the river and the striking bluffs of the Baraboo mountain range. But even in quaint, scenic small towns in the middle of America, the dark side of human nature lurks. And in the summers of 1994 and 1995, it was brought into the light by two, two horrifying crimes that shocked the quiet town to its core. It's the summer of 1994 in Baraboo, Wisconsin, and 13-year-old Chris Stainer had his whole life ahead of him. That July, he was really enjoying his much-deserved summer break. He only had a few short weeks before his first year of high school started, and he wanted to make the most of it. Fortunately, he had a loving family to help guide him and make that happen. His parents, George and Karen, Kathy Stainer, were active and hardworking, always eager to instill proper manners and good decision-making in their four children. There was Angela and James, Chris's older siblings, and then the youngest, five-year-old Patrick, who was Chris's little shadow. Though Chris and his siblings were at a challenging age, with the older three at the cusp of adulthood and the youngest barely out of toddlerhood, they spent all of their time together. On the weekends, they had cookouts in the backyard, they went to their local lakes and rivers, boating in the sunshine. The Stainer family was very close-knit, and George and Kathy were so proud of their children. During that summer of 1994, they couldn't help but notice how grown-up Chris was. Lately, they'd been seeing a wonderful change in him. Chris had just gotten his braces taken off after seven long years, and it seemed like he was a new version of himself, a new, confident teenager, eager to set out and experience life for himself. That June, he had even started a new job, working at a McDonald's in nearby Lake Delton. Chris was really excited to finally earn some money of his own, and his parents couldn't have been more proud of him. With the money he earned from his job, Chris often invested it in the hobbies he loved, fishing and baseball. And when he wasn't exploring the outdoors, working or playing sports, he was often roaming around town with his group of friends. Now, according to his family, Chris wasn't a straight-A student, but he was a good kid. He stayed out of trouble. So, oftentimes, when he was out with his friends, his family didn't worry about him. They trusted that Chris would make good decisions. But sadly, it's not always your own kids you have to worry about. On July 3rd, 1994, there was an excitement in the air in Baraboo, Wisconsin. The whole town was gearing up for the 4th of July. Kids were riding their bikes, eating ice cream, and swimming in the waters. But Chris Stainer was clocking out of his shift at work. When he finally made it home that evening, his mom had just finished making dinner. Being the responsible kid he was, Chris immediately walked through the door and started setting the table. But as they all sat around enjoying their meal, none of them realized that this would be their last dinner they would have as a family of six. No one ever realizes ominous things like this. Tragedy rarely ever gets over. Tragedy rarely ever gives you a warning. To the Stainers, this was just a typical Sunday evening. After dinner, Chris spent his final minutes of daylight playing in the backyard with his five-year-old brother, Patrick. Really, his parents couldn't have asked for a better relationship between their boys. Chris wasn't telling his little brother to leave him alone like a lot of kids entering their early teens. He was having fun with him, running around in the backyard in spite of how tired he was from working all day. Chris was so tired, in fact, that after he came inside, he plopped down on his bed and quickly fell asleep. Around 10 p.m., his father, George Stainer, peeked into his bedroom and saw Chris fast asleep on top of the covers, still wearing his full McDonald's uniform, hat and all. Now, early that next morning, Chris had another shift at McDonald's at 7 a.m. So instead of waking him up to change into his pajamas, George Stainer decided to just let him sleep. He smiled as he shut Chris's bedroom door, who was proud of his son and his dedication to his first job. From there, the Stainer family all settled into bed and drifted off to sleep, having no idea that by that next morning, their lives would never be the same. At 6.15 a.m., Kathy Stainer awoke to her alarm. Since Chris was only 14 years old, she would often drive him to work in the mornings. The McDonald's was only 20 minutes away, which gave her just enough time to wake him up, have some breakfast, and then make the journey north to Lake Delton so he'd arrive on time for his 7 a.m. shift. Kathy sleepily made her way up the stairs towards Chris's bedroom and cracked open the door. Like any mom of a 14-year-old, she probably expected to be met with a groggy, messy-haired teen on the other side, grumbling about having to get up. But instead, she was met with silence in an empty room. Kathy felt an ache in her gut, the instant she saw he wasn't in bed. But she didn't want to believe the worst. From there, she went to the other bedrooms of the house, hoping that Chris just fell asleep somewhere else. But with each room, she grew more and more frantic. Kathy began screaming out Chris's name, waking up everyone in the house. Soon enough, the family emerged from their bedrooms, wondering what was going on. But Chris never emerged. He was gone. Desperate to find him, George and Kathy hurried outside. But that's when they noticed something that made their hearts drop. The screen on one of their downstairs windows had been sliced open. It was a long cut, one that would allow someone to easily slip inside their home. Rushing back inside, they made another disturbing discovery. It was a muddy shoe print found on the carpet in their home, one that was not there when they went to bed that night. Upon seeing all of this, the stainer's mind went, to worst case scenario, that their son Chris had been kidnapped. But even saying that out loud seemed bizarre. Baraboo was a safe place, the kind of place where no one locked their doors. And that night, neither had they. The air had been cool and refreshing, so they opted to leave the windows open as they all slept. Never in a million years did they think someone would break into their home. But as they're looking at everything around them, they come, they come to that horrific realization. Someone had sliced open the screen, climbed through the window, snuck through the house, and took Chris from his room. Now, something that stuck out to them was that the window screen that had been cut led into their 16 year old son, Jimmy's room. And Jimmy happened to be gone that night. So the stainer's first thought was that whoever took Chris had to have known that Jimmy wasn't going to be home. They also had to have known where Chris's bedroom was, which meant this person likely knew their family. Everything about this was unsettling. And at that point, there was only one thing left to do. Call the Salt County Sheriff's Department and report their son, Chris, missing. That morning, the police arrived at South 3901 Gillam Road to investigate. But as you can imagine, they did not treat this case as a kidnapping. To them, all the signs on the wall said, it was a murder of a family member. But the signs pointed to Chris sneaking out. He was 14 years old, a young teenage kid. He likely just snuck out so he could go hang out with his friends. After all, that's what kids do. But the stainers weren't buying it. Chris was a responsible kid. He never snuck out or got into trouble. In fact, if he would leave the house, he was always the kind to leave a note. So deep down, they knew that that wasn't the case. They knew that Chris was the one who snuck out and that he was the one who would leave the house. They knew that Chris would leave the house. They knew that Chris was the one who would leave the house. The police also said that if Chris had been kidnapped, class that would constantly bully other students and argue with the teachers. In 1992, he was actually caught calling one of his teachers and threatening to end her life. So, as you can see, he was a troublemaker with violent tendencies. But about a year after that incident with his teacher, something would happen that would make Joe's aggression even worse. According to Joe's father, Ron, in 1993, Joe was involved in a motorcycle accident where he was thrown 30 feet in the air. He ended up landing directly on his head, which caused a subdural hematoma. Once help arrived, Joe was rushed to UW Hospital where he underwent emergency brain surgery. And as we've seen time and time again, head injuries can sometimes cause personality changes. They can make people more aggressive. And with a teenager who already had poor impulse control and violent tendencies before the accident, this would only make things worse for him. Over time, Joe Clark had earned a reputation of being a violent troublemaker. Kathy Stainer said herself that on the one occasion where she met Joe, he seemed to be, quote, very domineering. So, soon enough, the Stainers turned their suspicions towards him. Considering he called Chris on the night of his disappearance, they urged the police to look into him. And it wouldn't take them long to show up at his front door. As the police knocked, they couldn't help but notice how close Joe's house was to the Stainer house. It was less than a mile away, which only added to their suspicions. But upon speaking with the 16-year-old, he was adamant that he had nothing to do with Chris's disappearance. He said that the two did not hang out that night. In fact, Joe's mother, Bertha, even gave Joe a solid alibi. According to her, Joe was home with her all night. He never left the house. So, with that, the police went back to the Stainer house. However, George and Kathy Stainer couldn't seem to shake the fact that he was involved in their son's disappearance. Whether it was parents' intuition or something deeper, they had their eyes locked on Joe Clark. In the days after Chris's disappearance, time was standing still for the Stainer family. But for everyone else, the world continued to spin. The summer fun went on. Most people around him were still in the house. Chris was a runaway. No one could have ever imagined that something much darker was at play. On July 9th, six days after Chris was last seen, it was a beautiful summer day. The Wisconsin River was full of people having fun. Swimmers, boaters, fishers, and jet skiers, all soaking in the warm sun before the cold, long winter on the horizon. That day, as two jet skiers made their way down the river, heading towards the Stainer house, they were able to see