Criminal

Criminal

By: Vox Media Podcast Network

Language: en

Categories: Society, Culture, Documentary, True Crime

Criminal is the first of its kind. A show about people who’ve done wrong, been wronged, or gotten caught somewhere in the middle. Hosted by Phoebe Judge. Named a Best Podcast of 2023 by the New York Times. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.

Episodes

Like a Bad Dream
Jan 09, 2026

One day in 2011, Lindsey Schweigert’s roommate came home to an open garage, a missing dog, and an overflowing bathtub. Lindsey remembers waking up in police custody.

Ramya Nagesh is the author of A Practical Guide to Insane and Non-Insane Automatism in Criminal Law – Sleepwalking, Blackouts, Hypoglycaemia, and Other Issues.

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Duration: 00:35:16
Sister Helen
Dec 26, 2025

In 1982, Sister Helen Prejean was invited to write a letter to a man on death row named Elmo Patrick Sonnier. She told us, “I thought that all I was going to be doing was writing letters. And lo and behold, two years later, I am in that execution chamber.” When we spoke to her in 2021, she was 81, and had been present at the executions of six men.

Sister Helen’s book, Dead Man Walking, is about her time as a spiritual advisor to Elmo Patrick Sonnier and Robert Lee Willie. 

This episode was originally released in 2021...

Duration: 00:43:52
The Speeding Duck, the Hungry Javelina, and “Leonardo da Pinchy”
Dec 19, 2025

Stories of animals really going for it.

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Episode transcripts are posted on our website.

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Duration: 00:36:54
The Knock
Dec 12, 2025

On Christmas morning, Laura Nowlin was in her living room with her infant son. They were getting ready to leave to spend the day with family. Then, Laura heard a knock on the door. She says it sounded frantic.

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Duration: 00:32:16
Fall River
Dec 05, 2025

In 1833, a writer named Catharine Williams began working on a new book. She’d published books of poetry and about the Revolutionary War before, but this book was going to be different. It was going to be about a Methodist minister, a mill worker, and a murder. 

Kate Dawson’s book is The Sinners All Bow: Two Authors, One Murder, and the Real Hester Prynne.

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Duration: 00:44:14
The Manual
Nov 28, 2025

In 1993, a family was found murdered in their home. A Maryland police spokesperson described the homicide investigation as the most “exhaustive and labor intensive” in the department’s history. And then investigators found a strange manual - written by someone calling themselves Rex Feral.

This episode was originally released in 2018.

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Say...

Duration: 00:29:31
The Post Office
Nov 21, 2025

Scott Darlington ran the post office in a village outside Manchester for four years. One day, the computer system told him there was money missing from the branch – and he was accused of theft and fraud. “I started thinking, ‘Maybe I’ve done this and I just haven’t realized that it’s been me.’”

Nick Wallis’s book is The Great Post Office Scandal. Scott Darlington’s book is Signed Sealed Destroyed.

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Duration: 00:45:08
The Boy Scout
Nov 14, 2025

When David Hahn was 16, he started working on something that caught the attention of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and the FBI.

Ken Silverstein’s book is The Radioactive Boy Scout.

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Duration: 00:46:23
Rogers Park
Nov 07, 2025

The story of one day in one neighborhood in Chicago – and the people living there who try to stop ICE agents from arresting their neighbors.

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...

Duration: 00:40:52
Ghostwatch
Oct 31, 2025

On Halloween night, in 1992, an unusual television special aired on the BBC. Nobody expected what happened next. “The technicians were looking up at the big screen in the lobby, saying to each other, ‘My God, what's going on in Studio One?’” 

This episode was first released in 2022.

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Duration: 00:52:48
The Custom of the Sea
Oct 24, 2025

In 1883, a sailing captain named Thomas Dudley accepted a job no one thought was a good idea: to sail a small ship called the Mignonette halfway across the world.

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Duration: 00:45:26
The Tusker
Oct 17, 2025

When Audrey Ryan’s father told her he once found 20 pounds of hash while he was fishing for scallops, she didn’t believe him. But he said that he wasn’t the only one who had found drugs in the ocean. 

Audrey Ryan wrote about the Tusker for Boston Globe Magazine.

