Brandon Lawson 911 Tape /// Part 1 /// Episode:85 | Forensic Files

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True Crime Garage. That's enough of the business. Everybody gather around, grab a chair, grab a beer. Let's talk some
true crime. [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] Brandon Lawson, an oil field worker and
father of four, was last seen when he left his San Angelo, Texas home on August 8th, 2013 while traveling on
Highway 27. 77. He ran out of gas. He called 911 and he has not been seen since. His cell phone is also missing.
Brandon is a Caucasian male. He was 26 years of age at the time of his disappearance. Brandon is 5'9 in tall,
230 lb with brown hair and blue eyes. He was last seen wearing a yellow shirt and
camo shorts and white Nike Air Max shoes. If you have any information, go to missingbrandonlawson.com.
[Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] Brandon Lawson was last seen when he
left his home in San Angelo, Texas. This was August 8th, 2013. He left at 11:53 p.m. This is after an argument with his
girlfriend, Leiddessa Loftton. So Brandon called his father and he wants to go to his father's place for the
night. >> Brandon's father, Bradley, has said that he had told his son it would be best if
Brandon just stay put. He recommended that Brandon not make the 2-hour drive to his house. But I'm guessing Brandon
thought different because he does decide to go for a drive and start to make his
way to his father's house. I don't want to hang on this for too long, but I'm guessing that it would have had to been
some kind of argument, you know, like some big disagreement for someone to leave in the middle of the night and
drive 2 hours. >> Yes, possibly. But it was reported that Brandon was working sometimes over 90
hours a week. >> Mhm. >> And that he also had four children. >> Yeah. So he had been with Liddessa for
about 10 years and they had three children together and he had one child from a previous relationship.
>> Um so not just leaving the house but leaving his family in the middle of the night as well.
>> And that's a lot of responsibility for a 26-year-old. >> A lot of responsib That's a lot of
responsibility for anybody. Now Brandon had called a little earlier than when he
had departed. He called his father earlier than when he left. While Brandon did not leave his house until almost
midnight, he actually called his father around 11 p.m. >> So almost an hour later, he sets off on
this trip. >> While in route, he is going to make some phone calls because his truck runs out
of gas. >> His first call will be to his brother Kyle at 12:38 a.m. >> Yeah. And this is basically, you know,
anything you would think it would be. You know, I I need help. I've run out of gas on Highway 277.
Um, by this time Brandon is near Bront, Texas. He runs out of gas, but he is unable to get the pickup truck
completely off of the highway. He basically has like the tail end of the truck sticking out onto the road a bit.
>> Mhm. >> Uh, so the brother Kyle and his girlfriend Audrey, they call Liddessa,
Brandon's girlfriend, to tell her that Brandon had run out of gas and he needed to borrow their gas can. And a lot of
time if you're looking up this case that you'll hear that Liddessa is his wife or
common law wife. >> For this episode and for this case, we're going to just refer to her as a
girlfriend cuz they were not legally married, >> right? I don't like that whole common
law wife thing anyway. You know, I guess certain states you live with somebody for a certain amount of time and they're
all of a sudden your wife. I I have buddies if that were the case, I have buddies that would have been married
like four or five times. So Kyle called to borrow the gas can and Liddessa tells
Kyle that she's going to leave the gas can on the porch because she's going to take a shower and then go to bed because
it's extremely late at night. >> Mhm. >> Uh we should point out here that Kyle has no money. Uh his paycheck is not
going to clear in his bank account until Friday morning. Uh, so Kyle is not going
to be able to fill up the gas can, but he figured that once he got to Brandon with the gas can, that he would just
drive Brandon to the Stripes convenient mart. This is a 24-hour gas station/store,
and Brandon could pay for the gas there, and then he would drive Brandon back to
the truck, and he and Audrey would be done for the night and go back to their home.
>> Mhm. Uh what is known next is that the following that following his phone call
to his brother, well something happened because Brandon calls 911 telling the dispatcher that he needs
help. He calls 911 at 12:50 a.m. and we won't go through that call yet because we want to finish the timeline so we can
really really go through that call. Another call was made to 911. This is by a passer by. A big rig truck driver
calls 911 at 12:57 a.m. This is regarding Brandon's truck parked crooked on the side of the road posing a hazard.
Uh, you know, somebody could potentially hit this vehicle if they weren't paying
attention. When Kyle arrived at 1:10 a.m., there is no sign of Brandon. A sheriff's deputy arrived at the truck at
the same time as Kyle and Audrey. Now, Kyle was traveling one direction to get to Brandon's truck, and the deputy was
coming from the opposite direction. This is Deputy Neil, and neither Kyle nor deputy Neil see Brandon walking on the
side of the road on their way to the vehicle. >> We should also point out that at this
point, Kyle is unaware that Brandon has called 911 and may be in danger. The officer, Deputy Neil, probably is
unaware of the 911 call from Brandon as well. It's speculated and reported in this case that law enforcement are
responding to the truck driver's call and not Brandon's on Brandon's 911 call. It's not very clear where he's at or who
he is or who he's with. >> Yeah. Yeah. And we bring this up simply for the fact that Kyle probably
considered that there's a chance that Brandon may be walking on the side of the road. We shouldn't assume that
Deputy Neil was actively looking for someone walking on the side of the road as he's driving in his cruiser to the
abandoned truck, you know, because a lot of times police get a lot of these abandoned vehicle calls. It's a very
common call. And a lot of the time, >> well, we don't know what that call was. >> Yeah. But but a lot of time when when
these vehicles are abandoned, the the driver and the passengers are are long gone by the time a safety services
officer finds the abandoned vehicle to ticket, tag, or or tow the vehicle away. >> So at this point in the timeline, we
have Kyle, Audrey, and Deputy Neil at Brandon's truck. >> Yeah. And once he's there, the deputy
observes the following. There is no visible sign of damage to Brandon's truck >> and his keys and his cell phone were not
inside the vehicle. >> Uh while talking with the deputy, Kyle received a call from Brandon,
>> right? >> In which Brandon's cell was going in and out and it was very hard for him to
understand what Brandon was saying. Uh what Kyle understood was I'm in a field. Uh Kyle felt maybe Brandon was hiding in
the field due to an outstanding warrant from about two years ago uh that Brandon
himself just learned about and was going to to address the following week according to the family. So Kyle made no
mention to the deputy of Brandon being on the phone. >> Just so we're clear, that warrant was
for a drug charge and he didn't pay a fee for that. >> Correct. Yeah. So the and let's dive
into this because there's a lot of speculation regarding this drug charge or the warrant out for Brandon Lawson.
