Family Dynamics | EP 14

Love Trapped

This episode of Love Trapped delves into the financial and legal struggles of Ron and Jan Owens, parents of Laura Owens, as they navigate bankruptcy filings, a looming foreclosure, and public scrutiny. It examines their claims of a smear campaign, their support for Laura’s paternity case against Clayton Eckert, and their criticism of media coverage and podcast narratives.

Key takeaways

• Ron and Jan Owens filed a new Chapter 11 bankruptcy after their initial Chapter 13 was dismissed due to non-compliance.
• The family faces imminent foreclosure on their Scottsdale home, which is adapted for Ron’s severe health conditions including Parkinson’s, cancer, and heart disease.
• Ron and Jan deny offering Mike Marichini a high-paying job or podcast role, calling the claims false and part of a broader smear campaign.

Transcript preview

This is an iHeart podcast, guaranteed human. There was no anything inside those eyes. They turned black. It scared the hell out of me. People wake up. I'm the woman saw the murder take place by Krievac and de Pippo. Anthony de Pippo showed no signs of remorse. Appearing unfazed after being sentenced to the maximum. I'm not guilty I'll take it to the grief. Listen to the Devil's Quarry in the Bone Valley Feed on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. hosted by me, Hoakopi. If you're craving inspiration to maximize your joy, tune into these candid uplifting and moving on-air chats. Open your free I-Heart Radio app, search Joy 101, and listen now. Joy 101 with Hoakopi is presented by CBS. My first guest is Paris Hilton. Chachita, Luke, and Yering. Have surprises. Many surprises. where the group check comes to life. You're the only person I know that loves a yellow starburst. This is Sweet 305. Here, oversharing is encouraged. Listen to Sweet 305 with Lélippons on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you're seeking to try to understand the forensic science behind these cases that we hear about in the news, body bags is where you need to turn. If you're seeking to try to understand the forensic science behind these cases that we hear about in the news, body bags is where you are where you are where you are where you are where you are where you are where you are where you are where you are where you are where you're There's no fluff. We do a deep dive into the forensics. Listen to body bags with Joseph Scott Morgan on America's number one podcast network, I-Heart. Open your free I-Heart app and search body bags with Joseph Scott Morgan and start listening. 29th. As we wait, I want to catch you up on what's been happening over the past six weeks outside of Laura's criminal proceedings. First, I spoke with the journalist who's been in touch with the Owens family. We believe our daughter then. We believe her now. We stood by her then. We stand by her now. Then, we have an update on the Owens family home foreclosure and their bankruptcy filings. Their adult daughter, who has autism, also resides at the property. Displacement from this property would cause severe disruption to a household organized entirely around the medical needs of an elderly seriously ill resident. Plus, it seems like Laura's been staying active online. We have received a privacy complaint regarding your content. Upon an analysis of your claim, we have removed the content in question. And this is love trapped. There's no way out. You'd better believe I'll be raising holy hell my love if you ever ever try to leave. Kest dropped, there is one topic everyone seems particularly interested in. Laura's parents, Ron Owens, and Jan Black. How much do they actually know? Do they support Laura? To find out, I turned to longtime Bay Area reporter, Martha Ross. She first reached out to Ron and Jan back in January of 2025. I saw a Facebook post from a friend of theirs, a former KGO colleague who was talking about this go-fund. me for Ron Owens. And I thought this is really startling news given Ron's stature in the Bay Area and an assumption that given his 40 years at KGO that he was probably pretty well off and why would he need a go-fund me? But I also knew he was very beloved in the community, so I emailed them. On December 31st, 2024, a Go-Fund me campaign was launched for Ron Owens. Keep in mind the timeline here. This was nearly six months. after the Arizona family court had already ruled on Laura and Clayton's paternity case. But when Martha first reached out to Ron and Jan, she didn't know that yet. As a veteran San Francisco reporter, she was simply trying to find out more about the fundraiser for a legendary local broadcaster. They talked about the insurance they had didn't quite cover all their medical expenses, and I was sympathetic to that. I think we've all heard of that being the reality for many people. So it made sense to to me. Ron's Go Fund Me is still active online. It lays out a long list of severe health challenges. We've had a section of the Go Fund Me page, read by a voice actor. Ron is facing profound challenges. After living with Parkinson's disease for 23 years, his health battles have intensified. He has courageously faced not only Parkinson's, but also four bouts of cancer, most recently, Colvin Cancer, and serious heart issues. These medical stories. struggles have taken a toll both physically and financially on the man who has been a pillar of strength for so many. At the time I'm recording this, the Go Fund Me for Ron has raised over $136,000. But to put those numbers in perspective, Ron and Jan filed for bankruptcy last year, where they reported an income of about $21,000 per month. That contrast has fueled intense online speculation that the crowdsource funds are potentially potentially. being used to cover Laura's legal fees. I obtained a copy of an email sent to past donors of the Go Fund Me. The subject