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Duration: 00:34:17
Zak and Michelle
Oct 10, 2025

In 2006, a group of young men and teenagers were arrested under the Canadian Anti-Terrorism Act for planning to set off bombs in Toronto. They were known as the Toronto 18. One of the group’s leaders was a 20-year-old named Zakaria Amara.

Michelle Shephard wrote about Zakaria Amara for The Walrus magazine.

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Duration: 00:34:13
Patience
Sep 26, 2025

One Saturday morning in 2018, the police showed up at Patience Rousseau’s door, and started asking her questions about something she'd posted on Facebook after she'd had a miscarriage.

Caroline Kitchener’s article for The Washington Post is “She said she had a miscarriage — then got arrested under an abortion law.”

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Duration: 00:34:49
The Phone Call
Sep 19, 2025

Bow Suprasert had just returned from a trip abroad when she got a strange phone call, saying a man had been caught traveling with a passport in her name. But Bow’s passport was still in her suitcase.

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Duration: 00:36:57
The Compound
Sep 12, 2025

In 2023, a woman named Jella got a new job. On her first day, she got in a car to go to her new office. Then she got a feeling that something wasn’t right.

Denise Chan hosts the podcast Scam Factory.

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Duration: 00:37:06
This is Phoebe Judge from the IRS
Sep 05, 2025

Phoebe tries to scam an English grandmother named Daisy over the phone. But Daisy isn’t just any grandmother.

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Duration: 00:39:00
E. Jean
Aug 22, 2025

We visited E. Jean Carroll at her house in the woods to talk about her two trials against President Donald Trump.

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Duration: 00:43:00
The Bus Ride
Aug 15, 2025

Two days after Hurricane Katrina hit, people who lived in the Fischer Housing Projects were still trapped – and it didn’t seem like anyone was coming to help. So 20-year-old Jabar Gibson came up with a plan.

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Duration: 00:32:01
Kids on the Case
Aug 08, 2025

The summer after Jessica Maple finished 6th grade, she found out that her great-grandmother’s house had been burglarized. So, 12-year-old Jessica got out her notebook, looked for fingerprints, and decided she would conduct her own investigation. This week, four stories of kids who cracked the case.

This episode was first released in 2020.

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Duration: 00:34:27
The Clock Starts Ticking
Aug 01, 2025

On October 11, 2008, an 18-year-old was shot by someone firing a gun from the back seat of a car. A couple of hours later, homicide detectives arrived on the scene. And so did the camera crew for a reality television show.

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Duration: 00:35:09
Death in Eden
Jul 25, 2025

In the early 1930s, eight people settled on an uninhabited island in the Galapagos. Within five years, two were missing and two were dead.

Abbott Kahler’s book is Eden Undone: A True Story of Sex, Murder, and Utopia at the Dawn of World War II.

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...

Duration: 00:43:47
The Double
Jul 18, 2025

In 2023, two men told police the same story: each man said that his name was William Woods, and that his identity had been stolen.

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<...

Duration: 00:36:14
The Man Nobody Killed
Jul 11, 2025

On September 15, 1983, Michael Stewart was on his way home from a nightclub when police arrested him. Thirteen days later, he was dead.

Elon Green’s book is The Man Nobody Killed: Life, Death, and Art in Michael Stewart’s New York.

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Duration: 00:49:24
The Clearwater Monster
Jul 04, 2025

Early one morning in 1948, a phone call woke up the police chief in the small town of Clearwater, Florida. The caller said he’d seen something strange at the beach. Residents had found an odd set of footprints in the sand, and a rumor began circulating that Clearwater Beach had a sea monster.

Listen to other episodes of This is Love at https://thisislovepodcast.com/.

This episode was first released in 2020.

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...

Duration: 00:34:02
Uncle Harold
Jun 27, 2025

In 1997, Eric Konigsberg received a strange voicemail from someone in prison — a hit man who had confessed to at least ten murders. Eric and the man had never spoken before, but Eric had a hunch about who it was: his uncle.

Eric Konigsberg’s book is Blood Relation.

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Duration: 00:33:02
By Any Means Necessary
Jun 20, 2025

In July 2010, a woman was on vacation with her boyfriend of six years — they were traveling around Italy in a van. One day, she was looking for a pair of sunglasses in the glove box, and she found a passport. It had her boyfriend’s photo — but a different name.