>> The situation sounds like this, right? So he had this old outstanding warrant
that he found out about when he went to transfer a title on a vehicle or something. They they mentioned to him,
"Are you aware that there's a warrant out for you?" >> I'm I'm pretty for sure that he's
probably aware that he had a warrant, but this was just kind of a reminder. Well, possibly. Yeah. Uh the thing here
is I want to throw out my own little story here cuz one time I did have a warrant out for me
>> uh that I was unaware of. Um I get a phone call one day from my father and he's very upset and uh he says, you
know, there's a warrant out for you. I was talking to so and so and they told me there's a warrant out for you. And I
said, you know, he sounds angry at me and I'm like, you know, I'm getting on the defensive because this is my dad.
And I'm like, right, >> I don't know anything about this. I don't know what you're talking about.
So, what happened was I went down to the clerk of courts and asked them, "What's
this warrant for?" Not knowing if they were going to arrest me that day, but >> I wish they would have
>> it. Yeah, I would I'd still be in there. U But technically, it was a bench warrant. What had happened was, and it's
this sounds funny because people were like, "How do you not know there's a warrant out for you?" What had happened
was I got a speeding ticket, right? >> I had that speeding ticket and my my jacket was stolen. Yeah. I I had it in
my coat. It was had the check written. It was going to be paid and all that. >> Yeah, this sounds pretty fishy.
>> Sounds very fishy. I get you. I'm sure my dad doesn't believe me either. But any regardless, I didn't pay the ticket
and kind of forgot about it because the stolen jacket became more of a concern to me than the ticket. Basically, I had
to go downtown and pay a speeding ticket so they wouldn't come and arrest me. Apparently though, this was not a huge
deal, right though, Captain? because they weren't, it doesn't sound like they were actively looking for Brandon
Lawson, >> right? >> This wasn't something that they were looking to lock him up for a long period
of time. It's exactly what you said. It's something that he was planning to pay. It sounds like a fine that was
needed to be paid, >> right? But to be clear, those charges were drugreated. >> At 1:18 a.m., Audrey text Brandon
saying, "A cop is at your truck." It is assumed she did such as she wanted to warn him due to his warrant. Mhm.
>> Again, Audrey knows nothing of Brandon calling 911. In statements giving given
to police, as explained by the family, they did admit Brandon's earlier call to them in which he told his brother and
Audrey that he was 10 minutes up the road and was bleeding. Now, remind you, this was the call that was going in and
out. So, this is the as much that they could get from from the call, >> right? So, what we know about this call
is that maybe he's in a field, maybe he's 10 minutes up the road, which way we don't know.
>> And maybe he's bleeding. >> Yeah. >> Cuz you know how it is when when the call is cutting in and out. Sometimes
you have no clue what they're saying. You're just kind of fragments. >> Mhm. The important thing is this was
also not reported to Deputy Neil at the scene of Brandon's truck. >> Mhm. It is also understood that Deputy
Neil did not report to Kyle that Brandon phoned 911. It's still again unclear if
Deputy Neil even knew about the 911 call from Brandon himself. >> Right. >> I would guess that he did not know about
the call and and we, you know, have said why because it doesn't sound like they even knew who was making the call or
why. Uh when Deputy Neil found the truck again, he found it unlocked with no damage done to the vehicle. This vehicle
was not in any accident. >> Keys were not in the truck. There was no cell phone, no wallet. Brandon left that
truck and presumably went looking for gas and he took his keys and cell phone and wallet with him.
>> Deputy Neil then turned on the flashers of the truck and then they locked the
truck and then he left the scene. >> Yeah. He arranged for a tow arrive, a tow truck to arrive in the morning and
tow Brandon's truck to the impound lot. Don't you think those flashers though would make the battery go dead?
>> Very likely. Yes. Yeah. But you got to do something so they're going to see the
vehicle at this time. This was a very dark road, too. And it's it, you know, when you say it's kind of out in the
middle of nowhere. It really feels like out in the middle of nowhere. According to reports, the deputy then drove up and
down the roadway to see if he could spot Brandon walking. Uh Kyle and his girlfriend left the empty gas can in the
bed of the truck, thinking if Brandon came back, he would at least have a can that he could go retrieve some gas. They
went and began to look for Brandon as well. When the morning came and there was still no sign of Brandon, Kyle's
money was now available in his bank account. It is this point where he goes back to the truck and he gets the gas
can and he fills it up and returns it to the truck. At this point, he was now starting to become very concerned and he
felt that Brandon may not have been hiding in the bushes from the officer and that he might have been hiding
because he was in some kind of trouble. >> This is when they talk with investigators and he now gives them the
full account of Brandon being on the phone at the time the deputy was at the truck. It wasn't known by Brandon's
family that he had called 911 until Brandon's girlfriend, Liddessa, saw an itemized cell phone bill.
>> Right. >> When Liddessa woke up the next morning, there were several missed calls on her
cell phone. Three of these were from Brandon. Mhm. >> And I believe there were 10 mis calls
from Kyle because remember Kyle spent most of the night looking for Brandon and probably reaching out to Liddessa
time and time again trying to to wake her or get some input from her. Have you seen Brandon? Uh can you come help with
the search? Something of that nature. The the speculation has been a little weird on this part of the of the story
as well because we have a girlfriend who's missed all of these calls. However, her story is that the the phone
was not in the house. It was in her vehicle charging. >> Now, some people know that you have you
can charge your your phone just using a USB cord and plug it into your car. >> Yeah. And with older cars, you'd have to
have the car turned on, so it' run out your battery. If you just had it half turned and the battery was on, you can
charge it that way. Or you'd have to turn your car fully on, which would run out the gas. It's believed that she had
a newer car and some of the newer cars you can just plug stuff in and it'll charge even if it's not on.