the Stainer family. As the Pine Island Wildlife Refuge, they caught sight of something horrific. At first, they wanted to believe it was trash, maybe an animal lounging in the sun. But as they got closer, that hope faded. There, on the edge of the river, bobbing against a stump, entangled in a nest of weeds, was the bloated body of a teenage boy. Immediately, the horrified witnesses called the Portage Police Department. Although the body was found in the river, it was not found. The body was found in Columbia County, right over the border from Salt County. There had only been one missing person's report fitting the description, and that was Chris Stainer. When George and Kathy opened their front door on July 10th and saw Salt County officers standing before them, they knew it wasn't good news. When the police said that a body had been found in the Wisconsin River, George knew it was over. He later said, quote, I looked at them and said, you wouldn't be out here unless you thought it was Chris, end quote. Investigators asked for Chris's dental records. And one day later, on July 11th, they received word that it was a match. The body belonged to Chris. The area where Chris was found was extremely secluded. There were no houses nearby and little to no police presence in the area, which conveniently made it a popular location for teenagers to party and drink alcohol. This only seemed to add credit to the theory that Chris had left the house to go to a party, but his family still didn't believe it. As his body was taken for an autopsy, they hoped for clearer answers. But they'd have to wait for over a year before they even got a flicker of the truth. Because sadly, the autopsy that Chris received was far from thorough. During the autopsy, he was loaded onto the table, stripped of the bulky sweatshirt that he had been discovered wearing. Now, the Wisconsin State Journal reported that this was a sweatshirt belonging to his dad, one that was kept on the table, stripped of the bulky sweatshirt that he had been discovered wearing. Now, the family boat for cold days on the water. It was never elaborated on from what we could find when Chris put the sweater on. Was the boat on the Wisconsin River? Or had he taken it off the boat at an earlier date? Unfortunately, we just don't know. But we hope that his dad found some comfort in the fact that he was keeping his son warm in some of his final moments. But as for what those final moments looked like, we don't know. The autopsy confirmed that Chris had drowned a few years ago. But we don't know. But we don't know. But we don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. We don't know. After discovering the water in his lungs, state pathologist Dr. Robert Huntington essentially considered the case closed. In his eyes, it was an easy open and shut case of accidental drowning. Due to the state of decomposition he was in, having been in the water for several days, it was hard to tell if there were any traumatic injuries to his body. Now, had Dr. Huntington performed an x-ray, as if standard on a severely decomposed body, he would have seen that there was nothing accidental about this drowning. Sadly, though, that would have to wait. And in the meantime, everyone tried to come up with a story that made sense. Investigators believed that Chris had snuck out that night. Said it was possible that a friend came to his house, snuck inside, and convinced him to leave. Then from there, they made their way out to the river. But at some point in the night, a horrible accident occurred. One that ended with Chris drowning. Over time, with no other evidence, his family came to accept this theory. But even so, they still had a ton of questions. Who was he with? Why hadn't someone come forward to report the accident? Were they scared of getting in trouble? Chris' dad, George, would later say, quote, What hurts so much is that you know there were other kids with him. Something happened out there. Something terrible happened out there. What we don't understand is how someone could have left him out there without calling. End quote. And while something terrible did happen out there, who left without calling was up for debate. None of Chris' friends were with him on the night of his death. And with those unanswered questions, rumors began to spread. Chris' dad, George, began to swirl. Some Baraboo teenagers claimed that at a boat party, Chris bragged that he was a great swimmer. So, to get him to prove it, someone pushed him in. But according to this rumor, once he went under the dark waters, Chris never resurfaced. The teenagers present were so scared, they just quickly got out of there. But again, this was hard for Chris' parents to wrap their head around. Chris was a great swimmer. They believed he should have been able to swim to safety. But maybe there was a strong current that night. Maybe he was pushed in and he drowned. And the people he was with were taking that secret to the grave. Regardless of what happened, the Stainer family was now living a nightmare. The only pieces they had left of their son were a handful of photographs and their memories. His father, George, told the press, quote, I get this feeling like this can't be happening. Like it's a nightmare and we're going to wake up. I miss him so much. It's just an ache like you've never known before, end quote. For the rest of that summer, instead of excitedly planning for their son's ninth grade year, his parents now had to plan his funeral. On July 14th, 1994, Chris Stainer was laid to rest in St. Joseph's Cemetery. In attendance were his broken-hearted parents and siblings, including his younger brother, Patrick, whose last image was them running around in the backyard on the night of his disappearance. For his entire family, losing Chris was devastating beyond belief. And as the soil covered his coffin, the truth of what really happened was buried with him. In the following months, Chris's classmates would start their ninth grade year without him. But Chris's parents never stopped looking for answers. Throughout August and September of 1994, George and Kathy kept Chris's in the Baraboo News Republic. They even offered a reward to anyone who could provide details surrounding his mysterious death. Although the case was closed, Kathy told the paper, quote, I just know that something's always been amiss on the whole thing, end quote. And as life went on for the citizens of Baraboo, the Stainer family held on to that aching suspicion that someone in town was responsible for Chris's death. And they were right in more ways than one. Not only was Chris's death not an accident, but exactly a year later, the teenager they had suspected all along was on the hunt for another victim. In July of 1995, the citizens of Baraboo, Wisconsin seemed to be moving on. Chris Stainer's death the year prior was tragic to say the least, but in the end, it was written off as a tragic accidental drowning. No one knew that there was danger lurking in their community, and soon enough, a new family would move into town. When the Phillips family pulled the moving truck up to their new home, they were excited to see this new chapter of their lives. From the outside looking in, Baraboo seemed like the perfect place to settle down. It was safe and family-friendly, a place where people didn't have to lock their doors. But little did they know, almost immediately after moving in, a teenager in their community had his eyes set on the family's 13-year-old son, Thad Phillips. Thad and his family had moved to Baraboo from nearby Merrimack, and over the next few weeks, they slowly settled in. They had a lot of stuff to unpack, because they too were a family of six, just like the stock. Thad's mother and father were named Don and Connie, and he had three siblings, Rebecca, Kenneth, and Angel. While his siblings were eager to start the new school year, Thad was excited to enjoy his summer break and get acclimated to his new baseball team, the Baraboo Whites. Thad loved baseball. Before he moved, he was a star player for the Merrimack Flames, where he pitched and played third base. Moving to a new town isn't always easy, especially for a 13-year-old. But Thad was thrilled. He was thrilled because he was set to be the pitcher for his new baseball team, the Baraboo Whites. Thad was described as a small, fast, wiry, tough kid, which made him a great baseball player. But outside of baseball, he was a normal teen, living in a new town, adjusting to his new routine. Unfortunately, his life was about to take a terrifying turn. The afternoon of Friday, July 28th was just like any other. That afternoon, Thad's father, Don, returned home from work. It was the last day of the year for him, and he was going home from his roofing job, and they all ate dinner together as a family. Usually, Connie enjoyed cooking meals for her family, but on this night they decided to go out for dinner. Afterwards, they spent the remainder of their day relaxing around the house, and then finally, once the evening settled in, the family all sat around the living room to watch a movie. Really, it could have been a snapshot of any happy Midwestern family, but as the night went on, the snapshot was gone. Connie and Don went to bed, and gradually, all the kids followed, except for Thad and his five-year-old sister. Because it was summer break, Connie let Thad and Angel stay up late watching a movie, and by midnight, everyone was fast asleep. Connie, Don, Rebecca, and Kenneth were all in their bedrooms. Thad and Angel, eager to soak up every moment of being allowed to stay up late, had fallen asleep on the couch. All was quiet, aside from the low murmur of the television and the peaceful chirp of crickets outside. But soon, just after midnight, a different sound slowly came into focus. Outside in the darkness, someone was pacing by the window, watching. It was Joe Clark, the same teenager that had been a person of interest in the disappearance of Chris Stainer the year prior. Standing outside the house, Joe saw Thad and his younger sister asleep on the couch, illuminated by the flickering light of the television. And it's here where he decided to repeat the same crime he committed the year before. As the clock ticked by, Joe casually walked up to the Phillips' front door and turned the knob. He then tiptoed through the house, towards the living room. Thad, who was still alive, was still asleep. Joe, lying on the couch, heard a noise and opened his eyes. Silhouetted by the television, he saw a person hovering over him. Still groggy and half asleep, he believed it was his father coming to carry him back to his bedroom. He thought he was about to be in the safest place he could possibly be, in his