LoveLustLaw

lovelustfear exposes real stories about toxic dating and relationships. Every episode explores true dating and relationship stories—from the awkward and uncomfortable to the shocking and bizarre to the disturbing and downright dangerous. Host Jake Deptula (Strictly Stalking) welcomes storytellers into candid conversations, revealing the decisions they made and dilemmas they faced when better judgment got lost in a haze of desire. If you would like to share your story on lovelustfear or would like your story featured anonymously, please contact us at [email protected]

What does coercive control look like when there are no visible bruises? How can power, religion, sexuality, mental health, isolation, and public perception become part of an abusive dynamic? And what happens when highly publicized cases are tried not only in courtrooms, but online? In this episode of LoveLustLaw, Attorney Michele Locke is joined by the Dirty Laundry Podcast Hosts Amanda Silver and Alex Howard, for a candid and wide-ranging conversation about coercive control, domestic abuse, mental health, faith, and the challenges of judging complicated cases from the outside. Using Netflix’s Death of a Pastor’s Wife and the Lindsay Clancy case as starting points, the conversation explores what these cases can – and cannot – tell us about the hidden dynamics that can exist behind closed doors.

In this deeply personal episode of LoveLustRaw, Michele opens up about the moments that changed her life, and the women who helped remind her that starting over is possible. Michele takes us from a hilarious and wildly awkward restaurant encounter into the much more vulnerable story behind her transformation. She reflects on once weighing nearly 300 pounds, undergoing gastric sleeve surgery, using Zepbound, and later having a 360 tummy tuck and inner thigh lift. Her transformation also involved two knee replacements, an ankle replacement, and three cervical fusions which allowed her to leave the sidelines and finally get back into the game of life. Along the way, Michele discovered that losing weight didn't automatically mean loving the woman in the mirror. Michele talks candidly about body dysmorphia, weight-loss plateaus, changing confidence, and the reality of “skinny privilege.”

In this episode of LoveLustLaw, Michele Locke sits down with Mitchell Osmond of Dad Nation for a powerful conversation about marriage, personal transformation, emotional connection, and intimacy. Mitchell shares how losing a senior leadership role sent him into a difficult season of depression, weight gain, debt, and substance use. After a major fight with his wife—and a powerful question at a funeral, “Are you living a life worthy of imitation?”—he began an 18-month journey that included losing 60 pounds, paying off $100,000 in debt, getting sober, and rebuilding his marriage. Michele and Mitchell also explore why couples become emotionally disconnected, how communication breakdowns can contribute to marital conflict, why men can struggle to identify and express emotions, practical ways couples can create greater intimacy and emotional safety, and introduce Mitchell's Attraction Triangle: Seen, Heard, Safe.

What happens when 11 jurors reportedly believe a defendant is not guilty by reason of insanity, while one juror refuses to agree? In this episode of LoveLustLaw, Attorney Michele Locke takes a closer look at the Lindsay Clancy trial and the legal and human questions left behind by a hung jury. Michele brings a unique perspective shaped by experience as a criminal defense attorney, magistrate, criminal jury foreman, and 22 years married to a highly regarded prosecutor who handled capital murder cases. She breaks down the insanity defense, reasonable doubt, jury deliberations, juror questions, and the Allen charge, while examining what the reported 11–1 split can - and cannot - tell us about the case. She also discusses the father's emotional 911 call and why the judge's decision to restrict its public release matters. But beyond the courtroom lies an even harder question: What does justice look like when severe mental illness, postpartum mental health, and an unimaginable crime collide?