Madison McGhee always believed her father had died of a heart attack, but that all changed in 2012.
The Charleston, Virginia, native was 16 years old and visiting her family at her grandmother’s house when she suddenly had a strange feeling that she couldn’t breathe, and her mind was on the family matriarch.
“I remember getting in the car after saying goodbye and asking my mom a very strange question,” Maggie recalled to Fox News Digital. “I didn’t even know what I was asking at the time. I asked my mom if my cousin Omar was with her when my dad died. I assumed he had a heart attack.”
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Madison McGhee is determined to solve her father’s murder, so she launches the true crime podcast “Ice Cold Case.” (Courtesy of Madison McGhee)
“That’s when my mother told me the truth,” Maggie said. “The truth is that my father was murdered, and it’s still not solved.”
Now living in Los Angeles, Maggie is trying to find out what happened to her father, and she’s the host of a true crime podcast. “Ice Cold Case” So she interviews people who might help her arrive at the answers.
“For 10 years, in my mind, I thought my dad had died of a heart attack,” Maggie says, “but to find out he died in a totally different way? I had to start the process all over again. I had to grieve my dad all over again. I had to wrestle with the truth of what happened to him.”
For years, Madison McGhee thought her father, JC, had died of a heart attack. (Courtesy of Madison McGhee)
On July 11, 2002, John Cornelius McGehee, also known as “JC,” was shot in the head on the front porch of his home in Belmont County, Ohio. He was 45 years old.
Maggie was six years old at the time.
“My most vivid memories of my dad are like a movie,” Maggie says. “I remember listening to music in the car with my dad. Nelly’s ‘Hot in Here’ had just come out, and my dad loved to play the ‘Space Jam’ soundtrack. Nothing special happened that day. I don’t remember a birthday party or anything like that, but I just remember those little moments listening to music in the car with my dad, and I remember him loving me.”
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“Ice Cold Case” is available to stream now. (Beck Media)
It wasn’t until 2020 that McGehee felt compelled to find out what happened to JC and why his death remains unsolved. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic stalled his research.
“I knew if I wanted answers I had to do something big,” McGehee said. “I made frantic phone calls, tried to get case files, submitted requests, just tried to get access to records. I started talking to people and making connections. It was a tough journey.”
McGhee said the popularity of true crime podcasts inspired her to start “Ice Cold Case”, as she believed the podcast would raise awareness and encourage anyone with information to come forward.
Madison McGhee hopes anyone with information about JC’s death will come forward. (Courtesy of Madison McGhee)
“I’m confident we’ll get to the bottom of this case,” she said. “The podcast has already sparked a conversation that hasn’t been had in 22 years. It’s upset people a little bit, but I think it’s also brought attention to this cold case. Locals are talking about it. People who remember it are now having an epiphany. … It’s shaken the community, and people are wondering why this case hasn’t been solved. … The impact is undeniable. I don’t want anyone to get away with this.”
The podcast revealed that JC was a drug dealer turned informant. (Courtesy of Madison McGhee)
According to the podcast, JC was a drug dealer turned informant who helped police arrest several people, including one of his nephews who received a life sentence. Police concluded that JC’s murder was the result of a botched home invasion, but McGee had doubts.
“This investigation is, in my opinion, very inconclusive and incomplete,” McGehee explained, “… and I think people who have information are afraid to speak up. If the person who killed my father is not in prison for something else, that means the killer is on the loose. That factor makes people afraid to speak up. They don’t know if maybe the reason my father was killed was because he was an informant. What kind of message does that send to people who want to come forward with information?”
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Madison McGhee said it was her mother who revealed the truth. (Courtesy of Madison McGhee)
But McGee didn’t mind.
“I’ve heard from family members that they’re not too keen on the show,” she admitted. “I think they’re upset that their secrets have been exposed. I think some of them are worried about what their involvement in the show means. So they’re sending crazy messages. And I think that’s interesting too. It makes a bit of sense for someone to be overtly defensive. It’s kind of revealing something that they might not have wanted to reveal.”
McGhee said after not knowing anything for so long, he wasn’t hesitant to shine the spotlight on people who might have answers.
“I want people to see my dad as a human being. No matter the situation, he was a victim. He was a drug dealer, but he was also my dad,” Madison McGhee said. (Courtesy of Madison McGhee)
“My dad would often talk to my mom about how he felt that someone was trying to kill him,” Maggie maintained. “I think he understood and dealt with the gravity of the decisions he was making and the way he was living his life. My mom would say, ‘Hold on, it’s OK. Don’t say that.’ It’s very easy to brush it off as, ‘You’re being a little paranoid. You’re exaggerating a little.’ I think he had a very strong intuition that something was going to happen to him, and it did.”
Madison McGhee said she feared for her life just before her father, JC, was killed. (Courtesy of Madison McGhee)
When Maggie first heard the 911 call, she was left with more questions than answers.
“It didn’t make any sense to me,” she said. “When you think of a break-in, you think of a robbery. Nothing was stolen. And I’m sure there were gunshots. My dad’s house was on top of this little hill, but the hills go on and on. And there’s the highway. You hear those echoes. But they didn’t say anything about gunshots. It just seemed odd for a break-in. The whole thing is weird.”
McGehee said she has been receiving tips and searching for new leads since “Ice Cold Case” began, and she is hopeful she will eventually discover the identity of the person who shot JC.
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Madison McGhee was six years old when she lost her father. (Courtesy of Madison McGhee)
“Everyone deserves justice. No victim is perfect,” McGhee said. “I went through a lot to get this show out there because no one was going to help me. People just saw a drug dealer-turned-informant from Ohio. But my father was so much more than that.”
“I want people to see my dad as a human being,” she continued. “No matter the circumstances, he was a victim. He was a drug dealer, but he was also my dad. He shouldn’t have died like this. It’s easy to say, ‘That’s what happened to him,’ but no one should be killed.”
Through her grief, Maggie has developed a deeper appreciation for the man she only knew for six years.
Madison McGhee is determined to find out what happened to JC. (Beck Media)
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“My dad was a good father,” she said. “He was active, he was a good man. I’m learning from people now how generous he was and how he helped those he loved. When he needed help, he was there. Now I’m there for him.”