dad's arms as he drifted back to sleep. Instead, Thad was entering a nightmare. He closed his eyes as Joe Clark quietly looked at him. He quietly scooped him up, and carried him outside. Then the cool night air hit him. Confused, Thad opened his eyes and was met with the starry sky above him. Disoriented, he looked around to find that he was being carried down a dark gravel road. There wasn't a street light or a house in sight. What little light he had to make sense of his surroundings came from the moon. He looked to his dad, carrying him, ready to ask what was going on, only to realize that the man holding him was a kid. In his dreamlike state and confusion, Thad believed that the person must be a friend of his father's. So Thad asked him, "What's going on?" Nonchalantly, Joe told him that his car wouldn't start and he needed help. "Don't worry, my car is just over the edge of that hill," he said. Soon enough, he set Thad down, who, groggy and having been taught to listen to people older than him, followed along. He believed that his dad's friend probably just didn't want to wake up his parents, but needed help. So he settled for him instead. The thought brushed away the anxiety that was starting to gnaw at him, but as they crested the hill, Thad didn't see a car waiting. Instead, he was met by a dark, run-down house. One that was as pitch black as the sky overhead. Not a single light was on, making it look utterly abandoned. At this point, to ease his concern, Joe started to chat with Thad like he was a good friend. Now, we feel it's important to remember that, at this point, we're not alone. Thad was convinced that Joe was an adult. Due to the darkness in Joe's stocky build, his mind filled in the blanks with what made the most sense. Thad had been taught, like many children of the 80s and 90s, to do as adults said. So, when Joe told him not to worry and invited him inside of the home, Thad followed. But what he saw inside made his stomach churn. The floor of the home was littered with trash and old, moldy food. There were piles of dirty clothes scattered everywhere. And the thick smell of dirt. The smell of decay and filth hung in the air. When Joe turned the lights on, Thad finally noticed that the man who had taken him from his house was no man at all. He was a teenager, only a few years older than himself, and he introduced himself as Joe. The energy within that home was terrifying. It was the middle of the night. The place was a wreck. And Thad had been carried there by a complete stranger. But the look on the stranger's face painted a very different scene. Joe didn't look scary. He was smiling, friendly, chatting with Thad as if they were buddies. Shortly after entering the home, Joe even name-dropped one of Thad's friends in town, claiming that he was friends with him as well. So after a few minutes, Thad felt at ease. He was a friend of a friend. Surely, he wouldn't hurt him. At one point, Joe even told him that he had a large collection of sports memorabilia, including binders. They were filled with baseball and football cards. "Would you like to see it?" He asked. Thad was intrigued. He loved sports. "Here, follow me," Joe said. Together, the two made their way through the filthy home. Over his shoulder, Joe said that he also had a collection of model cars and trucks, which was, by design, the same hobby that Thad had. You see, Thad had no idea that Joe had been stalking him to learn these details. He didn't know what he was talking about, but he knew what he was talking about. If he had been stalking him to learn these details, he would have been able to get away with it. If he had been stalking him to learn these details, he would have known what he was talking about. He would have known what he was talking about. If he had been stalking him to learn these details, he would have known what he was talking and buried his face in his hands as if he was ashamed. But Dad didn't have time to question why he had done it, or try to gaze this monster's emotions. He had to get out of there, and he had to do it now. With adrenaline coursing through his body, he stood up and attempted to run. But Dad had no idea that his ankle was completely unusable. He knew that it hurt. He had heard the snap. But more importantly than that, he knew he had to get out of there. He hobbled out of the bedroom and down the stairs, but he suddenly felt the bone in his ankle shift, grinding against the bone in his leg. He let out a howl of pain. And for the first time, the horror of what happened to him started to settle in. By the time Thad made it to the kitchen, the door to the outside was right in front of him. But he could also hear that Joe was right behind him. And this time he wasn't remorseful. He wasn't ashamed. He was angry. Before Thad could reach the door, Joe wrapped his arms around his neck, putting him in a chokehold. He then dragged him back to the living room and slammed him down on the floor. As Thad laid there, surrounded by decaying trash and spoiled food, Joe stood over him. This time, he grabbed Thad's right leg. He pinned the rest of Thad's body down as he pushed the leg up towards his head. He continued pushing, further and further, shoving the leg up against Thad's body. Until finally, Thad's femur snapped. The femur is the hardest bone in the body to break. It's the kind of bone that usually only breaks from extreme blunt force trauma, like a car accident. But there, in his living room, Joe managed to shatter it. Fortunately for Thad, there was so much adrenaline and fear running through his body, he didn't even feel the immense pain from the second break. It definitely hurt, but he had no idea his femur was broken. And sadly, Joe wasn't done with him. In fact, he had just gotten started. Thad tried his best to plead with Joe. "Why are you doing this?" he asked. "Did I do something to you?" None of it made any sense. Thad had just moved to town. He didn't have any enemies. But Joe wasn't giving him any answers. Instead, he was ready to break another bone. While Thad was on the ground, his right leg and ankle completely destroyed, Joe walked over to him again with an evil look in his eye. He then reached down and grabbed Thad's left ankle. And, like before, he began to twist, and twist, and twist, until his foot was facing backwards, and the bone snapped and cracked under the weight of his force. At this point, Thad was delirious with shock. He was lying on a filthy floor, with two broken ankles and a broken femur, unable to escape or move, no matter how desperate he was to do so. Thad feared what came next. But, to his surprise, Joe scooped him up as if nothing had happened and plopped him down on one of the couches. Then, as if the two had just spent the night watching TV, Joe laid down on the other couch and promptly fell asleep. But Thad couldn't fall asleep. Eventually, the adrenaline began to fade, leaving him with an indescribable fear. The pain was coursing through his legs. It was excruciating. And he knew that he was in grave danger. As Joe slept peacefully, mere feet away, Thad looked around the room. He scanned every inch for a weapon he could use to defend himself. But there was nothing in his reach. Instead, he stared at the ceiling and watched as the rising sun began to paint the room with light, praying that, soon, Joe would come to his senses and let him go. Throughout the early morning hours of Saturday, July 29th, as his attacker slept on the couch, Thad was able to get a good look at the house he was in. He couldn't help but notice how filthy it was, a stark difference between his own cozy, safe, clean home. It was also extremely hot inside the house as there was no air conditioner and every window and door was shut. Sweating on the couch in an immense amount of pain, Thad's thoughts shifted to his parents. How scared they were going to be when they noticed he was missing. They were probably out looking for him right now. Thad found himself staring at Joe's front door. He pictured his father coming through it and bringing him to safety. He also pictured himself getting up and running outside to find help. But these were all just fantasies. With all of the bones broken in Thad's leg, he couldn't get up. And even if he tried, he might wake up Joe, who would probably break more of his bones for trying to escape. For hours that morning, Thad laid there with his own thoughts, scared and in pain. There was nothing he could do. And his nightmare would only get worse from there. Are you ready to have your mind blown? I want you now to imagine that in front of you was a locked door, symbolizing all that you know, everything you've been taught in your time on Earth, the lies your government has fed you. With my podcast, The Conspiracy Files, I now give you the door's key. And once you've listened to the show, you finally unlock this door and step inside. Beyond the door is another dimension, a dimension of false narratives, a dimension of hidden evidence, a dimension of truth, lies, and murders. You're moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of deadly secrets and explosive ideas. You've just crossed over into The Conspiracy Zone. I'm your host, Colin Brown. Join me now on this journey into the world of secret pedophile rings, government cover-ups, and suspicious suicides on my new show, The Conspiracy Files, available now on all streaming platforms. Around the same time, just down the road, Thad's mother, Connie, jolted awake. When she looked at the clock, it read 4:00 a.m., much earlier than she usually woke up. But instead of closing her eyes and drifting back off to sleep, she decided to go check on her children. As she made through the house, she noticed her five-year-old daughter was still asleep on the couch in the living room. But Thad wasn't on the couch that he fell asleep on. Now, Connie wasn't freaking out just yet. Surely, he woke up and decided to go to his own room. But just to be sure, she walked over to Thad's bedroom, expecting to see him in bed. But when she opened the door, it was empty. Frantic, Connie rushed through the house, checking all the other bedrooms, but there was no sign of him. She even searched the bathrooms, basement, every other room inside of the home, but he just wasn't there. Thad had disappeared. Terrified, Connie woke up her husband, Don, and told him what was going on. From there, the two jumped into their car and drove around looking for him. They searched near a river where the family frequently camped, and then drove to the location of a local fair, hoping that maybe he decided to walk there to check it out. But as the hours passed, Thad was still nowhere to be found. His parents frantically searched around Baraboo, completely