From Courts To Cadavers

A brutal New Jersey murder case, a debate over DNA and motive, and a pastor–mortician who walked away from an NBA dream—this conversation brings heat and heart in equal measure. We open by pulling apart the Colts Neck mansion murders, asking how juries should weigh physical evidence when media narratives muddy the water. Do life insurance policies and business disputes make greed a credible motive, or does the sheer cruelty toward family strain belief? We explore reasonable doubt, tunnel vision, and the limits of what jurors actually hear.

Michael Perie

• Website: http://www.mp-educates.com/
• Email: mike_perie@yahoo.com
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-perie-0902025a/

What follows is a masterclass in service. Michael demystifies embalming and preparation, explains how precision honors families at their most vulnerable, and reveals how MP Educates turns complex funeral science into practical learning. His teaching is vivid and grounded—think chemical indexes explained like mixing Kool-Aid—and his mentorship is transformational, with former apprentices now leading programs and owning funeral homes. Along the way, we unpack how to balance faith with evidence, ambition with responsibility, and personal growth with community impact.

Join us as we support In His Grace Ministries this month!

If you’re curious about true crime beyond the headlines, the inner life of funeral care, or how to choose purpose when the spotlight fades, you’ll find wisdom here. Subscribe, share this episode with a friend who loves meaningful career pivots, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway—we’d love to hear what shifted your perspective.

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Transcript

Show Open And Series Setup

Voiceover 0:03

Tales from the Wild. Stories from the Heart. A journey into the mind and soul of fighter business professionals where they share their vision for the future. And hear from a different nonprofit organization every month as they create awareness of their goals and their needs. Dive into a world of untamed passion as we join our host, Shireen Botha, for this month's episode of Friends from Wild Places.

Host Intro And Bookkeeping Spot

Subscriptions And Upcoming Guests

Shireen Botha 0:35

Awesome. Welcome back. Shireen here, your virtual boutique bookkeeper and QuickBooks Pro Advisor. Are you tired of generic bookkeeping services that leave you in the dark? Well, at Shireen's Bookkeeping Services, we pride ourselves on open and transparent communication. You always know what's happening in your books. Plus, we customize our relationships to fit your unique business needs, ensuring you get the personal touch you deserve. I'm Shereen Botha. We're a boutique bookkeeping business that keeps your books clean. You know it, so you don't have to. So if you want to know more, go check me out at www.shireens bookkeeping.com and allow me to keep your books clean so you don't have to. That's right. Welcome back. You are listening to Friends from Wild Places with myself, Shireen, and my amazing co-host Tanya. Tanya, how are you doing? What news from Miami? And do you want to tell the listeners a little bit more about the subscriptions if you don't mind?

Tanya Scotece 1:44

Sure. So welcome everybody. Good morning. We're glad to be here. Another episode of Friends from Wild Places podcast, where we provide monthly podcasts and get someone's story out in the world. So if you're that person, uh let us know and we'll be happy to share your story. So at Friends from Wild Places, we do have a paid subscription for as little as $5 a month. You can actually get raw, unedited material. We can go dive deeper on subjects that maybe you have more interest in. So always for minimum $5. You can support us more if you choose. But $5 a month will get you the paid subscription behind the firewalls. So that's what we have going on here. Exciting in 2026. A lot of guests, um, upcoming featured guests. So we're super excited. So back to you, Shireen.

Introducing Guest Michael Perry

Shireen Botha 2:34

Thank you, Tanya. That was amazing. So yes, listeners, Michael Perie is our amazing guest for the month, and we're super excited to introduce him. Uh, he is a husband, a father of a son and daughter, a pastor, a educator, and with 28 years in the funeral industry, he brings a wealth of knowledge to any room. MP Educates was created to offer teaching and educational tools to young and experienced funeral professions. Hello, welcome. It's so good to have you here, Michael.

Michael Perie 3:16

Good morning. Thank you all for allowing me to be here.

Shireen Botha 3:19

Yes.

Tanya Scotece 3:20

Well super excited, super excited to have you share your journey. I'm so excited for this podcast.

Michael Perie 3:26

Well, me too. I'm looking forward to it.

