FILE 245 / 14 October 2021 / 176 MIN / full

I See Dead People

Indialantic, FloridaListen

The town

N ↑Public placePublic placeTown centre (approximate places)
Static locations; no street basemap. Places and details. OpenFreeMap © OpenMapTiles Data from OpenStreetMap.

We're going to Indialantic, Florida, and this is central Florida, right on the coast, right on the east coast of Florida. It's in Brevard County. about 0:06:17

History, in brief

Town note

Ernest Coven-Hoven, from two blue-blood families, bought the land that became Indialantic and settled the area.

about 0:08:46

Town note

He built a wooden bridge connecting Indialantic with Melbourne, Florida.

about 0:09:17

Town note

In the 1920s the Indialantic Hotel was built; it was later renamed the Tradewinds Hotel.

about 0:09:33

1924

In 1924 a casino was built; it later became the Bahama Beach Club and the site is now Nance Park.

about 0:09:41
All 7 history facts

Town note

Ernest Coven-Hoven, from two blue-blood families, bought the land that became Indialantic and settled the area.

about 0:08:46

Town note

He built a wooden bridge connecting Indialantic with Melbourne, Florida.

about 0:09:17

Town note

In the 1920s the Indialantic Hotel was built; it was later renamed the Tradewinds Hotel.

about 0:09:33

1924

In 1924 a casino was built; it later became the Bahama Beach Club and the site is now Nance Park.

about 0:09:41

1941

Between 1941 and 1947 the wooden bridge was replaced by a drawbridge; the Second World War delayed the work.

about 0:10:21

1952

Indialantic was incorporated in 1952 under the official name Indialantic by the Sea.

about 0:10:54

1985

In 1985 a modern causeway with an elevated section was built so boats could pass.

about 0:12:03

The figures, as told

Religious

35%

Biggest faith: Catholic residents, 12%

about 0:20:09

Who lives here

White 88.3% · Black 0.6% · Asian 3.4% · Hispanic 6.2%

Ethnicity can overlap race.

Crime / national average

Property crime
exactly average

about 0:28:14

Violent crime
▼ about half

about 0:28:26

Money

Median home value$521,100
Two-bedroom rent$1,453
Median household income$76,776
Cost of livingabout 122

For sale

$450,000

Three-bedroom, two-bath house, 1,594 square feet

about 0:23:43

For sale

$605,000

Three-bedroom, two-bath house, 1,822 square feet

about 0:24:09
All figures and comparisons, as told in 2021

Population

"2,895"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:18:01

Median age

"almost 47"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:18:15

Married people

"55%"

Comparison: "a few more than normal". Direction: above.

As told in 2021 about 0:19:00

White residents

"88.3%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:19:15

Black residents

"0.6%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:19:20

Asian residents

"3.4%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:19:57

Hispanic residents

"6.2%"

Comparison: "about a third of the normal". Direction: below.

As told in 2021 about 0:19:57

Brevard County voters, Democrat

"41%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:20:47

Brevard County voters, Republican

"57%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:20:47

Brevard County voters, independent

"about 1.5%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:20:47

Religious residents

"35%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:20:09

Catholic residents

"12%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:20:20

Other faiths

"7%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:20:20

Jewish residents

"0.1%"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:20:29

Property crime

"exactly average"

Comparison: "national average". Direction: about the same.

As told in 2021 about 0:28:14

Violent crime

"about half"

Comparison: "national average". Direction: below.

As told in 2021 about 0:28:26

Median household income

"$76,776"

Comparison: "normally about $57,500". No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:21:09

Common household income range

"$100,000 to $150,000"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:21:21

Overall cost of living

"about 122"

Comparison: "100 is the regular average". Direction: above.

As told in 2021 about 0:21:57

Housing cost index

"182 out of 100"

Comparison: "100 is average". Direction: above.