unaware that their missing son was just a half mile down the road, being tortured by a stranger. - Back at Joe Clark's house, Thad was horrified to see him stirring on the couch in the living room. Joe quickly sat up and looked in Thad's direction. He seemed relieved that Thad hadn't escaped. Thad stared back at his attacker, terrified and unsure what was going to come next. And just as he feared, Joe abruptly stood up and picked up right where he left off. Almost in a rage, he started twisting, hitting, and stomping on Thad's broken leg. The pain was unbearable. Thad started to fight back with all of his might. He couldn't move his legs, but he used his arms to punch and slap as hard as he could. He yelled at Joe to stop. He told him, "If you just let me go, I promise I'll never tell anyone what happened." But Joe continued attacking him. "I'll tell everyone I tripped over a coffee table or something. No one will ever know that you hurt me," he said. But Joe ignored him. He continued to torture Thad. It was agonizing. The pain was unlike anything he had ever experienced. Bones rubbing on bones, ligaments tearing, muscles pulling and straining, bones shattering and digging into his flesh. He was desperate for relief. At the same time, desperate for answers. Through his screams, he continued asking Joe why he was doing this. And this time around, Joe responded. Shockingly, he told Thad that he had a fascination with the sound of breaking bones. Thad would later say, "It was like he was getting high from it or something. I can't explain it." Confused and wanting more answers, Thad asked him, "If you like the sound of bones breaking so much, why don't you just break your own bones?" Joe casually responded that he had tried it in the past, but he could never get the right angle. Then, as quickly as he answered the question, he continued snapping Thad's bones. Twisting, pushing, stomping. Thad could hear his body popping, crunching. He continued to scream out in agony. But to his dismay, no one could hear him. He was trapped inside of a house with a man who was fascinated with breaking bones. But it wasn't just the bones breaking that fascinated Joe Clark. It went deeper than that. Joe wanted to have complete power and control over someone. He enjoyed inflicting pain, there was nothing they could do to stop it, nowhere for them to run. At the end of this attack, Thad looked down at his ankles. By that point, they were so broken. The skin was twisted so many times. He said they looked like a rubber band. Thad's experience within the home was painful, not just physically, but psychologically as well. Joe Clark would go from attacking him and breaking his bones to chatting with him like they were old friends. He would tell jokes and laugh. Thad would even laugh with him, hoping to stay on his good side. Joe would turn on the television and they would watch shows and movies together. But then, out of nowhere, Joe would get this look in his eye. And in an instant, he would start attacking him again. It was almost like he had a Jekyll and Hyde personality. One minute he was friendly, and the next he was on top of Thad, twisting, bending, and breaking his legs. This morning in particular, after a brief friendly chat, Joe walked over to Thad and sat down on his broken legs. He then grabbed his ankles again and began twisting and re-breaking them. This time around, the back of Joe's head was just out of reach. So, Thad took the opportunity to punch him as hard as he could. But when Joe turned around, Thad saw a look of fury. The next thing he knew, Joe grabbed a pillow and forcibly placed it over Thad's face, smothering him. Through gritted teeth, Joe threatened to break his neck and his back. Now, broken legs were one thing, but Thad understood what a broken neck or back meant. Absolutely no chance of escape. It meant death, here, on this dirty floor in this house from hell. So, to save himself, Thad stopped fighting back, and instead, he started screaming into the pillow any time Joe broke his bones. During these episodes of torture, he forced himself to think of being home with his family, to keep his mind, and to keep his mind, and to keep off the steadily increasing pain. But, with each passing hour, his chances of survival were dwindling. After all of the repeated breaks in his legs, they were incredibly swollen, bruised, and painful. By 2pm on July 29th, Thad just wanted a break. And luckily, Joe paused the torture for a bit, and they started chatting. Despite his burning hatred for him, Thad was nice to his captor. He asked him questions about his life, as if they were good friends. And, Joe actually opened up. The two talked about their families, their backgrounds and interests, and even Joe's girlfriend. Thad would later recall that he didn't remember a lot of the details of these conversations, due to the trauma he was under. But he did remember one conversation. Apparently, hoping to understand him a little better, Thad asked if Joe had ever done this to someone else. And, shockingly, Joe admitted that he had. Do you remember that boy, Chris Stainer? Thad had never heard that name before. He'd only lived there for a few weeks, so he never knew the frenzy surrounding Chris's shocking and mysterious death. But while sitting down with him, Joe told Thad all about the horrific things he did to Chris Stainer. How he took him from his home, tortured him, broke his bones, and then at the end of it all, he threw him in the Wisconsin River, telling him to swim. Thad tried to keep his outward expression understanding and calm. But he and Chris's stories were eerily similar. He was terrified that he would meet the same fate. Now, interestingly, Joe also mentioned doing this with another boy. However, Thad couldn't remember the boy's name. But coming away from this conversation, Thad knew he was in the presence of a murderer. Joe was talking about his crimes as calmly as if he was talking about the weather. And if he planned for Thad to survive, he would be confessing to all of this. It was there where Thad came to a horrific realization that Joe was planning on killing him. That was even made more apparent when Joe mentioned that his parents were away visiting family and they were due to come home within a couple days. Thad knew that he would surely kill him before his family came back. So he started coming up with a plan. Around 5pm on Saturday, July 29th, Joe walked into the kitchen and picked up the telephone. Up until this point, Thad had no idea there was a working phone inside the house. A working phone meant one thing, an escape. And as he listened to Joe's conversation, he realized when he was going to make his move. On the phone, Joe talked to his girlfriend, discussing what time she was going to come and pick him up. For the moment, Thad felt immense relief. As soon as Joe left the house, he was going to crawl over to the kitchen and pick up his phone. Thad had no idea what was going on. So he ran over to the kitchen and called for help. Hopefully, here soon, his torture would come to an end. Now, just down the road, Thad's parents Don and Connie Phillips were still desperately searching for him. They spent that entire day driving through the streets of Baraboo. Don would later say that he regretted not going door to door to their neighbor's houses. Since they had just moved to Baraboo, Don and Connie didn't know anyone in town. Looking back, Don admitted that if he had gone around, asking if anyone had seen Thad, he would have stumbled upon the Clark residence, which was just 900 yards away, and he may have been able to save his son. By 6 p.m. on July 29th, Thad was still patiently waiting for Joe Clark to leave the house. By then, he had been in captivity for 16 hours. His bones were utterly shattered in every way. Thad was hoping that the torture was over, as Joe had plans for that night. But to his dismay, Joe came back into the room and started walking towards him. His entire body tensed up knowing what was about to happen. But then, to his surprise, Joe did something unexpected. He tried to treat him. He began wrapping Thad's ankles and legs in white socks and ace bandages. Thad would later say, I don't know what the fascination, what his deal was with that, but he layered up socks on me. They had to be just perfect, too." Joe would put multiple layers of socks on Thad's feet in an attempt to make some sort of homemade cast. Then, he added layers of ace bandages. Now, to say they had to be perfect is almost an understatement here. Apparently, Joe needed the socks to be perfectly straight and would spend close to an hour taking them off, rearranging them, and then putting them back on to make sure they were exactly how he wanted them, with all of the ribs of the different pairs perfectly aligned. Then, when he was done, he put Thad in hospital-grade leg braces. Clearly, Thad was confused. Maybe he didn't want to kill him. Joe took a step back, admiring his work. Get up and try to walk, he demanded. Thad was shocked. Even with the bandages and leg braces, he knew he couldn't walk. There was far too much damage, but Joe persisted. It was almost like he wanted to test his own work. According to a psychologist, Dr. John Mayer, Joe had an odd fascination with fixing his victims, making things right so he could go back and inflict more pain. In an episode of Escaped, titled Torture and Suburbia, Dr. Mayer said, quote, the fun is making him dysfunctional again, end quote. And that fun was, as you've likely guessed, sexual in nature. After wrapping Thad's broken legs in the homemade cast, Joe stood over him, and masturbated. This happened several times throughout his captivity. Now, while this was happening, as terrifying as it was, Joe was still in his nice guy persona. He was friendly and talkative. If someone were to have walked in the room, it would look like a friend helping another friend with an injury. But soon enough, Thad watched as Joe's expression suddenly shifted. In an instant, he was clouded by an evil look. And before he knew it, Joe was jumping on top of him, breaking his bones yet again. And he was still in his nice guy persona. At this point, Thad was desperate for it to stop. Once again, he told Joe that his parents were out searching for him. If you just let me go, I promise I won't say anything. I'll tell them I fell and that it was an accident, he said. As Thad pleaded with him, Joe sat there listening intently. He would even nod his head as if he was considering Thad's request. But then Joe would shake his head. No one will believe that story. It's too late to turn back now, he told them. And really, he was right. The extent of damage that Thad had on his body could only have been the work