True Crime Case: Colts Neck Murders

Motives, Evidence, And Jury Reasoning

Shireen Botha 3:29

Awesome. Okay. Well, you also know that this time of the podcast, we love to just chat about some true crime that's going on. Like, what is going on? Some of the most juiciest crimes are actually up and rolling right now. So I'm trying to keep up with them all, and it's quite interesting. So this one specifically caught my eye. Um, and it's the case of Paul Caneiro, often referred to the Colts Neck Mansion Murders. It's currently the center of a high-profile trial in New Jersey. And just let's get the summary of the case for you listeners so you can get up to date with us. So, November 20th, 2018, firefighters discovered the bodies of Keith Caneiro, his wife Jennifer, and two children, Jesse 11 and Sophia 8, at their estate in Colts Neck. Keith was found shot on the front lawn while his wife and children were found inside the burning mansion. Investigators determined the children had been stabbed repeatedly. Earlier the same morning, a fire was reported at Paul Caniro's own home in Ocean Township while his wife and daughters were inside. Prosecutors allege Paul set both fires, his own to create the illusion that the entire family was being targeted, and his brothers to cover up the quadruple homicide. Oh, it's been a long time since I've, you know, covered a quadruple homicide. My goodness, it's crazy. Uh so the trial ongoing since January 2026. The prosecution's theory is they argue Paul was driven by greed and desperation. Keith had reportedly discovered that money was missing from their shared technology and pest control businesses and had threatened to cut Paul off financially. Prosecutors also pointed to a 1.5 million life insurance policy as a secondary motive. Key evidence. Key evidence is the evidence presented includes bloody clothing and a knife found in Paul's basement containing the victim's DNA, as well as ballistics linking a gun in his home to the weapon used to kill Keith. Now the defenses stance. Paul's attorneys maintain his innocence, claiming police tunnel vision. They have attempted to shift suspicion towards a third brother, Corey, who they claim also stood a benefit financially and was never fully investigated. The question I want to ask the room is in a case where the physical evidence like DNA on a murder weapon found in the defendant's own basement seems so definitive. How much weight should a jury give to the defense's third-party liability theory? And does the sheer brutality of a crime against one's own family actually make a financial motive harder for a jury to believe? Good question. Hi. Tanya, should we begin with you? What do you think?

Tanya Scotece 6:55

Sure, sure. So, you know, what's interesting in the cases here in the states is the fact that the jury is only presented with certain information. So a lot of times what is presented outside or media, the jury itself does not have all of that material. And they have to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. So I think that's another shadow. Like even though we could sit here and argue saying that DNA is definitive, they could argue, you know, to say he was cleaning his gun and that's why the DNA is on there, or, you know, he was doing something with his knife and he happened to cut himself. Or, you know, I mean, there's always some other um defense, so to speak. So I just think, you know, again, you know, between the media, what what the facts of the case are, um, and again, I mean, literally, we've seen so many people that have actually like we know in our hearts that have done it, but they can't quote unquote prove it based on beyond a shadow of a reasonable doubt. So um I think that's probably what we're dealing with. Um, but again, you know, the motive, you know, it's usually, you know, money is a big, you know, greed factor, huge, huge um, you know, when you start seeing like life insurance policies and other things, business, you know, money laundering or uh different things. I think, yeah, it's um it's an interesting case. I mean, as you know, quadruple uh, you know, homicide, but it's um again, you would think it's a lock, stock, and barrel case, but I think there's more that goes on behind the scenes for them to prove it. Sure. How about you, Michael? How about you?

Faith Quote: God Gives Us A Definition

Michael Perie 8:29

I think it's a very um, I want to say uh strange uh case because uh the media, like you said, the media can turn um a guilty person into a non-guilty person or a non-guilty person into a guilty person. And looking up on this uh and watching it and and reading through everything, uh, me personally be like, oh, he did it, he did it. And then they start showing different evidence and and how he was here, but how he was there, and so you know, trying to put all this together, and and now you have a a jury who you know sits there and holding someone's you know, guilty, not guilty verdict in their hand. Um, that's that's like I said, rather uh strange, difficult. Uh, it could be frustrating uh to those who are on the defensive side and those who are on the other side. Um, and I also think that um money, I think that can cause uh you know greed, I think that can cause jealousy, anger. So uh you can look at it from that point of view as well. Uh that's how I was looking at it. So maybe he was upset that uh he wasn't connected anymore and he wanted to show his brother, hey, I'll show you. I'm gonna get money anyway, with you uh not being here, I'll get paid and things like that. So uh being able to kind of look at this and you you on a on a um seesaw, that's kind of what it's like to me, like a seesaw back and forth. Yeah, right. So yeah, that's interesting.