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Duration: 00:47:51
The Guru
Jun 13, 2025

In the late 1960s, a yogi named Swami Rama came to the United States. His followers believed he could read their minds, visit them in their dreams, and manipulate reality. Shruti Swamy was one of them.

Shruti Swamy wrote a version of this story for the June 12th issue of The Believer. You can find it at https://www.thebeliever.net/.

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Duration: 00:33:58
Professor Quaalude
Jun 06, 2025

John Buettner-Janusch was one of the first Americans to study lemurs. He held prestigious faculty positions at Yale, Duke and NYU, before surprising everyone with a series of increasingly bizarre crimes.

Phoebe and Lauren got to visit the Duke Lemur Center in person – hear all about it in our latest episode of Criminal Plus. Use the promo code “JOINUS” for 20% off an annual membership. You’ll get behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal, ad-free listening of all of our shows, special merch deals, and more.

Peter Kobel’s book is The Strange Case of the Mad Professor...

Duration: 00:33:10
Thin Ice and Unusual Punishments
May 30, 2025

Two years ago, we started making Criminal Plus episodes — behind-the-scenes conversations featuring Phoebe and Criminal co-creator Lauren Spohrer. Today, we’re sharing some of those conversations with you — about everything from Phoebe’s jangly bracelets to the reason a judge ordered a man to watch Bambi. And we’re also sharing a promo code if you’d like to support our work and join our membership program. Use the code “JOINUS” for 20% off of an annual Criminal Plus membership, at thisiscriminal.com/plus.

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Duration: 00:24:27
Action Park
May 23, 2025

“Anyone who went to Action Park understood you could get really messed up going there. It was part of why you wanted to go.”

Seth Porges made a documentary about Action Park, along with Chris Charles Scott. It’s called Class Action Park.

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Duration: 00:32:27
No Hint or Help
May 16, 2025

In the 1950s, a new television quiz show premiered called Twenty One. But the first episode was a disaster — so the producers decided to try something.

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Duration: 00:35:39
False Positive
May 09, 2025

The night before she gave birth, Susan Horton had a salad for dinner. The next day, doctors told her she’d tested positive for opiates - and reported her to child welfare authorities.

This episode is from our friends at the Reveal podcast. Listen to a longer version here.

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Duration: 00:36:37
Tabatha
May 02, 2025

When Tabatha Trammell was 50 years old, she started studying to become a doula — a support person for pregnant women. Today, most of her clients are incarcerated. She says she always tells them her own story when she meets them: “I went down that same road. But I'm here today. And I'm going to tell you how to navigate this prison system.”

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Duration: 00:34:53
The Job
Apr 25, 2025

Not long into his job as prison superintendent, Frank Thompson had to prepare his staff to perform Oregon's first execution in three decades. They simulated each step of the process over and over and over.


This episode was first released in 2018.


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Duration: 00:30:03
The Roofman, Part 2
Apr 18, 2025

When Jeffery Manchester escaped from prison, a lot of people weren't surprised. But they didn't expect what happened next. "I kind of figured he'd be on the beach with a margarita, but nope."


This is the second part of a two-part story.


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Duration: 00:31:24
The Roofman, Part 1
Apr 11, 2025

Between 1998 and 2000, more than 40 stores and chain restaurants across the country were robbed by a masked man who always entered through the roof. Police couldn’t figure out where he’d turn up next.


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<...

Duration: 00:36:44
The Pride of Pine Hill
Apr 04, 2025

In the midst of the 1996 race for North Carolina governor, a new candidate emerged. Her name was Jolene Strickland, and her campaign slogan was “Too Good to be True.”


Barry Yeoman wrote about Jolene Strickland for The Assembly. Tricia Romano's book is called The Freaks Came Out to Write.


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Duration: 00:41:10
The Bottom of the Cliff
Mar 28, 2025

In May of 2021, the National Park Service received a call that a woman had fallen over the Grandview Overlook at New River Gorge National Park. After days of searching with rappel lines, infrared cameras, and dogs, they didn't find anyone.


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<...

Duration: 00:34:23
The Man Without a Will
Mar 21, 2025

A Toronto police officer was having an affair with a government worker – and then they found out about an elderly man who died with a large estate, and no will.


For more on the story, read Katherine Laidlaw’s piece, “The Inside Job.”