line reads, A Message From Ron. We've had an excerpt read by a voice actor. Life has continued to test me. Parkinson's, four bouts of cancer, serious heart and mobility issues, and the ongoing financial strain. On top of all this, our family is now facing another heartbreaking chapter with the recent politically motivated indeed. of my daughter, Laura. This stems from a legitimate paternity claim she filed a couple years ago against a former reality TV star. Laura was pregnant at the time and tragically suffered a miscarriage. What's been especially painful is that the man she filed the claim against publicly denied she was ever pregnant and shockingly convinced a judge to question the verified medical records, photographs, and video documentation that Laura had submitted. tragedy dismissed and twisted has been gut-wrenching. And to see it further monetized and distorted by online content creators has made it worse. That said, I want to be completely clear. The Go Fund Me was created solely to support me and my needs. None of these funds have been or will be used for Laura's legal expenses. on a story about Ron Owens and his fundraiser. At the time, Martha didn't know anything about the paternity scandal. During her first interview with Ron and Jan, she was surprised when they began steering the conversation to a different topic, their daughter Laura. Jan did a lot of the talking, but Ron would interject every once in a while. During that conversation, they also told me a lot of other things about how a lot of their financial struggles were because they felt like there was this internet smearing campaign against them and it was affecting some of their businesses. Then they opened up about how Laura had gotten into this situation with Clayton Eckert The Bachelor and I didn't know anything about the Bachelor. I don't, you know, I haven't followed that show and I also didn't know about this online community of youtubers who were following us. So it was all news to me. Soon, Martha began to investigate. There was one claim in particular that caught her attention. They brought up those allegations that part of the public record that Laura was lured into an encounter. They were referring to the highly serious and unproven allegation that Greg Gillespie and his attorney Greg Woodnick somehow conspired to have Laura sexually assaulted. You heard about that in episode five. They both said that there was a FBI profiler that Ron had interviewed was aware of the situation and Ron said, I believe it, I totally believe it. Laura joined the conversation. They started telling me about Laura's situation with Clayton and that she had these issues with these other men. There was a legal case and protective orders and things like that. I said, you know, maybe this is something I could follow up in the future. And Martha did exactly that. Less than a week later, she was on a call with Laura. I asked Martha whether Laura was still sticking to the narrative that she was pregnant with Clayton twins. Yes, she was. She was sticking to the story that she had the medical evidence and Ron and Jan were supporting her. Martha still had unanswered questions. So she circled back to Ron and Jan for a second interview. I was just trying to get some more information from their perspective about this whole case as I was still learning more. Jan again did most of the talking bit. Ron when he spoke, he made it very clear that they support her and they believed that she was pregnant. and that they also support her pursuing court cases against these men, that she was right to do it. That's when the conversation took a turn, and they brought up the online community. They both referred to the Clayton cult, and they thought that Clayton had been trying to organize people against them. Jan said that the smear campaign against them, she said, it's been horrific, while Ron said it's made it difficult for us to live our lives. And Jan said, the thing is our daughter got pregnant by the the guy who was the bachelor who first didn't believe she was pregnant and Jan said he had a really bad reputation was using the situation to quote resurrect his image. They spoke out against podcasters and content creators. Jan said they have quote seized on this story to make one hour shows. Martha also pressed Jan on the pattern of behavior at the core of this entire saga. The fact that Laura had claimed pregnancies by three different men and had restraining orders in fact involving each of them. Jan said she didn't think it was quote that unusual, unquote, for a woman in her early 30s to quote, have been pregnant you know with three different men and to have protective orders against them. She also said she and her husband believed quote all the information, unquote, that their daughter and her attorneys have presented in the courts. news. In May 2026, she sent a new list of questions to the Owens family. I reached out to them via email, letting them know that I was working on a story about the role that they've played in supporting Laura throughout her pregnancy claims and court actions. I sent a list of questions asking Laura if she maintained she was pregnant by Mike, Greg and Clayton. I asked about the plea bargain, whether Laura was considering it, whether they were concerned about a prison sentence and so on. And a few days. And a few days later, Martha got a 23-page response. They sent back a response. It came from Jan's email and it was signed by Ron and Jan. This makes Martha one of the only people in the media who's heard from Ron and Jan since the podcast began. I want to walk you through what they said. The response began, we want to express concern about the framing of many of the questions being posed. A significant number of them contain embedded messages, assumptions and language that appear to adopt narratives. promoted online