Criminal

One Sunday afternoon, a man named William Mumler decided to take a self portrait. He said he was alone in the photography studio, but as the photograph developed, he saw something very strange—the image of someone else, sitting beside him. Louis Kaplan’s book is The Strange Case of William Mumler, Spirit Photographer. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important way to help new listeners discover the show:...

“What I recall most is the way that she grabbed my wrist and, shaking a bit, she said over and over again, ‘If it happens, run. Don't let that happen to you. Run. If it ever happens, run.’” It was years before Cynthia Brown understood what her great-grandmother, Athalia Howe, was talking about. David Zucchino's book is Wilmington's Lie: The Murderous Coup of 1898 and the Rise of White Supremacy. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review...

Qandeel Baloch grew up in a conservative village in Pakistan, a place where it was shocking to see a woman swimming outdoors. She ran away from home, changed her name, and eventually became "Pakistan's first social media star." By 2015, she was reported to be one of the 10 most Googled people in Pakistan. The next year, she was dead. Sanam Maher's book is A Woman Like Her: The Story Behind the Honor Killing of a Social Media Star. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you...

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." She's now 81, and has been present at the executions of six men. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important way to help new listeners discover the...

A day in the life of the town of Kalispell, Montana. Thanks very much for listening this year, and happy New Year. Read about other days in the Flathead Beacon's Police Blotter. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important way to help new listeners discover the show: iTunes.com/CriminalShow. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter, The Accomplice. If you’d like to...

With Covid-19 shutdowns, people have been taking advantage of quiet highways to drive as fast as they can from New York City to Redondo Beach, California. They’re trying to break records set in an unofficial and secretive race called the “Cannonball.” In today’s episode, the history of the illegal cross country race, how it has evolved since 1971, and why fans say it will never go away. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple...

When Nathan Myers and Clifford Williams were charged with murder, neither of them were worried they would be convicted. They had dozens of witnesses that could confirm that they had been at a party when the shots were fired. But during their trial, not a single one of those witnesses was asked to testify. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important way to help new listeners discover the show:...

One Sunday night in November 1987, something very odd happened in the middle of the nine o’clock news in Chicago. As one television viewer said, it felt like someone threw "a brick through your window." A television engineer said it felt like "a home invasion." And a little boy said it was "very, very funny." Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important way to help new listeners discover the show:...

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 woke up that morning to find 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/. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple...

In 1932, a group of men in a speakeasy in New York City hatched a plan — to take out life insurance on a loner named Michael Malloy, and make his death look like an accident. They thought it would be easy money. But Michael Malloy would become known as the man who just wouldn’t die. Simon Read’s book is On the House: The Bizarre Killing of Michael Malloy. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important way to...

On May 8, 2013, a man named Timothy Jones was arrested in Chicago. He says it wasn’t until he got to the police station that he found out that he was being charged with murder. He didn’t even know someone had died. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important way to help new listeners discover the show: iTunes.com/CriminalShow. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter, The...

In the mid-1800s, Harvard Medical School had a reputation for being a "den of body snatchers." And then, in November 1849, the school’s most prominent supporter went missing. He was last seen walking into the medical school building. Paul Collins’ book is Blood & Ivy: The 1849 Murder That Scandalized Harvard. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important way to help new listeners discover the show:...

Early in his career, Errol Morris read about a shocking series of alleged insurance crimes in Florida. When he told an insurance investigator he wanted to go to Florida to make a documentary, the investigator said, "Don't even think about it." Errol Morris went anyway. Today, the story behind the movie he couldn't figure out how to make, working as a private detective, and meeting Ed Gein. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple...

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. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important way to help new listeners discover the show:...

In 1978, Tim Jenkin was charged under South Africa’s Terrorism Act for disseminating anti-apartheid material, and sentenced to 12 years in prison. Just before he was convicted, someone gave him a book called Papillon, which he said “was really a manual of escape.” Tim Jenkin’s book is Escape from Pretoria. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important way to help new listeners discover the show:...

In 1989, Helen Ackley decided to sell her old Victorian house in Nyack, New York. It didn't go as planned. The house became the center of a case that's referred to as “The Ghostbusters ruling.” The judicial opinion read: “as a matter of law, the house is haunted.” Our other shows are Phoebe Reads a Mystery and This is Love. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important way to help new listeners discover the...

People incarcerated in California’s San Quentin State Prison aren’t allowed to have pets—but some people, like Ronell Draper, have found ways to work around that. Meet Ronell Draper, also known as “Rauch,” plus Ear Hustle’s Nigel Poor and Earlonne Woods join Phoebe to talk about the impact of Covid-19 at San Quentin. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important way to help new listeners discover the show:...

"I didn't do what they said I did. And it was like, I don't know how to disprove the police. I mean, it's my word against theirs. I don't really stand a chance.” - Julian Betton Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven't already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It's an important way to help new listeners discover the show: iTunes.com/CriminalShow. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter, The Accomplice. If you'd like to...

On May 13, 1862, Robert Smalls took command of a Confederate ship and liberated himself and his family from enslavement. His great-great-grandson, Michael Boulware Moore, tells the story. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven't already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It's an important way to help new listeners discover the show: iTunes.com/CriminalShow. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter, The Accomplice. If you'd like...

On August 10th, 2014, one day after 18-year-old Michael Brown was shot and killed by Officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, Edward Crawford went to his first protest. “The people, you know, I guess they were out there to be heard,” Ed told us. This episode contains references to police brutality. To see Robert Cohen's photographs, visit thisiscriminal.com. Criminal is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you haven’t already, please review us on Apple Podcasts! It’s an important...