>> Yeah. There has been no activity on Brandon's bank accounts or his cell phone since that time. Uh there was a
search organized by Leiddessa shortly after Brandon disappeared. This would have been either on that Sunday or
Monday. So just 2 or 3 days after. I apologize, but there are several reports that differ on the exact day, but there
was an an extensive search conducted at that point. >> Just so we're clear, there's a lot of
speculation in this case, and he went missing on the ETH. Brandon went missing on the ETH. And they're not going to
receive his cell phone records to know that he called 911 for a whole another month.
>> Right. And furthermore, once they find out that he called 911, Leiddessa is going to request that the the tape of
that 911 call, and it's going to be quite some time before she gets that as well. I believe she said about 4 months.
>> Yeah, it was about four and a half months >> regarding the searches because there was
an actual professional team that came in and conducted a an extensive search, >> but this was not until October 24th of
2013. They searched the area around the abandoned truck. Now, this was Texar who
brought in HR dogs, and that's the Texas search and rescue team, and they bring in these basically cadaavver dogs or
human remains dogs. >> The problem here though, Captain, is we see this situation where two and a half
months have have elapsed since you're since you're going to do the search. That's quite a bit of time.
>> A lot of time. And the other problem that we have here too is there's a lot of the like wild hogs in this area. And
I guess one thing like these dogs are really well trained, but one thing that can screw up these dogs are the smells
that come from these wild hogs. >> Well, and I I would just assume any smell from another animal would kind of
mess up their their scent. And it's been pointed out that this in particular and
while they did receive some hits on some scents and smells that they found, you know, these dogs went off in certain
areas, they think that most of that might have been like you said from wildlife. It wasn't from actual Brandon
Lawson that they they believe that the dogs were tracking. >> Again, if you have any animal dead, then
they would be picking up those scents as well. >> They've done a lot of aerial searches
with with airplanes. Again, there's some problems with this though, too, because
when you do these aerial searches, you want to do these very soon after somebody goes missing because they're
looking for abnormal activity, which that's going to disappear over any length of time. Sometimes they're just
looking for buzzards swarming. They didn't spot anything that would that led them to Brandon, obviously. And
furthermore, they did these these searches. Some of these searches were paid for by Leiddessa, right? And this
is a family that that was currently living paycheck to paycheck. >> Now the now >> the bread winner is gone.
>> Brandon's gone. And you know, so I applaud her efforts for paying for these searches.
>> Since we've been doing the podcast, it baffles me. It's uh very confusing to me
that we don't take these situations as serious. I mean, there's tons of missing people. There's tons of people that go
missing. There's always this time lapse like, well, he'll show up or, >> well, we didn't know exactly where he
was at, uh, but then he missed work, so then we decided it was a big deal, right?
>> And then we searched days later. It's like, you know, if they had better communication with the cops, if well,
and also the better cell phone reception and all that stuff, but if you started looking immediately,
>> worst case scenario, right? >> Mhm. is is you either get more answers, you get more leads, you know, or or you
find the person, >> right? >> You know, e even if they're dead, you find them, you know, or they show up and
you're like, "Oh, there's Brandon. Oh, we spent eight hours looking for you." >> But you don't give a [ __ ] about those
eight hours, >> right? >> Oh, oh, I lost eight hours, but I found you. Thanks. Oh, awesome. you know.
>> Yeah, it it's something that we've seen time and time again and reviewing some
of these cases. It's it's a weird thing though, Captain, because you have a situation where it's not not everything
is as it appears when you're arriving at the truck. You know, regardless of whose
shoes you're in, you know, if you're the deputy, you think you're responding to this abandoned vehicle and you think
it's just that this is a common problem. >> I'm just going to bring it up. We do not
know what the information was given to 911 based off the trucker >> from the trucker.
>> We don't know if it was abandoned uh truck call, >> right? I would love to figure out what
that call is. Uh but regardless, like I was saying, you have a situation where people arriving at a scene may not be
fully aware of what they're walking into. You have the brother that just knows that the vehicle ran out of gas.
We have the deputy that may just think he's responding to an abandoned vehicle. They meet up and now you're piecing two
things together. The deputy's probably told, "Hey, I you know, I spoke to my brother. He said that the vehicle ran
out of gas. Did you happen to see anybody walking?" No, I didn't. >> Right. >> When really there, this could be a much
different situation than I, you know, than either of those two had any clue of, >> right? And I and like I said, I'm not
I'm not trying to put any blame on his family or friends or anybody. I'm just saying that maybe because we've had all
these situations, we've had all these missing person cases, maybe we should start collectively taking these very
serious from from the word go. We're very connected now as a society. So, if somebody goes missing, you know, from
the word go, let's let's take these a little more serious and maybe we'd have less missing person cases. Yeah. The
other sad thing here, too, is we have a situation where you have an area of land
that's very large and a very small sheriff's department. They don't have a whole lot of people on staff. So, that
makes it very tough to search and comb that entire area. We have a man that was traveling from
from a bigger town from San Angelo and he's he's heading he's close he's reported as missing from Bront Texas.
