True Story Media.

Hey, it's Andrea, and it's been a big news week over here.

So before we get into the second half of our conversation with Melissa Williamson,

lead detective on the Olivia Gant case, I wanted to give you a few updates.

First, the good news. And it's really good news. On Wednesday, October 29th, I woke up to the news that the $213 million verdict in Kowalski v. Johns Hopkins All Children's had been reversed.

I will record a full episode on this soon,

breaking it all down, but the gist is that the appeals court ruled that the majority of what

went to trial two years ago should never have ended up there, and only did so because of a series

of errors by Judge Carroll. There are four counts that the appeals court ruled

could be retried, those related to Maya Kowalski only. None of the counts on behalf of Jack

or Biotta's estate can move forward. This is a big win for those of us who care about children

and believe that they deserve to be safe in their homes, and who believe that those who step in to

protect them shouldn't face spurious lawsuits. But of course, the battle to protect kids and uphold

mandatory reporting continues. And this week, serial productions published their series reported

by Diane Neary called The Preventionist, which forwards the cause of one of the numerous

copycat lawsuits that's gained steam in the wake of Kowalski. To say that I'm concerned about

this coverage is an understatement. Frankly, I think the entire team at Serial should be ashamed

of platforming this. So, for the next several weeks, I'll be with you, breaking down each of the three episodes

in detail with some expert help. You may notice, if you're listening to the preventionist,

that there are many names and details left out of Neri's reporting. And as I fill in the gaps for you,

I think you'll see why. I've received one initial response from the serial team and have sent

them several emails with additional information, including the Kowalski opinion.

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