of a true sadist. Thinking quickly, Thad requested something else. Will you let me use the phone to call my parents? I'll tell them that I'm okay, that they don't have to worry about me. Again, Joe considered this for a moment. Finally, Joe said, sure, why not? He then stood up, walked to the kitchen, and came back holding the telephone in his hand. Thad's heart was racing. Obviously, Joe wasn't right in the head, but had he actually made a mistake this stupid? Was Thad actually going to be able to talk to his parents? He grabbed the phone from Joe and quickly started to dial his parents' phone number. But as he lifted the receiver to his ear, his heart fell to the pit of his stomach. There was no dial tone, just silence. The telephone had been disconnected from the wall. It was just one of Joe's sick pranks. In that moment, all Thad wanted to do was talk to his mom and dad. He was, at the end of the day, a little bit of a psycho. He was a little bit of a psycho. Still a child, a terrified 13-year-old kid. And Joe got his hopes up. just to relish in watching them crash back down. Finally, around 7 p.m., 17 hours into captivity, Joe told Thad that his girlfriend was on her way to the house. For a second, Thad felt a flicker of hope, but that was snuffed out in an instant. Joe stated that he wanted to make sure Thad didn't even think about escaping. So once again, he pounced on top of him and delivered a brutal beating. This time, he actually stood on top of his broken legs and began stomping on them. He kicked them over and over again. Then, in a final act, he grinded his heels into his fragile, shattered bones. Thad grabbed the pillow and screamed into it, desperate to keep Joe from becoming more angry. But he kept holding onto the fact that Joe was about to leave. Finally, he could crawl to the phone and call for help. But as you can imagine, Joe was not going to make it easy for him. With his girlfriend on the way, he scooped Thad up from the ground and carried him upstairs to his bedroom. With every step up the stairs, Thad watched as his lifeline to the outside world, the telephone, drifted further and further away. Yet shockingly, Thad stayed strong. He knew that that was his only hope of survival. When Joe threw him down on the bed and left the room, Thad looked down at his legs once more. They didn't even look like legs. And he knew that they were completely unusable. His toes were bent in every direction. His ankles were completely turned around. He couldn't even see his kneecap. After feeling around, he noticed it was floating around in the back of his leg. He was in so much pain, Thad fell unconscious. But a few minutes later, he woke up to the sound of the front door opening. Then he heard, a woman's voice. Moments later, Joe and his girlfriend left the house. And Thad knew that this was his only chance to escape. And they're able to do that because they, they work directly with ethical factories and cut out the middlemen. Or go to quince.com. Now available in Canada and the UK, too. You're listening to a quick ad. You know what else is quick? Selling your car on Carvana. Just put in your vehicle information and we'll give you an offer. Done. No hassle, no negotiation, no guy from an online listing low-balling you. Which means by the time I'm done explaining this, you could have basically done it. Still haven't started? Hey, better late than never. Sell your car today on Carvana. Pickup fees may apply. ZocDoc. Ready to be seen. Game. Using only his arms and core strength, he crawled out of bed, his leg slamming onto the ground. The pain was excruciating, but he pushed forward. From there, he crawled to the bedroom door, reached his arm up, and opened it. He continued to crawl through the hallway towards the staircase, which would go on to be his biggest obstacle. He thought about going down legs first, using his arms to gradually guide him down. But his legs were so broken, he couldn't even swing them around to put them in position. So he'd have to go head first. Using as much strength as he could, he crawled down the stairs, his broken legs dangling behind, hitting every step on the descent. The pain was so unbearable. By the time Thad reached the bottom step, he passed out again. When he woke up, he didn't even know how much time had passed, which terrified him. If Joe came home and saw that he had tried to escape, he would be punished. So he continued crawling forward. But sadly, his injuries were so severe, he kept passing out. Thad would later say, quote, "I crawled a few feet, passed out, "crawled a few feet, passed out again. "Woke up, crawled a few more feet, passed out. "I don't know how long I did this for," end quote. Each time he woke up, he did so in a panic. He was so disoriented, he didn't know how much time had passed. So he kept dragging his body across the floor until he passed out again. Finally, he could see the phone up ahead. He was so close, but then he heard it. It was the sound of Joe's voice coming from outside. He was laughing with his girlfriend. Terrified, Thad quickly rolled himself behind a couch. He was hidden to where they couldn't see him. A moment later, the front door unlocked and the two stepped inside. - Over the next few minutes, Thad laid there. He could hear Joe and his girlfriend kissing in the kitchen. For a moment, he thought about screaming out. Hopefully, his girlfriend would see the state he was in and call for help. But as much as he wanted to do this, he decided not to. There was so much at risk here. What if his girlfriend was as deranged as he was? What if she started helping Joe in the torture? Maybe somehow she would make it even worse. So he remained quiet in his hiding place. Eventually, Joe's girlfriend said goodbye and left the house. And moments later, Joe walked into the living room to find Thad lying on the ground. As you can imagine, he was not happy. - He comes walking in the living room and his eyes just bulged out and his head was seeping down there like that. - With that evil look on his face, and that evil look in his eye, Joe screamed at him, roughly picked up his limp body and stormed upstairs to the bedroom. He slammed Thad down hard on the bed and immediately began twisting his ankles, stomping his legs and pounding his knees as he berated him for trying to escape. This time, he even started jumping on Thad's chest with full force. All Thad could do was lie there and cry. When Joe was finished, he gasped for breath and looked down at his legs to assess the damage. It was hard to take in. His legs were sore. He was swollen to the size of basketballs. His injuries were deadly. The repeated beatings had caused severe internal bleeding, and if Thad didn't get help soon, he was going to die. As his thoughts swirled with all the horrible possibilities ahead, Thad passed out yet again. A few hours later, he woke up on the living room couch. Joe was sitting next to him, but luckily, he seemed to be in his friendly persona. "Wanna watch a movie?" he asked. Thad nodded his head. Over the next few hours, the two made small talk. At one point, Joe even got Thad a glass of water, and as thirsty as he was, after not eating or drinking for over 24 hours at this point, he refused to drink it. Thad was afraid that he had poisoned it somehow. After all, Joe's parents were set to come home soon, so it was likely only a matter of time until Joe tried to kill him. Throughout the remainder of that night, Thad continued slipping in and out of consciousness. When he finally woke up for the day, it was around 7:00 a.m., on Sunday, July 30th. He had been inside of the House of Horrors for 31 horrific hours. Time was moving still. He felt like he had been there for an eternity, and with each second that passed, he knew he was closer to death. Back at the Phillips residence, Don and Connie felt the same fear. Every passing moment without their son in their arms meant they were closer to losing him forever. After searching all over town, they finally called the Sauk County Police Department and filed a missing persons report. Don and Connie had opted to stay at home just in case Thad came back. She found herself constantly looking out the window, praying to see Thad walking down the road. When she wasn't doing that, she paced by the telephone. She later said, "I just wanted to hear from him. It was just hell." And as she sat there, she tried to trust the case was in good hands. The previous day, July 29th, Lieutenant Thomas Pollard, who worked the 3:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. shift, had been briefed on Thad's death. disappearance when he first arrived at the office. With all hands on deck, the police were determined to locate the young teenager and return him home safely. But no one had any idea just how bizarre this case truly was. Sadly, back at Joe's house, the brutality didn't ease up. Joe was still angry at that for trying to escape. He also knew that his time torturing the young boy was about to come to an end, as his family was set to return home. So Joe made the most of it. He spent that entire morning beating, stomping, kicking, and twisting Thad's legs. This time, he caused such severe injuries that his leg bones dislocated and his entire leg turned backward. Thad knew that if he didn't make it out alive, he would probably never walk again. And still, he was determined to survive. And luckily, he had one last chance to make it out. That afternoon, Joe started talking about a party he wanted to go to. But as Joe started preparing to leave for the party, he wanted to make sure that Thad wouldn't try to escape again. So this time, he delivered the most brutal beating yet. Thad would later say that during it, he was so desperate to escape the pain, even for a second, that he tried anything so he could buy himself a few moments of relief. As Joe violently beat him, he screamed, that he could hear someone outside. Now, like the previous night, Joe's girlfriend was coming to pick him up for the party. So it was possible that she was outside. When Thad yelled this out, Joe stopped the torture, walked to the window, and peered out. But of course, no one was there. For Thad, the few seconds of relief were crucial. He said, quote, that 10-second break I had from him, not being on me, really helped. I needed it, end quote. But Joe always came back for more. After the attack was over, it was almost time for Joe to leave. But just to make sure that Thad wouldn't try to escape, he dragged him through the house, to his bedroom, and threw him into a closet, which locked from the outside. Minutes later, Thad heard him leave. All was quiet inside the house, aside from Thad's groans and the slow beating of his heart. Thad's body was