As told in 2021 about 0:22:05

Median home cost

"$521,100"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:22:09

Average two-bedroom rent

"$1,453"

Comparison: "above the national average". Direction: above.

As told in 2021 about 0:22:35

Three-bedroom, two-bath house, 1,594 square feet

"$450,000"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:23:43

Three-bedroom, two-bath house, 1,822 square feet

"$605,000"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:24:09

Six-bedroom, seven-bath compound, 6,845 square feet

"$2,500,000"

No direction stated.

As told in 2021 about 0:24:43

The reviews

4.3 / 5 · average of 4

5 stars

“Likes the small-town feel, though condos are being built on the beach; praises the art festivals and markets in the beach park.”
about 0:14:08

5 stars

“Loves being close to the beach; says people are happy and healthy, the town is quiet and safe, and the local public school has a STEM programme and robotics.”
about 0:15:49

4 stars

“Says you are never more than five blocks from the beach or river; family-friendly with parks and hotels.”
about 0:16:36

3 stars

“Found out about the town through family; nightlife is non-existent and it is not exciting for a college student, but the town is pretty.”
about 0:17:35

In Florida

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The story

Indialantic sits on a barrier island on the east coast of Florida, in Brevard County, a little over an hour from Orlando. The two women became friends, lost touch at times and picked the friendship up again. They had two sons, Creighton in 1992 and Graham in 1994, and by 2010 the family lived in Indialantic with Graham's sixteen-year-old girlfriend, Ariel Hansen.

Kelly Brennan had married Gino Rallo, a restaurant manager, and worked as a nurse at a local hospital. She was a keen kayaker and had multiple sclerosis, which she worked through without complaining. In January 2009 she demanded a divorce and threw him out. Daniel moved into a one-bedroom apartment, joined a cycling club and began seeing Kelly, who was also a member. Kelly's own marriage was failing too. In February 2010 she separated from Gino and moved in with her friend Stephanie Farris.

On 8 January 2010 she wrote to Gino that Kelly had known Dan for less than a year and was in for several very big surprises, adding that she was not crazy and just knew how to get things done. She told Gino more and more about the affair. Gino went to Daniel's apartment, broke through the door and assaulted him. There was also a physical struggle between Gino and Kelly when she left.

She left the house about six or seven and came back around eleven with no shopping and looking shaken. Kelly, meanwhile, failed to turn up for a nine o'clock session with her personal trainer and did not meet Daniel at the gym. Her friends began looking for her. Her best friend, Jane Bermudez, urged them to call the police, and a missing person report was filed. Officers went to Gino's house and called hospitals across the region but found nothing.

She was speaking incoherently and banging her head against the wall. Her sons called 911 and paramedics came, but they could find nothing wrong and she chose to stay at home. Soon afterwards she began talking about seeing Kelly's face and about Mark's Landing. She said Kelly was hurt and was near a beach. Her sons drove her to Mark's Landing to prove nothing was there. Graham saw a body in the bushes, a figure in a spandex workout suit. They did not call the police. Inside it were Kelly's purse, wallet and driver's licence. She later put the bag in her own vehicle and the sons never saw it again.

Graham told his grandmother that he thought his mother had killed Kelly. Margaret called 911 and said she thought there had been a murder. She said, I believe I hurt somebody and I hurt somebody bad.

Police went to Mark's Landing but could not find the body. A helicopter was sent up and Lieutenant John Coppola spotted Kelly's legs sticking out of the bushes. She was partially clothed and had suffered repeated blunt-force trauma to the head. The associate medical examiner found multiple skull fractures, any one of which could have been fatal, and said the wounds were consistent with a hammer. Kelly also had defensive wounds on her forearms and hands. The body had been moved about thirteen miles. The hammer was never found. A neighbour, Scott Vickers, said he had seen a blonde woman in Kelly's yard that night. Gino, meanwhile, had a security video alibi from a drugstore in another town.

