Criminal
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 (71)
E. Jean
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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The Bus Ride
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...
Kids on the Case
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...
The Clock Starts Ticking
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...
Death in Eden
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,...
Abbott Kahler’s book is Eden Undone: A True Story of Sex,...
The Double
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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The Man Nobody Killed
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...
Elon Green’s book is The Man Nobody Killed: Life, Death, and...
The Clearwater Monster
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...
Uncle Harold
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...
By Any Means Necessary
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...
The Guru
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...
Professor Quaalude
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...
Thin Ice and Unusual Punishments
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...
Action Park
“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...
Seth Porges made a documentary about Action Park, along with Chris Charles...
No Hint or Help
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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False Positive
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...
This episode is...
Tabatha
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...
The Job
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...
The Roofman, Part 2
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...
This is...
The Roofman, Part 1
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...
The Pride of Pine Hill
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...
Barry Yeoman wrote about Jolene...
The Bottom of the Cliff
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...
The Man Without a Will
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...
For more on the story, read Katherine...
High Tide
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...
Five Stars
“Christopher Kinahan is probably the most successful and entrepreneurial criminal that Ireland has ever produced.”
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The Stay
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...
The Butterfly Smuggler
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...
Ava and the Pickpocket
“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...
Robert Smalls
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...
The Raid
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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Guns, Grenades, and $100,000
“Anything you can think of is going to be in the water.”
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Dexter Wade
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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Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and...
Moon Rocks Wanted
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...
The Christmas Fire
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...
Alex Hortis's book is The Witch of New...
Turtle vs. Toilet, a Monster in the Closet, and a Surprise Possum
Stories of animals really going for it.
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Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional newsletter, The Accomplice. Follow the show and review us on Apple...
Operation Flagship
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...
The Sale
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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For the Sake of American Youth
“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....
Extraordinary and Compelling Reasons
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...
The Reverend
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...
The Family Land, Part 2
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...
The Family Land, Part 1
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...
Valentine
Today, a personal story from Phoebe about her mother, Valentine, who died this spring.
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Under the Wall
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...
Helena...
A Land Without Law
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...
Brandt Goldstein’s book is Storming the Court: How a Band of Law Students...
The Mirage
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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This story is from our friends at Snap Judgment.
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A Murder in the Forest
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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Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional...
Into the Vault
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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The Petition
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...
Hot Lotto
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...
Big Fish
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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Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and...
Ana
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...
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...
Trouble in Flamingo
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...
Millions of Pills
“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...
Max Marshall’s book is Among the Bros: A...
Los Hipopótamos
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...
The Disappearance of Leslie Arnold
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.
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Ten Thousand Feet in the Air
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...
Special thanks to Danny Wicentowski. Learn more at the Riverfront...
State of North Carolina v. Joan Little
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...
The Demon Spread
“The ingenuity of depraved human genius has culminated in the production of margarine.”
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One Troy
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,...
When we visited, one funeral director told us,...
11 to 1
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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Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram....
The Six
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...
Type B
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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The Confession, Part 3
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...
We shared Trevell’s story in two...
Right of Way
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...
Mr. Apology
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...
Under Oath
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.
Say...
Say...
The Strike
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...
An Officer's Arrest
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...
Indelible Ink
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.
Say hello...
Sarah Kaminsky’s book is Adolfo Kaminsky: A Forger’s Life.
Say hello...
The Hiss
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...
About this Podcast
Copyright
Copyright 2021, Criminal Productions
Language
en