Crime Roundup with Sheryl McCollum and Joshua Schiffer | Gerry Spence’s Legacy, A Prosecutor on the Stand, and the Melissa Wolfenbarger Case
Zone 7 with Sheryl McCollum
iHeartPodcasts and CrimeOnline
4.4 • 696 Ratings
🗓️ 15 August 2025
⏱️ 20 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
This week on Crime Roundup, Sheryl McCollum and Joshua Schiffer celebrate the life of courtroom legend Gerry Spence, the man who never lost a civil case and built a law school on a Wyoming mountaintop. They also examine the downfall of a prosecutor whose time in the spotlight proved swagger is not a winning strategy. Finally, Sheryl shares an update on the Melissa Wolfenbarger case she has worked on for seven years, a mystery that began with human remains in a trash bag and one of the first cases featured on her Zone 7 podcast. Follow the full story in Melissa Wolfenbarger: Norma and Tina Patton | Part 1, the first in a multi-part Zone 7 series.
Highlights:
- (0:00) Welcome to Crime Roundup with Sheryl McCollum and Joshua Schiffer
- (1:00) Gerry Spence remembered as the lawyer who never lost a civil case with stories that made him a legend
- (4:00) Behind the scenes of the Trial Lawyers College and why no classroom can match it
- (12:15) “He’s so proud of his story that it’s clear, it’s false”: A prosecutor takes the defense table, his strategy collapses, and the jury wastes no time
- (17:15) Melissa Wolfenbarger update and why Sheryl is staying quiet for now. Follow the full story in Melissa Wolfenbarger: Norma and Tina Patton | Part 1
About the Hosts
Joshua Schiffer is a veteran trial attorney and one of the Southeast’s most respected legal voices. He is a founding partner at ChancoSchiffer P.C., where he has litigated high-stakes criminal, civil rights, and personal injury cases for over two decades. Known for his bold courtroom presence and ability to clearly explain complex legal issues, Schiffer is a frequent media contributor and fearless advocate for accountability.
Sheryl “Mac” McCollum is an Emmy Award-winning CSI, a writer for CrimeOnline, Forensic and Crime Scene Expert for Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, and a CSI for a metro Atlanta Police Department. She is the co-author of the textbook, Cold Case: Pathways to Justice and the founder of the Cold Case Investigative Research Institute, a national nonprofit that unites universities, law enforcement, and students to work on unsolved homicides and missing persons cases.
🎧 Want more from Sheryl?
Catch her every Wednesday on Zone 7, where she doesn’t just talk cold cases, she works them. She’s joined by fellow forensic pros and criminal justice insiders for conversations straight from active investigations. Then on Mondays, tune in to Pathology with Dr. Priya, where the physical evidence takes center stage.
📢 If you enjoyed this episode, follow Crime Roundup on your favorite podcast platform and leave a review to help others find the show. Have a case suggestion? Email [email protected] or connect with the hosts on social:
- Sheryl on X: @ColdCaseTips
- Facebook: @sheryl.mccollum
- Joshua on X & Instagram: @lawyerschiff
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | This is an IHeart podcast. |
| 0:11.3 | Welcome to Crime Roundup. |
| 0:15.3 | Joshua Schiffer, what in the world? |
| 0:19.1 | It's like every day being you just laugh, like, are we going to ever |
| 0:23.6 | have, you know, an issue with thinking of a topic? I wish people could just drop in on some of the |
| 0:30.2 | conversations that you and I have, that you and I have with other people, because it's not like |
| 0:36.3 | there's a manual where that we get delivered |
| 0:38.5 | every morning where it's where it's oh here's what we're going to be covering this week and |
| 0:42.3 | next week and here's what's going to happen no this is live right this is this is real life |
| 0:47.0 | unfolding yeah and it's it's real stories you know it's amazing you know in looking and |
| 0:53.2 | and when you and I are talking about |
| 0:54.4 | what we want to talk about. And then we see this case and boom, there's Cheryl involved |
| 1:00.4 | with a case that how many years did it take to get to Fulton County? And it just starts up today? |
| 1:08.0 | Starts up today. Yes, sir. And we're going to talk about that one. |
| 1:13.8 | We also had a huge loss in the legal kind of universe, a name that kind of the gray hairs |
| 1:20.7 | will know a little bit more than the younger people because he was an elderly man. |
| 1:24.9 | And his name's Jerry Spence with a G. |
| 1:28.9 | He really, if you are a fan, which you are, of televised and media coverage of legal, |
| 1:36.9 | he is a great-grandfather. |
| 1:39.2 | You know what, Joshua, I'm going to stop you because I think we need to do a proper homage to him and I'm going to |
| 1:51.6 | toss it to you because I saw your post. I saw the pictures. I know what this person meant to you. |
| 1:59.3 | And I think you and you alone should take a moment to honor him and speak about him |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from iHeartPodcasts and CrimeOnline, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of iHeartPodcasts and CrimeOnline and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.