Now the thing here is Bront is only like 3,000 people. We're talking about a very
small town. >> Yes, I understand that. But we're also talking about a human that is not going,
you know, he's not on in a car. He's not on a motorcycle. He's on foot. >> If Brandon's on foot, he can only get so
far. >> Mhm. you know, from that truck a mile radius, you even if you start the search
in the morning and even if he if he walked uh pretty quickly, we're talking he's he's not getting 20 some miles
away. >> No. >> So, the radius becomes what I'm saying is smaller. >> Yeah, you're exactly right. And there
were only really a couple directions to go. You know, you he could have walked towards Bront or he could have walked
back towards, you know, where he came from. >> Well, yeah, I would agree with you on
that. other than the fact that we have possibly two calls where he's stating he's in a field. So, which direction he
went? >> Well, what I mean by you Well, I get what you're saying, but what I mean by
that is I'm believing that he would be in search of gas and that he would probably be heading in one or two
directions where he knows that he can get to a gas station. >> Right. The other situation that we have
here too, Captain, and I don't really want to spend too much time on it, but we should mention it because the police,
it's been reported that the police went under the assumption that Brandon left on his own will, right?
>> That that he left because he wanted to go off with another woman. Now, how they
arrived to this conclusion, I'm not certain. Um it it was stated in their local newspaper that they believe that
he was picked up by a woman and drove off, you know, but but we clearly we have the call to the brother. That's
he's looking for gas. If he if he had help, if he had someone helping him drive somewhere that I don't feel like
that call would be made to the brother. >> Well, and I couldn't find any information online on his cell phone
records, but I'd be interested to see what that cell phone log looked like. Mhm.
>> And you know, as far as the family, can the family identify every number that
was called? >> Right. >> And if and if those numbers, if there was one that is not identified, then can
we identify that? Now, >> now we should also point out that the McCutchen family owned the local
newspaper and the McCutchen has a connection to the sheriff's office. The head sheriff is Sheriff McCutchen. His
wife is the operator of this local newspaper. and she's a journalist. They call them journalists.
>> Well, and this is where it's been reported that they believe he left with another woman. It there's been a lot of
bickering back and forth between the Lawson family and the the local newspaper. >> Well, okay. So, my thoughts are one, uh,
the Lawson's family. Look, this whole idea that everything is a law enforcement conspiracy that that happens
with so many cases. Do I think there's and and in every case there's some gray area, but let's just start with what
they could have done. We have him calling that why a deputy is there. >> Mhm. >> Tell them who cares that he has a
warrant. It comes down to safety, >> right? >> You know, and this guy is saying, I'm in
a field. He's saying to his brother, I'm possibly bleeding. If I am calling my brother on the phone and he can't
understand me and and I'm saying I'm in a field and I'm and he hears that I'm possibly bleeding, I don't give a [ __ ]
about a warrant. >> Tell the deputy and he can come find me. We'll sort out the warrant stuff later.
>> Mhm. >> But again, I would rather spend a night in jail because of a warrant than to
just go missing for the rest of my life. >> Right. >> And so I think as far as that goes, yes,
I I I understand where their head is coming from. Maybe he's hiding. and I don't want to turn him in. But no, it
comes down to safety. Deal deal with that later. >> Mhm. Air on the side of caution, you're
saying, >> right? >> Wow. We are only about 20 minutes into the show and you're already getting very
angry. I can see the steam coming out of your coming out of your ears. >> Most tasty beer though. So, but hey,
let's get another one. Let's take a quick beer break. [Music] All right, cheers everybody. We are
discussing the missing person case of Brandon Lawson. >> Brandon Lawson was last seen August 8th.
He left his home, went to go to his father's house. He runs out of gas. He's technically listed as missing August 9th
because we have some phone communication with him that evening. When the deputy arrives, they can't find Brandon. He
goes up and down the road the rest of the night looking for Brandon walking somewhere. And we have the brother Kyle
who's out looking for Brandon as well. >> And this case just keeps getting more interesting because there's so many
questions like what exactly was that fight about? >> Yeah. And was he actually even heading
to his father's house? I mean, we have the phone call. He calls, says that he's coming over, but we have almost an hour
that goes by before he actually leaves the house. And this is after his own father tells him, "You should probably
just stay home, cool off, don't worry about it. You shouldn't come out this way. It's a 2-hour drive, right? Maybe
he's driving around just to blow off steam." We also have his phone records, and I have not seen any evidence. Maybe
he called somebody else that we're not aware of. And then also, what was this 911 call that came from the truck
driver, >> right? >> What was that call about? You know, I'd really be interested for them to release
that tape. >> And when I first looked at it, I thought it was a little strange that the trucker
called 911, but then, you know, I reminded myself, this is a guy who's probably a long-distance driver. Mhm.
>> He's not aware of the local sheriff's department phone number because this is
not an a 911 type emergency, but he's probably just calling the number that he knows will reach.
>> Well, you keep speculating that it's not an emergency. We have no clue what that
call was about. >> If if we take it from what it's reported as is just an abandoned vehicle call,
>> it's not a 911 emergency, obviously. >> Right. And then the other question is
that we have law enforcement coming out later and talking to a local newspaper saying, "Hey, this guy probably just
went off with some girl." What's their evidence to prove that? >> And furthermore, we have the family that
has constantly said, you know, this is not this is out of character for Brandon. It wouldn't be he was not of
the type to just up and leave. You know, we mentioned he had four kids. >> Uh it sounds like he was a devoted
father. Um, he had his girlfriend there. He was very close to his father, very close to his brother. It seems like a
lot of reasons to stay. I'm not going to lie to you, Captain. Four, being 26, having four kids, and working 95 hours a
week sounds like some good reasons to leave, but his family is adamant. >> Well, you sound like a really nice guy.
It >> his family is adamant that this would be out of character for Brandon. He would
not leave his children. >> So, again, a lot of questions and a lot of things we just don't know. But what
we do have is the 911 tape that was released to the family about four or four and a half months after they
requested it. >> Yeah. And there in itself is a big question, right? You wonder, you ask for
this 911 tape and we're assuming it it was some time had elapsed before they're requesting it,
>> right? >> But then we see a whole lot of time go by before they released this this tape.
you know, it shouldn't take that long of a time period to get a 911 call. >> That brings up speculation that this
tape was doctorred before given to the family. >> And that's why we thought that it would
be key to really dissect this 911 call to to try to figure out what's going on in the call, what he is actually saying.
