Stephan Sterns Jail House Calls – Call 7: Religious Reflection or Avoidance? Faith & the Madeline Soto Case
Hidden Killers With Tony Brueski | True Crime News & Commentary
True Crime Today
3 • 791 Ratings
🗓️ 7 April 2025
⏱️ 19 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In Call 7, Stephan turns heavily to scripture. He talks about Exodus, redemption, forgiveness — but not about Madeline Soto. His mother references Romans. His father jokes about vending machine coffee. It’s a coping mechanism, a refuge in routine and belief.
But the deeper truth is this: faith, in this moment, isn’t helping anyone face reality. It’s being used to explain away what happened to Madeline Soto without ever saying her name.
This episode asks: is faith helping this family heal? Or is it helping them avoid the darkest parts of the truth?
#MadelineSoto #StephanSterns #FaithAndCrime #BibleInJail #TrueCrimePsychology #Avoidance #ReligiousDenial #JusticeForMadeline
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This is Hidden Killers with Tony Bruske. |
| 0:02.8 | Here now, Tony Bruske. |
| 0:06.3 | Welcome back to our continuing coverage and breakdown of the jailhouse phone calls between Stefan Stearns and his parents. |
| 0:15.8 | We're playing them in order for you, video by video. |
| 0:21.3 | Stefan is charged with the murder of Madeline Soto |
| 0:24.7 | and also child exploitation. |
| 0:28.5 | Child exploitation charges |
| 0:30.1 | going to be an impossible one to beat |
| 0:32.5 | as there's photos of him abusing her. |
| 0:36.6 | The murder charges. |
| 0:38.5 | He's trying to fight. |
| 0:41.7 | Don't look all too good, though. |
| 0:44.6 | This next call is reflective, religious, philosophical. |
| 0:49.0 | Stefan talks about the Bible, about patience, about Jesus. |
| 0:52.9 | He wants to believe he's being tested, not condemned. |
| 0:57.5 | Got a surprise for you, Stefan. |
| 1:00.1 | His parents play along not to humor him, but to stay close to him, to keep some part of him |
| 1:04.8 | alive, if not physically, then spiritually. |
| 1:07.9 | His mom brings up the Book of Romans, His dad makes jokes about vending machine coffee. |
| 1:13.8 | This is what spiritual bypassing sound like in real time. |
| 1:20.4 | Trading hard truth for hopeful language just to survive the day. |
| 1:25.7 | As we listen, let me know what you think in the comment section on YouTube, |
... |
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