220: The Murder of Rhonda Oakley

Southern Fried True Crime

Erica Kelley

True Crime, Society & Culture, History

4.6 • 10.5K Ratings

🗓️ 3 July 2024

⏱️ 68 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

On September 1, 2016, 52-year-old Rhonda Oakley was due home from a business trip. Only gone one night, she and her husband of less than three years had missed each other. The empty nester and single dad had been inseparable since they met. Rhonda had recently become a full time stepmom to Phillip’s teenaged kids, who had moved from Indiana to the Oakley’s home on the outskirts of Danville, Kentucky. That afternoon, her stepson came home and found Rhonda in a pool of blood, viciously murdered. His father was devastated and his sister was missing. A national manhunt ensued as investigators realized tried to unravel what happened in this peaceful little town where folks had always felt safe.

Hosted and produced by Erica Kelley
Researched and written by Erica Kelley & Gemma Harris
Original Graphic Art by Coley Horner
Original Music by Rob Harrison of Gamma Radio
Edited & Mixed by Brandon Schexnayder & Erica Kelley

Sources: https://www.southernfriedtruecrime.com/rhonda-oakley

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Southern Fried True Crime covers cases that are not suitable for young listeners, and there may also be some explicit language used.
0:15.7	Listener discretion is advised.
0:21.2	September 1st, 2016 was a warm and partly cloudy afternoon in Central Kentucky.
0:28.0	52-year-old Rhonda Oakley pulled in her driveway in Junction City at around 3 p.m.
0:34.0	She was home early after attending a conference in Louisville the day before.
0:39.0	She loved her job and had fun at the conference, but she and her husband Philip had missed each other, even though it was just one night apart.
0:49.0	Though they had been married a couple of years, they were practically still in their honeymoon phase.
0:55.6	And Rhonda had recently become a full-time stepmother.
0:59.9	She hadn't expected to be parenting again at her age, but she happily took on the role
1:05.2	and loved her husband's kids like they were her own.
1:08.8	Rhonda had adult children of her own, who had all long since flown the nest.
1:13.0	Philip Oakley had two children from his previous marriage,
1:17.0	a daughter, 15-year-old Jenna, and son, 13-year-old David.
1:22.0	They had been living in Arlington, Indiana. 13-year-old David.
1:23.1	They had been living in Arlington, Indiana with their mother, Christie.
1:27.1	But a few months earlier, Jenna had asked if she could move in with her dad.
1:32.4	Philip had told his children his door was always open,
1:36.0	so he was glad to have Jenna come live with him,
1:38.0	and her brother David decided to come with her.
1:42.0	The children had adjusted to their new school and for Philip it was a
1:46.1	chance to develop a deeper relationship with his kids. He and Rhonda were intent on providing a warm and supportive environment where they hoped the kids would thrive.
1:56.6	But just five months after Jenna and David moved in, on that warm late summer afternoon, Rhonda Oakley was found viciously murdered.
	...

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