How Faith Evolved Over Time

Shireen Botha 9:56

How about you, Shereen? What's your take? Mine's gonna be simple because I really I'm always on the evidence never lies. I've always been like that. And the evidence don't lie. I really think that the evidence says all it needs to say, and just because simply every person has to go through a fair trial, uh, he is like no other person, he does need to go to um through a fair trial, but um I personally think he's guilty, guilty, guilty just simply because of the evidence, nothing more. Um, okay, with that said, I want to just move on to the quotes of the day. I think we've got an amazing quote of the day. Um Michael was gracious enough to share his own, uh, which he has shared with us, and it's God gives us a definition. Um let me repeat that. God gives us a definition. So, Michael, would you mind just sharing with us and the listeners what that means to you and how you know how it's impacted you?

Michael’s Background And Family

Michael Perie 11:12

Sure. So um God gives us a definition. Um I was you know studying one day and and I was learning and reading through the Bible and and seeing how this uh kind of affected me. Uh God gives us a definition, and what is the definition? The definition that he gives us is a proverb, which is truth. I said, Okay, so a proverb is wisdom. So, okay, and you have wisdom because you have gained knowledge, and then you have knowledge because you have an understanding. And then if you turn it around and flip it and go back the other way, so now that you have the knowledge, I mean, now that you have the understanding, you have knowledge in a situation. And then once you have the knowledge, you start gaining wisdom, you make wise choices, you're able to do stuff um in a very particular way. Uh, and then once you have that wisdom, and what is wisdom? It's a proverb. And basically, proverb is uh a true saying. So God gives us a true saying, He gives us himself. Uh, we just have to be mindful and know that that's what he's doing uh when he's giving us a definition. He's basically giving us his self and he's already given us himself through his son, Jesus. So, what that means to me is that uh I kind of keep my eye focused on the definition of what that means. Uh, and then it carries me through to always be mindful uh to make sure I'm getting understanding and whatever the uh capacity that I'm in, uh, getting the knowledge and having the wisdom. And then I'll be able to uh teach on it and share truth and learn truth and walk by truth. Um, and I think that's and I know that's what pleases him. Yeah. So yeah, that's what it means to me.

Tanya Scotece 12:58

Wow, beautiful, beautiful, Michael. If you don't mind, I just want to just ask a little deeper question, just so our listeners can, you know, we're gonna hear your full story, you know, today. But yeah, I want no, I just have a question, like as far as were you um brought up as a religious man, like in a religious family, to to select a favorite quote that's religious, or is that something that evolved? If you don't mind sharing, no problem.

Michael Perie 13:20

Um, that was something that evolved. Um, I was brought up um going to church, shall I say? So um I'm I'm in church, I may uh I'm there just because parents tell you to go there. Uh not really, you know, catching a hold to anything, just there. Uh you fall on the trend, you know, one person going up to get baptized. Oh, let me go up too. Yeah, I feel like, you know, but not really knowing the full meaning of all of that, what all that means. So uh as years evolved and I evolved and start again gaining understanding, knowledge, and wisdom, uh, that put me in a place to uh know for myself um uh what I needed to do and and where that, like I said, that that quote came from. Uh so yeah, that's that's kind of where yeah.

Choosing Mortuary School Over The NBA

Tanya Scotece 14:08

Where it where it evolved. And how long has it always been your favorite quote? Because it's interesting how you know, Shireen and I, we always ask our you know guests, you know, what you know, let's share a favorite quote. So how did that evolve to be your favorite quote or was it always your favorite quote?

Michael Perie 14:21

It has evolved just like me. Just like you.

Tanya Scotece 14:24

Okay, so the quotes about that's amazing, amazing.

Shireen Botha 14:27

Okay, thank you, thank you. I love that. And since we're on your background, would you mind just sharing with us a little bit more about who you are, you know, like your more of your background, yeah.