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Duration: 00:41:03
High Tide
Mar 14, 2025

Right after sunset, three boats sailed towards the rice plantations on the Combahee River. Harriet Tubman knew they had to hurry - they only had six hours before the changing tide would make it very difficult to get away.

Edda L. Fields-Black's book is "COMBEE: Harriet Tubman, the Combahee River Raid, and Black Freedom during the Civil War."

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Duration: 00:37:28
Five Stars
Mar 07, 2025

“Christopher Kinahan is probably the most successful and entrepreneurial criminal that Ireland has ever produced.”

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Duration: 01:18:14
The Stay
Feb 28, 2025

Last year, a committee of state lawmakers in Texas issued a subpoena for a man on death row to testify four days after he was scheduled to be executed. Today, what happened next in Robert Roberson's case.

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Duration: 00:40:04
The Butterfly Smuggler
Feb 21, 2025

The first time Ed Newcomer went to the L.A. Bug Fair, he met a man who called himself the world’s most wanted butterfly smuggler. It took three years of undercover work for Ed Newcomer to catch him in the act.

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Duration: 00:33:13
Ava and the Pickpocket
Feb 14, 2025

“He stole my watch. He stole my jewelry. I stopped wearing jewelry – just to see what else he would steal.” In 2004, Ava Do met a professional pickpocket at a bachelorette party in Las Vegas. And they fell in love.

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Duration: 00:40:47
Robert Smalls
Feb 07, 2025

On May 13, 1862, in Charleston, South Carolina, a man named Robert Smalls took command of a Confederate ship called The Planter and liberated himself and his family from slavery. As they passed the Confederate-held Fort Sumter, Robert Smalls was said to have saluted it with a whistle, and then added an extra one, “as a farewell to the confederacy.”

Robert Smalls’ great-great-grandson, Michael Boulware Moore, tells the story.

This episode was first released in June 2020.

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Duration: 00:33:39
The Raid
Jan 31, 2025

In 2023, police raided the Kansas newspaper where Eric Meyer worked with his mother, Joan. Seven officers also searched their home. Joan had a heart attack and died the next day.

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Duration: 00:36:50
Guns, Grenades, and $100,000
Jan 24, 2025

“Anything you can think of is going to be in the water.”

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Episode transcripts are posted on our website.

<...

Duration: 00:33:25
Dexter Wade
Jan 17, 2025

Bettersten Wade searched for her missing 37-year-old son for nearly six months. Then she found out that the police knew where he was the whole time.

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Duration: 00:35:49
Moon Rocks Wanted
Jan 10, 2025

On September 18, 1998, an unusual ad ran in USA Today — a company called John’s Estate Sales was looking to buy a moon rock. The phone number on the ad belonged to Special Agent Joe Gutheinz at NASA.

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Duration: 00:35:37
The Christmas Fire
Dec 27, 2024

The bodies of a woman and her child were found inside a burned house on Christmas Day, 1843. An autopsy showed that they’d died before the fire even started.

Alex Hortis's book is The Witch of New York.

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Duration: 00:38:48
Turtle vs. Toilet, a Monster in the Closet, and a Surprise Possum
Dec 20, 2024

Stories of animals really going for it.

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We also make This is Love and Phoebe Reads a Mystery.

Artwork by Julienne Alexander. Check out our online shop.

Episode transcripts are posted on our website.

Learn more a...

Duration: 00:49:32
Operation Flagship
Dec 13, 2024

In 1985, 160 people were sent letters saying they’d won free tickets to an NFL football game. They were told to pick up their tickets at the Washington Convention Center. When they arrived, they were greeted by cheerleaders, men in tuxedos, and team mascots. But then, they found out there were never any tickets at all.

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Duration: 00:29:38
The Sale
Dec 06, 2024

In 1791, three men filed lawsuits in the General Court of Maryland. They were all suing the same person: the Jesuit priest who enslaved them.

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Duration: 00:44:11
For the Sake of American Youth
Nov 22, 2024

“Children nowadays, they make maps. And say, this is the street where the store is that we're going to rob, and this is where we're going to hide, and this is how we get away.” In the 1950s, U.S. senators were worrying about “the fifth horseman of doom.” And they started an unusual investigation.

The recordings of the Senate hearings in this episode are courtesy of the NYC Municipal Archives.