Uh, you know, the thing here, Captain, is we have some technology that's not readily available to to everybody in
everyone's garage. You know, we have some sound equipment here. And we also have a secret weapon. We have the
captain. He's he's a legit bonafide sound engineer, and he's going to help us dissect this baby right now. We're
going to we're going to bring this into the garage. We're going to take it apart, look at it piece by piece, put it
back together, and see if it runs. >> Basically, this episode is for all the haters that think I bring nothing to the
show. >> All right, Captain. So, please play the 911 call in in its entirety at normal
speed, but play it two times in a row. >> 9 23 0 50 and 38 seconds. >> 91 emergency.
>> Yes, I'm in the middle of the field. We're just pushing guys over right here going towards javelin on both sides. My
truck ran out of gas. There's one car here. Got sh the woods. Please turn. Okay. Now run that by me.
>> Why not talking to him? >> I ran into him. >> Ah, you ran into him. Okay. >> Got the first guy.
>> Do you need an ambulance? >> Yeah. No, I need the cops. >> Okay. Is anybody hurt?
Hello? Hello? Hello. >> 9 23 0 50 and 38 seconds. >> 91 emergency. >> Yes, I'm in the middle of the field.
They're safe. We're just pushing guys over right here going towards Javelin on both sides. My truck ran out of gas.
There's one car here. Got chasing to the woods. Please turn. >> Okay, now run that by me. We're not
talking to him. I accidentally ran into him. >> Ah, you ran into him. Okay. >> Got the first guy.
>> Do you need an ambulance? >> Yeah. No, I need to call. >> Okay. Is anybody hurt?
Hello. Hello. Hello. So, I'm trying not to alter the tape too much. And as you can tell, like
we have these big sexy man voices. And this >> Oh, yeah. >> And this 911 tape is a little piercing.
Well, here's a good exercise for everybody to do. Stop what you're doing right now. Get out some paper and a
pencil. And we're going to go through this line by line. I want everybody to write down what they think Brandon is
saying. >> And you can submit those on our blog at truecrimerg.com. >> Let the dissection begin, Captain. play
this at a slower speed. Yeah. And they have a time code on this. So, I'm not going to play the time code every time
cuz that would be a little annoying. Kind of like Nick. >> 91 emergency. >> Yes. I'm in the middle of the field.
We're just pushing guys over right here going towards on both sides. My truck ran out of gas. There's one car
here. You guys ch the wood. Okay. Now run into >> Ah, you ran into him. Okay. >> Do you need an ambulance?
>> No, I need to call. >> Okay. Is anybody hurt? [Applause] Hello. >> Now, on the original tape, there's three
hellos, and I just cut those out for the slow down version, just, you know, so we
can focus on the meat and potatoes. Now, what happens with the sound quality is it goes down a little bit. The quality
gets worse when you slow something down because basically what you're doing is you're expanding uh you're stretching
the soundwave. M >> and then you're putting bits of silence in there, >> right? >> And because of those bits of silence, it
starts kind of distorting it a little bit. So that's why it's a little bit less of a quality u at the slower speed.
>> Okay, let's hear that again at that same speed. >> 91 emergency. >> Yes, I'm in the middle of the field.
We're just pushing guys over right here going towards on both sides. My truck ran out of gas. There's one car
here. >> Okay. Now, I met him. I ran into him. >> Ah, you ran into him. Okay. >> Do you need an ambulance?
>> No, I need to call. Okay. Is anybody hurt? [Applause] >> Hello. >> The call is chilling to say the least.
Yeah. >> I mean, every time I hear it, it it chills me to the bone. Um, can we play
it at an even slower speed? >> 911. Emergency. >> Yeah. I'm in the middle of filing
guys over here going towards on both sides here. Okay. No, but ah, you ran into some. Okay.
The first stop needed an ambulance. No, I need the call. >> Okay. Is anybody hurt?
Hello. Hello. Hello. >> So, slowing down even more. We're taking those sound files, those sound waves,
we're stretching them and putting even more pockets of silence in there so you get more distortion.
>> Okay, let's play it at that speed one more time and then we'll talk about kind
of our initial thoughts. 91 emergency in the middle of field just some guys over
here going toward both sides here. Okay. No, but ah, you ran into some. Okay. You need an ambulance?
No, I need the car. >> Okay. Is anybody hurt? Hello. Hello. Hello. >> Okay, this is a good time to use that
pencil and those and paper and put down your initial thoughts because as we start talking about this, you know, we
might start molding your thinking as far as what you think that you're hearing. >> Right.
>> So, first off, he is he sounds out of breath to me. Right. >> Right. >> Uh he sounds scared to me as well. Not
to be misleading, anytime that you slow down anybody, they also sound like they're possibly intoxicated.
>> Yeah. Which is which is something interesting you and I were talking about earlier here because there's been some
people say, "Well, maybe he was drunk. You know, he got in a fight. Maybe he went and got drunk. Maybe he, you know,
and Leiddessa says he was not intoxicated or had not been drinking before he left." And I think if you
listen to the original and you listen at the normal speed, he doesn't sound intoxicated to me. But obviously, like I
said, once you start slowing it down, everybody sounds intoxicated. >> Yeah. Because especially on the first
the first slowed down version, and proof of that is the the the person answering
the 911 call. She goes, "911 emergency." You know, that's we everybody's got a friend, a female friend that sounds like
that after a few shots. Well, let's talk a little bit about the 911 dispatcher. Most counties will have an actual
dispatch group of 911. This county was really small. So, when you call 911, it actually went to a nursing home.
Correct. >> And the nurses on staff were trained to answer these 911 calls. >> Yeah. There's been a lot of people that
have said that the 911 person wasn't doing a very good job that night. You know, that that she never asked for
Brandon's name. She never asked for Brandon's location. Um, I don't know. I I kind of I kind of have to defend the
dispatcher here in my in my opinion because first of all, he's he's got a very thick accent. He's out of breath.
It's hard to understand what he's saying. >> It sounds to me like she's trying to
assess the situation, you know, asking if he needs an ambulance. Is anybody hurt?
