Jessie Buttafuoco | My Mother Was Shot in the Head; The Crime That Came to Define My Family Will Not Define My Life

Imagine you’re 9 years old, living your best life. You have what feels like the perfect family. You live in the suburbs. You go to dance classes for fun. Everything is… perfect.And then… BOOM. A horrific crime throws your family into the center of the biggest true crime saga the nation has ever seen. You go from relative anonymity to having dozens of news stations camped out on your front lawn… all while your parents are nowhere to be seen…Because one is in the hospital, fighting for her life… and the other is under suspicion for attempted murder.This was the life of Jessie Buttafuoco, the daughter of Joey and Mary Jo Buttafuoco… the latter of whom was shot in the face at point blank range by Joey’s underage mistress, Amy Fisher.Amy would come to be known as “the Long Island Lolita,” and the case would gain global attention. Drew Barrymore and Alyssa Milano would play her in subsequent made-for-TV movies. It was all… a lot.And so much of it focused on the wrong person: the perpetrator.Jessie’s story is one of taking the narrative back, working to see life through a new lens, and helping the public do the same. She’s appeared on Dr. Oz (2018), was featured in a 2-hour ABC 2020 special titled “Growing up Buttafuoco” (2019), and was a featured speaker on behalf of ABC News for CrimeCon House Arrest. In 2021, she appeared on The Doctors, talking about the mental and emotional effects of her childhood experiences.Today, she is focused on helping to change the narrative around true crime in the media, and the way victims are portrayed, exploited, and often re-victimized. Our conversation on today’s show sheds a new light on her life, her recovery from addiction, and her plans for the future.Tune in for a major dose of inspo from a bright light who didn’t let the darkness dim her sparkle.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

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When Jamie Hess almost died, she woke up. As the daughter of legendary broadcast journalist Joan Lunden, it seemed from the outside that Jamie had everything… so why did she feel so empty inside? She pondered that question as she fell into a life of drug addiction, and when she hit her bottom, it hit her: *nothing feels good until we get grateful* … but we often don’t feel grateful until we have a wake-up call. Each week, we tell stories of turning pain to purpose... shared by some of the most inspirational people on the planet. Because an attitude of gratitude is the heartbeat of happiness... let's get there together.