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Duration: 01:20:17
Extraordinary and Compelling Reasons
Nov 15, 2024

In 1993, Gary Settle was sentenced to 177 years in prison. Twenty-six years into his sentence, he started helping other inmates get out of prison through something called compassionate release - a policy that allows people in prison to petition to be let out for “extraordinary and compelling” reasons.

You can learn more about Gary Settle in Anna Altman’s piece, "The Quality of Mercy," in The Atavist Magazine.

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Duration: 00:42:24
The Reverend
Nov 08, 2024

In 1977, a man named Robert Burns went to a funeral and shot someone, in the head, in front of 300 people. He didn’t deny it, and his lawyer didn’t deny it. Burns told a police officer: “I had to do it. And if I had to do it over, I’d do it again.”

Casey Cep’s book is The Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee.

This episode was originally released in 2019.

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Duration: 00:38:03
The Family Land, Part 2
Nov 01, 2024

This week, part two of the Reels family story – how two brothers went to jail in an attempt to save their family land, and were held there for eight years without being charged with a crime. “I’m not going to give up. I don’t think I’m wrong, and I’m willing to fight for it.”

For more on the Reels family’s story, you can read Lizzie Presser’s article, “Their Family Bought Land One Generation After Slavery. The Reels Brothers Spent Eight Years in Jail for Refusing to Leave It.”

Say hello on Twitter, Face...

Duration: 00:29:47
The Family Land, Part 1
Oct 25, 2024

Melvin Davis and Licurtis Reels refused to leave the land that had been in their family for generations – so they were sent to jail. They expected to be in jail for 90 days. They were there for 8 years. This week, part 1 of their story.

For more on the Reels family’s story, you can read Lizzie Presser’s article, “Their Family Bought Land One Generation After Slavery. The Reels Brothers Spent Eight Years in Jail for Refusing to Leave It.”

Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional newsletter, The Accomplice. Follow the...

Duration: 00:33:47
Valentine
Oct 18, 2024

Today, a personal story from Phoebe about her mother, Valentine, who died this spring.

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We also make This is Love and Phoebe Reads a Mystery.

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Episode transcripts are posted on our w...

Duration: 00:41:34
Under the Wall
Oct 11, 2024

Soon after the Berlin Wall went up, a group of students knocked on Joachim Rudolph’s door. They told him they were trying to get people out of East Germany - and they wanted his help. 

Helena Merriman’s book and BBC podcast are called Tunnel 29. You can hear the episode of AirSpace with Günter Wetzel here.

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Duration: 00:39:05
A Land Without Law
Oct 04, 2024

Before Guantánamo Bay became the prison we know today, Marie Genard spent more than a year of her life there. She was 14.

Brandt Goldstein’s book is Storming the Court: How a Band of Law Students Fought the President—and Won.

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We als...

Duration: 01:01:08
The Mirage
Sep 27, 2024

In 1977, a new bar opened on North Wells Street in Chicago. Things weren’t as they seemed at the aptly named “Mirage Tavern.”

This story is from our friends at Snap Judgment.

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We also make This is Love and Phoebe Reads a Mystery...

Duration: 00:34:51
A Murder in the Forest
Sep 20, 2024

One morning, two men got in a boat and sailed down a river in the Amazon rainforest. They were never heard from again.

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Duration: 00:39:01
Into the Vault
Sep 13, 2024

In the summer of 1975, two best friends attempted a robbery unlike any they’d ever pulled off before. Their target: the mob.

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We also make This is Love and Phoebe Reads a Mystery.

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<...

Duration: 00:42:17
The Petition
Sep 06, 2024

When Madison Smith went to her county attorney’s office to talk about her rape case, she knew she wanted to press charges. But the prosecutor told her he wouldn't bring a rape charge. Then she discovered a loophole in an old Kansas law.

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We...

Duration: 00:38:45
Hot Lotto
Aug 23, 2024

In 2010, a $16.5 million Hot Lotto ticket was sold at a gas station in Des Moines, Iowa. At first, no one showed up to claim the prize. And then, a series of lawyers tried to claim the money on behalf of a client they would not name. Things got stranger, and eventually investigators uncovered what has been called the biggest lottery fraud in U.S. history.

This episode was first published in 2021. 

Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Sign up for our occasional newsletter, The Accomplice. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: i...

Duration: 00:33:41
Big Fish
Aug 16, 2024

Two men turned in the winning catch at a Lake Erie fishing tournament. But when the tournament director squeezed one of their fish - he felt something inside. 