starting to shut down. He was weak. Beaten, bruised, and broken. He knew that this time, if he didn't call the police, he would be dead by the end of the night. As he sat in that closet, he also remembered something else. It was his little brother's birthday. He had never missed one before, and he certainly didn't want to miss any of the future ones either. Fueled by his love for his family, Thad began looking through the closet for anything that could help him escape. The closet was full of things that he didn't want to miss. It was much like the rest of the house. Filthy and full of junk. Eventually, he found a steel thermos. He began beating the wooden door with it, but he soon realized that it wasn't going to work. He needed something bigger. He dug through the closet some more, and this time, near the back corner, he spotted a large electric guitar. Thad pulled it out and began slamming it against the wooden door. After 43 hours of captivity, he had no energy, but he was determined to make it out. He slammed the guitar against the door over and over again, until finally, the wood started to splinter. He focused on the small hole it was making. He kept hitting it until the hole grew bigger and bigger. After several minutes, he could finally fit his hand through. Thad reached around and felt for the lock. Once it was in his hands, he unlocked it, turned the handle, and opened the door. He was free. At least, from the closet. But this only unlocked a new fear for him. If Joe came home and saw that he not only tried to escape again, but that he damaged his closet door, Thad knew he was going to die. He couldn't endure any more torture. But not even he knew the depth of it. By that point, Thad's internal bleeding had become so severe, the doctors would later say he only had a couple more hours before death. Luckily, the answer was no. The answers to his problems were just across the house. Like before, Thad used his arms to army crawl through the hallway. Once he reached the staircase, he took a deep breath. The last time he was here, the pain was unbearable. But he didn't have time to think about it. So face first, he made his way down the stairs once more. Along the way, Thad passed out, only to wake up not knowing how much time had passed. The house was still dark and quiet. But for all he knew, Joe could be home at any moment. From there, Thad continued crawling until his eyes were set on the telephone in the kitchen. Along the way, he continued passing out. He would wake up, crawl a few feet, and pass out again. But finally, he was in the kitchen. By the time he made it to the telephone, he could feel his body giving up on him. Fortunately, the phone had a long cord that hung down, so he wouldn't have to stand to take it off. Thad was still in the kitchen, but he was still off the receiver. Grabbing the cord, he yanked it down. In another stroke of luck, the dial pad was attached to the phone itself, and not the base on the wall. And as Thad clicked 911, the sound of ringing was like music to his ears. Within seconds, the dispatcher answered. And in an eerily calm voice, he told them, help, I've been kidnapped. Lieutenant Pollard had been briefed on the disappearance of Thad Phillips earlier that day, so he instructed dispatch to switch the 911 call over to him. When it was transferred over, he was shocked to hear the voice of a young kid saying he had been kidnapped, and that his name was Thad Phillips. Thad told the lieutenant all about the torture he had endured, but Thad's voice was so calm, so polite, the lieutenant almost didn't believe it. Surely, if this kid was telling the truth, he'd be screaming in pain. This has to be a prank. But to be sure, the police were on their way. Dispatch had been able to trace where the call was coming from, and Lieutenant Pollard stayed on the phone with Thad until they arrived. Three Sauk County police officers and an ambulance sped to the scene. Along the way, they passed directly in front of the Phillips residence where Connie and Don waited anxiously. As they heard the sirens, they rushed over to their window to see what was going on. The small community of Baraboo rarely experienced anything that required this response. Did they find Thad? But that thought came with as much terror as it did relief. If Thad had been found, was he still alive? Back inside the Clarks residence, Thad laid on the kitchen floor, waiting for help to arrive. After what felt like an eternity, the Sauk County police officers and ambulance, pulled up to the house. The house that they knew all too well. As we mentioned, Joe Clark was known for getting in trouble in Baraboo. But no one ever knew what he was truly capable of. However, they were about to find out. As the officers made their way inside the home, they found that this was no prank. On the kitchen floor, they spotted Thad with the telephone receiver in his hand. The officers were horrified. The young boy looked more like a corpse than a living, breathing human being. The torture had bruised him and twisted him beyond what anyone would think is possible. And yet, despite everything he had endured, he remained calm, relieved that this nightmare was finally over. After 43 hours of torture, Thad was rushed to St. Clair Hospital for treatment. Meanwhile, the three police officers, however, stayed behind to work the scene. A filthy scene at that. As they made their way through the home, they were disgusted with how pungent and dirty it was. But the upstairs was somehow even worse. They located Joe's bedroom and the closet where Thad had miraculously escaped from. They weren't sure exactly what had happened here, but soon enough, they would learn all of the horrific details. Over at the Phillips household, they anxiously waited for answers. Deep down, they had a feeling that the police, and the residents in their area, had to do with their son. And they were about to get that confirmation. Shortly before 9 p.m., their phone rang. It was the Sauk County Sheriff's Department letting them know that their son had been found alive, but that he had significant injuries. Without hesitation, they jumped in their car and rushed to the hospital. Meanwhile, the Sauk County Sheriff's Department next course of action was finding the person responsible, Joe Clark. They ended up finding Joe Clark, who was the person responsible for the accident. Joe Clark was the person responsible for the accident. The Sauk County Sheriff's Department next course of action was finding him at a party in town. Immediately, he was arrested for the kidnapping and attempted murder of Thad Phillips. Shockingly, the first thing he said to the officers was, quote, Oh, he's still alive? Ultimately, Joe was charged with first-degree intentional homicide, burglary, kidnapping, intentionally causing bodily harm to a child, mayhem, causing mental harm to a child, and two counts of child enticement. Over at St. Clair's Hospital, Thad opened his eyes, lucky to be alive. didn't even remember being transferred. He was still groggy as he had just woken up from emergency surgery, but he knew he was safe. With his parents by his side and a doctor standing in front of him, Thad was told that if he hadn't called for help, he would have died from his internal bleeding. Both of his legs had been completely shattered. He had two broken femurs, a broken knee, a broken tibia, and two broken ankles. The doctors told him that one-third of his blood had drained to his legs. He was alive, but he had a long road of recovery ahead of him. Even with all of the heavy pain medication he was on, he was still in excruciating pain, but he was ready to tell investigators about what happened. While in his hospital bed, he walked them through every single detail during his 43 hours of torture. At the end of it, the detectives couldn't believe what they were hearing, but what he told them next was even more shocking. According to Thad, during his time in captivity, Joe Clark had admitted to him that he had done this with other boys. Now, Thad couldn't remember one of their names, but he knew that one boy was named Chris, and his last name started with an S. Eventually, his father pulled out a Sauk County phone book and repeated every last name that started with that letter. And as soon as he heard the name Stainer, Thad immediately nodded his head. That was it. Chris Stainer. As for the other boy, Thad was never able to recall what his name was. But this information was huge. Now, soon after this, investigators decided to take another look at Chris Stainer's case. For over a year, everyone assumed he had accidentally drowned in the river. But now, with Thad's testimony, they feared that it might have been something much darker. But the only way to truly know was to look at Chris's autopsy. If he was murdered by Joe Clark, then he would likely have had some of the same injuries. However, when investigators looked at his autopsy, they found that he was dead. They found that he was dead. After the autopsy, they learned that no x-rays had been conducted on Chris's body. This was shocking in and of itself, as long bone x-rays are standard. And given the mysterious circumstances, someone should have checked this. So, now, the only thing they could do to get answers would be to exhume Chris's body. On the day that investigators contacted Chris's parents, George and Kathy Stainer, they were more than willing to give them permission. Over the last year, they had always felt like something, wasn't right with their son's death. Like something was missing. Kathy told the Baraboo News Republic, let's hope it leads somewhere. We never believed his death was an accident. So, in August of 1995, investigators made their way to the cemetery, and by the end of that day, Chris Stainer was exhumed. And it wouldn't take them long to learn the truth. After looking at Chris's bones, they saw that his legs were broken and shattered, just like Thad Phillips's. In fact, their injuries were eerily similar. They had the exact same breaks, in the same location. Investigators even put Thad's x-rays and Chris's x-rays on top of one another, and it revealed perfectly aligned broken bones. Which to them meant, Thad's story about Joe Clark's confession was likely true. After learning the news, Chris's mom, Kathy Stainer, told the Baraboo News Republic, quote, he's the one we suspected all along, end quote. The Stainer family was heartbroken, but grateful to finally have the answers they had been looking for. And the town of Baraboo was grateful to have this monster put behind bars. For over a year now, there had been whispers around town about Joe Clark. Everyone knew he was a troublemaker. But after Chris Stainer's death, there were a