The Disappearance of Jason Landry

Episode of Morbid · October 26, 2026 · 47 min

Morbid hosts Ash Kelley and Alaina Urquhart recount the 2020 disappearance of Texas State student Jason Landry and the 2026 discovery of his remains.

Summary

After opening banter about fall foliage, Thanksgiving cooking and new cookbooks, Ash Kelley narrated the case of Jason Landry, a 21-year-old Texas State University student from Missouri City, Texas. She described how pandemic isolation coincided with increased marijuana use and a newfound interest in spirituality, mysticism and psychedelics. On December 13, 2020, after a FaceTime call in which a friend thought he seemed impaired, Landry abruptly left San Marcos at 10:55 p.m. to drive to his parents' home, closed the Waze app, and veered onto rural roads near Luling.

Kelley recounted that a volunteer firefighter found his crashed car with the lights on and keys in the ignition, and that Landry's father Kent later found his phone in the car and his clothing neatly piled about 900 feet away. Both hosts criticized responding officers for seizing marijuana but leaving the clothing at the scene. The episode covered the extensive searches, the scent-dog trail to a drained pond, investigators' citing of Landry's Google searches about surviving in the woods and spiritual enlightenment, and the hosts' caution about judging someone by their search history.

Kelley described the role of online communities and volunteer Jim West, the involvement of former Vancouver detective Kim Rossmo, a hostile encounter with a local landowner, and Rossmo's conclusion that Landry likely died of hypothermia after paradoxical undressing and terminal burrowing. In September 2026 a resident found human remains about five miles from the crash site, confirmed as Landry's; no cause of death could be determined. Both hosts said they found the hypothermia theory, possibly combined with a concussion, persuasive, while noting the unexplained late-night departure. The episode closed with a fun fact about the origin of the word "toast."

Chapters

0:00
Fall banter and Thanksgiving
The hosts discuss fall foliage, romanticizing November, turkeys and Alaina's Thanksgiving cooking.
2:40
Cookbook recommendations
Ash recommends Ryan Nordheimer's 'Dinner at My Place' and Teeny's upcoming 'Today We Are Cooking.'
4:37
Who Jason Landry was
Ash introduces Jason Landry's background, college struggles and transfer to Texas State University.
6:37
Pandemic isolation and changes
Jason's isolation during COVID-19, increased drug use and interest in spirituality are described, alongside the hosts' reflections on introversion.
10:48
The night of December 13, 2020
Jason's recorded FaceTime call, abrupt decision to drive home, and the closing of Waze before his last Snapchat.
16:33
The crashed car
A firefighter finds Jason's car on Salt Flat Road and police treat it as a routine accident.
18:07
Phone, clothing and police handling
Kent Landry finds Jason's phone and neatly piled clothing, and the hosts criticize how officers handled the scene.
25:20
Search efforts and the case going cold
Scent dogs, dive teams and aerial searches fail to find Jason and the investigation stalls.
27:51
Google searches and spirituality theory
Investigators point to Jason's searches about wilderness survival and enlightenment, while the hosts caution against overreading search history.
Linked moment · 30:18Skip to 30:18 using a listen link in the info box.
30:18
Online sleuths and the pond
The case moves to the Texas AG cold case unit, online groups and volunteers invest in searches, and a dog trail leads to an empty pond.
32:51
Kim Rossmo's investigation
Rossmo recreates the walk, faces a hostile landowner, and concludes Jason likely died of hypothermia.
37:52
Remains found in 2026
Jason's remains are found five miles from the crash site just outside the original search area, and the hosts weigh the remaining questions.
44:17
Fun fact about toasts
Ash shares that Romans dropped toast into wine, the origin of raising a toast.

People

In the conversation

Ash KelleyCo-host of the true crime podcast Morbid
Alaina UrquhartCo-host of Morbid, autopsy technician and author of the Butcher novels

Discussed

Jason LandryTexas State University student who disappeared in December 2020
Kent LandryJason Landry's father, a Presbyterian minister
Lisa LandryJason Landry's mother
Jeff FerryCaptain with the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office who investigated the case
Kim RossmoFormer Vancouver homicide detective and criminologist consulted on the case
Jim WestHouston resident who spent over $50,000 of his own money on searches
Stuart CarterLocal landowner alleged to have threatened Rossmo with a shotgun
Robert PicktonCanadian serial killer whose capture Rossmo's work reportedly aided
Gene RobinsonDrone pilot with Texas EquuSearch who assisted in the search

Topics

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Ashley Flowers and Brit Prawat examine the 2024 death of Spencer Irwin in Fresno, whose case police and the coroner dismissed without an autopsy.

From the publisher

On the evening of December 13, 2020, twenty-one-year-old Texas State University student Jason Landry left his apartment in San Marcos, TX headed in the direction of his parents in Missouri City. Several hours later, just after midnight, a firefighter discovered Jason’s wrecked car along the side of a rural road several miles from his destination—the lights were still on and the keys still in the ignition, but there was no sign of Jason anywhere.

Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on October 28, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.

Categories: True Crime·Food