Michael Perie 14:40

Sure, okay. I hit a different uh few different areas. Um, so of course, we'll go ahead and talk about the pastor stuff. So my wife and I we uh founded a church back in oh 16 or 17. Um, we started on the streets, um doing the missions out there with the homeless and and less fortunate people. So we started there for a couple of years and uh it's kind of evolved into uh being able to you know teach uh and minister um uh social media-wise, um and just you know, abroad, not just to people who are here connected um in the United States, but even abroad into other countries, even in Africa. Uh people are have connected in with us. So we've been doing it now for probably about uh 10 years um in our in our pastoral role. Um husband, of course. I've been married, my wife and I. This is will be 24 years coming up in August. Um, I tell people that, and some say, Well, you don't look like you're that old. Um, but I'm 47. Um and we'll be married 24 years coming up. Uh our son is 22 and our daughter is 20. Um education. Um I've kind of been in that for uh some years now, educating, um, kind of on both sides in the funeral, um, on the funeral side and in ministry side, and just kind of like uh as a mentor to like, you know, younger people or to men or to apprentices in funeral industry. Um and then we have the funeral person, I guess you can call me that the funeral professional. Uh been doing this for 28 years. Uh I started back in 1998. 1998, um, where my um at the time he was my my mentor, and he said, um, he said, well, if you're very really interested in doing this, then um before you go to school, won't you come by and let's let's let you see what it kind of looks like. I said, okay. So he called me one morning. I was like, and not used to getting up at you know two, three o'clock in the morning, but that's what the funeral industry involved. And so I go there and uh and I I start gaining interest. I was like, hmm, I think I I may like this because I was always curious in biology class when we dissected frogs, cats, worms. So that was just a curiosity to me. Uh so when he uh brought me up and and allowed me to see the embalming process, and then he he called me again a few days later. I said, I think I'm gonna go to school for this. So uh went to school for it, and here I am 28 years later.

Shireen Botha 17:20

Now, did you always want to be in the funeral industry, or is it something that came along afterwards?

Michael Perie 17:27

No, no. So um I played college basketball, right? And um my when my senior year was about to be over with, um they sent, I was sent a letter uh to go to an NBA camp, um, Utah Jazz. So went out there and you know did a tryout and all that stuff that they have you do, and it was exciting. That was that was my thing, you know. NBA, I want to play basketball. Did that, but I'd already signed up for mortuary school. And this is the summertime. I'm like, uh, they haven't reached back out to me. What should I do? So I went ahead and packed up and drove to mortuary school. Got there. I'm in class. Now, mind you, I've gone to four years of college before this, never made a 100 on a test at all. The first test I take in mortuary school, which was pathology, I made a 100 on it. I was like, whoa, okay, well, maybe this is something I'm supposed to be doing. So a letter finally comes. And when it comes, I open it up, I read it, I'm like, oh, yes, it's so exciting. My face goes from because I get to the bottom, and they're saying, okay, well, now you have to find an agent, you have to pay this amount, you have to do all, and I couldn't do any of those things. I was like, oh, but this is what I so I sat there, I said, I said, okay, Lord, if you will make me one of the best in this genre industry, um I'll go forward and doing it, and I uh and I don't want to have any regrets. So I sat there on the side of the bed. I'm all up in mortuary school. Um I sat there and I balled up the paper. Like, man. And I just shot it over into the trash can. It went in. I said, okay, let's go. So um that was my passion, basketball. Um, and then it changed, it evolved. I evolved. That's let's use that word, I evolved. Uh, and now I'm in this uh for the long haul.

Tanya Scotece 19:29

So awesome. Michael, do you can you just share? So, where were you like born and raised, and where did you go to mortuary school?

Michael Perie 19:38

I was born in Wynn, Arkansas, uh raised in Wynn, Arkansas. Yeah. Okay, okay. Arkansas. And I went to Mortuary School in Mountain Home, Arkansas, uh, at Arkansas State University, uh, there. Uh so I'm I'm in Arkansan, shall I say?

Mentoring Stories And Student Success

Tanya Scotece 19:55

Arkansan, okay, okay, okay. I've hear I heard of these places like Tex Arcana, like these unique names, you know, but that's interesting, very interesting. So you had the um the ministry background, your funeral background, what you just shared, and the education as far as um, you know, having your own um evolving into evolve, like that's the word of the day, um, into your education. How did the education piece like because it sounds like you and your wife with the ministry have been educators in that realm? How did you take that into the mortuary world?