lot of people who believed he was responsible. Joe's father, Ron Clark, told the Wisconsin State Journal that these rumors were so widespread, he had to remove Joe from Baraboo High School. Ron said, quote, I even heard with my own ears, a girl come up to him in the parking lot at school and say to him, did you kill Chris Stainer? End quote. But after the authorities ruled Chris's death an accident, those rumors seemed to die down. However, a year later, after Joe's arrest, everyone realized that they were true, it was a sobering realization that if Thad Phillips hadn't survived, Joe likely would have gone on torturing and murdering other young boys around town. And that's not just based on his prior history, but based on plans that he wrote down. After obtaining a search warrant on the Clark's residence, investigators located a notebook inside of Joe's bedroom. In it, he had written three lists. One was titled Leg Thing. Referring to breaking his victim's legs. Under it, there were names of young boys in town whose legs he wanted to break. The other list was titled Get To Now, for all of the boys that he was eager to kidnap, torture, and possibly murder. And then finally, the third list was titled Can Wait, for the boys he wanted to kidnap, but I guess not right away. Horrifically, between the three lists, Joe had written down 22. In the months after Joe Clark's arrest, his family was put under a microscope. His father, Ron, would sometimes speak with the media, and he blamed his son's actions on that motorcycle accident he had gotten into in May of 1993. Ron said, He was thrown 30 to 40 feet through the air and landed on his head. Maybe he kind of snapped. He was real hot-tempered after that. Like we mentioned before, after the accident, Joe had brain surgery and head injuries can cause a regression in violent behavior. However, Joe had experienced violent tendencies far before his motorcycle accident. But regardless of just exactly how he ended up becoming a violent and sadistic person, Joe Clark was going to pay for his actions. Not only was he charged in the case of Thad Phillips, but also for Chris Stainer's murder. Ultimately, he was charged with first degree homicide, mayhem, and causing great bodily harm. When he was finally handed those charges, the Stainers were released. The Stainers were released. The Stainers family was incredibly thankful that their son's killer was receiving justice. In November 1995, George and Kathy placed a memorial for Chris in the Baraboo News Republic. It read, A year and four months without you have gone by. The loving memories help us survive. No farewells were spoken. No time to say goodbye. You were gone before we knew it, and only God knows why. That's the thing that breaks our hearts, but what can we do now? Today you would have been 16. Robbed of so much. Please help us find the answers. We love and miss you, your family. Now due to Chris's body being found in Columbia County, in Thad's case being in Salt County, the two trials would be set in different courts at different times. And the first trial was for Thad Phillips. It began on September 17th, 1996. Ultimately, Joe Clark pleaded no contest and not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect. Thad was found on Joe's kitchen floor while his family was out of town. And Thad himself was alive to tell the story. So at trial, Joe Clark didn't deny taking him and torturing him, but he did deny responsibility. According to his defense, after his head injury he had gotten years earlier, something changed. Joe claimed that he suffered from blackouts and that during the nearly two days of his life, he was able to get out of jail. He was able to get out of jail, but he was torturing Thad Phillips. He must have been in one of those blackouts because he claimed he didn't remember any of it. He said that he did remember taking Thad from his house, but not because he wanted to hurt him. Joe said that he took Thad because he wanted to be friends. He wanted to hang out with him. Then once he slipped into that blackout, he must have turned violent. Now, obviously most people who heard this story didn't believe a word of it, but apparently Joe's family did. They didn't dispute that Joe kidnapped Thad, but they said that he must have gotten injured when the two got into a physical fight and that their son simply overpowered him. And the rest of the story where Thad was repeatedly tortured, they said that was made up by the County Sheriff's Department. Joe's mother Bertha actually took the stand where she told the jury that Joe had a rough upbringing. According to her, Joe's birth mother was a drug addict who abused drugs while she was pregnant with him. So she and Ron adopted Joe when he was just a child and tried to give him a better life. Bertha also referenced that motorcycle accident, saying that afterwards he changed. She admitted that she should have gotten him psychiatric care, but they just never got around to it. Joe's defense attorney, Mark Frank, told the jury that Joe had had and continues to have an abnormal condition of the mind. He argued that since his accident, Joe had had an abnormal condition of the mind. He argued that since his accident, Joe had hallucinations, delusions, psychotic behavior, suicidal impulses, social impairment, and personality changes. However, according to the Baraboo News Republic, four psychologists that examined Joe before his trial did not find that he suffered any sort of mental defect before, during, or after his crimes. In fact, Dr. Park Dietz, who testified at Jeffrey Dahmer's trial, also examined Joe Clark. And after his examination, he did not believe that Joe was insane. He stated that Joe was a sadist who was aroused by watching other people suffer. This is why Clark masturbated in front of the injured boy. This explains his repeated torture of Phillips. It also explains his attempts to fix Thad's legs after stomping on them. A strangler will try to resuscitate his victim. The victim is no good to him if he's dead or unconscious. According to Dr. Dietz, Joe suffered from antisocial personality disorder and created false stories about hallucinations. As for the head injury, Dr. Dietz stated it had no measurable effect on his behavior. - This trial was huge. It seemed as if the whole town of Baraboo was tuning in. But the testimony that everyone was looking forward to was of the victim himself, Thad Phillips. However, his testimony was delayed. And truly, you'll never guess why. Now this is where things get a little complicated. And I want you to remember that things aren't always so black and white. But during this time, we're going to have a lot of fun. But during this time, Thad Phillips was actually shot twice by a 15-year-old named Michael Huesbach. Now to this day, several reports claim that Michael shot Thad in an act of revenge, that Michael and Joe Clark were friends. And to prevent Thad from testifying against him, Michael shot him. However, based on court documents, that isn't the case. Reportedly, Thad and one of his friends had a problem with Michael, completely unrelated to the case against Joe Clark. After getting in a fight at school one day, Thad and his friend followed Michael to his trailer, where they stood outside throwing taunts and threatening to hurt him. In the midst of it all, Thad's friend opened the door to Michael's trailer. And Michael, who feared for his life, fired a shot with a hunting rifle through the doorway. The bullet and bullet fragment struck Thad, who, at the time, had turned around to walk down the stairs. He was quickly rushed to the hospital. Thad was then taken to the hospital. Ultimately, Michael was sentenced to two years probation for his actions, as it was determined that firing the gun was self-defense. Now, Michael doesn't come back into this story, but interestingly, in 2018, he was found guilty of sexual assault on a child. According to reports, Michael repeatedly raped a 15-year-old girl in Baraboo, and then threatened her after she cut off contact with him. He was convicted of second-degree sexual assault of a child and sentenced to 19 years in prison. He's currently housed at the Oshkosh Correctional Institution. But back in 1996, after Thad recovered from his gunshot wounds, he was more than ready to testify at trial. When he stepped into the courtroom, he was no longer that little boy that had been kidnapped from his home. He was 15 now. He would later say that he wasn't nervous to testify. He was ready for his attacker to get the justice he deserved. And in a brave act, Thad sat in front of the courtroom and retold the story of what he endured at the hands of Joe Clark. Thad said, quote, he grabbed my throat, twisted my right ankle. I could feel it snap. And when I looked down, my foot was on backwards. He pushed my leg up at an angle to my head. He kept pushing it and pushing it until it broke. End quote. Throughout his testimony, everyone in the courtroom was completely shocked that the verdict was a lie. They were also in awe of Thad's strength and bravery. As the trial came to an end, the citizens of Baraboo were anxiously waiting to hear the jury's verdict. And luckily, they wouldn't have to wait very long. In December of 1996, after only one hour of deliberation, Joe Clark was found guilty for the kidnapping and attempted murder of Thad Phillips. He was sentenced to 100 years in prison. When the verdict was read, Thad hugged the prosecutor, Patricia Barrett. He felt an immense amount of relief. But this chapter of his life was far from over. Because about a year later, Thad would be back in a courtroom, helping the Stainer family get justice for their son, Chris. The trial for Chris Stainer began on November 3rd, 1997, this time in a Columbia County Circuit Court. That morning, Joe Clark entered the courtroom facing charges of kidnapping, torture, and murder. And once again, he pleaded not guilty. But this time around, he didn't go for a mental defect defense. Instead, he claimed to have had an alibi on the night of Chris Stainer's kidnapping. During the trial, Joe's mother, Bertha Clark, testified that on the night of July 3rd, 1994, she and Joe were together at their house. But as we know, Chris was taken from his home in the question her about this. Could Joe have snuck out after you went to sleep? They asked. But Bertha was adamant that she would have noticed as her bedroom was near the front door. Now, anytime you're a witness in a trial like this, you open yourself up to scrutiny. The attorneys will dig into your past and find things to use against you. And that's exactly what happened here. You see, Bertha Clark was known to be a heavy drinker who would often pass out at the end of her