15. Defeated

Every time I sat down to write the script about what has happened in the last 30 days in my mom's case, I got stuck. Angry. Frustrated. Completely overwhelmed.

So this episode isn't really written.

Instead, I walked into the studio, turned on the microphone, and treated this the same way I treat my morning TikTok videos — like a vlog. Just sitting down and talking through everything that has happened.

Because a lot has happened.

In early February, true crime creator Stephanie Harlowe released a two-part deep dive into my mother's case, focusing on the interrogations of Russell Peterson. Between the two videos, Stephanie spent more than four and a half hours analyzing the evidence, timelines, and statements in this case.

If you haven't seen those yet, you can watch them here:

Part 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-OckJoNghk

Part 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOqvB1j2cGI

Watching someone dissect the story that has defined my life since I was ten years old was overwhelming, but also incredibly validating. Tens of thousands of people listened to those interrogation recordings and heard the same things my family has been saying for decades.

For a moment, it gave me hope.

Shortly after that, I finally received something I had been requesting for months — the updated case file from Yavapai County, including crime scene photographs from the night my mom was killed that I had never seen before.

Seeing my childhood home frozen in time like that was surreal.

Some things I remembered immediately — the blanket on the couch, my mom's plants, the telescope she bought me because I loved space.

Other things felt completely unfamiliar, like I was looking at the house through someone else's eyes.

But one photo stopped me in my tracks.

In the kitchen, on the bar counter, there was a children's canvas craft with crayons and markers scattered around it — something my sister and I had been coloring while my mom helped us.

Because when people look at my mom's case, I want them to see what I see: a loving mother who spent her time doing crafts with her kids.

Not the story that was written about her after she died.

This episode also covers the long-awaited meeting my family had with the Yavapai County Attorney's Office on February 27th — a meeting I had been pushing for since launching this podcast.

After months of emails, media pressure, and requests, we finally sat down with them.

And within minutes, I realized something devastating.

They weren't there to move the case forward.

They were there to explain why they wouldn't.

According to the county attorney, the only way this case can move forward now would be with a confession or a confrontation call.

After more than thirty years… the system is essentially asking the family to solve the case ourselves.

That moment left me feeling something I didn't expect after fighting this hard for this long:

Defeated.

But even in the middle of that feeling, there are still things moving forward.

In this episode I also share some unexpected updates, including:

• Signing my contract to attend CrimeCon 2026 in Las Vegas
• Returning to Creator's Row with a booth for Papi Killed Mommy
• And being invited to appear on stage with Stephanie Harlowe and Derrick Levasseur for a live Crime Weekly show

I also recently sat down for an interview with A&E Digital, and they will be releasing an article about my mom's case next month.

Right now, I don't know exactly what the next step in this fight will be.

But I do know this:

This isn't the end.

You can follow my daily updates on TikTok here: https://www.tiktok.com/@nicolewasilishin

If you want to support efforts to reopen my mom's case, you can sign the petition here:
https://www.change.org/p/demand-a-complete-homicide-investigation-for-the-murder-of-stephanie-marie-wasilishin

Contact the podcast:
PapiKilledMommy@gmail.com

If you have investigative skills, private investigator connections, or information that could help move this case forward, please reach out.