Michael Perie 20:30

Hmm. Well, this is uh a funny story. It just kind of happened. So um wearing, I guess wearing the mini hats, uh, I would call myself, you know how you can uh we know about FEMA, how that how they help. I would call myself being a part of FEMA. Funeral educational ministry association.

Tanya Scotece 20:55

Wow, you got your own FEMA going on.

Basketball Today And Perspective

Michael Perie 20:57

Yeah, right. So being being in being in the middle of education, uh, being able to educate or teach in ministry, but the being able to educate and teach in in the funeral industry, uh, that came from I was working at a funeral home, I think it was back in 2009. I was working at a funeral home in Memphis, Tennessee. And uh the owner lady, she said, Hey, I'm hiring uh uh some help, you know, some apprentices here. I said, okay. Um, so she hired in two of them. She said, uh, she's okay, go ahead and teach them and show them like uh what? I don't know what, not knowing that I could, but so uh we go to the prep room and I do stuff like um I take out stuff like embalming fluid, right? And I'm putting all the different, you know, indexes and all the different colors, and I start showing them uh how to mix it and what it means, but I use the reference of Kool-Aid. Like more sugar you put in, the more stronger it's gonna be, the less sugar you put in. You know, the weaker it's gonna be. So I'm going through that process with them and it kind of started there. And they were looking at me like, but one of them was was in mortuary school and the other one was getting ready to go. So they were kind of like, Well, we're not really learning this in in school. I said, Well, I'm gonna try to teach you a lot of stuff that you're probably not going to learn in school because you're gonna you're gonna hear about it. I said, But it's gonna be certain things you're gonna get at, like, uh, and be able to, okay, how do I really mix the chemicals? I said, they'll teach you about it. I said, but you won't really know until you do it. So uh being able to kind of go through that process with them um and kind of see the fruits of the labor um after that. So um both of those young ladies, uh, one of them now, uh some years ago, she opened up her own funeral home. So now she's a funeral homeowner.

Tanya Scotece 22:49

Wow.

Michael Perie 22:50

Um, and the other one um is the head program director um at a mortuary program um here in South Haven, Mississippi. Uh the other one is a funeral homeowner in Memphis, Tennessee. Uh, so being able to kind of uh take them as far as I could take them, and then stand here and then just, hey, push them along and say, hey, now y'all go. And to be able to watch them go and do that, that just brings, you know, such joy. And uh being able to watch them do that is um so amazing. Uh, but you have to be uh in educating, you know, you have to be honestly have to be in a position where none of that stuff bothers you if you're educating somebody or teaching someone because you're trying to make them better. And honestly, you want to try to make them better than you so that they can go in and and do something and do greater things. Uh so being able to watch them do better and greater things uh is like I say is is heartwarming, you know, to me. It's very uh very amazing. So uh that's where my education started at. I was kind of thrown into it back in 2009.

Tanya Scotece 23:55

So yeah, yeah, yeah. And I I don't want to bring up the source subject, but what happened to the basketball? Do you still play basketball anything there? Or what happened there with basketball?

Closing And Part Two Tease

Michael Perie 24:06

So the the last time I shot a basketball uh was Christmas, Christmas Day. I was um just out now just shooting. But before then, I couldn't Dr. T, I couldn't tell you when the last time I I shot a basketball before then. Uh but I watch it, you know, all the time and uh you know on TV. But as far as playing, I I mean you feel like you can. I I feel like I can, you know, go out there, but my body says something different. I'm like, what is this? What what is going on? Why why am I aching? I just all I was doing was you know shooting, and you know, so I guess the age thing uh does catch up with you. So all right.

Tanya Scotece 24:44

Well, mind over matters, so I don't know, we gotta kind of keep you in the realm of uh shooting some baskets out there.

Shireen Botha 24:52

Yes, thank you, Michael. I appreciate you sharing that with us. It's quite an interesting story.

Tanya Scotece 24:58

And tune in next week for part two from Friends from Wild Places.

Voiceover 25:04

You've been listening to Friends from Wild Places with Shireen Botha. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast from the links to catch every episode and unleash your passion.