benders. When confronted with this, Bertha denied it. But Joe Clark's own journal entries proved otherwise. In one entry, he wrote, Mom and Dad are downstairs getting drunk again. I don't like admitting it, not even in my journal. In addition, the Clark family home was filthy with empty alcohol bottles covering the floor. So, it's safe to say that Joe's parents were heavy drinkers. The prosecution suggested that on the night of Chris Stainer's abduction, Bertha likely passed out, completely unaware that her son snuck out of the house to kidnap a young boy. Now, the prosecution also called forward three teenagers who claimed that after Chris's body was discovered, they were drunk. But the prosecution also called forward three teenagers who claimed that after Chris's body was discovered, Joe Clark told them that he was responsible for his death. Shockingly, all three of those boys had been placed on Joe's lists, which were titled Leg Thing and Get To Now. One of them was named James Jackson. He would later say that he was completely shocked when he found out he was on the list. He stated, I had no idea. It makes me sick. Now, the defense argued that this entire case was merely circumstantial. They stated there was no DNA. No eyewitnesses. No hard evidence linking Joe to Chris's murder. But once again, the prosecution brought in their star witness, Thad Phillips. During his testimony, he talked about being taken from his home in the middle of the night, much like Chris Stainer. He also talked about the 43 hours of torture he suffered at the hands of Joe Clark. A forensic pathologist testified about the striking similarities between the x-rays of Chris Stainer and Thad Phillips. Much like Thad's x-rays, Chris had four broken bones within his legs. The prosecution argued that those breaks didn't happen from an accident. On that July night in 1994, Joe Clark broke into the Stainer house after slicing through that window screen. He then took Chris from the home, likely brought him out into the wilderness, where he tortured the young boy in the same way that he did. While he was still alive, Chris was thrown into the Wisconsin River. Because of his broken legs, Chris was unable to swim. And in the dark summer night, he drowned. This time, as the jury deliberated, they talked for seven hours before reaching a verdict. But finally, on November 7th, 1997, they stepped back into the courtroom. The Phillips and Stainer family all anxiously held their breaths as Joe Clark stood to his feet. At that moment, the judge announced that he was found guilty of the torture and murder of Chris Stainer. Joe showed no emotion, aside from his cheeks flushing pink as he was let out of the courtroom. When asked by a reporter why he remained so calm, his defense attorney, Eric Schulenberg, said, he's a stoic kid. He doesn't show his emotions. A few weeks later, on November 20th, Joe was sentenced to life in prison plus an additional 40 years. The sentence was to run consecutively with his 100 year sentence for the kidnapping and torture of Thad Phillips. At his sentencing, Joe continued to proclaim his innocence, stating, "I just want you to know you're condemning an innocent person, as bad as things look between the last case and this one." For Joe Clark's parents, Ron and Bertha, they were outraged at the verdict. They compared the trial to a "witch hunt." They said that their son was a scapegoat, that the case was weak with only circumstantial evidence. But the one thing that ever one kept coming back to were the identical broken legs. To the public, and to the jury, that was the nail in Joe Clark's coffin. For Chris' family, they felt like they had finally received justice after three long years. But as much as they were relieved, the verdict still didn't heal their broken hearts. George Steiner said, "The pain and the grief are as terrible now as when the ordeal started three and a half years ago." He also said that he felt like Joe got off pretty easily. He wanted an eye for an eye. He wanted Joe Clark to feel the same pain and suffering that he put Chris through. It didn't feel right that Joe got to continue living when their son's life was cut so short. Now, in 1998, Joe Clark appealed his sentence, arguing that the charges of attempted murder, mayhem, and causing mental harm to a child lacked sufficient evidence. He believed that they had no proof he intended to kill Thad, only that he injured and terrorized him. He He also argued that the mayhem in causing mental harm to a child only applied to parents and since he was simply a kidnapper, those didn't apply to him. But thankfully, the court denied his appeal, upholding his conviction and sentence. Since then, Joe Clark has remained at the Kettle Moraine Correctional Institution in La Crosse, Wisconsin, where he continues to maintain his innocence. He will not be eligible for parole until July 30, 2090. As for Thad Phillips, after his attacker was sent to prison, he filed a civil suit in October of 1997. Thad was awarded $21 million in damages. However, he never saw any of that money. Joe and his family refused, and still refuse, to pay it. After being kidnapped by a now convicted killer, the Bone Breaker, a bare-boo man, is awarded $21 million. Two decades later, and he's still wondering where that money is. Rachel Perry has you covered on the community's effort to solve that. July 29, 1995. Thaddeus Phillips was just 13 and sound asleep. I was outside, I was being carried. He had been kidnapped. I had never met him before in my life. Phillips soon learned his kidnapper, 17-year-old Joseph Clark, had an odd obsession. He pushed me back, on my back, onto a bed. He grabbed my ankle, and he twisted it and broke it. That was just the beginning. I asked him why. He said he was fascinated with the sound of breaking bones. After more than 48 hours of torture, officials received a 911 call from a home here on County Road U. Help, someone has kidnapped me. Phillips still remembers making that call. He locked me in the closet. I dug around in there until I found an old electric wooden guitar. Man. I smashed through the door with that and unlocked it. Threw myself down the stairs. Clark also told Phillips about 14-year-old Chris Steiner, found dead in the Wisconsin River. So my dad started going through names, and as soon as he said it, I knew that that was the one. Police reopened Steiner's case, and Clark was eventually sentenced to life in prison. Phillips was awarded $21 million, but after countless surgeries and medical bills, he says he hasn't seen a dime. I was shocked that this has happened how it is. With Phillips' permission, Olga Johnson and her husband set up a GoFundMe. He saved the community. I want to show my thank you to Ted for what he's done. He brought peace to Chris's family. Around the turn of the century, the story of the Baraboo Bone Breaker was huge news in Wisconsin. Everyone was relieved to finally have this miracle. The story of this monster off the streets. But for Thad Phillips, he had a long road of recovery ahead of him. In the years after his kidnapping and torture, he went through several surgeries where they put metal rods in his legs. Even after everything, he was left with a permanent limp. But his scars weren't just physical. The torture he endured at such a young age was emotionally taxing as well. But with time, he focused on healing. Today, although he mostly stays in the hospital, Thad still lives in Baraboo. He's now a father. And decades later, people still refer to him as a hero. If it wasn't for Thad's bravery in 1995, Chris Stainer's case would likely still be considered an accidental drowning. And who knows how many other young boys would have met a similar fate. Sauk County Detective Kevin Hemmerle, who served as the lead detective in Thad's case, said that Thad was very strong for two years. He said that Thad was very strong for telling his story. Saying, quote, And to think that what he lived through over the course of one weekend is something that many people, probably even adults, would have rolled over and given up, and allowed themselves to die sometime during that weekend. And to have to tell that story in front of so many people, not only once, but a second time, it's remarkable. He's a true hero. End quote. Today, we will be making a donation to support Thad Phillips, the real hero of Baraboo. And if you guys want to support Thad Phillips and his journey to recovery, we encourage you donate as well. The GoFundMe link will be posted in the description of this show. Hey, everybody. Thank you so much for joining us for today's episode of Murder in America. We are glad to be back in 2026. And at this point, we are going to be posting episodes every single week. Until we hit our kind of midsummer break that we take every year. So there are no breaks coming anytime soon. I want to thank everybody who has joined us on Patreon, who has helped support the show. If you like what we do here on Murder in America, and you want more episodes of the show, please consider joining us on Patreon. On Patreon, you can get access to early ad-free episodes of the show, like the one you just listened to. And you can also get access to bonus episodes of the show. So we post two bonus episodes, every month. Like last month, when we were on our break, we still posted two bonus episodes. So if you love the show and you want to support us, joining us over on Patreon is a great way where you can do that. In addition, don't forget to follow us on Instagram at Murder in America to see photos and videos from every single case that we cover here on the show. And please be sure to leave us a five-star review wherever you listen to the show, whether it's Apple Podcasts, Spotify, wherever. We love reading those reviews. And we love hearing from you. We love hearing from all of y'all online. Anyways, guys, we will be back next week. Thank you for joining us today. And yeah, I'll catch y'all on the next one. We'll see you next week. Find fall your way at Ross. Finding a doctor is hard enough. Finding the right doctor, even harder. Someone who takes your insurance, has an available appointment when you need one, and feels like someone you can actually open up to. That's Ross. Ross. Ross. Ross. Ross. Ross. Where ZocDoc comes in. Download the ZocDoc app to search and compare doctors by specialty, insurance, and availability. Read real patient reviews, find the right fit for you, and book instantly. Because getting seen by the right doctor matters. ZocDoc. Ready to be seen? Download the ZocDoc app today. Focus Features invites you to sense and sensibility. Miss Dashwood, perhaps we ought to dance. It is a ball after all. 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