What is the episode about?
The Hand in the Window: Episode 2: The Survivor documents the incredible survival story of the woman known as Jane Doe, who was held captive by the serial killer Shawn Grate in an abandoned house in Ashland, Ohio, in September 2016. While Grate slept, Jane Doe managed to grab his mobile phone and make a desperate 19-minute call to 911. This episode of the podcast from ABC Audio and 20/20 features the original audio from the call, where you can hear the victim's muffled voice trying to guide the police to the exact location without alerting her captor.
The case behind the episode
The case against Shawn Grate began as a kidnapping case but quickly escalated into one of the most shocking serial killer cases in Ohio's recent history. When police arrived at the house in Ashland and rescued Jane Doe, they not only found the perpetrator but also the bodies of two other women, Stacey Stanley and Elizabeth Griffith. During the subsequent 33-hour interrogation conducted by Detective Kim Mager, who appears in this episode with never-before-heard recordings, Grate confessed to a total of five murders committed over several years. Shawn Grate operated in secret by targeting vulnerable women, and it was only Jane Doe's bravery that put an end to his rampage.
About the podcast
The Hand in the Window is a six-part true crime series produced by ABC Audio in collaboration with the award-winning program 20/20. Host John Quiñones guides listeners through the investigation, focusing on both the victims' perspectives and the police work that led to the conviction. The series stands out for having exclusive access to police evidence, including extensive video and audio recordings from the interrogation room, where Kim Mager methodically gets Grate to reveal his crimes.