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Listen back through our archives at youtube.com/criminalpodcast. Duration: 00:36:09

Ana
Aug 09, 2024

Phoebe: Are there a lot of spies in this country today?

Scott: Far more than people can probably even imagine. You can't rule anybody out. You never know what it is that motivates people to do this.

For 17 years, Ana Montes was quietly sharing information with the Cuban government while working as a U.S. defense intelligence analyst.

Scott Carmichael’s book is True Believer: Inside the Investigation and Capture of Ana Montes, Cuba's Master Spy. Jim Popkin’s book is Code Name Blue Wren – The True Story of America’s Most Dangerous Female S...

Duration: 00:47:20
Trouble in Flamingo
Aug 02, 2024

Hunters in the Everglades used to kill millions of birds every year for their feathers. In 1902, a man named Guy Bradley was hired to stop people from shooting the birds – but it wasn’t easy. “If you’re working alone in the wilderness, no witnesses, and the people that you’re going up to are armed, it’s really dangerous.”

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Duration: 00:37:31
Millions of Pills
Jul 26, 2024

“There was a saying I heard a few times: ‘under the influence, above the law.’ And I think that describes the mindset of a certain type of fraternity guy.” 

Max Marshall’s book is Among the Bros: A Fraternity Crime Story.

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Duration: 00:45:51
Los Hipopótamos
Jul 19, 2024

In the 1980s, Pablo Escobar smuggled four hippopotamuses into Colombia for a zoo on his ranch. Today, there are over 160 hippos in the country. “It’s like hippo paradise here. They have water and food all year long. They have no predators…They can do whatever they want."

Listen to Jorge Caraballo’s Radio Ambulante episode about narco tours here.

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Duration: 00:48:21
The Disappearance of Leslie Arnold
Jul 12, 2024

In 1967, a 24-year-old named Leslie Arnold escaped from prison. The FBI looked for him for years. And then, in 2022, a U.S. Marshal got a message from his son.

How are we doing? Take our survey here.

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Duration: 00:47:34
Ten Thousand Feet in the Air
Jul 05, 2024

On the afternoon of June 23rd, 1972, Martin McNally walked into the St. Louis airport with a wig, a sawed-off rifle, and a plan.

Special thanks to Danny Wicentowski. Learn more at the Riverfront Times: “The Final Flight of Martin McNally.”

This episode was originally released in 2018. To hear the second part of this story, “The Fox,” click here. 

How are we doing? Help us improve by completing our audience survey: https://thisiscriminal.com/survey.

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Duration: 00:34:53
State of North Carolina v. Joan Little
Jun 28, 2024

When Karen Bethea-Shields was in college, she heard a judge say, “No way in the world a Black woman can get raped.” A few years later, in 1975, she helped successfully defend Joan Little—a Black woman—who became the first woman in the U.S. to be found not guilty of murder using the defense that she used deadly force to resist sexual assault.

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Duration: 00:37:11
The Demon Spread
Jun 21, 2024

“The ingenuity of depraved human genius has culminated in the production of margarine.”

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Listen back through our archives at youtube.com/criminalpodcast.

We also make This is Love and Phoebe Reads a Mystery.

Artw...

Duration: 00:28:25
One Troy
Jun 14, 2024

The Lawrence H. Woodward funeral home in Brooklyn has been run by one family for generations, and has handled many funerals for victims of violent crime.

When we visited, one funeral director told us, “I don’t think people understand when you’re dealing with a victim who’s been shot – we see these things. It’s a mental toll on the person that has to now look at this gunshot victim and put them back together.”

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Duration: 00:41:08
11 to 1
Jun 07, 2024

When JonRe Taylor was called for jury duty in 2007, she voted ‘not guilty’ on every charge. But the defendant was convicted and sent to prison anyway.

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We a...

Duration: 00:44:08
The Six
May 24, 2024

In 1989, three people confessed to participating in a murder. Eventually, a total of six people were arrested. But when DNA tests were run on crime scene evidence almost 20 years later - the results showed that none of them had been there at all.

This episode picks up where our last episode left off. If you haven't heard the first part yet - we recommend going back and listening to that first. It’s called Type B.