She hired Todd Deratani, a former Indialantic mayor, as her defence lawyer. Her explanations changed repeatedly. First she had dreamed of Kelly's face and of Mark's Landing. Then she said the dream was a repressed memory of watching a strange man kill Kelly and drag her into the grass. At another point she said her sons had taken her to the body. A letter she wrote to her friend Kim Meredith described watching a man hit Kelly, following him to the beach access and seeing him unload bags at a vacant lot.

They pointed to Gino's violence and to a voicemail he had left Daniel two months before the murder, threatening to kick his arse. Her sons said publicly that they believed in her innocence. A fundraiser for her raised almost nothing. Kelly's colleagues remembered her as a gifted nurse they called the Sarge, and the hospital kept a corner in her memory.

The case

Murder of Kelly Brennan

Victims

Kelly Brennan. nurse at a local hospital, kayaker, had multiple sclerosis; friend of and girlfriend of Dan

Accused and outcomes

As told in the episode, on 14 October 2021.

Accused

Outcome

Other people

Ariel Hansen. Graham's sixteen-year-old girlfriend, living with the family
Margaret Byers. mother, who came to the house and called 911
Jane Bermudez. Kelly's best friend, who urged the police to be called
Stephanie Farris. Kelly's friend, whom Kelly moved in with after separating from Gino
Scott Vickers. Kelly's next-door neighbour, who saw a blonde woman in the yard
Todd Deratani. defence attorney and former Indialantic mayor, later disbarred
Amber Lee Clay. Indialantic police officer who first responded to the 911 call
John Coppola. lieutenant and helicopter pilot who spotted the body from the air
Jim McMaster. attorney general who described the attack
Kim Meredith. friend, who gave the handwritten letter to her attorney
Lou Lervasi. Kelly's friend and fellow nurse
Sergeant Baker. police officer who interviewed

The timeline

  1. 1965 Graham is born in Ontario, Canada.about 0:29:23
  2. the late 1980s moves to Brevard County to study oceanography and meets Kelly Brennan, a nursing student.about 0:35:22
  3. August 26, 1989 marries Daniel .about 0:41:27
  4. 1990 Daniel becomes an airline pilot.about 0:42:00
  5. 1992 and Dan's son Creighton is born.about 0:42:22
  6. 1994 and Dan's son Graham is born.about 0:43:13
  7. 2002 to 2006 Daniel serves one term as mayor of Indialantic.about 0:52:06
  8. January 2009 confronts Dan about his affairs, demands a divorce and throws him out of the house. ( house)about 0:59:51
  9. early 2010 sends Dan emails about the affair; Dan has moved into an apartment and joined Kelly's cycling club.about 1:06:24
  10. January 8, 2010 emails Gino Rallo warning him that Kelly and Dan are having an affair.about 1:07:32
  11. February 2010 Kelly and Gino separate; Kelly moves out and in with her friend Stephanie Farris. (Stephanie Farris's house)about 1:08:59
  12. February 2010 Gino and Kelly have a physical altercation when she leaves; Dan later says Gino attacked Kelly in the garage. (Rallo house)about 1:09:49
  13. February 2010 Gino goes to Dan apartment, breaks through the door and assaults him. (Dan 's apartment)about 1:12:24
  14. evening of February 15, 2010 leaves the house about six or seven saying she is going to Walmart, and returns about eleven with nothing. ( house)about 1:16:45
  15. 9 p.m., February 15, 2010 Kelly fails to appear for her personal training session and does not meet Dan at the gym. (the gym)about 1:16:58
  16. night of February 15, 2010 Kelly is attacked with a hammer outside Stephanie Farris's house; her body is moved about thirteen miles to Mark's Landing. (Stephanie Farris's house)about 1:44:43

Places and phrases

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Static locations; no street basemap. Places and details. OpenFreeMap © OpenMapTiles Data from OpenStreetMap.

Places in the story

Public places are marked on the map.

Heard in this episode