The word “ROC” written in blood shocked investigators and the public alike. But in Part Two of The Murder of Karen Pannell, the truth emerges not from what was written on the wall — but from what the evidence refused to ignore.

In this episode, Dark Dialogue follows the case into the courtroom, where forensic science, timelines, and witness testimony dismantled the idea of a dying declaration and exposed a carefully staged crime scene. Prosecutors laid out a case built on bloodstain pattern analysis, medical testimony, DNA evidence, cell-tower data, and a collapsing alibi — while the defense fought to inject reasonable doubt through challenges to interpretation, memory, and motive.

We examine the full trial: • The medical examiner’s testimony and why Karen could not have written “ROC” • Bloodstain analysis proving the message was added after the attack • DNA evidence tying Tim Permenter to a close, violent struggle — and excluding others • Cell-tower records and eyewitness timelines that placed him at the scene through the night • George Solomon’s account of a late-night confession and request for cover • Tim Permenter’s decision to testify — and how jurors weighed his explanations

The episode concludes with the jury’s verdict, the death-penalty recommendation, the judge’s ultimate sentence of life without parole, and the appellate rulings that upheld the conviction. We also return to Karen — not as evidence, but as a person — in a final victim tribute that centers her life, her strength, and the cost of intimate-partner violence.

This is not a story about a word written in blood. It is a story about control, deception, and how truth survives even the most deliberate attempts to bury it.

Original music featured in the victim tribute includes “Paper Wings” by JJ Hawk, produced by Hawk Studios, and used with permission. Learn more about JJ Hawk and Hawk Studios here: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61574578047424

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Listener discretion advised: this episode contains discussion of violent crime and graphic details.

In October 2003, 39-year-old airline professional Karen Pannell was found stabbed to death inside her Oldsmar, Florida villa. Near her body, written in blood on the kitchen wall, was a single word: “ROC.”

At first, investigators believed they were looking at a dying message — a final act of identification left by a woman who knew she was dying. Karen’s ex-boyfriend, whose nickname was Roc, became the immediate focus.

But the evidence didn’t hold.

In this first episode of a two-part investigation, Dark Dialogue examines how a crime scene that seemed to explain itself slowly unraveled. Forensic analysis revealed the blood writing was staged. Cell-tower data contradicted alibis. Witnesses stepped forward. And a relationship marked by control, deception, and a hidden violent past came sharply into focus.

This episode follows:

• The discovery of Karen’s body and the initial investigation
• Why the bloody message pointed investigators in the wrong direction
• How forensic science exposed staging rather than truth
• The “exit-ramp danger zone” — the statistically most lethal moment in abusive relationships
• The early cracks that shifted the case away from a framed suspect and toward the real killer

This is not just a murder story. It’s a case study in how control escalates when it begins to fail, and why leaving an abusive relationship is often the most dangerous step of all.

Part Two will take listeners into the courtroom — where lies collapse, evidence speaks, and accountability is finally forced into the open.

If You or Someone You Know Needs Help

If you are in immediate danger, call 911 (U.S.) or your local emergency number right now.

Confidential support is available 24/7:

• National Domestic Violence Hotline (U.S.) 📞 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) 💬 Text START to 88788 🌐 https://www.thehotline.org
• National Center for Victims of Crime 📞 855-4-VICTIM (855-484-2846) 🌐 https://victimsofcrime.org
• StrongHearts Native Helpline 📞 1-844-7NATIVE (1-844-762-8483) 🌐 https://strongheartshelpline.org

Leaving an abusive relationship is dangerous — but you do not have to do it alone. Advocates can help you create a safety plan tailored to your situation.

How You Can Take Action Beyond Listening

• Join the Adopt-a-Victim Program Help support research, records review, and investigative work for a missing or unsolved case: 👉 www.darkdialogue.com
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Part Two drops next — and the truth doesn’t stay hidden forever.

…and keep the dialogue alive…

Christmas is supposed to be a refuge—a pause from the chaos, a promise of peace. But for many families, Christmas doesn’t calm the storm. It traps it.

In this Dark Dialogue Distilled Christmas Special, John examines some of the most disturbing cases of domestic violence and family annihilation to occur on or around Christmas—not as isolated tragedies, but as part of a repeating and deeply uncomfortable pattern.

From the 1929 Lawson family murders in North Carolina, to the unresolved mystery of the Sodder children, to the Carnation family massacre, the Covina Christmas Eve Santa-suit attack, and modern cases where violence unfolded quietly behind closed doors, this episode strips away holiday mythology and confronts the truth:

Christmas doesn’t create abuse. It concentrates it.

Alcohol, financial pressure, forced proximity, isolation, and the expectation that everything should “look fine” collide—often with devastating consequences. These crimes were not spontaneous. They were escalations of control, resentment, entitlement, and fear that already existed long before the tree went up.

This episode is not about fear-mongering. It’s about honesty.

It’s about recognizing that holidays can be a high-risk moment for those already living with domestic violence—and that silence, tradition, and appearances can be deadly.

You’ll also hear a data-driven discussion that separates myth from reality: why December is not statistically the deadliest month overall, yet remains a documented danger window for escalation, emergency calls, and lethal outcomes.

We close with a Christmas victim tribute, honoring the lives lost—not for how they died, but for how they lived—and a reminder that checking in, listening, and refusing to look away can matter more than any tradition.

If this episode resonates with you, or raises concern for someone you love, please don’t ignore that feeling. Help is available. Reaching out is not weakness—it’s survival.

• Follow or subscribe to Dark Dialogue Distilled wherever you listen • Rate and review the show if your platform allows—it helps these stories reach the people who need them • Share this episode with someone who should hear it • Watch on YouTube, subscribe, and turn on notifications • Join us live on New Year’s night for the Dark Dialogue live show 👉 darkdialogue.com/live

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