>> And obviously, could they use maybe more training? Obviously, but we all could
use more training. >> We all could use some more training. You're exactly right. The the thing here
is, Captain, I don't know how how quickly are they supposed to ask for somebody's name. Is is his name even
that important in the beginning part of the conversation? I mean, does she have the ability to to carry on the
conversation and dispatch whatever he's calling for, you know, whether it be the
cops or an ambulance, >> right? And there's at least two or three times where she is going to say
something or trying to say something and he's interjecting. >> Oh, just like the captain, you know,
stepping all over somebody else's words. >> I've been trying to get better at that.
>> My first thoughts here, Captain, are that after hearing it those three different speeds, you know, there's
obvious signs that there there are certain words and certain lines that he is saying that are much clearer than
others and much more precise. What I think we could do, you know, since we have the tools, maybe we look at this
thing line by line and try to pick apart the ones that are that are tougher to hear because some of the lines almost
sound like he's rolling into the next sentence. >> Mhm. Well, so what you're going to hear
now is the first line and we'll play that at normal speed and I'm going to actually put it on a loop.
>> Yes, I'm in the middle of the field or we're just pinging guys over. Yes, I'm in the middle of the field or
safe. We're just pushing guys over. Yes, I'm in the middle of the field or we're just pushing guys over.
Yes, I'm in the middle of the field or we're just guys over. >> So that the very first half of that
sounds very clear to me. I think I'm hearing yes, I'm in the middle of a field. The second line is much less
clear to me. It sounds like he's saying Staper just pushed, but I also hear Staper just pulled
>> some guys over. >> I'll play that clip again on a loop and slow it down. >> Yes, I'm in the middle of the field.
We're just pushing over. >> Yes, I'm in the middle of the field. We're just pushing over.
Yes, I'm in the middle of the field. We're just searching over. >> So, we both agree that we think he's
starting off by saying, "Yes, I'm in the middle of the field." >> Mhm. >> Or, "Yes, I'm in the middle of a field."
>> Right. >> Right. Something like that. >> Yeah. He's He's not on the road. He's
trying to give a a general description to the dispatcher of where he is. Yes. I'm in the middle of a field. And it
almost like the yes is like, you know, when you're waiting when you're urgently waiting for somebody to pick up.
>> Yeah. >> You know, she's 911 emergency. Yes. I'm in the middle of a field, >> right? And then it it's weird because it
sounds like a staper. >> A staper just when it's slowed down, it sounds more like pushed.
>> You're exactly right. >> But again, because you're creating those pockets of silence, it distorts things.
So it could be making more of a sound. >> Would somebody say pushed somebody? I mean, you wouldn't if you were talking
about Okay. Staper. First of all, what >> what the hell is a staper? >> What is a staper? We don't we don't
know. I mean, but it but it's >> you know I when we first listened to it, I thought maybe, you know, I heard
Stapler. Uh cuz I'm trying to not think about what his situation is. I'm trying not to think about this guy being out in
the middle of nowhere. It's midnight. It's very late. He's calling. I I'm trying to
>> The >> Adrenaline's going. >> Yeah. I'm trying to push all of that out and just write down what I
>> push. >> Did you say push or pull? >> I said push. I'm trying to I'm trying to
clear all that out and just just write down what I hear. >> Yeah. >> And staper is really what I hear. I
mean, I I wanted to I wanted to it to make sense. So, like escaper, you know, or you know, was it two words rolled
together? >> Staper. That's what it sounds like to me. Yes, I'm in the middle of field.
Staper. Now, again, so the big speculation there has been with Staper is that they doctorred the tape,
>> right? >> That, you know, they had what, four and a half months to alter the tape. And so
the Now, here's the problem. So, I'm taking this recording and I'm putting it into our recording uh program. And
normally when there's a edit, if there's a bad edit, there's a pop. When I'm when
I was looking at these wave files, I could not see any visual sign of a bad edit. That doesn't mean that there
wasn't an edit. It just means that there wasn't a bad edit. So, we're both pretty
convinced of what we think he's saying in that first phrase, right? So, let's uh let's just solo out that first
phrase. Here's that first phrase at original speed looped. >> Yes, I'm in the middle of the field.
Yes, I'm in the middle of the field. Yes, I'm in the middle of the field. >> So, as you hear at the end of each loop,
there's a little pop. >> Now, like I said, if you if there's a bad edit, you'll hear a pop. That edit,
that bad edit is on my part. >> That you created that. So, >> well, I Yeah, I didn't create it. I just
sent because I'm cutting too I'm cutting the wave in half. So, by doing that when
it gets the and it pops every time. >> Yeah, it sounds like something like shutting off or a click or or like you
said a pop. >> Right. So, that's my edit, not theirs. >> Play that next section for me, but slow
it down and loop it. pushing over. The staper just pushing over. The staper just pushing over.
>> Okay. Staper just pushed some guys over >> or possibly Staper just pulled some guys
over. >> Yeah. When when you play it in the original speed, I hear Staper just pulled some guys over.
>> That slower speed sounds Staper just pushed some guys over. You know, the Staper is very clear. Uh
but there's been a lot of speculation regarding that word. Um >> right. Yeah. And and just talk about
this theory that was left on a message board. >> Yeah. So in this this will kind of
change the whole thought of the first two lines that we hear, right? >> Mhm. >> So I read a comment that someone had
said that staper is actually a slang term. You know, if you if if I ask Siri for the definition of staper, she tells
me what the definition of steeper is. When I type it into Google search, I get the definition for stapler because
there's no staper word. >> Right. >> The thing here is this commenter said that staper is a slang term for like an
oil worker. Mhm. >> And the the gist of his comments or her comments, I don't know who this person
is, >> but they're saying that that he's saying Staper just pushed some guy over,
>> meaning that that an oil worker pushed some guy like into an oil tank or oil,
you know, >> right? And then the other idea is that he starts off by saying, "I'm in the
middle of a field." And so now it's not just some arbitrary field, but you know,
I'm in the middle of a oil field and a staper just pushed some guy over or pushed some guys over.