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Duration: 00:40:58
Type B
May 17, 2024

Six people were arrested for a murder in Nebraska. Some said they couldn't remember details of the crime, or being there at all - but then they began to have dreams about it.

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Duration: 00:35:44
The Confession, Part 3
May 10, 2024

When we last spoke with Trevell Coleman, he was waiting to hear back about his clemency application. And then, in December of last year, his lawyer got a phone call.

We shared Trevell’s story in two episodes we released last fall. They’re called The Confession Part 1 and 2.

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Duration: 00:32:59
Right of Way
May 03, 2024

In 1991, two police officers stopped Tupac Shakur for jaywalking. He said he was knocked unconscious during his arrest, and sued the city of Oakland for 10 million dollars. His lawyer says many of the police brutality cases he's worked on started with jaywalking stops.

Peter Norton’s book is Fighting Traffic.

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Duration: 00:35:07
Mr. Apology
Apr 26, 2024

In 1980, posters appeared in subway stations and on telephone poles in New York City with a phone number to call. When you called it, you would hear a message: “This is Apology. Apology is not associated with the police or any other organization but rather is a way for you to tell people what you have done wrong and how you feel about it.”

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Duration: 00:49:31
Under Oath
Apr 19, 2024

When he was 14 years old, Ron Bishop testified in a murder trial. Decades later, he told an investigator everything he said on the stand was a lie – and that it was just what he was told to say.

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...

Duration: 00:50:59
The Strike
Apr 12, 2024

When people started saying that John D. Rockefeller Jr. was responsible for the deaths of two women and 11 children near a coal mine in Colorado, he decided to do something unusual. He hired “the father of public relations.”

Scott Martelle's book is Blood Passion: The Ludlow Massacre and Class War in the American West.

Amy Westervelt's podcast is called Drilled.

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Duration: 00:47:11
An Officer's Arrest
Apr 05, 2024

Sultan Alam was the first Pakistani officer to join the traffic department of the Cleveland Police in the UK. He was harassed at work and complained to his senior officers about it. Then his coworkers showed up at his house to arrest him.

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Duration: 00:43:29
Indelible Ink
Mar 22, 2024

For almost thirty years, Adolfo Kaminsky lived quietly, forging documents for people all over the world. It started when he was 18.

Sarah Kaminsky’s book is Adolfo Kaminsky: A Forger’s Life.

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Duration: 00:43:49
The Hiss
Mar 15, 2024

As the famous English actor William Macready was preparing to go on stage in New York, over 300 police officers were placed in and around the theater. “But the head of the police said, ‘I don't know that that's going to be enough people.’”

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Duration: 00:41:40
The Dial Painters
Mar 08, 2024

In the early 1920s, painters at a watch dial factory in New Jersey started to get sick. No one could tell them why.

Kate Moore's book is called The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women.

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Duration: 00:45:50
If I’m Long Unheard From
Mar 01, 2024

In 1974, musician Connie Converse drove away from home and was never heard from again.

Howard Fishman’s book is To Anyone Who Ever Asks: The Life, Music, and Mystery of Connie Converse. Martha Wainwright’s cover of "One By One" is on Vanity of Vanities: A Tribute to Connie Converse. Julia Bullock’s album is Walking in the Dark. You can find Connie Converse’s music at http://connieconverse.com. 

Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Sign up for our occasional newsletter, The Accomplice. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: iTunes.com/Crimi...

Duration: 00:41:19
Off Leash
Feb 23, 2024

“I never did anything wrong. I never had a speeding ticket. I think I just saved all my stuff up for just one thing.” We speak with Toby Dorr, who started a prison dog training program in 2004. That’s how she met John Manard. 

This episode was originally released in 2019.

Criminal is on tour this month! We're telling brand new stories, live on stage. You can even get meet and greet tickets to come and say hi before the show. Tickets are on sale now at thisiscriminal.com/live. We can’t wait to see you there...

Duration: 00:49:27
Call Russ Ewing
Feb 16, 2024

“The police had surrounded the house. They had been there for quite a while. They didn’t want to try to rush the house because they thought he might kill one of the innocent people. But after waiting for a long time, I asked the police: ‘Let me see if I can talk to the guy.’”

For decades, TV news reporter Russ Ewing stood beside more than 100 people — at their request — as they surrendered to the police.

Thanks to CBC Licensing.

This episode was originally released in 2020.