>> And I I got to be honest with you, I know nothing about oil fields. I I you know, I know I've been to Texas a couple
times. I love the state. You might hear us do our little Texas twang on on some of these. Uh we mean no disrespect. love
Texas, but you know, if there are people in the area or people that are familiar
with oil work, um I would love to hear their comments. Is staper a word? Is that an actual term that people use? Um
because again, it it does it changes that first line from the middle of a field to the middle of an oil field and
a staper just push some guy over. And the other speculation or the kind of conspiracy theory out there is that
Staper is actually where an edit was made >> before the you know the it took four
months to release the tape. So within that four months then they made this edit. Now so what we're going to do is
it's the the staper edit moment. Right. >> Okay. So, I'm going to present a way you could
make this edit and create this new word staper. So, you got to start by what word do people think they're covering
up? And it's state trooper. So, a lot of people believe he's saying, "I'm in the
middle of a field and a state trooper just pulled some guys over." >> Mhm. >> So, the word is state trooper. Now I
want you to say the word >> state trooper. >> Okay. Now I'm going to make this edit
and then Nick's going to tell you how long it took me to make the edit. >> Okay. State. State. State. That took
four months. >> No. No. It took maybe 4 seconds. Now, now the problem here is Nick is talking
in a very clean room. Well, it's kind of dirty, but uh dirty garage, but because
the audio quality is clear, it's a lot easier to make that edit. >> Okay, >> so it took 4 seconds. It's not that hard
to make that edit. It's also not hard to make a clean edit, so therefore you don't hear a pop. The problem is with
the phone call, there would be so much static, it' be a lot harder to make a clean edit without a pop. Let let me see
if I understand you completely. Okay. So, you're saying that if there were you know when you look at the wave file you
don't visually see an edit point. >> However, >> which you would not see if it's clean
edit. >> Okay. But however, you're saying in this situation um it it obviously was very easy for you
to create the word staper from state trooper. Mhm. >> So, in your expertise, is this is it an
edit? I mean, clear that up for me. >> I don't visually see an edit, but it's definitely possible that they made a
clean edit. >> Okay. So, let's let me just I'm going to hang on this for a second because this
word has been of much speculation, >> right? And it changes everything because if if it was an edit then what he is
clearly stating is I'm in the middle of a field and a state trooper just pulled some guys over.
>> And that is why people would believe that the tape was held on to for so long
that they had some things they wanted to take out, remove from the the the voice
message >> and they wanted to clean it up for their purposes. whatever whatever they're
covering up or whatever they're trying to hide, >> right? That would be the conspiracy
theory. >> Can we compare those two clips side by side? So, the one clip would be of me
which you created of me saying staper compared to Brandon saying staper staper staper staper.
>> I Here's the thing, Captain. I feel like I'm saying it slower than he is. So maybe if we compared it to the the
slower version. >> Here's a even slower version. >> It sounds very much the same to me,
right? The staper, right? And the other thing that people have to kind of wrap their head around is we have a guy
that's 230 some pounds, out of breath, full of adrenaline, and this word he might have slurred over. Mhm.
>> So, it possibly is not even an edit. >> Yeah. >> It's he's just not clearly stating
whatever word he's trying to say. And again, I think that falls as far as logic. I'm in the middle of a field. A
state trooper just pulled me over. >> Yeah. >> Well, well, a state trooper just pulled
some guys over. Sorry. >> If it's not an edit, okay, then I kind of hear state trooper. State trooper.
you know, almost like he's rolling, you know, he never gets to the second T of state
>> and it goes right into trooper, >> which which I wonder now that if I've gotten too hung up on the word staper
and I just really quickly assume the next word is just. Staper just pulled this guy over. Staper just pulled these
guys over, >> right? >> Because if if just is not if just is not the word there,
>> right? if it's actually some weird way of saying state trooper pulled some guys
over. >> Yeah. >> And and then Yeah. I mean I think like I said I just think logically it goes
towards some kind of version of state trooper. >> Yeah. >> Then the question then becomes is he in
his right mind? Because if he's not in his right mind, then everything he's saying, you know, and when I say not in
his right mind, intoxicated or on drugs or maybe sleepd deprived. If you have if
you're sleep uh if you're sleepd deprived long enough, you could possibly hallucinate.
>> I've I've actually had that happen once. >> Sorry to break from this for a second
here, but this is going to sound crazy. I worked a 36 and 1/2 hour shift one time. All right. Mhm.
>> And at some point, so I came in around like 6:00 in the morning and I didn't leave until the following afternoon, but
sometime around 6:00 in the morning after right right around that 24hour mark, right?
>> I'm drinking coffee again. And other people start coming back into work to to
do their their next day shift. I'm still on my my one shift. And I swear there was probably about five to 10 minutes
where I I was hallucinating, but but I was still of enough mind to realize that I was hallucinating. And it was just
little things like I thought people were saying things that they might not have been saying. Uh and people looked looked
a little weird to me. >> Well, yeah. I I've seen some of the people you worked with, they looked
weird. Anyways, but um tell me that you weren't salary. Tell me you were hourly. No, I was a that was a
salaried position. They got their money's worth that week. Um I Here's the thing though, Captain, and I hate to
keep having you pull little things and and play it, but >> that's what we're doing.
>> But now what I want to know is having talked about is this state trooper. if that's if he's rolling it or if he's
out of breath and that's how it's coming out and coming through. I really want to
hear those next four or five words again, you know, because because now I'm concerned is
if I go with it state trooper or state trooper, it is the next word just pulled this guy just pulled these guys just
pulled some guys. >> You see what I mean? And I want to hear is it guy or guys? We'll just play it a
couple times slow from that part. just pushing guys over. >> The pushed is weird. It's, you know, um,
have you ever heard like older folks say push, you know, rather than push? >> Um,
again, that part right there is is a conundrum for me because I I tell you, you play it once, I hear pulled. You
play it a second time, I hear pushed. Um, I >> just Yeah, but you got to >> I got to push on through here, right?
>> Yeah. But you got to keep in account that there is distortion. >> Mhm. >> And so sometimes when you do slow
something down where definitely when you slow down that word, it definitely sounds more like pushed
>> than pulled. >> Yeah. >> Uh but also we got to remember um people misspeak. >> Yeah.
>> So one little slip, you know, push some guys or pulled some guys. Again, at the
end of the day, to me, it starts coming more around to this idea of I'm in the middle of a field and a state and a
state trooper just pulled some guys over. >> It's It's definitely some guys over. I
I'm 100% on that. Some guys over. >> Right. So, now part of the story is we we have Brandon, we have a state
trooper, and we have some guys. >> Yeah. Yeah. And here I'm writing down as we go. Okay. And this is where I have
it. I actually removed the word justest from the second line. I I just I feel like it's not there. I have Yes, I'm in
the middle of a field. Stay trooper pulled some guys over. >> Mhm. >> That's what I got.
>> All right, I'll play the next phrase. >> Right here going towards javelin on both
sides. Right here going towards javelin on both sides. Right here going towards javelin on both
sides. Now, from the comments that I've read, Captain, you know, because and I'm
going to keep going back to these comments because I got on a bunch of different websites regarding this
Brandon Lawson mystery, and I wanted to hear what other people thought they were
hearing because, you know, I >> because you don't trust yourself. >> Well, and ideally, you would get many
people, many ears into one room and play it and get a general consensus. It seems
to me that the general consensus on this line is that he's saying they're out here going to Abberene on
both sides. >> Mhm. >> Have you Have you seen that? Um >> well, it sounds like right here.
>> Well, let's hear that slowed down. >> Out here going towards a both sides. Right here going towards a both sides.
Right here going towards a both sides. See, that's, you know, when I when I type in list of Texas cities, right,
there is an Aberlin and there's an Aberdeen as well. Um, which would sound very similar, I think, to one another
given his accent and how fast and out of breath he's, you know, >> right? To me, it sounds like a G sound,
though. >> And and I I hear you, too, because when we slowed it down, it sounds like the
word starts with a G. >> How about Yeah. How about I just solo that section and and go real slow with
it? >> Sometimes when you slow things down, they become almost inaudible. >> Well, looking at at the list of names of
cities in Texas, if we go with a G there, uh the ones that sound similar to maybe what he's saying would be
Galveastston. There's also uh Goulson and Groverton >> or Grove, sorry. But the the thing here
is captain I have to ask you this because what there are certain letters right that are pronounced a certain way that
that are more prominent than others like are there some things that we should be
listening for when we're going through these as far as P's are usually very pretty
>> pronounced. >> Yeah. Um G I would think a G or a J might be a harder um letter like that.
>> Yeah. I think it's confusing. I think at the end of the day it it it sounds like
it's you know going towards something. >> Mhm. >> On both sides. So I you know I think it
would be nice to have every word be audible but I don't think it's necessary in order to get the picture of what's
happening. Well, and there's that famous paragraph out there where the author purposely jumbled up the words, well,
not the words, but the letters of each word. And when somebody reads through it, you can actually read and tell what
it's supposed to say, even though when you look at the words individually, they make no sense. Right? So, we don't maybe
know what word that is. We don't know if that's a city or not, but we kind of have the framework around it. So, what
do we have so far? Um, what I have so far is the I'm convinced on the first two lines that we have. Yes, I'm in the
middle of a field. Stay trooper pulled some guys over. I'm I can't say what I'm hearing on the third one for certain
yet. I think we got to go through the third line a little more. The thing here is though, Captain, we try to put out
these episodes Tuesday evening, and it's getting very late here in the garage, and if we don't take a break now, this
episode won't come out until Wednesday morning. And we're not going to do that to anybody. So, let's let's stop it now.
Uh, >> you stop it now. >> We'll take a quick beer break and we'll get back at it to record the next
episode. And what do you think? Put these out a little closer in in time. >> Yeah. So people don't have to wait so
long. >> Gotcha. Gotcha. cuz we're kind of I feel like we're stopping halfway through
right here. Thank you, Captain. And we will see everybody right here back in the garage in a couple of hours. And
until then, be good, be kind, and don't litter. [Music] [Applause] [Music]

Brandon Lawson 911 Tape /// Part 1 /// Episode:85

TrueCrimeGarage.com

August 9th - 2013, Bronte, Texas- A young father of four left his home in the middle of the night. While driving his truck to his father's house he runs out of gas. Brandon Lawson is on a dark highway in the middle of nowhere. Armed with only his cell phone Brandon goes walking in search of gas. Something happened that scared Brandon because just before 1 am, he calls 911. I'm in a field... I need the cops... Please hurry...Are these Brandon's last words? Tonight we go through the timeline of Brandon's disappearance and we try to dissect the now famous 911 call.Beer of the week - One Hundred Million Angels Singing by Texas Ale ProjectGarage Grade - 4 and a half bottle caps out of five

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Brief Summary

Brandon Lawson vanished in 2013 after running out of gas, raising questions about the 911 response and search efforts.

Key points

Brandon Lawson's Mysterious Disappearance. Brandon Lawson, a father of four, vanished after running out of gas in Texas.
The Night of the Disappearance. Brandon left home after an argument and ran out of gas, leading to a series of calls.
The 911 Call. Brandon called 911 for help, but confusion surrounded his location and situation.
Search Efforts. Extensive searches were conducted weeks after Brandon went missing, but yielded no results.
The Search for Brandon Lawson. Brandon Lawson went missing after running out of gas, leading to a complex investigation.
911 Call Dissection. The chilling 911 call reveals critical details about Brandon's situation.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

That's a lot of responsibility for a 26-year-old.

Discussion about Brandon's life and responsibilities.

6:12WatchOct 13, 2025

Tension

65/ 100Some tension

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