Criminal is on tour this month! We...

Duration: 00:33:33
Cowboy Bob
Feb 09, 2024

In May 1991, a bank robber walked into a bank in Irving, Texas, and without speaking handed the teller a note that read, “This is a bank robbery. Give me your money. No marked bills or dye packs.”

Check out Skip Hollandsworth’s Texas Monthly article, “The Last Ride of Cowboy Bob.”

This episode was first released in 2020.

Criminal is on tour this month! We’re telling brand new stories, live on stage. You can even get meet and greet tickets to come and say hi before the show. Tickets are on sale now at thisiscri...

Duration: 00:37:15
Bonus: The Liberal Arts Club
Feb 07, 2024

Listen to the latest Criminal Plus bonus episode completely for free. Phoebe and Lauren hit record on the drive to visit a 100-year-old Liberal Arts Club in Tarboro, North Carolina. You’ll also hear Phoebe’s presentation to the club about the history of Criminal, and how she thinks about the stories we tell.

If you’re not a Criminal Plus member and you like what you hear, become a member at thisiscriminal.com/plus or in your Apple Podcasts feed. You'll also get ad-free episodes!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastch...

Duration: 00:29:59
911
Feb 02, 2024

A conversation with a 911 operator about what happens on the other end of the line – and the day she heard her daughter's voice on the phone.

Criminal is going back on tour this month! We’ll be telling brand new stories, live on stage. You can even get meet and greet tickets to come and say hi before the show. Tickets are on sale now at thisiscriminal.com/live. We can’t wait to see you there!

Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Sign up for our occasional newsletter, The Accomplice. Follow the show and re...

Duration: 00:38:19
The Ninth Floor
Jan 26, 2024

Martin Abramowitz knew that his father had worked at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company, but he always thought he hadn’t been there the day the building caught fire and 146 workers died. Then he found out that a man with the same name as his father had testified at the factory owners' trial.

Criminal is going back on tour in February! We’ll be telling brand new stories, live on stage. You can even get meet and greet tickets to come and say hi before the show. Tickets are on sale now at thisiscriminal.com/live. We can’t wait...

Duration: 00:44:18
48 Hours, Part 2
Jan 19, 2024

This episode picks up where 48 Hours, Part 1 left off. We suggest you listen to them in order.

When Aaron Quinn called the Vallejo police to report that his girlfriend Denise Huskins had been kidnapped, and went into the station for questioning, a detective told Aaron that he didn't believe him. When Denise was released after being held captive for about 48 hours, police didn't believe her either. It soon became clear that the police viewed Denise and Aaron as suspects, not victims.

Denise Huskins and Aaron Quinn’s book is Victim F.

This episode was o...

Duration: 00:45:53
48 Hours, Part 1
Jan 19, 2024

“I think it was around 3:00 a.m., and that’s when I heard a strange man’s voice waking me from sleep.”

This is part one of a two-part episode. Listen to part two in our next episode.

Denise Huskins and Aaron Quinn’s book is Victim F.

This episode was originally released in 2021.

Criminal is going back on tour in February! We’ll be telling brand new stories, live on stage. You can even get meet and greet tickets to come and say hi before the show. Tickets are on sale now at...

Duration: 00:54:13
The Hunt
Jan 12, 2024

In 2016, the FBI attaché in Pretoria, South Africa, got a phone call from a woman asking the FBI to investigate the death of her friend, Bianca Rudolph. Bianca had died on a hunting trip in Zambia’s Kafue National Park, but her friend didn’t think it was an accident.

Criminal is going back on tour in February! We’ll be telling brand new stories, live on stage. You can even get meet and greet tickets to come and say hi before the show. Tickets are on sale now at thisiscriminal.com/live. We can’t wait to see yo...

Duration: 00:31:27
Tokyo Joe
Jan 05, 2024

Ken Eto worked for the Chicago Outfit for 30 years. He was known as the mob’s bolita expert, bringing in millions of dollars a year for them. But in 1983, they turned on him.

Dan O’Sullivan wrote about Ken Eto for Chicago Magazine and Epic Magazine - you can read his piece here.

Criminal is going on tour in February! We’ll be telling brand new stories, live on stage. You can even get meet and greet tickets to come and say hi before the show. Tickets are on sale now at thisiscriminal.com/live.

Say...

Duration: 00:46:28